NAMSHI was founded in 2011 and incorporated in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), by Hosam Arab, Faraz Khalid, and Hisham Zarka. It started as an online fashion retailer focused on the Middle East market. Notable investors in its early stages included Rocket Internet (German e-commerce investor) and Summit Partners. The company went through significant ownership changes: in 2017, Emaar Malls acquired a 51% stake, then bought the remaining 49% in 2019 for about 335.2 million in 2022.