NILOUFER ESUFALLY ANVERALLY

She is the Founder of Cotton Collection; one of Sri Lanka’s most iconic fashion retail brands. She is the Founder and the Managing Director of Leather Collection; the first dedicated store in the country for leather accessories. She is armed with a First-Class Degree in Economics and is an alumna of St. Bridget’s Convent, Colombo and Sophia College, Mumbai. She worked for American Express in Sri Lanka prior to launching her brand, Cotton Collection in 1991. Leather Collection was launched in 1992 and this was followed by a slew of spinoff brands including Coco in 2012, and the fun and cheerful accessories brand Raspberry in 2014. For Coco she has collaborated with some of the best designers locally and internationally, including James Ferreira, KT Brown and New York based, Sri Lankan supermodel Perine Fernando. The iconic campaign ‘Real Women’ she launched in 2009 to date remains as one of the most talked about advertising campaigns in Sri Lanka’s retail history.

She was awarded the Most Outstanding Business Entrepreneur in 2017 at the Professional and Career Women Awards hosted by Women in Management, Sri Lanka. In 2014 she was named as one of the 50 Most Powerful Women in Sri Lanka, and was also ranked as one of the top Business People of the Year.  Under her management, Cotton Collection and Leather Collection expanded to six luxury retail stores and was home to over two hundred employees.

High-end international brands she introduced to the local market include Hidesign and Kokommo. Hidesign founded in 1978 by Dilip Kapur, has a global presence at premium international outlets, including House of Fraser in the UK, Myers and David Jones in Australia and Galleries Lafayette in Paris. Kokommo, founded by Kalli Mehra, is an exclusive collection of glitzy, seasonal couture clutches and jewellery and is available at leading high-end boutique stores across India and the brand has collaborated with fashion icons such as Sabyasachi and Anamika Khanna.

She is an extraordinary power woman who has changed the fashion-retail landscape in Sri Lanka. She is an advocate for gender equality and female empowerment; eighty percent of all employees and seventy percent of her Senior Management team are all female. She also ensures that ninety percent of her suppliers are female Entrepreneurs. She Can and she continues to evolve the fashion industry in Sri Lanka with her fashion-forward brands. She is creative, innovative and has an affable, captivating personality, and she is undoubtedly the life of every social gathering. She is a kind-hearted, generous and empathetic leader and is one of the few female Entrepreneurs in the island who is truly passionate about advocating for gender equality in the workplace. My guest for this week is one of Sri Lanka’s most iconic fashion-forward female Entrepreneurs; Niloufer Esufally Anverally.

What are the most important attributes of successful leaders today? Empathy; totally underestimated, but so important. A creative mind set, and of course passion, hard work and the ability to put together a good team are all essential ingredients.

How did you move forward when everyone kept telling you that your suggestions or ideas won't work? I believed in myself. If you love what you do, then you must believe you can do it, and it always works. 

Do you ever think – “Am I crazy?" All the time.

How do you differentiate yourself? Im obsessed with a perfect end-product.  I care about the smallest detail which drives most people mad. But I believe that’s how you get the perfect product, perfect ambience and the perfect solution.

What is your 'why?’ I love fashion, I love creating fashion, and I like to think that I have enhanced the Sri Lankan fashion arena with my clothing brand, and I look forward to taking the market by storm through my soon-to-be launched accessory brand.

Who do you look up to for inspiration or mentorship? I would embarrass the person if I named him or her.

Your biggest regret? Thankfully none.

What is your biggest fear and how do you manage it? Sleeping alone in hotel rooms. I call my husband every ten minutes until I fall asleep. A total nightmare for him!!

How do you keep your team motivated despite conflicts and obstacles? My team and I love the brand.  We are all so focused on the end-product that we don’t let anything inbetween come in the way of a good idea and its implementation. We also always make room for fun, that’s an essential ingredient, hence things work smoothly!

What has been the highlight of your career so far? Building successful, unforgettable brands from scratch.

How do you keep generating new ideas for your business? I find inspiration in anything and everything, and I dream.

What do you want to achieve next? I’m excited to launch my new accessory brand, and I hope to take it global one day soon.

If you could go back and tell yourself one thing before beginning your career, what would it be? I should have continued playing competitive tennis.

What was the biggest rookie mistake you made when just starting out? Throwing budgets out of the window!!

Have you been harassed or discriminated against? Thankfully not.

Where do you see yourself ten years from now? Sipping cocktails on a beach.

Share with us a secret no-one else knows. It wouldn’t be a secret if I shared it on media!

How do you stay motivated 24/7, 365 days a year? Only a handful of people can sustain motivation for that long! I plan frequent holidays to the beach to soak up some sun and to recharge.

How did you balance being a mother and professional? What have you sacrificed (both personally and professionally) at each stage of your career? I think I’m no different to most other career women when I say it’s been an ongoing challenge.  It’s been a case of continous juggling and I like to think I have juggled both quite well. I don’t look at it as sacrifices made. I look at it as a road well travelled. But yes, I could have sure done with extra sleep.

What is the best and worst decision you've ever made? Looking back, I guess you can say that changing my career from banking to fashion was a good decision. And as for the worst decisions, GOSH there are so many! 

What woman inspires you and why? Without a doubt, my mother. She was the most gracious and gentlest of souls. And she had this amazing ability to have a firmness of mind and courage while demonstrating an abundance of warmth and kindness. Grit and grace are a powerful combination! 

How do you want to be remembered one day? Well, I’m not going anywhere soon!