African Reporter’s Gerty bids farewell to Caxton
She joined the African Reporter 16 years ago.
Kwatsaduza – African Reporter sales consultant Getrude Shabangu said goodbye to the publication on Friday after 16 years of working for Caxton Local Media.
Gerty, who will be enjoying early retirement, is described by her colleagues as a hard worker, office mother and friend.
Speaking at her farewell party, Gerty said: “I still cannot believe how life-changing my experience at Caxton has been over the years”.
She joined the company after being recommended to Caxton Joburg Metro deputy general manager Linda Pretorius by her husband Hennie. Linda worked at the Springs Advertiser at the time.
Hennie met Gerty while she was employed at an electrical company in New Era where she worked as a sales consultant.
Over the years, the two had built a business relationship and when Linda mentioned that she was looking for sales consultants, Hennie immediately mentioned Gerty.
Though Gerty didn’t have any formal qualifications in the field, her eagerness and go-getter attitude secured her the job.
Gerty said it wasn’t easy in the beginning but with the support of Linda she was able to withstand the challenges.
“Starting out, Linda gave me a 10x2cm advertisement and I had to take it from there to build my own client base.
“I had to knock on every business door in Springs, Kwa-Thema, Tsakani and Duduza, introducing myself in a bid to attract clients for the paper. This wasn’t an easy task. It took a while to gain the business owner’s trust and build my own client base. Giving up was not an option.
“Even when Linda moved to Boksburg to take up the role of general manager I thought this would be the end of her journey with the company. The new manager Carleen du Toit was just as principled and driven as Linda. I worked for the publication for 10 years without an assistant until Gugu Mofokeng was appointed as a sales consultant.
“I now had a colleague to share ideas and trades of the industry to help attract clients,” she added.
Gerty said she will forever be grateful for the experience and relationships she built through the company.
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