A closet DJ who swapped golf courses in South Africa to head up marketing at BABTAC and CIBTAC in the Cotswolds, we talk to Andrea Schubach about coffee, conferences and everything in between…
Where did you work before BABTAC?
I helped to set up an Association called ARC (The Association of Residential Communities) in the Golfing Estate Industry in South Africa so it was quite a dramatic change coming into beauty! It had the added bonus of getting to work and play on some of the most beautiful golf courses in South Africa!
What attracted you to working at BABTAC?
The beauty industry was definitely always going to be a steep learning curve for me but I love a challenge and I had a really good understanding of working for an Association. I was most drawn to the values and ethics of BABTAC and CIBTAC.
Talk us through your day-to-day duties?
One of the things that has always drawn me to marketing is that no two days are ever the same – especially with the challenge of heading up marketing for two different companies with their own strategic goals! Luckily I am blessed with an amazing team and we are all becoming most qualified in multi-tasking and prioritising! One of our priorities presently is ensuring that our Inaugural Conference this September is a huge success.
Are you a tea or a coffee person?
100% coffee. My husband invested in a proper coffee machine 15 years ago and I’m now a complete coffee snob. Instant coffee is a complete no no!
Do you have any bad beauty habits?
Where do I start? I’m definitely more of a tomboy and I think many of the team find my attempts at make-up highly amusing! As a sporty South African I definitely spent way too much time in the sun in my youth.
What’s always in your beauty kit?
Tinted moisturiser (because I hate foundation and at my age I have to use something!), sunblock and lip gloss.
Is there one treatment you’re desperate to try?
Acupuncture – I’ve never tried it but it fascinates me.
Who inspires you?
Nelson Mandela – he was an Icon, humanitarian and visionary - and Richard Branson – he works hard, plays hard but remains kind and philanthropic.
Where do you live?
In the Cotswolds just outside Cheltenham, with my husband John and my son’s James and Nicolas. It’s a beautiful part of the country and we feel very lucky to live there.
Do you have any party tricks?
I’m a walking encyclopaedia of music (according to my husband) and have been known to DJ at parties after a couple of glasses of bubbles!
What about holidays? Anything in the diary?
After two cancelled holidays thanks to issues getting my sons’ renewed passports back from South Africa we were incredibly privileged to go to The Maldives in March this year - a bucket list dream. It was everything we could have wished for and more. We are also going back to South Africa in the summer to see family and friends and spend some time on Safari. Heaven is the African Bush (surrounded by family) with my camera and 400 zoom lens!