Imagine strolling down a side street in Tehran, the capital city of Iran, and catching a view of the Milad Tower, the tallest tower in the Middle East, as you duck inside a KFC for a quick bite to eat. Or how about driving your Hummer past Liberation Tower in Kuwait City as you head to into the parking lot of a McDonalds, contemplating what to eat to quiet the stomach grumblings you’ve been experiencing all day.

You might think both the Hummer and the McDonald’s are anachronisms in Middle Eastern surroundings, but they are not. Anyone familiar with the region will tell you it is becoming increasingly common to see both on the streets of Middle Eastern cities

There is an opportunity there. If you’ve succeeded in establishing a brand stateside, start thinking about taking your operation’s show to the Middle East.

Many American brands already have a presence there: Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, KFC, Pizza Hut, Church’s Chicken, and Port City Java, to name a few. And why are they there? The region’s territories are home to many cultures—young cultures. In many, 50 percent of the population is 18 years old. Those young people translate into a ready consumer base willing to try the next new thing. And there is disposable income to support that desire.

But before you book that plane ticket to Dubai, there are challenges and cultural differences that need to be considered.

Aurfan Sadiq has seen it plenty of times: American brands that display the ambition and drive needed to enter the Middle Eastern marketplace, but fail to feel out the nuances of the market. The result is poor economic performance.

You have to have your pulse to the ground. The brands have to exist on a parallel level, and you must have an individual in the region who understands what makes things tick.”

Sadiq, a business developer for brands in the Middle East, says American brands are often simply uneducated about what it takes to operate in the region. “A lot of American brands don’t understand this market,” he says. “They’re trying to operate strictly from the United States. But you have to have a dedicated international team [to be successful abroad]. You have to have your finger on the pulse of the culture. The brands have to exist on a parallel level, and you must have an individual in the region who understands what makes things tick.”

Take the notion of time. In the U.S., creating schedules and dealing with deadlines is a standard part of doing business. Not so in much of the Middle East. There, time is not as concrete—things happen when they happen, explains Sadiq. So building timelines and opening dates have to be viewed as flexible. To view schedules otherwise is an invitation for frustration. Getting things done takes longer.

Workforce issues are also very different. In the major Gulf states, locals will not be working your counters. Foodservice is not considered an honorable career path. Labor has to be imported. At any given time, your store might be employing as many as 15 nationalities. Most will speak Arabic, the region’s common language.

Another common mistake Sadiq sees is American brands ignoring the taste profiles in the regions in which they choose to operate internationally. Doing so often results in slow foot traffic—and poor sales. Customer loyalty is hard to come by. “You have to stay on their minds at all times, or they will move on to something else,” Sadiq says. “If you’re entering a market that’s distinct from the American model, that market’s culture and tastes have to be kept in mind.”

Religious and other cultural customs also can dictate the viability of a business in the Middle East. If your concept is based on your world-famous sausage links, for example, or strong beer selection, much of the Middle East might not be the market for you. Islamic law requires food to be halal certified, a designation similar to Jewish kosher requirements. Certain foods will never be deemed halal. Those include: pork and its byproducts, alcohol, carnivorous animals, and blood-based foods, among others.

Depending on the country and its form of government, Islamic law can also impact other areas of the store operations—from employee makeup to store design. In the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for example, the public life of women is limited. Working outside the home is not an option. Nor do women socialize with men who are not family members.

“When we started designing our Saudi Arabian unit, we had to keep in mind that the women and men must be kept separate, and this includes the espresso bar,” says Don Reynolds, chief operating officer of Wilmington, North Carolina-based Port City Java. “We had to design an opaque barrier, which kept the women and men from being able to see each other as they stood in line.”

And that wasn’t the only alteration Reynolds had to make to the Port City Java operations handbook. His Saudi Arabian units must also lock doors and cease service five times a day for prayer in Saudi Arabia.

Finding the right type of partner to help you navigate through the various bureaucratic avenues is imperative. The typical Middle Eastern business model is based on family-run organizations. Convention calls for businesses to be family owned and family connected. Corporations are not as strong or as highly esteemed in the Middle East as they are in the United States. Understanding that should influence how you approach potential partners.