Slice of Life: A moment of serendipity – The Mail & Guardian

During the pandemic I lost track of my dream. 

My life was supposedly dedicated to fashion. That’s what I studied in university; it’s where I’ve always seen myself; where I’m at my happiest. 

I took a gap year after my degree to put my life into perspective and figure out how I was going to chase that dream. Somewhere along the way I got into styling. It felt like a pleasant interlude on my journey. A chance to learn something new … not to mention style some really cool people.

But time ticked on and soon styling became my life. When I realised that, I had already sunk too deep. What was supposed to be one fun year turned into three. It seemed impossible to break back into fashion. Every signal of hope was blotted out by my lack of experience. But how can I get any when no one will let me into the door?

And then the pandemic hit. I thought, “Ag, I’m definitely not going to be able to find something now.” I wasn’t in a good space mentally.

Just when I was at my lowest — sprawled on my couch four months ago — I was pulled back to my feet by the past. 

During my studies, my classmates and I had the wonderful opportunity to show off our range on a rack at Convoy in Melville. My sister has followed Convoy on Instagram ever since.  

She saw a job post there, came straight to me and was like, “Just as you’re about to give up on your hopes and dreams of fashion, why not just call and message them and hear what happens? All they could do is reject you.”

She was right. Having collaborated with the store I understood its ethos and I think they saw that in the first interview. By the second they offered me the job.

This is a great place to hit the ground and really get something going for myself. I feel like it has given me that platform to really develop my skills and develop myself as an individual. It’s not cold or corporate. It’s family-oriented and has a focus on designers and their clothes. There’s heart in it. I’m not just an operations manager … It feels much bigger than that.

I love looking back on that moment that put my life in the right direction. — Amu Godi, operations manager at Convoy, as told to Luke Feltham