The Media Line Staff

Amman, Jordan (Adam Nicky The Media Lin – Street noises mix with a call to prayer coming from the King Hussein Mosque in downtown Amman, the city’s commercial center, while on a nearby street corner, Issam, a Syrian businessman, calmly answers a steady flow of phone calls and customers’ questions.

The 44-year-old has successfully transferred his shoe business from Syria’s war-ravaged city of Aleppo to the Jordanian capital, starting his enterprise anew in Amman like hundreds — if not thousands of other Syrian refugee businessmen that Jordanian officials say have settled in the kingdom, many operating without a license.

Issam used to own a factory in Aleppo’s industrial zone and a shop in its old city, now the front line in the battle between rebels and government forces. Having escaped “with his clothes and some cash,” he now operates a successful shoe business in Amman.

The well-groomed Issam tells of his perilous escape from shelling, looting and other dangers in his hometown. “I had to pay $20,000 to free my kidnapped brother. People like me with some financial means became a target of everybody – the government forces and some anti-government groups,” he told The Media Line.

Aleppo’s industrial zone and the old city became increasingly difficult places to do business as the fighting became more intense, sending production costs skyrocketing and suffering looting by all parties in the conflict, he explained. The once-safe city turned into a battleground between the determined rebels and the heavily-armed government troops.
Issam matter-of-factly tells of a journey under shelling and making his way past potentially dangerous checkpoints manned by various armed groups.

Despite all that, he hasn’t lost his edge as a canny businessman from Aleppo, one of the region’s most ancient trade centers. Issam began there with a used shoe sewing machine, his own skill and a long list of clients from around the Middle East and built up a thriving business. So making the transition after his perilous flight here has not been problematic.

“It was not difficult to settle in the new environment. I know the language and I started quickly to avoid feeling sorry for myself,” he added.

Indeed, Aleppo was a key Syrian economic center before the outbreak of violence. Contributing nearly one-third of the country’s economic output, it had nearly 30,000 industrial sites. It remains Syria’s largest and wealthiest city. Issam is just one of thousands of Aleppo-based merchants who have managed to flee along with their businesses. The majority settled on the other side of the border, in Turkey, while others preferred Dubai’s tax-free economic system or headed to Europe.

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