FEMALES IN THE FLEET


Drivers who had worked for the company for many years and were at first sceptical and suspicious were now seeing that ‘this girl’ means business and she isn’t going away. They started coming to me for advice or help and when I got things done for them or things worked out in their favour, they started softening their attitudes towards me and were no longer frosty towards me.


Nearly three years on and I have really made a mark within the taxi trade. I have also made a name for myself within the wider community as females now see me as an inspiration and think that yes we can also do this - and YES you can.


Now for me the first thing was to set the foundations. What I had seen my brother do since 2015, I needed to now put all that into practise, but there was a huge elephant in the room. I was a 40-year-old muslim female and I was now the owner of Crossleys - something that no one had seen happen in Halifax.


Was it frowned upon? It absolutely was: “How can they let their daughter, auntie, sister join the trade in this role?” was the sort of thing I was hearing on a daily basis. Did I let this bother me? NO! It was making me more determined that ever.


My dad was my biggest inspiration. He was ready to stand against the whole world for me. He was my biggest motivator and encouraged me everyday when it got too much and I didn’t feel I could do this.


He always said to me: “If the men can do it then the females can also”. “You’ve got this”, he would tell me. Knowing that my dad was by my side made me more determined to succeed. Failing was not an option.


My mission and goal was to be taken seriously within the industry and I was the only one that could make it happen as I was not going to step back and let others get the better of me. Nothing was going to stop me from making this business an even bigger success.


So you will be thinking how did I do this? When I tell you I worked hard, I mean I worked hard. I literally started from the bottom and learnt everything I could about the trade, other firms, how things were being done and how I could make changes to make the business run more efficiently. My nephew and dad worked alongside me, supporting me the whole way.


PHTM NOVEMBER 2022 BIGGEST VICTORY AND YOUR BIGGEST REGRET?


My biggest victory has to be how the business has progressed over the last two and a half years. We have won three Prestige Awards: 2019-2020 Airport Transfer of the Year; 2020-2021 Taxi Provider of the Year and 2021- 2022 Taxi Provider of the Year, for a second time.


My regret is the circumstances in which I found myself running the company - I wish that my brother was around to see what I had done with the business and how successful it is. I know for sure that my brother is looking down at me and thinking I knew you could do this. I just wanted to make him proud and I hope I have.


WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE FOR THE INDUSTRY GOING FORWARD?


I would love for more females to get involved. Whether that’s as operators or drivers. That is the only thing that is lacking, the presence of women.


Females in the Fleet has seen huge support from operators, suppliers and industry collaborators and reports are that more women are signing up for driver training courses. We look forward to the day these articles will be unnecessary as the 2% increases!


www.femalesinthefleet.com GET IN TOUCH WITH YOUR STORY!


Article complied by Rachel Dale Head of Operations AAA Taxis, Herts


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