In a nutshell, what do you do every day?

As much as humanly possible… Everything? Nothing? I read and send a LOT of emails… But seriously, I do everything I can to deliver what our clients need by supporting the team in doing what they do best. I listen to and work with clients to find the best solutions for them, I work with the team to reach those solutions, and I do my best to make sure these processes are managed on time and within budget.

With your job comes unpredictable twists and turns every day. How do you manage to stay on top of everything?

Being part of a team where everyone has each other’s backs is an experience I’m grateful for every single day - there’s no chance of succeeding on your own! Planning, replanning, back-up planning, remembering everyone’s human, and sometimes throwing the plan out the window, asking for help when you’ve reached a dead-end. It’s a fun mix of experience, trusting the system and your instincts, and also being willing to take risks and try something unorthodox to get where we need to go.

You’ve got lots of niche interests and hobbies like gardening, stationery and fine dining, to name a few. Can you pick a few and tell us a bit more about them?

Asking me to choose things is just… mean. You know that I will happily live in the Guille-Allès library if they let me (I’ve asked, they said no), and that any and all stationery makes me happy, I could talk about beachcombing for years, so I’ll relate a more brief current fun focus, which is my foray into lino-cutting. I’m very new to the process, and it’s both easier and harder than it looks. I love the tactile nature of the process, and it requires focus and attention, but carving lines on lino is also very meditative and calming. Working in negative to create an image breaks your brain a little, but seeing the print at the end is such a pleasant surprise to me - it doesn’t matter how much I picture the outcome, the reality is different and often much nicer. I’m really enjoying learning more about it, and I have great admiration for artists of this medium.

As someone who takes making their daily coffee very seriously, tell us, what’s the secret to a Marike-style coffee?

Fresh beans, the correct grind for your method, remembering to bloom, and not scalding the milk. Also, PS colleague chats in the kitchen while making said coffee absolutely adds to the flavour.

What type of projects do you most enjoy working on?

Seriously, stop making me choose things! I love working on print projects, and I’m always happy when there’s language editing involved - you’ll never get the book publisher out of me. So if it involves fun paper and printing methods, and/or if I get to play with words, I’m happy. (Except for the fact that you’re making me choose).

If you had to narrow it down, which part of your job do you find most fulfilling?

Working with passionate people. Clients, colleagues, suppliers - it honestly doesn’t matter. I absolutely love people who are so passionate about their brand that they can’t contain it. Seeing my colleagues excited about doing a particular project really well. Working with suppliers who are dedicated to providing the best level of service because that’s what they’re passionate about. Listening to clients when they wax lyrical about the meaning behind their product/service/idea - it’s awesome.

You moved here, from South Africa, over 8 years ago. What’s something you think is done better there?

Err, comparing apples and oranges, much?! I’ll keep this short and just say: tax returns.

If you could recommend everyone in the world to try/do something, what would it be?

Again, with the choosing! Impossible! I’m struggling to find anything that doesn’t sound horrifically cheesy. If you ever have the opportunity to sit on a riverbank in a nature reserve watching a herd of elephants playing in the water… I guess it’s similar to most experiences in nature, but it adds a handy sense of perspective to whatever is happening in your life and around the world.