Women in the business of caring celebrated
"Go and open up a bank account and save some money," Ouma said. "But why, Ouma?" the little girl asked. "Because you cannot trust a man!" Ouma said.
WHITE RIVER – Lourese Gouws, Mpumalanga finalist in the South African Council of Businesswomen’s (SACBW) businesswoman of the year competition, was one of three guest speakers at Absa’s breakfast, which celebrated aspiring and successful businesswomen at Magnolia Restaurant, last Friday.
Gouws, who is a HR executive at Steval Engineering, was speaking about how important it is to be an independent woman in the world today, her life experience and how visualisation can play a part in one’s success.
The event, which was also sponsored by Dis-Chem, was held “to send a message of caring from the bank’s side”.
Bernice Lawrence, provincial manager of Absa for small to medium enterprises (SMME), said it was also an opportunity for businesswomen to network and create business partnerships.
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“We want to show our clients and staff that we care. Life is more valuable when we care. We hope to encourage women in business to care for one another,” she said.
She added that Alida Ferreira, of Iced had been asked to bake cupcakes to be used as centre pieces on the tables, instead of flowers.
Ferreira had to leave her job as a hairstylist to look after her son, Daniel, when he was diagnosed with bilateral retinoblastoma earlier this year. She has since taken up her previous hobby of baking and decorating cakes as a way of making an income.
“We have been replacing flowers with cupcakes at our events. It is our way of supporting the community that supports us and standing by one of its strong women,” Lawrence said.
