Keeping it in the family: How Emirati sisters were inspired by their mother to start their business

Could there be a radical way of keeping business within the family? Yes, it seems, and no one exemplifies it more than Emirati sisters, Athari Jassem, 25 and her elder sister Amani Jassem, 27, based in Ras Al Khaimah.

Athari attributes her entrepreneurial success to the UAE rulers as she believes that without the strong support of the nation and its policymakers, she would never have tasted success. The UAE is very clear about its agenda to support women entrepreneurs to help them scale new heights of growth as the nation is determined to adopt SDG 5, which is focused on gender equality.

Athari’s story is an example of woman empowerment as she was guided at every step by her parents who left no stone unturned to promote their daughters' business ventures.

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The sisters enjoy solid fan-following on social media, particularly on Instagram, where they launched one of their businesses of manufacturing gloves to wear under the abaya, informs Athari.

“We were a very simple family trying to achieve our goals. An idea crossed our minds to start a project, but then it failed. We did not give up, so we started another project, and it also failed, but that did not put an end to our efforts. We worked hard and came up with a fresh idea of unique gloves to wear under the abaya, and everyone loved it, and that led to the launch of Atharii Line, a leading online brand in women's wear,” adds Athari, who is a graduate and has a media background too.

Athari today beams with success as she recalls times of trials she endured and was being trained to gain business acumen in various ventures by her mother Amna Ali, who has been a guiding force to her and her sister.

“My mother has always inspired me in the business field. Since I was young, she has encouraged me to work, design myself, and become a business owner. She always supported and encouraged me to achieve my goals and work hard to achieve my dreams. Thanks to her support, I was able to turn my passion for clothes into a lucrative company,” said Athari.

Athari recalls how the mother-daughters trio entered the field of marketing and succeeded in creating their first perfume which recorded a sale of a thousand pieces in less than four months. “My mother is the reason for the success of our perfume venture, so my sister and I evolved into one of the most famous home brands indresses and clothing in the Emirates.”

Unwavering support from father

Athari shares how their famous father, Jassem Ali, the owner of Rak Zoo in Ras al-Khaimah, published her posts on his platforms so people could get to know Atharii more to create awareness of the business ventures of the Jassem sisters. The power of social media was unveiled when Athari, who was already popular on Instagram with over 25,000 followers, launched her brand. The venture has completed a year, and the Jassem sisters are basking in the success of the perfumes and clothing business in the Gulf region and the rest of the world.

Athari says clever marketing skills of distributing perfume samples widely helped her to scale their perfume business as she could gauge customer preferences.

For Athari, from dwelling in a rental house of two rooms to now having a fully-furnished home and a car is a long journey of trial to triumph all under her mother’s guidance, making her smile with success.

wknd@khaleejtimes.com

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