Profession / role:

Business Development Manager

Company / organisation:

Exclusive Roots/ Tabeisa

Website (if you have one):

www.exclusiveroots.com

My primary role in relation to fashion is:

Buyer

I am looking to discover or buy

Suppliers, Events, Fairs, Like Minded people!

About me / About business or organisation:

Specialising in Ethical Design in my Final Major Project in 2008 I have since gone on to produce my own ethical womenswear collections, exhibited on catwalks and sold my accessories through various outlets. I have been working as a Business Development Manager for Exclusive Roots since November 2012, we are the trading arm of charity Tabeisa. My day consists of many tasks including planning ranges, contacting suppliers, visual merchandising and working on our design projects.

Career history / Company history:

Exclusive Roots was born in 2008, the trading arm of the registered charity Tabeisa. Since 1994 Tabeisa has been working in South Africa with the aim of reducing poverty through enterprise. We won the Queen's Anniversary prize in 2008 for 'tackling the root causes of poverty', since then we have led various projects including Design for and a current project where we are collaborating with Big Issue in South Africa to support Big Issue sellers back into mainstream employment. Tabeisa has created work placement opportunities for the BI sellers at a number of the businesses they have helped to create. To date over 50 vendors have undertaken work placements and over half of them have secured full time employment. The vendors have moved from an unstable income source (magazine sales not covered by minimum wage legislation) to a stable and increased income source that is protected by the South African Basic Conditions of Employment Act.