Tania-Tapel - corporate entertainment and wedding planners

Help From My Friend

July 2002 – I get by with a little help from my friend by Ebrahim Patel, Vogue Beds Limited

It was a strange time for my business, I was being inundated by magazines, journalists ringing me for quotes, the classified section wanting to know what photograph needed to be in for this months issue and all I really wanted to do was to sell more beds.

I needed help. The way the business was expanding meant that it was gaining more publicity and I knew absolutely nothing about handling that kind of exposure, I didn’t have a marketing person or even an agenda to cater for this. But I knew a person who did.

I always find it hard to ask my friends for work related help, I’m far too demanding and from other peoples experience it can lead to “big time fall outs”. Well I was going one step further, I asked my close friend Anita Patel to work as a freelance P.R. consultant, to guide me through this maze of pleasantry.

I knew Anita, I knew how she worked, and I knew how dedicated she was with all the other work she did. But what I didn’t know was how good a job she would do for me.

My intention was to hire Anita and for her to take away the hassle of magazines ringing me all the time. But as soon as she was hired, she changed everything. Anita started by introducing a comprehensive marketing policy, she immediately started writing newsletters to various trade magazines and in-turn introduced a very important piece of strategy. Her dedication and determination was a shining example of what a professional person is capable of achieving. I was constantly being surprised about how she went about organising things. I’m sure there were days when she felt she was just banging her head against a wall, but that didn’t stop her.

Her character always came through I was just damn lucky she happened to be a friend of mine!