In with the new for old pub

THE National Hotel in Victoria Street, Richmond, was fairly soulless before the latest renovation by Breathe Architecture. Built in the early 20th century, the pub seemed to have experienced a round of renovations every decade. "When we first inspected the place, the windows had been boarded up, with every second window plugged with an airconditioning unit," says architect Jeremy McLeod, director of the practice. "The carpet was sticky [from beer] and the plaster ceilings stained with smoke."

The clients wanted a new fitout but also wanted to activate the local strip, east of Church Street. "Our brief was to look at the immediate area, but also to make this place feel welcoming, as though it was an extension of people's living rooms," McLeod says.

The inspiration for the design came from China. "We didn't want to romanticise the mysticism of the Silk Road. We were thinking of the strong industrial presence China has today, found in cities such as Shanghai and Shenzhen."

The other feature of Breathe Architecture's design was the spatial planning. "We see China as a series of smaller provinces within the one country. We've tried to break up the National into a series of smaller spaces or provinces," McLeod says. So rather than one grand gesture, there are a series of highly considered spaces at the National Hotel. The front area, referred to as the cafe, features a four-metre-long steel trestle-style table, with the top finished in timber parquetry. Distressed walls and exposed ceilings add texture and allow the original fixtures to be clearly read.
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"We removed all the acoustic tiles from the ceiling, as well as the plaster boards from the walls. Everything is exposed," McLeod says, pointing out the original ceiling with timber battens. The polished concrete floors have also been exposed, with some of the coloured dye from the old carpet showing.

Central to the design is a concrete bar, with holes and scuffs. Steel shelves, suspended from the ceiling and filled with bottles of spirit and wine glasses, form one of the few decorative elements. While most of the steel was fabricated with precision, other elements, such as the timber used for the feature wall dividing the booth seating area from the bar, was found on site - old paling fences, cut up into tiles. This feature wall also includes bar seating made from steel and concrete. At the rear of the premises is what's referred to as the Opium den, with television rather than a pipe being the focus. And with budget in mind, as well as practicality, the furniture in this space is made from plastic milk crates, covered with military-type tarpaulin.

The outdoor area was also completely reworked by Breathe. Previously there was a thatched Balinese-style hut. Now there are a series of tarpaulin-covered terraces, with the centrepiece a customised table tennis table, made of concrete and with a steel net. And for those wanting a more protected environment, there's also the indoor-outdoor function space, framed with glass, steel and polycarbonate doors. Accommodating 80 people, it's one of the dining options to choose from.

Recycling and respect for past objects is beautifully captured in the front awning. A tarpaulin from an old truck, complete with hundreds of patches, greets visitors. "It's a bit like this place, where everything appears to have been stitched together, and the imperfections are treasured, rather than discarded," adds McLeod.

Such campaigns include "Small Business Saturday," which American Express created in 2010 to help give exposure to those businesses during the busy Black Friday weekend. The idea has been embraced by Baltimore-area shops such as those in Hampden and Green Spring Station, which will offer special promotions and discounts on Saturday.

It has helped that the toy category is considered recession-resistant, said Adrienne Appell, a spokeswoman for the Toy Industry Association. Toy sales in the U.S. dipped slightly in 2011 to $21.2 billion, according to the latest statistics from market research firm NPD Group.

But "over the past couple of years, the industry has remained relatively stable. We attribute that to the fact that toys are relatively low-priced, and families will provide toys to their kids for the holidays," Appell said, noting that the average price of a toy is $8.

Sales at Shananigans Toy Shop in North Baltimore have headed up for the past couple of years, and this holiday season should be as good, if not better, said David Stelzer, one of the shop's owners.

"We're trying to find unique toys — traditional and nontraditional toys that you really can't find anywhere but here," he said, noting that "Magic 8 Balls and Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots are harder to find than you think, [when] Toys 'R' Us devotes a whole wall to the latest trend or movie. We're trying to be as competitive as possible with prices. And honestly, we offer, I would like to think, better service and a lot more familiarity with toys."

Fredric Reopens at Gelson’s Village Calabasas

As Black Friday approaches, loyal clientele of M. Fredric may be happy that the boutique specializing in woman's and kid's fashions has reopened its doors at Gelson's Village Calabasas.

The move follows a seven month hiatus that began when the former Commons at Calabasas location closed last March, resulting in Ann Taylor Loft's takeover of the space M. Fredric called home for more than a decade.

“Unfortunately, our lease had expired and we were unable to renew,” said Elaina Karatzas, M. Fredric’s marketing manager and one-time sales associate at the former locale.

“We were very sad to leave our home of 12 years at the Calabasas Commons," she said. "However, we are beyond excited to have finally found a new home.”

Replacing former tenant Nicky’s Pro Karate, which relocated just down Mulholland Highway to the Calabasas Place Shopping Center on Old Topanga Road, the new M. Fredric opened Oct. 4 in what was called a “Class A" shopping center by Mike Smith, executive director of real estate for the Arden Group Inc, which owns the space's landlord, Gelson’s.

