OUR FOUNDER OF THE WEEK– Every Tuesday, Founder of the Week looks at how a successful member of Egypt’s startup community got their big break, asks about their experiences running a business, and gets their advice for budding entrepreneurs. Speaking to us this week is Nagwa Khedr, cofounder of Etwasel.

My name is Nagwa Khedr and I’m one of three founders of Etwasel, a center for children with developmental delays or special needs — and I’m a mom of two. I’ve been working as an early intervention specialist since 2010. I studied art and psychology at the American University in Cairo with a degree in art and psychology, and originally wanted to become an art therapist until I traveled to Ethiopia with an NGO after graduating. There, I worked with underprivileged kids in youth centers and orphanages — and that’s when I discovered that my passion lies in working with and helping kids to communicate better. In 2014, I started learning about the DIRfloortime (developmental, individual differences, relationship-based) approach. Fast forward to 2017, I began working with the International Council on Development and Learning (ICDL) and became the only trainer in the MENA region. and in 2019 I moved to London, where I continued teaching courses and helping families remotely from the UK.

I eventually came back to Egypt in 2021 and realized I didn’t want to join another center, where I would be forced to work under their umbrella and philosophy. I wanted to independently implement my own philosophy and share it with the world, so I cofounded Etwasel with Rania (LinkedIn) and Layan (LinkedIn), two other therapists.

The existing culture surrounding children with special needs is that people try to modify behaviors. Parents want to get a diagnosis and label, then work on the symptoms to modify or stop behaviors to appropriately fit the society or culture we live in. What I wanted to introduce is a model that is based on understanding behaviors and why the child is behaving this way. I want people to know that we’re dealing with individual differences and foster stronger relationships with these kids. We’re working to integrate them better in society and give them a voice and reasoning skills to become logical thinkers, not followers.

I don’t feel like I really gave up anything significant career-wise in my decision to start Etwasel. I don’t have a corporate background, so I didn’t have a massive shift in culture. As a therapist, I used to receive my paychecks on a session-by-session basis, which means I didn’t have the same concerns about a “steady” income in the same way as many other people who work at established companies.

I did give up on more family time because I have to be involved in every single detail so it takes a lot of my time — including when I'm home, but even in that I don’t see it as giving something up or as a burden.

At the beginning of my career, my family didn’t really get it — but that was 10-14 years ago. I think that now, with the business, I’m growing and learning how to express my philosophy more, and that really goes a long way. I’m better able to communicate what I'm doing and why I'm doing it, which changes the perspective a lot. My family is very supportive now and proud that I'm taking the steps I’m taking.

The best part of my job is actually helping others in the way that I see they need and believe in. They’re all different, so sharing this thought or philosophy and helping parents reach the same conclusion is amazing to see. You don’t need to change your child, you need to understand and meet them halfway. Seeing people receive and understand the message is the best and is so fulfilling.

The worst part of my job is that what we’re doing is relatively new — we’re trying to change the way people do therapy in Egypt. Usually, anything new is seen as strange or wrong. There’s also the fact that I have a much bigger responsibility now than I did when I first started working. When I was a therapist, I would just do my sessions but now I’m responsible for maintenance, toys, equipment, assessments — you name it. That also comes with a financial burden.

My biggest piece of advice to anyone thinking of starting a new business is: It’s risky, but if you're passionate about it, just do it.

The KPIs we consistently look at in our business are new referrals, new clients, and client retention. If someone leaves, we look at the people who stay and assess whether they outweigh those who leave.

I turn to my husband a lot when I need help fixing a problem. I know it’s cliche, but I never studied business or had any business experience — I learned things like what KPIs are on the go [laughs]. My husband has the ability to look at the bigger picture and also help me address the smaller issues. He supports me by pushing me — out of my comfort zone, out of my anxiety, out of my head.

Etwasel has been entirely self-financed. The three of us decided to go all out and take a gamble, and we were like, “Let’s try this.” We haven’t had any outside investors because, with this field especially, it’s often the case that they’ll want to change things for business purposes.

I would love to eventually expand Etwasel and set up new branches, but most of all I would love to have outreach programs in schools and nurseries. I want to create a transdisciplinary team and an integration within schools. We don’t really have plans to expand outside of Egypt for now.

A book I always go back to is Beyond Behaviors because it really describes that what we see in people’s behaviors are just the tip of the iceberg and we need to dig deeper. That philosophy really matches what I do and what Etwasel is all about.