Naquita started her career at the early age of 20 when she ventured into the world as a young journalist at a community newspaper. She was the only journalist at the publication at the time but later went on to grow the publication from ObsLife to CommunityLife Media, helping start RosebankLife, SaltRiverLife, WoodstockLife and RondeboschLife. Through her networking and marketing skills, she accelerated advertising opportunities and later too helped with the recruitment of a journalist.
As newspapers were not her long-term goal, Naquita moved on to work in radio. After a short stint in the industry, covering the 2013 gang violence that broke out in Cape Town, Naquita’s marketing finesse was evident and she went on to work at FAIRLADY magazine in the marketing department where she soared. She worked across 5 titles including, FAIRLADY, FAIRLADY Bride, LOSE IT!, Tuis and Home, as well as Idees and Ideas Magazine. Naquita championed events such as Kamers vol Geskenke, FAIRLADY Pamper Days, The Banting Bizaar as well as Homemakers. She also helped organise the prestigious FAIRLADY Women of The Future awards in partnership with Santam.
Even though Naquita was passionate about the magazine industry, she did not see much room for career growth, leading her to resign and venture out into the open waters. Since leaving FAIRLADY, it has not been a career path without speed humps. Naquita has taken many detours from her end goal, however, she has not felt that she has walked away without being more insightful and energised for her next venture.
After her 3-year career at FAIRLADY, Naquita ventured into the world of startups. As much as she loves being on her toes, she found the industry was not as developed in Southern Africa, and many startups don’t see the light of day, unfortunately. She worked in growing a non-existent brand to feature in Forbes Africa among the many opportunities that she had presented the business. Her marketing skills shone bright and even though she enjoyed the rat-race and crazy targets, she felt that she needed to expand her skillset even more so to move to become a full-fledged Digital Marketer.
Naquita worked at an international agency where she worked on international accounts, gaining the exposure that led her down a fruitful career path. Naquita worked in Digital Marketing across 7 brands, and with her skill, boosted brands in the UK with one of her clients becoming an Amazon bestselling Author thanks to her expertise. Not only did she establish the author online, but also boosted her offline presence to become a renowned speaker at Universities and recently on BBC.
Naquita’s hardworking demeanour has seen her climb the corporate ladder very quickly. She has gone from an intern to heading up departments at agencies. She has not only mentored many juniors but has also encouraged and led seniors to become successful in their careers. She has worked exceptionally hard in her career and has remained passionate about her path and career goals.
Not only has Naquita moved up the ranks in her career, but she too believes in continuous development and went on to achieve her Honours Degree while working full-time in a Managerial position, along with many certificates boosting her skillset and knowledge. “If you aren’t learning something new every day, then you need to start taking action!” – Naquita.
Naquita is saying goodbye to the South African shores to say hello to the Big Apple where she will contribute her tenacity and hardworking, bubbly persona to the working world. She believes that your dreams are never too big and at her young age, she is so very chuffed that she has had the privilege to work in managerial positions for global and local brands and knock many of her goals out the park. “All our dreams can come true if we have the courage to pursue them.” – Walt Disney
“Don’t ever give up. Things may not always go according to plan, but that’s the beauty of it all. I have had many setbacks, many “what have I done” moments, but I always remained focused on achieving my goals. It has not been easy, but I am so grateful for all the opportunities that have come my way. I have learnt resilience in all aspects of my life. I have learnt to adjust my ideas of what success is and embraced the changes and challenges that have come my way. Thanks to those detours I am now better equipped to tackle what life throws at me. Also, I have gotten out of the many challenging situations by trusting God and listening to my role model, Oprah’s, awesome podcasts that have gotten me through many challenging times. Go subscribe – Super Soul Sessions.”
