Maryam Ishtiaq didn't take the easy road — she took every road. From pre-med at Georgia Gwinnett to international marketing, from New York influencer to Dallas entrepreneur, her journey is one of the most honest stories of reinvention we've ever heard on The Caravan.In this episode, Maryam opens up about the pregnancy loss that nearly broke her — and how cooking pulled her back from the edge. That moment of healing became the foundation for It's Actually, a halal beef bone broth brand that started with 32 jars a day made in a family kitchen and has since closed a $500K seed round with Friday Ventures.We get into all of it: the immigrant pressure to become a doctor, the burnout of the influencer grind, building a CPG brand with no outside capital, serving cancer patients through chemo recovery, getting their first retail shelf at Greenvine Market, winning an SBA loan when investors wouldn't bite, and why the halal food category is long overdue for a real brand to own it.0:00 Introduction2:24 Early Life & Cooking Origins3:41 Pre-Med to Marketing Pivot6:07 The ICU Moment13:58 Moving to New York & Influencer Life16:23 The Highlight Reel vs. Reality18:26 Navigating Criticism & Depression23:12 Moving to Dallas & Pregnancy Loss33:20 Cooking as Healing43:27 From Kitchen to Business54:51 Raising Capital & Retail Growth1:04:03 Supply Chain & Halal Vision1:05:30 Future Goals1:11:48 Overrated / Underrated1:13:56 Wrap-Up

Building a company is phase one — the real game is learning to sell it, acquire more, and use capital to move the Ummah forward.Hamza Abdallah is the founder of CATA Leads, a real estate lead generation agency based in Dallas, TX. In this conversation, we trace his path from immigrating at age nine — leaving Bangladesh after his father, a retired Major General, refused to be bought by a corrupt regime — through UT Austin, a pivotal mentorship under entrepreneur CJ Finley, and into building a company he's now preparing to exit.What you'll hear in this episode:How a McKinsey rejection freshman year redirected Hamza toward entrepreneurship — and why he sees it as Allah's planThe mentorship model CJ Finley built with Hamza at UT, and why Hamza is now replicating it with a key hire in EgyptWhy Hamza chose to niche into real estate seller leads and how cold email — with one specific subject line — built his early client baseThe difference between tying your camel tight and trusting the result to Allah, and why Hamza had to learn that distinction the hard way in year threeWhat "escape velocity" money means for a Muslim founder — and why an exit isn't about getting rich, it's about Ummah-level impactHow Hamza thinks about halal income operating adjacent to an interest-based industry

Morad Bouzidi came to the U.S. from Morocco at 19 with big dreams, limited connections, and a willingness to do whatever work it took to build a life. In this episode of The Caravan Podcast, we sit down with the founder of Moroccan Fusion inside Boston Public Market, where he shares the real story behind going from immigrant hustle (bakery jobs, serving tables, driving Uber) to launching a food truck in 2016 and eventually opening a brick-and-mortar location in 2020.Morad breaks down the hidden realities of the food business: why a food truck is “two businesses in one,” how commissary kitchens and city permits shape everything, and the painful lesson of losing $8,000 to a food truck build scam. We also get into the strategy side: building a fast-casual “build-your-bowl” concept inspired by Chipotle and CAVA, balancing authenticity with accessibility, and how he uses customer repeat-rate data (including a 50% weekly return rate) to measure whether the brand is truly earning trust.If you’ve ever thought about starting a restaurant, a food truck, or any small business—this is the honest version people don’t usually tell.

In this episode of the Caravan Podcast, we sit down with Tarek, founder of Pistache, a DFW bakery blending American desserts with Mediterranean flavor.Tarek shares his journey growing up between New Jersey and Lebanon, navigating revolution, economic collapse, and identity, before rebuilding his life and business in Texas. We talk about starting Pistache during COVID, learning the hard truths of wholesale, supporting family while running a business, and what it really takes to grow from survival mode into a real brand.From baklava inspired cheesecakes to pistachio milk, this episode is a raw look at entrepreneurship, resilience, and building something meaningful from scratch.

