By: Mirvat Ghanem
Exclusive Interview With the stylish Nada Ghazal,
Founder and Creative Director of the brand Nada G Fine Jewelry.
What secret lies behind the uniqueness of your brand? Nada Ghazal
I believe it’s very important to be true to yourself! Being true to myself and putting my heart in every piece I create, makes everything I create genuine, authentic and unique. Every collection stems passionately from a feeling, a story or an experience, it is obvious that every piece I create has a soul, so I do not just create jewelry, but I create experiences which I love to share with women around the world. And when it comes to details, every pieces is meticulously produced by highly experienced and passionate craftsmen.
Nada Ghazal Tell us more about the last collection, (inspiration)?
In collaboration with Beirut Design Week, dedicated to ‘Design & Nostalgia’, I created a collection called ‘HERITAGE & HEIRLOOMS’, inspired by heirlooms I saw being passed on from the women in my life to their daughters. I grew up in a traditional Lebanese family who like most Lebanese families are connected to their heritage and proud of their history. A tradition, I have witnessed so many times is mothers gifting their daughters heirlooms they’ve been given by their mothers before as if to pass the torch forward and continue this tradition. My inspiration for this limited collection is drawn from these pieces I saw being passed on. I think it’s a beautiful tradition and the pieces spread happiness and joy, strengthen social ties and preserve this beautiful heritage of ours with a genuine unique gift that has a strong sentimental value. For those women who were lucky to receive heirlooms from their mothers, the tradition can continue by passing these to their daughters. For others who were less fortunate, I invite them to start their own with one of these beautifully designed limited edition pieces.
How do you evaluate the improvements of brand during the last year?
Last year was a big tipping point for Nada G. We opened a bigger jewelry workshop where all our collections are being meticulously produced and supervised by a professional team, so our production capacity has increased. Our team has increased 200%, we have had a wider exposure, and we had a great overall increase in sales. This year we are working on our rebranding as part of the ground work to go internationally, and we will be opening our flagship boutique by Q4 2019. Nada Ghazal
In what way do you plan your projects schedule? And what’s the period to be applicable?
Being creators, producers, retailers and wholesalers, our plan is split on various areas, creation, production, and sales and marketing activities which include events, exhibitions, campaigns on various mediums etc… Besides the business plan which is worked on a three years basis, the yearly plan is usually set at the end of every year; however, does get modified based on results during the year.
What’s the role of your team work in your projects? And improvements?
I have learnt throughout the years to surround myself with passionate and dedicated people who are better than me in their own specialty. This way delegation becomes a pleasure, and team work becomes very natural, where we all team up and distribute tasks between us, making the whole team feel very involved and motivated. Now that I can say, I passed many challenges to build a great team, the whole operation has improved.
To what extend do you insist on the elegance of the environment where your pieces will be hosted, and how the design is achieved?
Everything is effected by the environment around it, and the way it is displayed, so I make it a point to personally supervise the way our pieces are displayed, so that every piece takes its true value.
Are you planning for more openings in the word?
Growing internationally has always been part of my vision, and I aspire for the brand to become a leading international brand. At this point we are doing a lot of ground work to set a strong base, as a preparation to fly internationally in 2020, mainly in the UK, France and the USA.Nada Ghazal
How do you feel when your brand is the favorite brand chosen by the highest classes of the society?
The most gratifying reason to being a jeweler, is translating my emotions into timeless jewelry pieces that awaken emotions in others. It’s what keeps me going, and I hope to continue connecting to more and more women around the world through my jewelry pieces.
With all these commitments, where do you find time for yourself? Family and friends?
It’s all about time management and learning how to delegate the right tasks. I am an early riser, so my day starts at 6am as it’s a priority to spend the morning with my husband and three children. By the time our little ones are all set, and on their way to school, I exercise for 45 minutes for a boost of energy, then I rush to work to make sure I am there by 9am. In some cases even earlier.
I spend my day at Nada G headquarters, and my time spreads partly with myself and partly with the communication team, the financial team and the production team – which is the part that adds more glitter to my eyes! I also visit the points of sales to spend some time with the sales team and of course our customers. So I am pretty involved in everything. However, I make sure to be home for lunch when our children come back from school to spend some precious time with them and with my husband, then I head back to work again while my children get busy in their after school activities. By the time my children finish their activities, I head back home for dinner time and bed time which are sacred for me, so I am at home then, which means I do let go of most activities and events taking place during these hours, unless there is something very important and urgent for work. Once the children are in bed, if I have pending work to do, then I have all night to finish, otherwise, it’s the perfect time to spend with my wonderful husband and friends.
It’s challenging and could be very tiring, but I have learnt how to set my priorities, and have achieved a good balance in doing what I love to do most.
