The Marketing Manager of Tsakane Mall Zani Dludlu grew up in Springs and she was raised by both hardworking parents.
Her mother is a qualified nurse and her father is a lab technician. Zani’s parents were hard-working and determined to provide the best opportunities for their children. Dludlu is one of the four daughters of the couple, fortunately all her siblings ventured into their own careers. Dludlu’s early years started at Pinegrove primary school and she later matriculated at Springs girls high, her mother also inspired her career as her drive for education and passion for reading was over everything else. Dludlu knew that Event and Brand Management was her passion, she then enrolled at UJ. “I found myself immersed in my studies, I graduated and obtained a National Diploma in Communication Management and Public Relations,” explained Dludlu.
Dludlu expressed herself to Ekurhuleni News, divulging as follows, “I dedicated my Women’s Month to honouring and celebrating women who came before me, such as my mother and my grandmother because they paved the way for us, but I’m also honouring all the women in South Africa for their contribution in making our society a better place – be it in business or in different corporate fields. My career in marketing has been informative and fascinating. I have ten years of experience in the marketing and public relations corporate industry, I was firstly absorbed as an intern in the marketing field working for a public relation agency. I then moved to Ogilvy Johannesburg Agency as an Account Executive and worked with a vast number of big brands. I have also worked in the insurance industry and I’m currently the Marketing Manager at Tsakane Mall. My main task as a marketing manager is to endorse marketing and communication strategies, to promote our brand and most importantly to work with the community in which we operate in as a business centre. I view every challenge as an opportunity and I never base it on my gender. As a creative, it is exciting and also challenging to keep up with the marketing trends because they change continuously. We therefore have to constantly find new ways to engage with the consumers and stay on top of marketing trends.”
Dludlu expressed how grateful they are as Tsakane Mall because they never faced any looting incidences during the unrest, “We are incredibly grateful for the immense effort that was demonstrated by our community in Tsakane, they upheld their mandate in protecting the mall. The support we received from the community members who came together to instigate the #SaveTsakaneMall was amazing. There is no doubt that the community played a massive role in ensuring that we still trade today. The phenomenal work done by our centre management team, Bhekani Abantu Security Services, law enforcement agencies, Taxi Association marshals, Basothong Neighbourhood Watch Forum, community volunteers and various stakeholders was commendable because they worked tirelessly to protect the mall. We are thankful that the trading process at the mall was halted for only a few days and we are now back to serving our customers and community which is what we love to do. Tsakane Mall opened its doors in 2008, as a centre we are committed to the developing and uplifting our community through creating employment and rolling out our CSI initiatives. We are also providing a safe shopping environment for our customers and community.”
Dludlu encourages women to be themselves as every woman is valuable, and every dream is achievable if you work hard on it.
By Vuyokazi Bam
