Egyptian business tycoon, carpet king Mohamed Farid Khamis dies at 80

The Egyptian business tycoon Mohamed Farid Khamis died on Saturday at the age of 80 who was the founder of the largest machine-made rug and carpet manufacturer, Oriental Weavers.

The Egyptian Investors Federation mourned the businessman in a statement on Saturday, saying, “Egypt has lost a great patriotic figure, who spent his life serving this nation, loving every bit of its pure soil…the pioneer of Egyptian industry Mohamed Farid Khamis died after a struggle with disease.”

Khamis was serving as the head of the Egyptian Investors Federation and the chairman of Oriental Weavers.

Khamis established Oriental Weavers in 1980 and it grew under his leadership to become the largest machine-made rug and carpet manufacturer in the world.

In March, Khamis donated 5 million Egyptian pounds to the Long Live Egypt Fund to help confront the coronavirus.

Earlier in the same month, on behalf of the Egyptian Investors Federation, Khamis handed over a check worth 20 million pounds to then-Prime Minister Sherif Ismail as an initial payment of100 million pounds for the development and reconstruction of Sinai.