The Founder

 

My name is Noha Elrefai. I was born and raised in Cairo, Egypt.  I am married and a mother of two young adults. I started my career in the finance industry working as a corporate banker for 15 years. In 2006, I moved to Basel, Switzerland in support of my husband’s international Pharma career. This move marked the beginning of a new chapter of my life.

 

At first, I chose to be fully dedicated to my family, and enjoyed raising my kids and settling into my new world. It was a great journey, full of excitement, challenges and new discoveries. 

Living as an expat is an eye opening experience where you not only see the world from a different perspective but you also feel more connected to your inner self, which helped me find clarity about my true passions and aspirations. I was really fascinated by the anxiousness of my new community to learn more about different cultures with full respect of the differences and appreciation of the unique beauty of each civilisation. This deepened my love and attachment to my Egyptian roots and invoked a big desire within me to share its charm and rich culture with the world.

 

For thousands of years Egypt has been a land of flourishing art and unique jewellery craftsmanship. This, coupled with my unexplored and deep passion for jewellery from a young age, led me to establish my first business, “Oriental Glamour Jewellery” with a clear mission to bridge Western and Eastern cultures through artisan work that reflects Egyptian heritage, current civilisation and future inspirations.