Despite a heritage of family business, working life hasn’t always been about cheese for Nagma Ebanks-Beni. After achieving a degree in Fashion Design and Marketing in Manchester, Nagma set out for the bright lights of the London Fashion Industry.
However, fashion didn’t quite meet Nagma’s entrepreneurial aspirations and in 1996 she single-handedly created a new restaurant and bar that was fittingly converted from a former clothes shop in the trendy Islington area of London. Design, build, and branding; Nagma created one of Islington’s go-to venues until its eventual sale in 2002.
The pull of the great North East was strong and Nagma returned and joined the family business in 2004. Prima Cheese was already operating out of their current home in Seaham, County Durham but following the birth of Nagma’s two children, and a lot of graft, in 2006 plans were made to invest heavily in creating a dedicated processing plant. By 2007 Prima Cheese Ltd was created and by 2010 Nagma was Commercial Director.
In 2011, Nagma had ambitions further afield. In addition to an expert domestic team, a talented export team was assembled and by 2019 Prima products could be found in over 50 countries across the globe.
In 2020, recognition for Nagma’s work came in the form of an MBE for ‘Services to International Trade’. A huge honour that Nagma felt was recognition of not only her own work, but that of her family and the wider Prima Cheese team. At home, Nagma was now Co-CEO of Prima with her brother Nima Beni.
In 2024, Nagma was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Business Administration by University of Sunderland and, in a pleasingly full circle moment, Nagma moved back to London to establish a new marketing and commercial hub for Prima in trendy Islington. Prima South now works in tandem with Prima North to ensure the company continues to go from strength to strength.
Whilst London is now Nagma’s home, her links to the North East will forever remain and she is regularly at Prima’s Seaham home. She is active in the North East Chamber of Commerce as Chair of the Race, Ethnicity and Discrimination Committee, Chair of the International Trade Commission, and standing Vice President.
