2023-10-21 10:00:00
Arriving in France to continue her studies at the Montpellier business school, Nadia convinced the head of the establishment to open a specialization in distribution. At the time, only she and three students were enrolled there. But the Moroccan discovered her penchant for DIY when she decided to assemble the furniture for her first apartment. A passion confirmed at Leroy Merlin where she did an internship, then at Castorama which also offered her an internship and even offered a job, reports Le Figaro.
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Nadia declined this offer. His dream was to work at Ikea. “Once a year, I drove four hours round trip to go to Marseille to buy the items I had spotted in the catalog,” she says. The Swedish giant ended up recruiting her in 1998. Assigned to Ikea’s Paris Nord store in Roissy (Val-d’Oise), the Moroccan quickly rose through the ranks, becoming supervisor of manager training in 2006, before being appointed head of points of sale in Lyon, from 2009 to 2013. Then appointed deputy director of the French subsidiary, in 2017 she joined an Ikea innovation development program.
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At 44 years old in 2019, she completed 21 years of service at Ikea and felt the need to change direction and environment. “It was a difficult dilemma. I loved my business deeply, but I yearned to nourish myself intellectually differently.” This is how she became an executive coach. A thrilling experience that she recounts in her book “Dare your leadership” published by Éditions Gereso. After four years of independent consulting, she has just landed at C&A as Managing Director. Nadia wants to support the growth plan of this ready-to-wear brand where she says she notes values such as respect and humility, also dear to Ikea.
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