Women can certainly excel in any job if given the right opportunities, says Bushra Khalfan Said Al Akhzami, showroom retail manager of Khimji’s Office Furniture Division in an interview with Oommen John P.
For over a year now, she has been enabling customers especially corporates to choose the right furniture for their offices. Meet Bushra Khalfan Said Al Akhzami, a young Omani, who has been donning her role of showroom retail manager to perfection.
Appointed as head of stock control, customer service and quality in-charge of Khimji’s Office Furniture Division, Bushra exemplifies the company’s commitment to providing top quality and prompt customer service. Her key strengths, she says, are ‘team leadership, customer service skills and the ability to learn quickly’. As a result she can successfully accomplish tasks such as the company’s elaborate stocking programme devised to meet increasing demands of the retail market.
Bushra also represents one of the company’s core ideologies which is its investment in people. “What I truly love about working at the KR Infra Group is the family-like atmosphere that is present. Also, the company really cares about the welfare of its employees and our performance on the job. It supports the employee in every aspect especially in training and development,” she says.
“I joined the company in 2014 as showroom in-charge and within a year, I was promoted as showroom manager. I ensure that corporate and other customers choose the right furniture for their offices. On an average, I interact with 70 to 80 customers a month. More than the interaction, it’s the relationship that I have built that has made the job enjoyable,” says Bushra.
Bushra’s strengths as a leader are a reflection of how Khimji’s Office Furniture prefers to do business – competently, competitively and with a creative edge. The showroom is recognised for its ability to provide complete and comprehensive solutions, deploying an expert installation team to meet growing demand. It draws on assistance from an expert line-up of architects, interior designers and engineers to keep ideas fresh and futuristic. Prompt after sales support is another core value addition that sets Khimji’s Office Furniture apart from the competition.
Over the past four decades, Khimji’s Office Furniture Division has helped its clientele make their workplaces smarter and more intelligent. It offers furnishing that establishes each individual’s work area as their own arena of performance – an extension of one’s personality. As part of KR INFRA, the infrastructure division of Khimji Ramdas, Khimji’s Office Furniture are pioneers in workplace furnishing and interiors with an eclectic and exclusive choice of furniture sourced from all over the world.
The company’s new showroom in Ghala has a spacious 2000-sq metre show space for a collection of executive furniture that brings productivity and efficiency into the workplace. For customers to truly experience what constitutes superior quality office furniture, they need only step into the showroom and they will be taken in by the sheer variety of the offering, she says.
Retailing is not about selling products alone but building lasting relationships with people. There is something to learn every day. “I don’t see that retailing job should be restricted to men. Women are equally competent to do the job,” she says. Women should take it as a challenge and excel in whatever job they are entrusted with,’’ she adds. She concludes by saying that no position is difficult to surmount for women. The Sky is certainly the limit…