Asim Jetpuri left corporate to go all-in on opening a Goddard School in Garland. We break down franchising vs starting from scratch, leasing vs buying land, the real costs of DFW childcare, and how community leadership + barakah shaped his leap into a 20–30 year business.

We hit “record” and built Caravan in real time — six months of filming, traveling, collaborating, learning, and a few chaotic moments we’ll never forget (including the time we almost lost the footage 😭).In this end-of-year recap episode, you’ll meet more of the Caravan team beyond the faces you always see:Rimsha (Media Optimization Manager), Yousuf (Program Manager), and Ramiz (Producer / the guy behind the cameras) — plus the usual suspects, Hamza and Naveed.We talk about:- Our favorite episodes of the year (and why they hit so deep)- Brands + founders we discovered through the pod (and ones we already loved)- What it actually takes to run a media operation behind the scenes- Lessons we learned about consistency, trust, teamwork, and building with purpose- The funniest / most memorable Caravan moments (yes… the “footage” story is here)If you’ve been watching, supporting, sharing, or even just listening quietly — thank you. Your comments and random “yo I watch your podcast” moments genuinely keep us going.2026 is going to be different. We’re cooking. InshaAllah.📌 Subscribe for weekly episodes📌 Follow Caravan for clips + behind-the-scenes📌 Comment your favorite episode of the year — we’ll shout out a few#CaravanPodcast #MuslimEntrepreneurs #StartupStories #BehindTheScenes #PodcastRecap

Adil didn’t set out to build an app — he set out to change how power works.In this episode, the founder of Boycott traces a journey that starts with childhood dreams of being a superhero, moves through disillusionment with performative activism, and lands on a radical idea: if power speaks the language of money, then resistance must too.We unpack:Why “social justice” without infrastructure failsHow boycotts became a tool for economic leverage, not symbolismThe difference between solving problems now vs. building systems so they never exist againWhy Muslims are often generous with relief — but hesitant with infrastructureThe painful reality of being offered a buyout by your enemy before backing from your own communityHow technology enables a global, values-aligned alternative economyThis is a conversation about foundations, not feelings.About systems, not slogans.And about what it actually takes to build something that lasts 10, 20, 50 years.🎧 Watch the full episode — and ask yourself:Are we trying to feel good today, or build something that prevents the problem tomorrow?

In Episode 22, we sit down with Rheem Hammouda — entrepreneur, world-traveler, mother, and someone who’s lived more lifetimes than most of us combined. Her story moves from Egypt to Chicago to Dubai, through a divorce that reshaped everything, to a career at IBM, and ultimately to a path of healing that came from the most unexpected place.Rheem opens up about rediscovering herself after 15 years in corporate America, raising her son across continents, navigating faith with confidence, and the moment her health forced her to rethink everything she knew. What she found next — and how it transformed her life — even shocked her son… and apparently, Bill Gates.This episode is about resilience, identity, health, and the kind of barakah that shows up when you stop counting and start trusting.If you’re someone rebuilding, redefining, or reconnecting, this one will hit home.

In this episode, we sit down with Senan Khawaja — Stanford alum, global citizen, and founder of the EdTech startup Kollegio — to unpack his journey, his mission, and what’s next for education.👤 About Senan Khawaja:Senan graduated from Stanford University with a degree in Econometrics, Quantitative Economics, and International Development. He founded Kollegio to tackle the glaring inequity in college-counseling access — using technology to bring high-quality guidance to students worldwide.🔔 Why you should listen:Whether you’re a student navigating your path, an educator curious about the intersection of AI and learning, or an entrepreneur building in the impact space — this conversation provides insight into creating something with both purpose and scale.Connect with Senan:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/senankhawaja/Kollegio: kollegio.ai