Working It!

Meet Four Women From Different Industries Who Have Cool And Interesting Careers.

- Candice Curtis

Michele Keytel, 42, is the chief purchasing officer for Zando.co.za and lives in Welgemoed, Cape Town, with her husband, Alistair, and their children, Isabella, 10, and Joshua, 6.

‘It sounds corny, but I’ve always loved fashion, says Michele. ‘Although looking at me, you might not consider me particularly fashion forward – I usually go for more of a classic look with a bit of quirk. I’ve always loved the retail industry, analysing people and trends within the business. It offers an outlet that can make people feel amazing about themselves because of what they wear.’

To prepare for her career in the fashion and retail industry, Michele studied at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology and received a Retail Business Management qualification. She also did a part-time course in garment construction.

‘As head of purchasing, all the products that go onto our website come through me,’ she says. ‘My days consist of time spent with my team members, looking at the new ranges, analysing past sales, and taking trends into account so we can push the boundaries of our service offering.’

Michele also spends time building strong supplier relationships as these are key to Zando’s business performance. ‘I visit various brands and look at ways to improve our working relationships, as well as new opportunities for collaboration,’ she says. ‘I also look at the business from a strategic point of view and decide on category shifts. For example, blouses are really on trend, so we’ll move more money into that category and spend less on other products that aren’t performing as well in terms of sales.