Building a company with a life partner collapses the traditional boundaries between work and home — a reality that can be both punishing and deeply rewarding. That was the candid message from founders of Eleven Green and House of Pops during a session at the ninth Sharjah Entrepreneurship Festival (SEF 2026), where entrepreneurial couples spoke openly about the personal cost, discipline, and resilience required to build businesses together.

Two of the UAE’s best-known founder couples: House of Pops co-founders Mazen Kanaan and Marcela Sancho; and Eleven Green co-founders Sultan and Kinda Chatila, shared their journeys in conversation with moderator Lara Geadah of Cameo Comms at a panel discussion titled “Navigating Startups and Personal Life with Power Couples”, offering insights that resonated with early-stage founders and seasoned entrepreneurs alike.

Roles, rituals, and reality checks
For both couples, clarity of roles emerged as a turning point. At House of Pops, overlapping responsibilities in the early days proved unsustainable. “This was one of our biggest learnings,” said Sancho. “I take care of manufacturing and people. Mazen takes business, marketing, finance, and operations. In the beginning, overlapping roles created a lot of tension.”

Kanaan framed the decision more starkly. “You have to decide: are you building a small, nice family business, or a company built to last?” he said. “We chose the second. That meant investing in senior people so not every decision depended on us. Even when it hurt profitability.”

At Eleven Green, family life is deliberately woven into the brand’s rhythm. “Every time we open a branch, we are the first customers, with the kids,” said Kinda Chatila. “It’s ritualistic. It connects the business to the family.”

Disagreements, both couples agreed, are inevitable. Managing them is the real test. “We have a lot of arguments, no doubt,” said Sultan Chatila, recalling a chaotic opening night when a grill malfunctioned while customers waited. “She was smiling in front of customers. I was in the back saying, ‘I told you the grill isn’t working.’ It was a nightmare.”

Their solution is unconventional but disciplined: daily 90-minute morning walks. “That’s where we vent,” Sultan explained. “We even fight on our walks,” Kinda added, laughing. “I’ll storm off, then sit and wait for him. But it gives us a container to let the steam out.”

For Kanaan and Sancho, professional accountability often collided with personal expectations. “If she didn’t submit a report on Monday, I couldn’t treat her differently from the team,” he said. “But if I was strict, it affected the relationship.”

Those early pressures, however, revealed resilience. Kanaan recalled Sancho driving a van from Dubai to Umm Al Quwain to load ice cream. “For someone who came to Dubai expecting glamour, that taught me what kind of partner I had.”

Growing each other, not just the business
Working together, the founders agreed, accelerates personal growth as much as commercial growth. “Mazen pushes me every day — podcasts, courses, even public speaking,” Sancho said.

“Marcela taught me unconditional love,” Kanaan replied. “I’m transactional by nature. She changed that.”

At Eleven Green, honesty is the growth mechanism. “She’ll taste my sauce and say, ‘It’s good, but it’s missing something,’” Sultan said. “I always tell him the truth,” Kinda added.

Passion as a renewable resource
In a competitive F&B market, sustaining creativity requires constant renewal. “We travel to get inspired,” said Kinda. “But more importantly, we stay involved in the creative part — new burgers, new desserts. That keeps the passion alive.”

For House of Pops, restraint is the challenge. “We could do so many things,” Sancho said. “But staying true to health and wellness is hard. That focus is what keeps the brand sharp.”

None of the founders claimed to have mastered balance. “You’ll never get it right,” Kanaan said. “It’s always changing. You’re always growing through it.”