From Executive Suite to Social Impact: How One Woman’s Career Pivot Created 8 000 Jobs

At the height of her corporate career, Tracey Chambers was the embodiment of professional success. Holding a prestigious position as one of three heads of finance at retail giant Woolworths, she enjoyed a lifestyle marked by comfort and status. Yet, behind the polished exterior, a growing sense of discontent was taking hold. While she was excelling in the boardroom, she felt increasingly disconnected from her children and deeply unsettled by the socio-economic disparities she witnessed in her daily life.

The Catalyst for Change

The turning point arrived when Chambers began reflecting on the struggles of the women who helped manage her household. Inspired by their resilience and work ethic, she realized she wanted to build something that could provide others with the same autonomy and opportunity she had fought for. In 2009, after two years of introspection, she made a radical decision: she resigned from her high-level role to pursue a vision that didn’t yet have a blueprint.

“I jumped off the cliff with no parachute,” Chambers reflects. Her former colleagues, shocked by her departure, attempted to intervene, but her resolve was set. She spent her sabbatical period volunteering, mentoring, and searching for a way to bridge the gap between corporate waste and community necessity.

Turning Retail Waste into Opportunity

The solution was found during a coffee meeting with friend and colleague Tracey Gilmore. The two discussed the staggering amount of inventory waste in the fashion industry—specifically the 3% to 5% of garments that end up in landfills due to minor defects or retail returns. Rather than creating a traditional charity, the pair envisioned a sustainable, circular economy model.

Their initiative, originally known as The Clothing Bank, launched with a simple but powerful premise: collecting excess retail stock and empowering unemployed individuals—specifically single mothers—to launch their own retail businesses. The model was deeply personal for Chambers, who had once observed her domestic worker, Beauty, successfully generating extra income by selling donated clothing.

Scaling the Vision

The venture quickly outpaced initial expectations. After securing partnerships with major retailers like Woolworths, Edgars, and Clicks, the organization transitioned from a small pilot project in an old Cape Town orphanage to a nationwide operation. Key to their philosophy was the requirement that participants pay for the goods provided, ensuring they viewed their work as a legitimate business enterprise rather than a handout.

Rebranded as Taking Care of Business, the organization has expanded its impact significantly beyond clothing. Their current operations now include:

• Retail Entrepreneurship: Training individuals to manage small-scale clothing resale businesses.
• Technical Skills Training: Expanding into appliance repair and sewing workshops.
• Nationwide Reach: Operating four branches across South Africa to support diverse communities.

Since its inception, the initiative has onboarded over 8,000 budding entrepreneurs, providing them with the tools, mentorship, and inventory needed to achieve financial independence. By transforming the fashion industry’s waste stream into a pipeline for employment, Chambers has proven that social impact and business efficiency can effectively coexist.