Thandiwe has been in the beauty game for more than 10 years, and it is her life’s passion. “I just love beauty,” she says. “I love making a difference in someone’s life.”
It is making a direct and immediate difference that has drawn Thandiwe to waxing, which is her special talent. “It beautifies immediately,” she comments. “There are quick and instant results.”
And she is a whizz at it, shaping brows to soften and harmonise facial features or doing a leg or arm job swiftly with the least amount of fuss or pain. After less than an hour with her magic hands, you leave refreshed, smooth and lovely. That is what she wants from her work. “I’m inspired by beauty,” she says. “It’s about seeing someone walk away feeling good and confident.”
Thandiwe also specialises in manicures and pedicures. She wants them to be a real treat for whoever receives a treatment from her. As she beautifies, she pampers the client, and this is part of what has drawn her to working with hands and feet.
The beautician studied for two years before joining the toast&co team, and in that time she learned how to do everything: massage, facials, sugaring, spray tans, the lot. But she wanted to focus on what she liked to do, and what she did best. “That is what I like about working here,” she says. “At toast you can focus on what you like to do.”
Beauty work isn’t always easy. It takes skill and dedication. Thandiwe feels strongly that a sense of heart is necessary to perform her job well. “You have to love what you do in beauty. You have to do it with a passion that comes from within. If you don’t like it, you’re not going to do it right.”