Women Who Walk Ahead: Neelofa

From Islamic wear to perfume, stationery and contact lenses – thelist is so diverse. What do all these businesses have in common?

They are all basically my personal must-haves. I used to have some trouble finding things that I like, especially hijabs.

So I told myself, “why don’t I come up with something that I love and see if the market likes it too?”, and Alhamdulillah, the products have been well-received by the market and now I get to wear things that I love every day.

What about your role as nonexecutive independent director at AirAsia?

Long story short, Tan Sri Tony (Fernandes) and I met sometime last year and we talked about the millennials’ spending power when it comes to travelling and its correlation to the digital media, which turned out to be quite a conversation. Not long after that, I was offered the role to strategise and plan the business that resonates with rising trends. And the rest is history!

(Photo: @neelofa)

Your journey is not without challenges and given your celebrity status, the scrutiny has been extremely critical even by the business world standards. Do the years being a public figure help you in dealing with controversies and backlashes?

Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t. I don’t really pay much attention to controversies and backlashes, but I do learn from the lessons after each controversy or backlash, so I know not to make the same mistakes in the future. I will do better next time.

With all that responsibility on your shoulders, how do you find time for yourself?

My “me-time” is always at night, with a cup of tea and a good book, sometimes a good show on Netflix! But I would wake up early to do some exercises like pilates and yoga, and then get ready to go about my day.

I also make it a habit to read the newspapers in the morning so I am aware of what’s happening in the world. Even when I’m at home, I still work.