What inspired the Thusana story

My name is Charlene and I’ve been involved in marketing for the past 20 years and run a digital marketing agency for the past 9. So it was obvious that I needed to use my experience in this field to help tackle this issue. Building brands and generating leads and sales for clients is what I do every day – so that’s what’s in my hands. And if there is one thing I’ve learnt over the years, it’s that people buy from people. Yes the product or service is important but there’s so much more involved when people choose a particular brand. Why they do what they do and how it impacts others is important. They may not always communicate or even realise it but it’s true for all of us. So one of the key values of the Thusana brand is to share the stories of the people behind the products. Because their story matters.

We believe that hard working, humble people that aren’t born into privilege, deserve a better life. No one should be stuck in the cycle of poverty, but the reality is that we need to work together to provide opportunity and resources for those that aren’t born into it. We don’t believe in handouts because it’s not sustainable and doesn’t give anyone dignity. We want to see people change their lives by building their own business that will sustain themselves and their family.

The Thusana brand provides a platform to give deserving people exposure so they can sell more of their beautifully crafted products. It’s really that simple. We know that stories can be messy and logistics will be challenging but we’re on this journey one day at a time and we’re hoping many people will join us! Because it’s when we help each other that lives change.

And it’s at this point that I want to acknowledge and thank my husband, Brett for his incredible support in launching what for me was just a dream locked away in my heart for many years. I think he grew tired of me talking about it every time my heart broke when I saw talented people struggling. He encouraged and pushed me to ‘just start’ even when we didn’t have all the answers. And so that’s exactly what we did and now we’re on this journey together – which is so much better than doing it alone! Our plan is to ‘get our steps’ in every day and see how God will open doors and connect us with the people he always planned to be part of the Thusana story.