Shemida Ramdewar: “I have succeeded in a male dominated profession”

Shemida Ramdewar, 27, is a woman entrepreneur unlike others. Her job is far from being one which young ladies dream of. If many are dreaming of obtaining a comfortable and luxurious office as a workplace, Shemida opted for the market. Along with her business, she is also the president of a woman association. K Ramdewar Auction Services is a family business. Shemida belongs to the third generation of the family running this business. The company’s main activities include the buying and selling of vegetables for auction sale at the marketplace, commonly known as auctioneer. “My grandfather founded the company. Then, my father followed in his footsteps. Now, it is my duty to ensure the same trend and the survival of the business,” she says. However, many people are unaware of the job of an auctioneer at the marketplace. What does it entail? Shemida explains...   “Much before sunrise, at around 2 am, this is the important rendezvous for planters, vegetables sellers and auctioneers at the market in Flacq and in Vacoas. There, we conduct public auction sales in the traditional way. In fact, farmers bring vegetables in large quantities and then we auctioneers, we sell them to vegetables sellers by taking a commission on every transaction,” says the young lady. [[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"19020","attributes":{"class":"media-image aligncenter wp-image-32612","typeof":"foaf:Image","style":"","width":"560","height":"373","alt":"Shemida Ramdewar"}}]] At Vacoas, she works on Tuesdays and Fridays and in Flacq, she works on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Her work schedule starts from 2 am and ends at 9 am. According to Shemida, she is the only woman to practise this profession in the region of Flacq and the second woman across the island. There is another woman who does the same in Vacoas. The director of K Ramdewar Auction Services points out that she decided to choose this profession because it is less saturated, as compared to other sectors. “In all, there are only 40 companies in Mauritius that offer the services of public auction for vegetables,” she says. “I was also interested because I am very fond of farming. I found that this is an area that offers some very interesting job prospects but it is a pity to see that young people do not show interest in this sector today,” she argues. Despite her expertise in agriculture, Shemida did her studies in a field which has nothing to do with her job. “I have a degree in French from the University of Mauritius. I like French language and I wanted to learn more through this course. This year, I’ll start an MBA. I believe that holding an MBA will help me a lot for the development of my company,” she says.

[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"19021","attributes":{"class":"media-image wp-image-32613 alignleft","typeof":"foaf:Image","style":"","width":"282","height":"282","alt":"Shemida Ramdewar"}}]]Strong personality

Today, there are seven persons working under her leadership. “They are the same people who worked with my dad and they are obviously older than me. But we get along very well when it comes to working together. Despite being young and in a profession dominated by men, so far, I have successfully managed the business,” she says. This job, says Shemida, is very different compared to other professions that most girls want to do. “No heels, no fashionable clothes, no make-up... You have to forget all fashion trends and beauty care in this business. I am always in jeans which are most of time dirty with traces of mud,” describes the young woman. She also argues that one must have a strong personality to be able to collect the debts with the vegetables sellers.

Cooking and gardening

On the personal side, Shemida says that she got married a few months ago. “Even after marriage, I can manage between the household chores and the business. In addition, my husband, who works in a bank, supports me tremendously,” she says. Apart from her work, Shemida also loves cooking and gardening. In fact, she even won a prize in a Kitchen Gardening Competition at national level. The hardworking lady also chairs the Women Agriculture Club of Flacq.