Five Minutes With....Yuliya Zhukova

Mar 5, 2024|

In ‘Five Minutes With…’ we share the stories of our Bisley colleagues and business partners, allowing you to get to know them a little better. In this feature, we talk to Yuliya Zhukova our Regional Specification Manager for Bisley Dubai as she discusses her role at and what her role encompasses on a day-to-day basis.

Can you tell us a little about your role at Bisley?

I recently joined the team as a Regional Specification Manager, for the Middle East. My role is to educate the architectural and interior design community about Bisley products and ultimately, helping to continue to build the brand. It means a lot of lunch and learns, design events and ton of networking, which I absolutely love! I also work on specification packages and helping to provide architects and designers with any information regarding Bisley products.

What does a typical working day look like for you?

Of course, it starts with battling Dubai’s traffic and tons of coffee! We do take coffee very seriously here! When that’s all over, we get more coffee! Once I’m fuelled for the day, I meet lots of different people….for coffee and of course, we discuss our extensive product offering. I may then need to present or offer a showroom tour so that any clients or guests can feel and experience the high-quality of our products. Every day is different at Bisley, which is something I truly enjoy!

Why did you want to work in the furniture industry?

Honestly, it wasn’t my original plan. I went to Law school; I was going to be a lawyer and that was it. But life had a different plan for me, as so often happens. I moved to Canada and had to start everything from scratch, and architecture seemed like a fun thing to do. I started to look for a job within the industry and came across a posting looking for a specifier for a dealer, and so I decided to give it a go. That was 13 years ago! I absolutely fell in love with commercial furniture, and I really can’t imagine doing anything else today!

Does your subsidiary have a goal for the year ahead? If so, what are they?

For Bisley, we want to be the go-to product in the industry. We’ll continue to keep building the brand and increase recognition in the Middle East market, as well as working further and outside of the UAE to neighbouring countries.

What makes you proud to be a woman working in the furniture and manufacturing industries?

I am so proud to be a part of the interiors and furniture industry. Working in this sector means that every project is so different! Every client is different, one week I may be working with a hospital, the next week it could be a school, bank or the oil and gas sectors! How awesome is that!? I get to learn and discover each sector and industry doing the job I love.

Do you have any professional achievements that you’re able to share with us?

I joined Bisley a few months, right after I moved to Dubai. To begin with, I did not know anyone here, so my hope over the next few months and years is that I continue to meet new people in the industry every day and continue to build a new network. This will be a big personal achievement for me!

Do you have or know an inspirational quote that you can share in support for International Women’s Day? Can you share it with us, please?

“Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another stepping-stone to greatness”. This is a quote from Oprah Winfrey which I love.

What’s your favourite thing about working at Bisley?

Our showroom! It’s the greatest products being displayed in the most beautiful of settings! We are located on the 45th floor downtown Dubai with the most spectacular views – I never tire of the views we have!

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