4 minute read
CHRISTMAS with the Njilos
from The Ridge 122
CLOSE YOUR EYES, AND IT’S LIKE A FAIRY TALE, A CHRISTMAS PAGEANT. THE NJILO FAMILY OF LA LUCIA ADORES CHRISTMAS, AND CELEBRATES AS GLAMOROUSLY AS THEY POSSIBLY CAN, WRITES ANNE SCHAUFFER.
For Ayanda Njilo, Christmas was always the brightest star of the year, her mom made sure of that. “I come from humble beginnings and a small family, but no matter how little money we had, we dressed up. My mom adores clothes, and so do I. I had a different outfit for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. Dressing up was when I came into my own.”
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Today, life is quite different for Ayanda, but that love of dressing up hasn’t waned one bit. To her own love, she can now add the joy of dressing up her two little daughters, Milani and Zoey, who clearly inherited their mom’s love of theatre and glam. Even husband Phumlani stepped out and dressed for success.
Ayanda was born, raised and studied law in Pietermaritzburg. She studied law because, she says, coming from a humble background, education was something her parents deemed very important.
Ayanda, Phumlani, Zoey and Milani standing at the bottom of their staircase decorated with garlands, lights and berries. At centre stage stands their majestic Christmas tree decorated in mainly red with a touch of green, and surrounded by festive cheer.
She then did her articles and another three years with Africa’s largest law firm, Edward Nathan Sonnenberg (ENS). The biggest problem for Ayanda was the dress code there. She laughs, “I don’t know what I expected when I walked into ENS on that first day, but it wasn’t a dark corporate look where everyone looked the same. It was at that moment that I knew this would not be the world for me. I had worked hard to get here, and, frankly, I wanted to look pretty – not join a profession with a dress code.”
Ayanda and Phumlani run a funeral business, Induduzo Bespoke Funerals. Ayanda turned her back on law completely, and while Phumlani explores other entrepreneurial interests, she has created something truly unique at Induduzo. She’s moved funerals up a notch by customising them and is very involved in marketing the brand.
She explained, “We’ve realised the power of social media. Funerals are generally associated with dark and sombre thoughts, but we’ve changed the face of the industry. We market the experience of our clients being a part of Induduzo. “We market to both the low and high LSM. For the low sector, we market through promotions, run competitions with prizes – people rush to join in or sign up to Induduzo. We’ve found that our clients love being part of our brand because of the experience we provide, and we go out of our way to treat them like gold. Social media has been a huge platform on which we market ourselves.”
Christmas ornaments and candles have been strategically placed around the home on shelves and side tables to showcase a feast of festive fun and cheeriness.
Ayanda’s desire to make occasions special, makes her the perfect person to manage bespoke funerals: “Our bespoke funerals are quite the event. I usually attend the first consultation with the client, and assist them to choose the right casket. I work with the family to design a funeral that reflects the personality of their loved one.” Ayanda says they usually only have three or four days to plan the funeral, meaning it’s a pressurised situation.
The clients of Induduzo Bespoke Funerals are also high end and countrywide: “We have a responsibility to leave families with beautiful, lasting memories, and we do that through the service we provide.” They’ve clearly achieved that, for she has clients who’ve “booked” their funerals ahead of time – they’ve specified to their families the precise kind of Induduzo funeral they want.
Social media has played a big role in building the business, but Ayanda has other dreams too. She’s launched herself as a brand on social media. When Induduzo reaches the point of running smoothly without her, Ayanda Njilo will be the clothing label you’ll have to have. She laughs, “My love of clothes runs very deep. I want to see people dressed in Ayanda Njilo wear.”
For Ayanda and the family, dressing up and strutting their stuff for Christmas represents the start of the festive season. She was dressed by Zarth Designs, a Durban-based designer, the girls dressed by Thameka Designs, and Phumlani wore his »
The dining area is a showcase of gold, crystal and cream decor with touches of red to add festive glamour. Ornate cutlery, underplates and opulent crackers add to the luxurious table setting. A manager setting to captivate little ones.
