Cheese Market Qatar Gourmet 

Mr. Saleh Gharib; Head of Culture and Arts Section of Sharq Newspaper and Mr. Atiq Alkhulaifi; General Manager in the United Group Real Estate Development, opened the first store dedicated to cheese in Qatar – Cheese Market. The grand opening of Cheese Market involved many VIP guests including her Excellency the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Spanish Carmen Peña and representatives of the Embassy of Greece and Switzerland Embassy and the Embassy of the Kingdom of Jordan. Guests at the event included also Engineer Jassim Telefat; executive director of the group at Qatar Foundation and Mr. Tariq Al Suwaidi; Head of Government Affairs at Qatar Foundation, as well as media representative, artists and the people of the region.

Cheese Market store is considered the first of its kind in the region, specialized in importing the finest European and international cheeses and luxury food products compatible with cheese including extra virgin olive oil, mustard, balsamic vinegar, sea salt flavored, olives, sauces and many other delicious products. Products have been carefully selected with high quality as most cheeses have a long aging period or different flavours not available locally due to limited production sources in Europe.

The event was simply classic and reflected the spirit of the chosen design of the store. Ms. Hind Gharib; CEO & Founder of the company, expressed her happiness of opening the first shop and designing it. “Hard work by all members in this company is finally rewarded”.  With the experience in architectural design, Gharib insisted on adding her personal touches on every detail of the project and so, this store is considered a result of long years of specialization in the field of design. She said: “Before starting the design, we have visited many fromageries in France, Spain and Italy as well as many small factories, farms and deserted villages as it is very important to study the origin of the product and the manufacturing process in order to deliver a brilliant concept for the customers that fits our society. From the beginning of the project planning process a year ago, we insisted in accommodating a small space representing the intimate cheese stores usually found in Europe. We have chosen the Pearl-Qatar as one of the developments in Qatar, which reflects the European Urbanism with a local twist. We have developed the typical cheese shops designs and presented it in a simple contemporary style. Wood was chosen as a key element in the interior design of the shop as it is one of the most important materials used in European villages, buildings such as houses in Spanish or France. And therefore we transmit our visitors to that part of the world. We have also deliberately chosen earthy colors and simple furniture to increase the intimacy of the space. It is no secret that storing plays a great role in such spaces; especially in a small space as our store. Therefore, we have carefully studied each area to provide enough storage space without blocking the circulation.” Hind has expressed her interest in details and her main objective to offer each customer an unforgettable experience during his/her visit to the shop. “We do not sell food products, but provide an alternative life style. And for this, we traveled all over the world to personally select the best products that can be offered.”

With regards to the selected products, we encourage all customers to express their opinion and participate in the selection of their favourite products as we continue to renew the products’ list from time to time. French cheeses were among the first few cheeses available in the store. Currently, we have a rotating selection of over 120 kinds of cheese; some of which were selected by our customers. Our cheese selection currently includes Spanish, British, Italian, Dutch, Swiss and French cheese.

Hind Stated that the project implementation was harder than she have imagined as it requires lots of patient and follow-up on a personal level and on daily basis. Her role in the project was not only the founder but she runs all relevant aspects of the project, starting from the choice of shop name until the arrival of products to the store and arranging them on the shelves. The idea has evolved since a year ago, where she visited a cheese shop in London with her friends and bought different types with some olives, bread and they all consumed their purchase quickly as they left the store and continued on doing this every day until the last day of that trip. Following this in a business trip to New York, she visited a coffee shop where the customer can preferred choose for his/her sandwich among many flavoured cheeses. With the help of friends and serious thinking and hard work the idea became a reality. Gharib also said that her studies at Oxford for the Bachelor's and master a period of not less than six years exposed her to a different community and lifestyle as she met many Europeans and learned a lot about the culture of cheese which she would not know without that experience. Gharib stated that she is very proud and thankful to everyone who contributed to the implementation of this project.