Deciding to keep the store in town when the “right opportunity” came up, M. Fredric's owner Fred Levine said he’s delighted to be back in the Calabasas community.

“We’re looking for this store to be one of our best since it has over 12 years of history in the community, and the proximity to Gelson's is a real plus,” he said.

Consisting of 2,300 square feet of clothing and accessories for women and children, the new store offers the same variety of labels ranging from casual to chic, set amidst a dark wood interior illuminated by elegant chandeliers and festive stringed lights. Plush seating, giant mirrors and several changing rooms accented by soft rugs provide an apt setting for trying on clothes. 

Although slightly smaller than its predecessor in the Commons, the space is open and much larger than the temporary M. Fredric store that inhabited the Gelson’s shopping center during the holidays last year.

Despite the closing of its former Calabasas locations, 2011-2012 also saw the opening of three stores, including in Ventura and Newport Beach in addition to Calabasas, bringing the total to eight locations in Southern California. In business for more than three decades, the Agoura Hills-based company also sells online.

At home in Calabasas, business has been great since so far, said Karatzas. “Our customers are so happy to have a local M. Fredric store they can pop in to. We have been welcomed back with open arms and we are so grateful for it!”

Levine agrees. “The Gelson's space was perfect and we have been able to keep our Calabasas customers since this location is just a mile or so from the former location.” 

However, some loyal customers have had trouble tracking down its whereabouts.

“Most of our calls have been from customers looking for the new store, mostly from the Commons,” said Kelly Kaiser, a transplant from the former store and sales associate of a dozen years who finds it confusing to give directions to the shopping center located near the intersection of Mulholland Drive and Mulholland Highway. “I usually tell them to map it.”

Shoppers at the Commons looking to make the 2.6-mile trip can head northeast on Calabasas Way, turn right on Valley Circle/Mulholland Drive, and continue for 1.7 miles to take another right on Mulholland Highway. M. Fredric is located on the right in the Gelson’s Village at the far, south end of the center.

In addition to loyal clientele, the new location is also attracting some new foot traffic, said Kaiser.

“This is so great,” exclaimed one such shopper aloud as she perused the children’s section, which features a plethora of accessories for both genders in addition to an array of trendy fashions. “It’s better than Justice. I’m telling all my girlfriends.”

“All the customers are really happy with it,” said Kaiser. “They’re happy we’re back.”

And while special Black Friday discounts are in the plans, employees aren’t giving any hints as to what deals may await shoppers during the store’s premiere holiday shopping season. “We can’t say until Friday,” said Kaiser.

In the spirit of the holidays, M. Fredric has been busy out carrying philanthropic missions. A few west valley locations have raised more than $6,000 since May for "Zoe's Helping Hands" in benefit of Zoe Feldman, a 3-year-old Agoura Hills preschooler who is fighting sarcoma botryoides, a rare form of cancer.

Dedicated to fighting cancer in its many forms, the clothing company adopted Camp Ronald McDonald for Good Times in 2007, which provides children with cancer with seven days of sleep-away camp. M. Fredric is also half-way to its goal of raising $1 million for research, education and awareness of the American Cancer Society as part of a company-wide crusade against breast cancer.

I, Twinkie

Oh how everyone (of a certain class and income) makes fun of the Twinkie, the ultimate symbol of modern food decadence and phoniness. I don’t get it. Have the critics ever tried one? They are so appealing and delicious: light, spongy, sweet, and creamy, all in a tiny package.

The news that the parent company Hostess was going out of business caused a huge run on Twinkies in my own community. Every store had an empty space where they should have been. The preppers were right: we should have stocked up for emergencies like this.

Meanwhile, the haters have been generating a legion of lies about Twinkies ever since food puritanism took over elite culture. Therefore, the urban myths are legion. You know them all. It can stand up to a nuclear holocaust. It is made entirely of artificial ingredients, the ultimate frankenfood. It is responsible for the obesity epidemic. And so on.

So don’t you just know that plenty of cultural snobs and anti-market ideologues were experiencing serious schadenfreude at the news that the labor unions have strangled Hostess? They are probably thrilled to kick this snake out of the American garden of Eden they are trying to create and cast the whole line of products to the Mexican outer darkness.

It pains me. It really does. More than half a billion Twinkies are sold every year. They bring incredible joy to multitudes who don’t happen to live next to an old-world French pastry shop. The market has been bringing this treat to the masses for 70 glorious years, and all that the cultural elite can do is sneer.

Let’s take just a moment to give the Twinkie a bit of respect, as a symbol of the complex economic structures of our time that cannot be replicated by you, me, or any government in the world. It takes a giant market, an extended order of trade, and an unfathomably complex division of labor to make a Twinkie and deliver it to your pallet.

No, it would never existed in an economy planned by the government. Moving mountains and shipping ingredients all over the world just to please you and me? It would never be allowed. Plus, there is no way a government planner could make it happen. The processes are too complex and carefully calibrated by the price system to be economically feasible.

