She has designs on your home spaces

Rincey Philip, creative director, Rincey Philip Interiors

All that is needed to run a business is a car to source products, a laptop and a great Internet connection. Sounds simple? Dubai-based Rincey Philip, creative director, Rincey Philip Interiors, affirms this. The intense toil she has experienced helps her to reflect back with a sense of achievement today.

Rincey recalls that when she started her career during the global financial recession, she spoke to a lot of people around her, asking them if they felt fulfilled in their job roles because she wasn't particularly happy with her career choice.

"According to most of whom I asked, their jobs were not an ideal career choice and sometimes, unfortunately, money was the only motivation. I knew this wasn't it. There had to be a better way to have fulfillment in what one does and be able to serve the greater community in the process. I quit my engineering job to figure out what my passions were. I had no inclination for interior design whatsoever. However, I ended up getting a lot of opportunities to do up houses," Rincey recalls.

She had then helped design an apartment in India that her sister had just moved into. Rincey also enjoyed designing an apartment that her family had moved into in Abu Dhabi. After getting married and moving to Dubai, she also re-did her own apartment. All this happened in the same year.

"Since I was hungry to figure out what I wanted to do, interior design started making total sense. It was difficult to get employment at the time. I did not wait. I asked a few friends and family if they were willing to give me a chance to help them decorate their homes. With a few Facebook pictures and a few lives changed, here I am doing what I love utmost every single day. So, it was a combination of the global recession, hunger for a more fulfilling life and the desire to use my gifts to be of service to my neighbour," observes Rincey.

The entrepreneur loves the UAE for the grace and permission it offers women to dream and excel in whatever they choose to do. "I will forever be grateful to the UAE's visionary leadership for the number of initiatives they have taken to encourage women of all socio-cultural backgrounds. It is also not unpopular here to see all-women teams leading an entire company and having fun at it. Women in leadership in the UAE encourage other women in leadership. The culture has always been about collaboration over competition," Rincey explains.

The design and construction industry has been one of the key drivers of the UAE's non-oil economy, she points out. "Iconic projects like the Burj Khalifa, Dubai Opera, Louvre Abu Dhabi, to name a few, are keeping the UAE in the front pages of the world's design eyes as the nation continues to attract more and more foreign and local investments year after year. With the Expo 2020 around the corner, I see no slowing down for the UAE's design world," she insists.

So, did Rincey face challenges in her entrepreneurial journey? She says: "Most of my challenges were in my own mind. Not having a precedent or mentor to run to for advice were my challenges. The community I come from is not business-inclined. A woman from my socio-cultural background singlehandedly beginning a business is not heard of very often. Fortunately, the Internet has been my guide and best friend, both for knowledge, research and inspiration from women around the world."

Rincey did some research to set up her venture in the UAE and worked towards achieving it. "My family has been very supportive, even when they did not know what and how I am going to achieve my goals. I guess when you are sure of yourself, people will feed into your faith and confidence. Fortunately for me, my family has always wanted me to be happy and given me the freedom to choose my own path."

Rincey strongly feels discipline is the key to balance home and work and when this becomes a habit, a balance will fall in place. "Life will still find ways to throw it out of balance, that's where you give yourself some grace and understanding to realise that nothing is fully controllable and there is relief in growing as a person, from that place of imbalance," she reckons.

"Everyone has the same 24 hours a day. There is a time for everything. I fortunately get to choose my own timings, so when it is time to be a family woman, that time is non-negotiable. When it is time to be a business woman, that time is non-negotiable too," adds Rincey.

"Once you realise how your talents can make a huge difference to people's lives around you, it raises a level of curiosity to achieve more and to push more. As scary as it may seem, the journey is delightful to be able to surprise yourself on what you can actually achieve little by little, everyday. That curiosity is what makes me strive more towards career goals," Rincey concludes.

- sandhya@khaleejtimes.com

Sandhya D'Mello

sandhya@khaleejtimes.com