Born and raised in Dubai, Rumana Nazim, founder and CEO of The Edit, studied law in London and worked as an in-house lawyer for an FMCG company. Through her many travels and observations of the fast-paced and ever-changing retail landscape all over the world, Nazim found a gap in the Dubai market for a lifestyle space that would efficiently deliver an interactive yet relaxing environment.
“I have always been interested in fashion, art and interiors and while travelling, I noticed that the retail landscape as we know it, is shifting and moving to something that is more experience-based. I wanted to create something in Dubai that was truly innovative and didn’t already exist, and to offer the customer a really unique way of shopping, so I began to conceptualise The Edit,” Nazim says.
The Edit is a collective lifestyle space bringing together fashion, accessories, art, beauty, home décor and a coffee bar, all under one roof. Elements of these have been selected to fuse together a harmonised edit for the modern, stylish woman.
“The Edit is more than just a store – it’s a lifestyle and we hold a variety of talks and workshops on empowerment, sustainability, health and fitness. The idea is to elevate your classic shopping journey to something that really connects women with each other and to build a community bringing like-minded people together,” Nazim explains.
Nazim’s interests and personal style as showcased through statement are find at The Edit and are an insight to the lawyer-turned-entrepreneur’s personal style.
“It’s a completely new idea to Dubai; we don’t have many true concept stores in our city that offer so many diverse yet personalised services to the customer and I see even larger, traditional stores now moving towards a ‘millennial-friendly’ experience-based journey. The Edit is a space where you can shop cool, cult fashion brands, artisanal homeware pieces, attend workshops, seminars, art exhibitions and fashion pop-ups and also visit an organic coffee and tea bar, all in a beautiful, homely villa in Jumeirah,” she claims.
Nazim believes that the UAE is a great place to find mentors and in general, find support for startups.
“Our city was built on innovation and hard work from so many diverse cultures and backgrounds, so our generation now has a large supply of successful businessmen and women to reach out to. I’m also lucky to come from a family of entrepreneurs so I have great access to an unlimited supply of valuable advice,” she says.
“There is a lot of opportunity because Dubai has so much white-space; consumers in Dubai are hungry for new ideas and because there is such a great mix of expats and locals, your idea is bound to resonate with people. However, on the flip side, while The Edit is self-funded, I do believe that for companies which are looking for investors, it is harder to raise funds in the UAE than say, New York or London,” she adds.
Advising young entrepreneurs Nazim says they should focus on their target and work hard to achieve success.
“Cut out any negative noise and focus on what you want to achieve. It’s easy to sometimes feel disheartened but if you work hard and implement good practices on how to elevate your business, you’re one step closer to success,” she concludes.
– riaz@khaleejtimes.com