She earned her vocational certificate on full pay. Now Kaia, 25, runs a multimillion-kroner business

At 25, Kaia Sæther is already running one of Oslo’s largest stores of its kind. By 1 p.m., she had spent more than seven hours at work, moving between the checkout area and shelves that needed restocking.

Sæther manages the Kiwi store on Hegdehaugsveien, where 40 people work and annual revenue reaches 120 million kroner. Her route to the top did not begin with a carefully planned career in retail. It began with a part-time job while she was still in high school.

“Forget the prejudices. Ending up at the checkout can be fantastic,” Sæther says with a laugh. She recalls initially thinking like many others that retail would simply be a temporary job while she decided what to do next.

Instead, the work became a career. Sæther earned her vocational certificate while receiving a full salary and now combines her management role with international work for Kiwi. As an internal ambassador for the company’s cooperation with UNICEF, she is due to travel to Madagascar to visit schools and water projects built through the partnership. She also shares advice on dealing with customers and building a career in the retail sector.

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Forget the prejudices. Ending up at the checkout can be fantastic.