Quake ordeal leads Turkish survivor to peak of business world

The life of Ufuk Güveli, who has challenged against death for four hours under the rubble of a five-story building after a devastating quake hit north-western part of the country, gradually turned into a real success story. From scratch she climbed up the stairs of business world. Today she leads her own company manufacturing accessories for collections of international clothing retailers.

An earthquake that leveled a northwestern province in 1999 brought death to many but also drastically changed the way one young female survivor looks at life.

Ufuk Güveli’s struggle to survive under the rubble of a collapsed five-story building amid terrible aftershocks following the 7.2-earthquake in the province of Düzce paved the way for a trajectory that has taken her to the top of her own textile company.

“I was trapped under debris and it was a real ordeal of death and life. I saw how short life was and how simple it was. It was not only a turning point but also a new fight in my life,” said Güveli, who is now a 30-year-old businesswoman running the Güveli Textile company.

The 1999 earthquake killed 700 people in the northwestern province just three months after an even more catastrophic quake claimed 18,000 lives in the Marmara region.

Güveli believes the earthquake ordeal opened a new page in her life, teaching her how to empathize with people around her.

“I used to be a typical Black Sea girl beforehand. I could not stay in one place at any moment. I later realized what a nice feeling helping people is. I saw how much happiness helping others could bring to humanity,” she said.

“Rather than immediately shouting, I began thinking longer and becoming calmer than I used to be before. It is a real lesson that I can never forget,” Güveli said. “I restarted everything just like a baby who crawls on all fours. It is my second life, which I believe is a second chance granted to me by Allah.”

After gaining eight years of experience in the textile industry, Güveli established a company in her own name two and half years ago.

“Working with leading fashion labels has been the biggest project and biggest dream in my life but I never would have dreamed the company would take such large steps in such a short time,” she said.

Discussing the products made by her company, she said apparel is not full clothing in the traditional sense unless it is adorned with attractive accessories.

“Accessories and apparel are two things that complete each other. Every piece of clothing is just half the outfit without an accessory; every T-shirt, after all, is attached with a label,” she said.

“I have adorned apparel because the most colorful aspect of the textile business is offering accessories to indoor and outdoors clothes,” Güveli said.

Güveli’s biggest dream for the future is to design a new T-shirt to be adorned with Swarovski crystals.

“I want to deal with apparel clothing within the next two years. I envision an ornate T-shirt that others would like to wear both at night and during the day,” she said.

Güveli Textile has manufactured accessories for the collections of international clothing retailers like GAP, Zara, Marks & Spencer, Pull and Bear, Esprit, Beschka and Vienetta Secret. The company’s product line includes metal zippers, buttons, lace, necklaces and belts.

“Fashion labels’ designers envisage collections and we provide accessories to adorn clothes. It is us who decides which color suits or how long the lace needs to be to adorn a T-shirt,” Güveli said.

“We have a large share in the textile market extending from Europe to Africa. We have reliable business partners in Belgium, Italy, France, Germany, as well as the Netherlands and the United States. We are actively doing business in Arabic countries as well. We have partners in Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria and particularly Egypt,” she said.

According to the young manufacturer, European women like to wear simple clothes, which help them feel more comfortable, unlike their Arab counterparts.

“I used to think European women liked to wear low-cut dresses, but they do not like such garments. They like more simple models, which we are accustomed to wearing,” she said.

Güveli Textile has also begun making more cold calls to keep its relations active. “Once a month or once every two weeks, we call our partners to offer our own collections. We have tried to keep them engaged with new offers if they do not call us for a certain period of time,” she said.


/Hurriyet Daily News/