I interview Saeeda Nazar in-depth about “Entrepreneurship”
during a workshop organized by CIPE to celebrate Global Entrepreneurship week
2013 in Pakistan.
Saeeda Nazar is a well-known name in Trade and Fashion
industry of Pakistan. She has been doing business and creating brands for last
20 years and representing Pakistan on International platforms.
She involves in International trade to Europe, ME, Gulf,
India for two decades and has received various awards for her great
achievements. Now, she is running a top fashion brand “Muse” with a team of
70-80 skilled workers.
According to Saeeda Nazar, Entrepreneurship is not that difficult in
Pakistan. She loved it and did it. The only
problem is: people don’t know where to look for finance, help, product
information, and the guidance in Pakistan.
Saeeda Nazar’s journey to Entrepreneurship:
When my daughter started going to school, I thought I should
start my own business – a business of soft toys. This was the inspiration; I
got from the soft toys made by Germany that my father used to bring for my kids
whenever he visited Germany. In fact, those toys were innovative, creative and
high quality. Thus I contacted Export Promotion Bureau to give me the feasibility
setting up the first soft toy unit in Pakistan.
For research purpose, I went to the “Seoul International Toy
Fair” in Korea and Honk Kong to know the scope of toy industry. I knew it
was a bit difficult to start off this type of business in Pakistan because the technology
was not there. Then I moved to Export promotion Bureau for further assistance.
It suggested me to start off with fresh flower business. So, I set up a flower
kiosk at Adil Hospital in Lahore. For 6 days, I could not sell even a single
stem of flower. So, I terminated that idea.
My next destination was Lahore Chamber of Commerce & Industry
(LCCI) for guidance. I was comfortable there as my father was the co-founder of
LCCI. My journey to Gems and Minerals business started. At that time, there was
no representation of this business at Punjab level. I attended International fairs
and joined leading delegations to represent Pakistan globally. I also
did a detailed research on essential oils.
I secured the position of Vice-President at LCCI that ended
up last year. Now, I have launched two fashion brands – Muse and Nerium. Muse is the only brand in Pakistan that is exhibiting Paris
Fashion Week in Paris. My company opened Muse Fashion Show at Fashion TV Paris
recently.
Struggle never ends. Saeeda Nazar is a wonderful
entrepreneur and inspiring model. Wish you the best of luck in your future
endeavors!
This story is published to celebrate Global Entrepreneurship
Week 2013 in Pakistan.
