Midhat H. Syed – Murtha Cullina, LLP

Midhat H. Syed, a partner in the Stamford office, advises clients in corporate and cross border transactions, particularly in emerging markets of the Middle East and South Asia. He serves as Co-Chair of the firm’s Islamic Finance and Investments Group. He routinely deals with transactions involving mergers and acquisitions, strategic joint ventures, Master Services Agreements (MSA), consulting and professional services engagements, and corporate compliance matters. Mr. Syed has extensive experience in advising and assisting IT companies, Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) service providers and customers, emerging technology companies, and business consulting firms.

Mr. Syed’s Islamic Finance practice involves assisting and advising institutions and entities with respect to Shari’iah (Islamic Law) compliant transactions in the realm of private equity investments, real estate finance, mergers & acquisitions, and investment funds. His domestic corporate practice includes advising and assisting small to mid size companies with entrepreneurial spirit. In this area he focuses on company formations, private equity, venture capital, angel funding, private placements, mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures and corporate compliance.

Tariq Farid - Edible Arrangements International

Tarid Farid is President and CEO of Edible Arrangements International, which specializes in creating exquisite, hand-sculpted, fresh fruit “bouquets” composed of strawberries, pineapple, grapes, oranges, cantaloupe, and honeydew. He is responsible for setting the company’s strategic direction and for the licensing of new franchises across the US and internationally.

Mr. Farid launched the first Edible Arrangements store in 1999 in East Haven, Connecticut, inspired by the convergence of three trends: American’s growing consumption of fresh fruit, the robust growth in the specialty food market, and the increasing dollars Americans were spending on gifts. A self taught computer whiz, Mr. Farid designed all the systems that would be rolled out to franchises, including their computer systems, training manuals, production and profitability tracking, supply chain management, etc. He has two U.S. patents pending for proprietary fruit-cutting machines and one patent for a fruit skewer he designed.

The first Edible Arrangements franchise opened in 2001; the current total is now over 850 stores. Growth continues unabated, with an average of 25 franchise singings a month. Mr. Farid’s involvement with franchises has been very hands on, including laying floors and helping with the painting of stores. He still spends about two hours daily in the corporate store in Hamden, Connecticut to stay in regular contact with customers, the day-to-day realities of running retail store and the marketplace’s changing demands.

Mr. Farid’s finesse with computer systems dates to 1993, when he founded Netsolace, which is a computer software distributor for the retail industry located in Hamden, Connecticut. He maintains his ownership of the company, which is an Edible Arrangement affiliate.

Mr. Farid’s entrepreneurial experience began in the late 1980’s which with a $5,000 cash advance form his parents, he purchased a local flower shop at age 17. Within two years, Mr. Farid was operating four highly successful stores. As a teenager, Mr. Farid worked in a local McDonald’s for several years and learned the power of business systemization.

Majeed Sharif – Nationwide Realty

Majeed Sharif has been active in the Real Estate industry for 25+ years; his specialty is in Commercial, Retail, and Investment properties. He also owned and operated his own Real Estate Brokerage and Property Management business of Marketing and Sales of Residential and Commercial properties. Mr. Sharif has earned the designation f GRI Graduate of Realtor Institute.

He has made the commitment and has been providing the highest level of professional services to his clients. He was awarded with the Top Sales Produces award at William Raveis Real Estate in 2005. Majeed is very active in various community activities and services including Vice President of Naugatuck Valley Housing Development Corp. Waterbury and Executive Board Member Naugatuck Valley Project a Social Justice Agency. Mr. Sharif currently served on the resource food committee at the United Way and assisted in proving food for the local food pantry and soup kitchen.

In addition, he has been active for over five years in humanitarian relief efforts internationally building schools, drilling wells, and feeding orphans in East and West Africa, Mali, Kenya, and Ethiopia. Currently he serves, as the Vice President in the Commercial Division at Nationwide Realty Commercial, Investments and Property Management located in Danbury, Connecticut.

Mohammad Shahid Khan – Shahani, Inc.

Mohammad Shahid Khan of Branford is truly a franchise innovator. An independent service station and food franchise dealer, he was one of the early Connecticut entrepreneurs with co-branded stations. He owns stations in Westbrook, New Haven, and North Haven and is one of MBACT’s pioneers and founders as well as its best recruiter. He has other franchises, including Dunkin Donuts, Shell, Exxon Mobil, Valero and Getty. Diverse and opportunity driven, he helps other station owners get going and is a master at networking and sharing opportunities with Muslim businesses.

Jamilah Rasheed – Amatullah’s Books

Jamilah Rasheed is the Owner of Amatullah Books www.amatullahsbooks.com, Ventures Unlimited www.venturesunlimitedllc.biz, and Co-Owner, along with her husband, Abdul-Rahman, of Rasheed Security Alarms Company. Born and raised in Connecticut, Jamilah has been an entrepreneur and small business owner for over twenty years with foresight and determination. Jamilah graduated with an Associates Degree in Computer Science from South Central Community College. After working for SNET for 13 years, Jamilah took early retirement to raise her two children and work with her husband on Rasheed Security. She home-schooled her son until the eighth grade. Jamilah's husband has a background in electronics and decided to use his skills in the security industry. Rasheed Securities currently has a broad base of customers from home to all size businesses. Installed are burglar as well as fire alarms, CCTV, security lighting, intercom and numerous security related items. Jamilah founded Amatullah Books in 1987 with the motto "a source for hard to find literature..." The company started as a side hobby when after traveling to various conferences and bazaars Jamilah wanted to expose her local community to the variety of literature that existed in Islamic scholarship. She set up wholesale relationships with several established book sellers and began to develop a reputation for being able to meet the demands of her clients by securing books upon request. Besides these two businesses she also operates Ventures Unlimited LLC, a retreat getaway service for women. "The goal is to provide retreats and other travel experiences that are both comforting as well as inspirational... Each year a different theme is chosen and the presentations are geared toward that." Jamilah is very involved with her local masjid, Masjid Al-Islam, located in New Haven. Along with other Muslim volunteers, she organizes a monthly meal for the Columbus House homeless shelter. Her outlook on life is that if we do not live to help those less fortunate than us then we have not truly lived.

Abdessamad Melouane – Guidance Financial

Guidance Financial provides premium financial services.

G. Berube - Premium Insurance & Financial Services

The Premium company offers Commercial and Personal Insurance lines and specializes in Islamic Compliant Investments.