While any time of year is the ideal opportunity to celebrate your achievement, August marks women’s month and we’re honoring the occasion with some genuinely inspiring and tear-jerking story of Diana Mano from selling sweets, vegetables on the roadside to Ecommerce Specialist, she holds BA Communication Science from University of South Africa and currently working as a Ecommerce Specialist / Digital Account Manage in one of the biggest companies in SA.
“One thing that has stuck with me from day 1 is selling & entrepreneurship.
I started selling sweets on the roadside at 6yrs, then we upscaled my mom had a stall at Lord Malvern High in Waterfalls (best days of my life, attending high school Sports Days when i was in primary school). We then moved to another surburb and selling sweets was no longer viable. We had a vegetable stall by then my blood was rushing and i had to “run the streets”. It was quite difficult for my mom to get me to sit there. Nah my friends can’t be seeing me selling tomatoes and who is going to write the Craig David lyrics over the radio if Im sitting there.
I did Commerce in high school and learnt about business. After discovering I could up my moms prices or sell someones stuff and get a cut – I finally agreed to manage the stall. I had a lot of conditions though , i wanted to look fly, i wanted a phone etc.
Because my dad was a cook and my mum had a stall the best they could was to get me to high school only and not varsity. Those entrepreneurial skills came to play – i used to buy clothes from town, (Bree street) and I paid for my undergrad.
Today I still sell, but now – i do it online – Ecommerce Specialist. Looks like i can never run away from selling. “ – Diana Mano
Happy Women’s Month to Imbokodo, like follow and comment.