TAFE NSW Padstow floristry graduate Margaret Azar was announced winner of the Supply Chain and eCommerce Student of the Year at the prestigious Western Sydney Excellence Awards at Oatlands House.
Mrs Azar was overseas for the awards but was pleasantly surprised to receive the award on her return.
“I burst into tears when I was told I’d won the award,” she said. “It’s very exciting. I’ve put everything into this floristry course and this award was recognition for it.”
Mrs Azar has loved flowers from an early age so choosing to study a Certificate III in Floristry was an easy decision. To succeed, she knew it wasn’t enough to simply love flowers and that she “needed to learn everything there is to know”.
After raising a family and deciding on a career change, TAFE NSW put her on the path towards achieving her goals in floristry and her passion for the art was demonstrated when she won first place in the 2022 Wildflowers Australia National Student Floristry Competition.
“My teachers were very professional and were always sharing their industry experience with us students,” she said.
“They pushed us to enter awards, get our work out there and show the industry the skills we have.”
