A Levels: Business, French, History, General Studies (2003 – 2010)
I had always wanted to be the first person in my family to go to university & thanks to the amazing teaching & support that was available at Friesland I landed a spot on my chosen course at my first choice University. Business studies was something I always had a natural passion and understanding of & was course that I took at Nottingham Trent University. Here I did a wide variety of different modules from Marketing all the way through to Investments & Stock Market trading.
Upon graduating I applied for several head office based roles in the local area and was lucky enough to gain a role at Boots head office in Beeston as an Assistant Marketing Manager. My role included making the merchandising decisions for our stores deciding which products should be placed where on shelves and designing the point of sale marketing materials. After 18 months I moved into the trading team which is at the heart of the business. The main duties are to manage your categories trading account. You are the decision maker deciding which products to sell or delist, what promotional activity you want to run & negotiating support from your supplier base as well as managing your own team. I am currently the category manager for the Positive Healthcare business directly accountable for over £50million of sales per year.
Whilst working at Boots I have also gained several additional qualifications such as being fully trained in negotiating (GAP) & Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) trained which enables me to support my direct reports and colleagues through any challenges they may be facing. Boots is a great company to work for with so many different functions & you have the opportunity to diversify your career & try something new. Longer term I would love to work in the commercial department of a premier league football club which would allow me to combine my career with my other passion. Sports.
I wouldn’t have been able to have the career I have had to date without the support of my teachers at Friesland. They helped me to channel my passion and enabled me to pursue a rewarding career.
