Ayla & Storm is the agency I would have wanted to call as a mother.

My work in this field began while I was searching for the right person to care for my daughter as I prepared to return to a demanding career.

We found a wonderful nanny. The process, however, felt surprisingly transactional for a decision so personal.

I wanted clearer guidance, stronger judgement and a greater sense that the agency understood not only the duties, but the home the person would be entering.

I later acquired and now operate our sister company, Sitters Co., an established childcare agency in South Africa. Through that work, I have worked directly with families and professional caregivers while strengthening the way roles are defined, candidates assessed and placements supported.

Before childcare, my career was spent in commercial and enterprise environments, including Salesforce and SAP.

I hold an MBA and have worked with senior executives and complex stakeholders in settings where responsiveness, sound judgement, accountability and thoughtful relationship management were expected.

That combination shapes Ayla & Storm: lived understanding of the decision a family is making, experience inside the childcare industry and the discipline required to conduct a rigorous search.

Every search is personally led.

Families work directly with me from the first conversation through the Household Brief, the search and the final decision.

The purpose is not simply to make the service feel personal. It creates continuity. The person hearing the household’s priorities is also the person guiding the search and assessing each introduction.

Ayla is commonly associated with the halo of light around the moon, a quiet connection to my daughter, Lua, whose name means moon.

Storm reflects the movement, intensity and unpredictability of family life.

Together, the name holds the balance I wanted the agency to embody: warmth and strength, calm and momentum, emotional intelligence and capable support.