One of the things that surprises newcomers to Deane Apparel is how long people stay with us. Another is the network of family connections within the company.

Andrea Patai, our fulfilment manager, is an example. Andrea, who often goes by Andy, and her cousin Eliana Taringa  came to Deane for summer jobs back in 2010. They had been introduced to the company by Andrea’s auntie Charlene Pulefale and grand auntie, Moe Pulefale, who was then our emblems manager.

Moe has since retired but Andrea, Eliana and Charlene are all still on the Deane team.  Andrea’s journey has taken her through every department in the company except for finance. She has, not surprisingly, worked in the emblems team and she helped steer Deane through a painstaking transition to a new enterprise resource management system in 2014 and 2015. In 2019 she was seconded to Sydney to run our customer service team, returning the following year to take up training and data management functions. 

Last year she moved into a role she had long been keen on: fulfilment. “I’m the bridge between sales and the supply chain, really,” she says. “It’s about ensuring we have sufficient stock for our customers’ needs and getting it to them on time. Problem-solving and lots of communication between departments are involved. I love it.”

The next role? She chuckles. “Why not CEO?”

Since Andrea signed up she’s been joined at Deane by more relatives; they too are still on the team.

“Not everyone knows we’re family because our surnames are different,” she says. “It’s actually not that unusual; there have been lots of family connections in the company over the years. I think it’s partly because there are always plenty of options for new roles and new skills. It keeps the challenge there for us.”