JEDDAH: Saudi female baristas in cafés in most larger cities in the Kingdom say they have enjoyed widespread support from the people they come into contact with at work.
Arab News has been talking to some of them about their experiences.
Taibah Ibrahim Al-Ruhaili, a barista in her early twenties, joined Joffrey’s café in Jeddah 15 months ago after applying for barista jobs in many coffee shops.
She said her dream to be a barista finally came true thanks to her passion for coffee.
“I am a coffee enthusiast, and I would love to learn more about the secrets of making good coffee,” she said.
The biggest challenge she faced was work pressure and customer connection. However, she said she managed to overcome all the obstacles.
Remembering her first day, Al-Ruhaili said: “The team members who were working with me were very cooperative and I quickly learned the skills baristas need in their work. This made me come every day with more eagerness and readiness to learn something new,” she added.
Al-Ruhaili said that she learned how to both satisfy her customers with cups of coffee that hit the spot and shoulder responsibilities and bear work pressure.
“I learned self-discipline and commitment. I also learned how important work achievements are. In fact, I have learned many things that I was not aware of before.”
This was not accepted in the past, but with time people have become more civilized, and it has become normal to see women working everywhere. Some of my male customers proudly introduce their families to me. These families are now my frequent customers.
Faten Bahussein, Barista
Entasar Hubail, a barista from the Eastern Province, joined Starbucks in 2019 and has since been promoted from barista to shift supervisor and now to assistant store manager.
Hubail said she loves coffee and had volunteered in coffee exhibitions and even bought a coffee machine for her brother, although she is the one who ended up using it.
“I still remember when I bought my first coffee bean bag from Starbucks and made coffee from it. I enrolled in coffee roasting courses and learned new techniques,” she said.
She is also a chocolatier and is into pastry-making. The time came when she had to decide whether to pursue cooking or join a coffee company. She chose the latter and ended up in Starbucks.
Speaking about what attracted her to this job, she said that when she applied, she was surprised to have been accepted for the job, which she thought showed the company’s focus on promoting gender diversity and attracting local talent.
HIGHLIGHT
Entasar Hubail, a barista from the Eastern Province, joined Starbucks in 2019 and has since been promoted from barista to shift supervisor and now to assistant store manager.
When she started, Hubail had mixed feelings of surprise, happiness and fear. “I was afraid because I was a very shy person and suddenly I was going to have colleagues and customers to deal with. I, in fact, wanted to take this job opportunity to overcome my inhibitions and focus on understanding more about the coffee industry and building a future at this big company.
Like Al-Ruhaili, Hubail’s biggest challenge was dealing with customers; it was her first time communicating with strangers. She said that with time and practice she was able to overcome her fears.
“The first day I went to work was a truly frightening experience. It was something like my first day at school. I even wanted my mom and sister to go to work with me. Thankfully, I was able to get over my fears by pushing myself more and more,” she said.
Faten Bahussein, a university graduate of Islamic studies, is also a coffee aficionado whose mornings begin with a cup at home before she goes to Chocochino café, where she works.
“I had an old coffee-making machine, and I practiced making coffee during the curfew period. This has helped me to become good at it, and that reflected positively on my current career,” Bahussein said.
After nearly four years working as a barista, Bahussein said that she has noticed how people look much happier when they see a Saudi girl working in a restaurant.
“This was not accepted in the past, but with time people have become more civilized, and it has become normal to see women working everywhere. Some of my male customers proudly introduce their families to me. These families are now my frequent customers,” she said.
