One of the best feelings in the world is being proud of someone you love. Sometime during mid-February, one of my best friends, Shaima, pulled into my house’s garage a little bit after 11 PM. She had just finished her shift at her new venture, Dukkan Alfreej, a convenient store she launched earlier that month on Salem Al Mubarak Street in Salmiya. With her trademark curls and statement eyeglasses, she followed me in the house with her long, golden accordion skirt trailing behind her and backpack slung over her shoulder.

There we were in my living space, me at my desk with my laptop open, ready to take notes and Shaima lounging on the couch with a big plate of pasta, just like when we were students in high school. The only difference was that now, we are both 35-year-old Kuwaiti women with years of experience under our belt. I looked at her with admiration, my heart brimming with pride at this magnificent woman who did something quite remarkable within a span of a mere two months. Always the go-getter, Shaima’s accomplishment is the reason behind my desire to document her journey and knowing know that it will inspire others just as it uplifted me.

“So what? It’s just a convenience store, your average-day baqala,” a friend of mine remarked when I told her I was planning on writing an article about Shaima. I took a deep breath, smiled and shook my head assuredly, “No, it’s not just a baqala.”

Shaima Hamoud Abd Alghafoor has a decade of experience working in tech, specifically in the Partnerships Department at Booking.com. I have approximately nine phone numbers registered under her name due to her frequent travels that average around 80 flights per year. But everything changed when the pandemic hit. One thing, in particular, demanded her attention; Shaima owned a restaurant in Kuwait that she had to close down in March of 2020.

“I thought about selling it in May but when I settled down in my place in Kuwait, I decided to do something about it myself; I wanted to turn it into a unique convenience store,” she said. Shaima arrived in Kuwait in November and during her 14-day quarantine, she contacted different suppliers in the country. “No one answered my calls and if someone did, they promised to call me back which never happened,” she recalled.

So what she did next was both simple and gutsy; she hustled. Shaima ended up hailing down drivers dropping off supplies at different convenience stores and supermarkets in Kuwait. “And when I found interesting items in supermarkets, I asked the employees there to share the supplier’s contact details,” she added. Within nearly two months, Shaima went from having zero contacts and no network of suppliers to a list of 70 verified suppliers.

Simultaneously, Shaima was renovating the interior of the store. “I based the look and feel on rustic cafes in Barcelona. I wanted it to be warm and welcoming,” she said thoughtfully as she told me about the wooden floors she installed, sage- colored walls, shelving and lighting scheme. After going through four contractors, Shaima chose the perfect one who eventually became her business partner as well, her relative Danny Aboul Hosn.

“Danny has been incredibly supportive. He has a wide network of contacts and vast experience in logistics and operations. Plus, he is the father of one of my favorite people in the world who is getting the best experience working with me at the store,” Shaima said with a smile as she spoke fondly about her 19-year-old niece Noor who has been frequently helping her tech-savvy aunt in the store.

So why a convenience store? “I studied which businesses thrived in Kuwait during the pandemic. I noticed that the only ones that survived were grocery stores and supermarkets. Food is essential and these supermarkets are where people’s daily needs are met,” Shaima elaborated. What Shaima offers in Dukkan Alfreej is an assorted range of food, beverages, freshly baked pastries and more at affordable prices.

“I am working with local home bakers who need help with wider distribution for their baked goods,” she said before adding that she always offers samples to her customers to see which baker makes the cut. Affordability and assortment is at the heart of her business. “I am in talks with a popular restaurant in Kuwait that will provide healthy, wholesome and affordable on-the-go snacks, appetizers and meals,” she added.

Shaima’s experience in tech led her to take her online know-how offline. She implemented a data-driven point-of-sale system that allows her to analyze sales based on product assortment.

“That way, I can optimize procurement, merchandising, and pricing to keep my vision in line with affordability,” the ever-so strategic Shaima stated. What that really means is that nothing in the store is randomly there. “What makes us disruptive is the implementation of tech platforms that allows us to build data structures to optimize our performance and profitability. I wanted to blend my expertise from tech into retail,” Shaima went on before adding that she realized that many businesses in the industry do not have the basic architecture in place to make data experimentation with the aim of driving profitability and growth.

“Tech platforms are notoriously known for A/B testing,” Shaima said. A/B tests consist of a randomized experiment with two variants, A and B. It includes the application of statistical hypothesis testing or “two-sample hypothesis testing” as used in the field of statistics. “In other words, I track profitability by seeing if a certain product is purchased more often or not if I relocate it in the store,” she elaborated, “With the proper implementation in place, our data structures will allow us to understand consumer patterns by building an AI to optimize procurement, pricing, merchandising and marketing. I strongly believe that the fundamentals of successful tech companies can be applied to this segment within the grocery landscape and support our business goals toward sustainability and expansion,” Shaima said before taking a long pause to survey her surroundings. She smiled reflectively, “I’m starting to know customers by name. I know their orders by heart. There is a man who works nearby who buys the same thing every morning: A chocolate bar, sandwich, and beverage. When I saw that I was running low on the chocolate he favors, I ordered a box just to make sure I can supply his daily intake.”

Shaima regularly talks to customers so that she knows what they prefer, “I ask them what they like to buy and eat every day so that I can procure the right assortment of products,” she added. An interesting insight she came across? Candy. “You wouldn’t believe how much people love candy. You know those long sugary chewy things we used to have when we were kids? Grown men feast on them every day!” she laughed. But sometimes, things in the store are not a laughing matter. “I turned down many customers who refused to wear their masks,” Shaima said solemnly.

A dutiful daughter, Shaima always had her mother’s health in mind. “It is something I am very serious about especially since I live with my mother and see her every day,” she said before telling me about some of the many unfortunate stories that happened due to mask-less people.

In the end, it is all about people. “I love seeing my customers every day and I look forward to their feedback. That is why I implemented the catalog feature in WhatsApp Business because quite a few of my customers are elderly people who are not familiar with the delivery platforms the younger generation uses on a daily basis,” Shaima stated.

It was 1 AM. The Bolognese was long gone by then. “Okay you,” Shaima said as she started to put on her white sneakers, “I have to open up the store at 8 AM.” We walked downstairs in my quiet home, content, confident, and considerate of the peaceful silence between us. I opened the garage gate and watched her as she drove off, this wonder of a woman and dear friend of mine who continues to aspire and inspire.

Find out more about Dukkan Al Freej by following @dukkanalfreej on Instagram.