The thing that most surprised me when I started working at Monsoon Accessorize was how friendly everyone was. Initially I thought it was because I was ‘new’ but it’s not, colleagues are a pleasure to work with. I’ve learnt that everyone has different priorities and it’s worth persevering with an idea to bring it to fruition.
I’ve spent all my working life in retail, in a number of different departments. Before joining Monsoon Accessorize I spent 4.5 years working for the trading arm of the charity Shelter. I decided that I wanted to return to high street retailing and saw the position advertised and thought it would be perfect. I applied on line and then had 2 interviews. I then needed to meet some of the trustees including Peter Simon and following this, was offered the job.
The most memorable and unusual thing I’ve worked on here is organising a fundraising Live Karoake evening in the head office atrium. Amazing stage, good bands and once the music started great fun.
My typical day: The first thing I do is check emails: most of the projects that the Monsoon Trust funds are in India, so due to the time difference I’ll often receive emails overnight that I need to reply to quickly before people in India go home.
Depending on the time of the year, I’ll spend the morning planning for charity week, a sample sale or a head office fundraising event. Lunch is usually at my desk and I’ll spend some time catching up on events in Asia and also ‘eco’ fashion happenings.
In the afternoon, internal and external communication is another area which needs to be regularly updated and involves reviewing and updating the websites, intranet and newsletter. I’ll also ensure all donations and money raised through fundraising is correctly accounted for in preparation for banking the money, before making my way home at about 5:45.