My Business: She was tired of Dubai friendship plans going nowhere - so she built her own women-only app to fix it

Dubai: Mercy Joyce, 29, has lived in Dubai since 2020, and like most newcomers to the city, she joined every women's Facebook group and community chat she could find. The plans were always the same story - enthusiastic messages, plenty of "we should do this sometime" and then nothing.

That recurring letdown became the idea behind JaneJane, a women-only app she launched in July this year, where users can create or join real-life "hangouts", from coffee dates to workout classes to co-working sessions. Self-funded from her own savings, the app has already attracted more than 800 active users and 11 paying subscribers in its first few months - built, run and marketed entirely solo.

The problem - plans that never leave the chat

After a few years in Dubai, she found herself still hunting for ways to meet new people, and the city's many women-only Facebook groups and clubs weren't cutting it.

"No one is ever free, everyone's schedule is different, and the plan never makes it out of the group chat," she says. "I would join these groups and none of the plans would come to life. This is a recurring issue for a lot of newcomers looking for friends. So, what's the problem? Why can't we make solid plans?"

For Joyce, the answer also in the city’s  transient, fast-paced lifestyle but most importantly, it was about commitment. " If you really want to meet like-minded people in the city, you will find them, you just need to make the effort and be committed to it. Making friends as an adult is already kind of hard, especially when you have to start from scratch."

From 9-to-5 jobs to building businesses of her own

Joyce is originally from Cameroon, where she earned a degree in accounting alongside courses in marketing and business administration, a combination she credits with giving her the tools to eventually build her own business. Before moving to the UAE, she worked as an online tutor.

Once in Dubai, she took on marketing roles at several UAE-based businesses, but the traditional employee path never quite fit. "For me, I always found purpose when I was creating something of my own. I just didn't want to work under anyone, and I don't see that for myself long-term."

Entrepreneurship has run through her career from the start. Back home, she ran tutoring classes and sold African prints through her own small business. In the UAE, she tried her hand at a card-making venture that even landed a partnership with Ferns N Petals - "I remember once I had to create and print thousands of cards for a Women's Day celebration," she recalls. But spreading herself across too many ventures left her unfulfilled.

"I've had my fair share of failures before landing on JaneJane. It took me a while to build a business I'm truly passionate about, but it's all worth it, because I learnt from all of them."

The app designed to get women out of the group chat

JaneJane is built exclusively for women aged 18 and above. Every user must complete photo verification before they can create or join a plan, a process Joyce says is central to keeping the platform "safe, genuine and women-only."  Verification is typically reviewed within 48 hours, after which the photo is permanently deleted.

Once verified, users can browse or create "hangouts" - real-life meet-ups organised by women, for women. That could mean grabbing coffee, trying a new restaurant, a workout class, a beach day, a walk, a co-working session or a workshop.

Joyce is firm about what JaneJane isn't. "It's not another social networking app, an event platform, a place to endlessly chat online, or another WhatsApp," she says. "It's where women turn 'we should do this sometime' into actual plans."

Even the name was a deliberate marketing choice. "I look at the name purely from a marketing perspective. Major brands all have simple names, Apple, Facebook but they're easy to remember. Plus, the name is a play on words, like 'plain Jane' and 'Jane Doe'."

The business model

Downloading JaneJane and browsing hangouts is free. From there, the app makes money in two ways: an Dh30 commitment fee to reserve a spot in a hangout, and an Dh30 monthly subscription for users who want to create unlimited hangouts of their own.

The commitment fee, Joyce explains, is less about revenue and more about accountability. "We want the women who reserve a spot to genuinely show up. By making a small financial commitment, it encourages users to only reserve a spot if they truly plan to attend, helping reduce no-shows and creating more reliable hangouts for everyone."

The subscription, meanwhile, is aimed at JaneJane's most active planners. "It's for women who love making plans and want the freedom to create them whenever they want, for other women to join."

No big team, no large budget - just Dh5,000 and plenty of trial and error

Everything about JaneJane has been funded out of Joyce's own pocket. Building the app cost around Dh5,000, she considered using AI tools to build it herself but ultimately hired a freelance developer on a temporary contract, while using AI to shape the app's design and layout.

"I did use AI to figure out the design and layout for the app, I wanted to create something simple that's easy to navigate. I could have used vibe coding with AI to build the app in a few hours, but I wasn't confident in my skills for that, so I hired a developer on a temporary basis instead. It was expensive, but worth it, because I don't have those skills yet. I plan on learning to vibe code better so I can maintain the app myself."

Marketing runs on a similarly lean budget. Joyce manages all of JaneJane's social media and user queries herself and is currently spending around Dh3,000 on ads while the app is still new, a spend she plans to taper off as her organic reach grows.

Growing pains

Customer acquisition remains Joyce's single biggest expense, and she's approaching it cautiously. "I'm bootstrapping this app myself with my savings, so I need to be careful and grow at a reasonable pace. I need to strategically run ads and continue to grow my social media presence organically."

As a new platform, JaneJane also depends heavily on users generating their own content. "The app is like a marketplace, the sellers need to create hangouts and the buyers need to join them. Right now, I sometimes find myself feeding the app with hangouts, which I don't mind, I like creating them and meeting new people, but I want to push more women into creating hangouts themselves."

Through direct conversations with users, Joyce has found that creating a hangout can feel intimidating. "Honestly, I think making plans and following through with them needs effort. To make friends in a new city, you need to put yourself out there."

The experience has also made Joyce realise that scaling the app will require a team and more funding.

"The more the app grows, the harder it will become to manage without a team. To expand and improve the app further, I'm looking towards angel investors."

That search has meant messaging potential investors on LinkedIn and applying to start-up incubators across the UAE. "I've applied to angel investor incubators in the UAE, but I think I need to meet their revenue threshold to be eligible. So, I need to grow the app and build a substantial number of active users first."

Success you can't put a number on

Since JaneJane launched in July, Joyce measures its impact in moments rather than metrics. "I can't attach a number to it, but it's seeing hangouts happen, women smiling, making friends, interacting and supporting each other, when they were a group of strangers just a few hours ago. That's what success looks like to me."

Right now, her priority isn't revenue, it's reach. "The goal is to have more users on the app, but loyal and returning ones."

Competition exists in the wider space, though Joyce sees few direct rivals in the UAE, and believes JaneJane's design gives it an edge. Unlike apps built to keep users scrolling and chatting indefinitely, JaneJane pushes them the other way. "The app's core strength is that it forces you to leave the app and get out and make friends. You can only chat with people once you join a hangout. The purpose of the platform is to make you socialise outside, not inside, and to stay committed to plans."

What's next

Her long-term ambition is bigger: for JaneJane to become the app a woman reaches for the moment she thinks "I have nothing to do today" - the same reflex that sends people scrolling to TikTok or Instagram and, eventually, to take the platform beyond the UAE.

"My goals for the app are, obviously, to have more users but not just in that way. I want more loyal, returning users, people who create real friendships, and eventually to take the app global, into different cities."

On building it all in Dubai, Joyce credits the city itself for pushing her forward. "Dubai has a lot of independent female entrepreneurs. The city is full of hard-working people with big dreams and ideas, and that environment pushes you. In Dubai, you're encouraged to dream big, the city pushes you to achieve more."