Young interior designer Soraya Mansour surprised us all when she switched gears and took over the Fresh Food Market, from her father, in 2016. With her passionate emphasis on health and freshness and her lifestyle innovations, she changed the food retail game in Egypt and her market quickly gained a huge loyal following. In the span of four years, Fresh Food Market has expanded its presence to four locations, in El Sheikh Zayed, Palm Hills, New Cairo and Alexandria. eniGma’s Rawda Shahin sat down with Mansour to find out the secret of Fresh Food Market’s success, and to learn more about Mansour’s career and her passions looking forward.
Growing up in Alexandria, Mansour moved to Cairo to study at the American University in Cairo. However, shortly thereafter, she decided to move to London where she studied interior design, and worked for two years with an interior designer. After living in London for eight more years, she decided to move back to Egypt. But, rather than pursuing her career in interior designer, she decided to pivot to something completely different. In a leap of faith, she decided to switch careers by taking over “Fresh Food Market” which was started by her father.
While this was clearly a big shift from interior design, a closer look at Mansour’s background shows food retail may actually not have been such a long shot for her. As a young girl, she had often spent summer vacations working in METRO, the first supermarket in Egypt established by her father, Mr. Youssef Mansour, the renowned businessman and scion of the illustrious Mansour family. During those days as a sort of young apprentice, she always loved working at the supermarket branches rather than in the office.
Today, Mansour’s natural hands-on attitude is serving her well with her enterprise, Fresh Food Market. “Soraya loves being on the ground; she does not like being far from the workers and the actual heart of the workplace,” says Fresh Food’s Operations Manager, Eslam El Gebaly. “She is known to always want what’s best; every day is a new day with new ideas and ways to improve Fresh Food Market,” he adds.
When Mansour took over her high-end supermarket, her overriding goal was to improve the quality of the fresh food sold in Egypt by sourcing the best products from all corners of the world. She also was adamant at introducing the concept of a lifestyle supermarket to Egypt, where customers would not just come to shop but to have a good time. It’s a wholly different experience from that of regular supermarkets. At Fresh Foods Market, you can do much more than shop, you can enjoy spending time with a friend over a delicious cup of coffee, or share some quality sushi or your favourite pasta for lunch. Mansour was the first to introduce this concept in Egypt. “We are very much educating the market. Although everyone is introducing eateries now, we’re trying to go in our own different direction,” she explains.
Unlike most other markets, Fresh Food is known to target a specific niche clientele. However, Mansour is quick to point out that their prices are not as high as some would think, especially at the market’s eatery, where prices are actually below those charged elsewhere. “The only thing that we think might be pricey are the products imported from other countries. We make it a priority to work on exclusive brands. For example, we’ve imported a limited edition Dolce & Gabbana product; where else can you get that? What’s expensive in the store are the products that come from abroad, where top-notch products are originally quite expensive, but they are definitely what our customers want and need,” she explains.
El Gebaly adds, “We make it a priority to offer our customers what they ask for. We also introduce them to products they may not know and they get the chance to taste them. What makes Fresh Food Market really exceptional, however, is the quality of our service. Our staff members are knowledgeable about all the products, including all imported products. They love the market’s atmosphere, and work together to learn, grow and develop day by day, with the help and motivation of Ms. Mansour. We love working as a team and we are all passionate about our work.”
With the food retail industry still very much male dominated in Egypt, it is a breath of fresh air to see that a young successful woman like Mansour is the dynamo behind Fresh Food Market. Not surprisingly, Mansour also makes it a priority to support other women in the field. “Fresh Food Market is known to hire a big percentage of female employees,” El Gebaly affirms.
So, what’s Fresh Food Market’s next big move? “Simply to outdo ourselves,” says Mansour. “Of course, I have long-term plans. Right now, we’re focusing on the quality and taste of the products, while still offering something special and different,” she adds. “We’re also planning on growing our factory and opening new branches. We’re definitely planning on expanding beyond Cairo and Alexandria… I have my own little ‘wish list’ of areas,” El Gebaly reveals.
Asked about her proudest moment since she took over her ground-breaking market, Mansour replies, “I must say that, aside from our outstanding bakery, we’ve definitely outdone ourselves with this year’s Christmas decorations, making that one of my proudest moments. They were impeccable. No customer entered without awe in their eyes, taking pictures here and there. Beyond that, there are still many things we’re doing this year, but I’m not going to ruin the surprise for you.”
Although Mansour ended up working in an industry completely unrelated to what she studied, she says she wouldn’t have had it any other way. She absolutely loves where she is now. Growing up in a mega-successful family, Mansour found out she was a natural in business. The real challenge for her is to further prove herself. “It wasn’t that much of a challenge starting the business. I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished so far; yet, there is always more to work and improve on,” she stresses.
Like many other women, Mansour found working in a male dominated field initially quite difficult. “When I would try to say something in a meeting, people would talk over me; they wouldn’t listen. Also, because I was quite young, people didn’t take me seriously,” she reveals. “But with time, as people saw the results of my work, I gained their respect. With that said, while it may be hard to gain people’s attention in the beginning, you just need to prove yourself to everyone else, as well as yourself,” she adds. Mansour also stresses the value of an important lesson she learned from her family. “I learned that every problem has a solution, and that it’s okay to make mistakes, as long as we think of the solutions!”
While she also has a hand in other parts of the well-known Mansour family business, Fresh Food Market remains her main focus. Mansour basically does it all – marketing, development and products. Her love and passion for what she does is evident. “I feel like I get the brand. I’m passionate about what I’m trying to do here. I’m always trying to change, grow, and improve,” she concludes.