LAHORE: The smell of warm, toasty bread emanates through the small waiting area of Go Flour bakery as Shamila Bukhari works through the ingredients to bake a fresh batch.

As an apprentice at the tiny eatery that’s tucked away in a corner of Lahore’s upmarket Gulberg area, Bukhari is part of a growing tribe of women to be trained in the art of “baking the world a better place,” its owner, Asma Yasmin Shah, told Arab News on Sunday.

“It’s necessary for more women to enter the workforce as skilled workers, for them to be financially independent, and to gain the respect they deserve from the wider community,” Shah said during a phone interview.

Since its inception in September 2019, Go Flour bakery has trained several women from Pakistan’s diverse socio-economic backgrounds and hopes “to empower and help them move into the working world with a hands-on skill, baking, in their pockets,” Shah said.

While its two trainers, master baker Akram Shafi, and professional chef Ahmed Cheema are men, all of Go Flour’s employees – ten permanent and ten under training – are women between the ages of 19 and 50.

Bukhari, 40, said she chanced upon the bakery while surfing through Facebook, and eventually messaged Shah to enquire about employment opportunities.

A few months after being hired as a trainee, Shah said Bukhari was “quick to learn the tricks of the trade.”

If earlier, she didn’t know the difference between creaming, folding, or beating, today, she could bake blind – a technique wherein the crust of a pie/tart is baked without the filling. 

“I’ve mastered making all kinds of bread, including multi-grain which is my favorite, both to make and eat,” Bukhari said, adding that the employment allowed her to make the most of the ample time on her hands, especially with both her children grown up.

Shah, for her part, says the idea to set up Go Flour and provide a platform for women in Pakistan, was her way of paying it forward.

“I wanted to help them learn a skill so they could feel empowered and stand on their own feet and earn for themselves. The knowledge I picked up [over the years] inspired me to do something for other women,” Shah, who is originally from London and moved to Lahore 20 years ago, said.

Detailing the experiences acquired in the London chapter of her life, she explained how she co-owned an Italian restaurant with her sister which ultimately became a catalyst for her desire to see “more women in hospitality.”

While in London, Shah also volunteered at the Center for Better Health, an organization focussing on reintroducing people suffering from mental health issues, back into the workplace.

It was there that she took on a project for artisan baking and learnt new techniques in the process, eventually training other participants in the program.

Armed with a new-found experience, she joined forces with Cheema – her long-time friend and now business partner – to set up Go Flour.

Today, the organization prides itself in being the only bakery in Lahore to make artisan bread that’s “free of additives and enhancers,” while “championing the cause for women empowerment.”

“Many, many women have come and gone. A lot of them for shorter stints as, unfortunately, they have family (childcare/in-laws) or transport issues. But some have gone on to open their businesses, one started a canteen at a college here in Lahore and another, a former trainee, started her online baking business,” Shah said.

It’s something Bukhari, too, aspires to do one day.

“I have gained so much confidence and independence and make my own money now. Next, I hope to open a small bakery someday soon.”