Dec 21 - Ballito Umhl

The stunning new Safari
range is a collaboration
between Thandana and local
travel stylist Jemma Wild
With golden ringlets blowing in the wind, big excited eyes darting around and
both her parents doting attentively over her, little Chloe Ashton has one mission
as she climbs on board the vehicle at the start of our game drive: she wants to
see a giraffe.
Chloe’s mom Carla and dad Stanton are the owners and founders of well-known,
home-grown luggage brand, Thandana bags. Chloe is their ‘miracle baby’. “It took
seven years and four IVF cycles for us to finally be blessed with our little girl,” says
Carla as she carefully pulls Chloe’s hair up into a ponytail.
A die-hard Thandana bag fan myself, I admit I was excited to spend a bit of time
with the creators of this high-quality, trendy and very proudly local brand.
Despite their obvious success though, both Carla and Stanton are incredibly
down-to-earth and were almost as excited as Chloe when we saw the first giraffe
popping its head out behind a large acacia tree.
Stanton and Carla grew up in Empangeni and their families were close friends
throughout their childhood. Carla admits to having ‘had her eye’ on Stanton
growing up, but says it was only much later, after they had finished school and
both spent a few years working and travelling overseas, that they met up again
in Durban and started their relationship. They’ve been married for 12 years.
Thandana (which means ‘love everyone’ in Zulu) was a project started by Carla
in 2010. At the time, she outsourced production to CMT factories and only sold
handmade fabric bags on consignment to a few KZN stores. With many years of
experience in retail, Carla’s father suggested she introduce leather to her range
and start her own small factory, which she did, with just four people.
It was in 2017, after Chloe was born, that Stanton (who has a background in the
supply chain industry, owning fashion stores and project development) decided
to join forces with Carla so they could grow the brand together. They now have a
staff compliment of 30 people.
“As challenging as it is to work with your better half, it’s the best decision we have
ever made. Our personalities work so well together and we love being able to
create and share our success as a team,” says Carla.
Speaking about the brand and company ethos, Carla says Thandana was built
with the goal of being a proudly South African brand that adds fun to travelling
and family living. “We also focus on employment, upskilling and improving the
lives of our local community. It is very important to us to showcase the incredible
quality of workmanship and materials that we have right here in South Africa.
Our ethos has always been to keep it local and we ensure that our fabric, leather
and straps are sourced locally and responsibly.”
From having only a few bags in the range initially, Thandana now has over 126
designs with over 2000 variants, 15 different leathers and 18 different printed
fabrics in the range. Their success, they believe, has come down to the fact
that they have tried to stay humble,
work smart and believe in their staff
as much as their product. And they
always keep God in the plans. “Each
morning a different member of the
team has their turn to share prayers
with the team. We believe that the
customer is not the king but rather
the CEO, because he or she will
decide whether your business is
going to rise or fall,” says Stanton.
The juggle of running a business and
raising little Chloe is real, but Carla
says her goal when starting Thandana
was always to be able to have ‘flexitime’
with her family. “I’ve managed
this through planning and lots of
structure. Having your better half as
your business partner makes a world
of difference, too!” Stanton strives to
work smart, work while others are
sleeping, not waste time and get
home as soon as possible. “And when
you are home, make sure your mind
is too.”
The Ashtons are a beach, sea and sun
loving family and spend lots of time
in the ocean. Having lived in Simbithi
for almost three years, they say they
love every minute of living on the
North Coast and have made lifelong
friendships. “It’s been great living
closer to Carla’s family. The support
has been incredible and Chloe now
lives closer to her cousins.”
Looking towards 2022, Carla says she
hopes that the year ahead brings
some normality back to our very
‘abnormal’ current way of living.
Stanton says, “I hope that people can
be more grateful for the things they
have that are right in front of them,
rather than being distracted by what
they don’t have. The past two years
have taught us that life is fragile and
we shouldn’t waste it.”
Details: www.thandana.co.za,
IG: @thandana_bags,
FB: @thandanabagco
Win One lucky reader
stands to win a Safari
Weekender bag, valued
at R2250. Enter on this
post on our social media
platforms.
Dec 2021 / Jan 2022 Get It • Ballito Umhlanga 15