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CATHERINE W GICHUKI
DOHA
FOR Maryam al Majid, a student of final year at the Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar (VCUQatar) School of Arts, who has a pop up shop at Mall of Qatar as part of Shop Qatar Festival, gift wrapping is much more than a business; it is something that satisfies her aesthetic sense.
Speaking to media persons, Majid, who is pursuing fashion designing at VCUQatar, said her business entails gift wrapping and making customised cards, such as wedding invites or greeting cards. Majid uses paper and fabric to do the wrapping.
According to Majid, she established a full-fledged gift wrapping venture about one-and-a-half years ago because of lack of a dedicated shop for such in the country despite high demand.
She said,"I always felt acutely the absence of such a shop in Doha where people could go and get their items wrapped decently. Besides, paper wrapping has been my passion since childhood."
"I watched videos on paper wrapping on Youtube when I was younger to learn about the craft. It helped me a lot in honing my skills in gift wrapping as I grew older," she remarked.
She, however, added that she learnt fabric wrapping in Japan."In Japan, fabrics are used to wrap most of the items. That was kind of starting point for me. Later on, I started inventing different kinds of wraps, twists and knots," she said.
Majid said that she gets her fabrics (silk) from India and Qatar. Majid is planning to set up a wrapping outlet in a mall after graduation.
She said that her business has been very successful so far, adding that many a times she has to turn down some orders as it becomes humanly impossible to handle its high volume alone.
She added that once she has shop in a mall after she completes her studies later this year, she will also have adequate number of staff to handle any volume of orders.
Majid said that her family is very supportive of her venture and also happy with her growth in this field. She also thanked the organisers of Shop Qatar for giving her an opportunity to display her skills and introduce her business to residents of Qatar."At this juncture, my aim is not to make money but to get my business known to people. I am looking for exposure and there can't be a better platform than Shop Qatar."
It is worth mentioning that a number of aspiring local entrepreneurs are taking part in Shop Qatar Festival through pop-up shops set up in collaboration with the Qatar Development Bank.
The objective behind the initiative is to encourage local startups.
This is the first time Majid is taking part in the festival.
