Ana Vashadze
- Age: 21 years
Competitor in Skill: Floristry
Country: Georgia
• How did you get interested in your skill?
I have loved flowers and plants since childhood. I had always imagined myself in a career interacting with flowers. My interest in floristry sparked from wedding planning and creating different atmospheres and auras with plants. When I watched movies where people planned events and made different compositions with flowers, I wanted to do the same thing and since then I have always pictured myself in this career only. This is why I searched for a university that taught floristry in particular and got my education in this sphere.
• Where did you do your training for your skill?
I studied in Public College of Decorative Gardening of Georgia.
• How did you first find out about your Member organization and its programs?
I found out about the Member organization - National Center For Educational Quality Enhancement and its programs from Public College of Decorative Gardening of Georgia.
• Who influenced you to pursue your skill as a career?
I have never wanted to do anything else in my life and I have always wanted florsitry to be my career as I couldn't imagine doing anything else. A big influence for me was also my mother, who is a biologist. But she used to make jewelry, she sew and she was also always infatuated with flowers. She taught me how to do those things too and there were always tons of flowers in our house. When I finished college, my mother opened a souvenir and flower shop for me to gain experience. I was in charge of selling flowers, making compositions for events and I helped her decorate events and weddings. My mother was a great influence for me, she always supported me and helped me in my professional growth.
• What is your experience in participating with your Member organization?
WorldSkills was the first time I interacted with the National Center For Educational Quality Enhancement
• Describe your most memorable moment so far with WorldSkills?
For me the most memorable moment was the contest itself. The process was intense and exciting. I remember very well the faces of my friends and family, who were watching me and cheering for me. I felt blessed and strong when I realised how big a support I had and how much they believed in me. The culmination of it all was when my name was called and when I was announced as a winner. I was extatic, as this was the first contest I had ever participated in and I was so happy and proud with myself that I had achieved such a huge success with my own skills and talent.
• Describe what your experience has been since your involvement with WorldSkills
After the contest I have been working and training with my expert, Zura Shevardnadze, in his garden, where he gave me tasks and limited time to fulfill them. He taught me how to work fast and efficiently. He also morally prepared me for distractions and stressful situations. In March, I went to Kyiv to a Flower Show floristry school masterclass led by Monika Bebenek, where we were taught new technics and skills. At the end a flower exhibition was held and more free masterclasses were conducted. All the participants were given certificates. When I came back from Kyiv, I continued my training with my expert. My lecturer, Nana Takhaishvili, also trained me along with Zura Shevardandze. I do my best to always improve professionaly and try myself in all the different directions of my career.
• Did participating in the skills competitions and training for WorldSkills help you progress in your skill? Please describe.
Participating in the WorldSkills contest was a huge experience for me as it was my first ever contest. I experienced what it is like to work in a stressful situation with limited time and how to do my job as efficiently as possible. I became more self-confident and even more motivated after WorldSkills. I can say that thanks to this contest I can become a successful florist in my country.
• What do you currently do? Where do you work?
I work in cafe Verde as a florist. I make compositions for its intertior. The cafe has a big garden and I am provided with all the flowers I need to fulfill my ideas. I work on all the events held in the cafe as a florisic decorator, including birthdays, weddings, live music shows, romantic dinners etc.
• What are your future career aspirations?
My goal for the future is to have my own flower shop, where I will have the freedom to fulfill my ideas, which will help me to form my own style. I want this shop to be inspired by my ideas. I want to do everything myself, starting from the interior of the shop up to the compositions and decorations that will be there. I want the shop to be interesting and unique. I want people to love to go in, even if they are just looking around. I will also be working on different events. The atmosphere of the shop will be very laid-back, calming and simple. The clients should feel very comfortable to tell me their ideas and their wishes. I want to play a role in the development of floristry in my country and this shop will be my contribution. My greatest wish is to make people happy with the help of flowers and their beauty.