Let’s quickly kill a few myths. Contrary to the claim, it is made of 100% natural ingredients. Everything in it comes from the earth — as much a product of mother nature as a carrot or bean sprout — with the only difference that it goes through a more extensive production process through time and space. And the reason for the long processes: to make a better product for you and me (which no one forces us to eat).

Twinkies have a remarkable and laudatory shelf life of 25 days, which is rather wonderful for something so puffy and moist. it stays fresh for a time long enough for you to consume it and enjoy it. Time was when hardtack was pretty much all that could last for long travels. Do the food puritans want us eating that rather than yummy sweets? (I don’t want to hear the answer.)

It’s a myth that it can survive a nuclear explosion but it seems to me that it would be a good thing if it could. Why should survivors of war-torn lands not have access to good food that contains essential proteins in eggs and a source of energy in its cane sugar?

And let’s give a hand for the Hostess company’s marketing too. Unlike the Apple and Monsanto, the Twinkie benefits from no monopoly protection from government. Anyone can make an imitation and plenty do, such as Mrs Freshley’s Gold Creme Cakes and Little Debbie’s Golden Cremes. Still, the Twinkie survives with a high name-brand status, or did until the unions killed it. This nicely demonstrates that “intellectual property” is not necessary for profitable production over a long period of time.

It turns out that there is an entire book that details what is in a Twinkie and how it is made. It is Twinkie, Deconstructed, by Steve Ettlinger (Hudson Street Press, 2007). He began the book to try to figure out what all the strange ingredients listed on the label actually are. There are 39 of them, and he devotes a chapter to each one, discovering one by one that every ingredient serves the essential purpose of making the product better. If he began the project with the goal of exposing this frankenfood, he came away from the long project with profound respect for the food item.

As Ettlinger tells the story, the Twinkie was the invention of Charles Dewar, vice president of Continental Bakeries, who figured out how to idle shortbread pans for a different purpose besides make a strawberry treat, which he could not make in the off season (in the old days, there were such things as off seasons). The basic ingredients were the same as they are now (wheat, sugar, soybeans, and eggs).

The name he came up with from seeing a billboard for “Twinkle-Toe Shoes.” It was a great plan, and the cakes were hugely popular, except for one thing. The shelf life (the holy grail of food retailing) was only two days. The market for the cake was huge but the company couldn’t satisfy the demand. It took decades of research and experimentation but the probably was finally solved in the 1950s, and that’s when the ingredient list became longer.

For most of the Twinkie bakeries around the country, the wheat for the cake flour (which is highly specialized) comes from small, family farms (including Amish farms) that have only a few employees, thanks to technology. The enrichment blend of ferrous sulfate and B vitamins is added to white flour on government mandate, presumably to end the disease pellagra. If you don’t like the extra vitamins and iron, call your congressman.

Ettinger explodes other myths such as that Twinkies roll off an assembly line and go straight to the packet. Not so. They are baked and browned just like regular cakes, and that’s because, well, they are regular cakes. But do they need to be so sweet? The sweeteners work as preservatives, adding color, and causing the ingredients to blend better. Plus, we like sugar. But not too much, which is why corn syrup is also in there because it doesn’t crystallize.

(If U.S. sugar tariffs didn’t drive up the price so high, the company might have been able to withstand union pressure more. Also, while I’m against corn subsidies as much as the next guy, every baker knows that corn syrup has its place. And anyone who blames it for the rise in obesity might take note that the average daily calorie intake of Americans has risen by 600 since 1980, and corn syrup only accounts for 10% of that. A more obvious factor: people eat vastly more because they can afford to and it’s there to eat.)

The demonized preservative in the Twinkie is the miracle food compound called sorbic acid. How the ancients would have loved this stuff! It’s sole job is to keep the mold away. Mold is the stuff that forms around moist areas such as your bathtub. If there isn’t anything in food that molds — think of pita chips — you don’t need it. But once you add leavenings, eggs, cream, and put a wet and spongy thing inside a plastic bag, you have got a serious mold issue. You know this if you have even baked a cake and let it sit out for a few days.

Sorbic acid — it was discovered in berries in 1859 in berries but today is made as a gentle petroleum product with less toxicity than salt — is the earth’s greatest enemy of mold. It is an amazing compound that makes grocery stores possible. If you see something like that in a bag that says “no preservatives,” run don’t walk. It could be deadly. As it is, the Twinkie only contains tiny trace amounts, just enough to make the product safe for you and me.

People today use the word preservative as if to insinuate that it is some poison that capitalistic corporations insert into our food to profit from poisoning us. Actually, people have struggled to preserve food since the beginning of time. The line between food that gives health and food that kills is a tiny turn of time, practically one minute to the next.

Artist Joy de Rohan Chabot's Joie de Vivre

Autodidact and free spirit, Joy de Rohan Chabot once posed for the leading photographers of the 1960s, including Henry Clarke, David Bailey and Helmut Newton. Today, the artist says she's happier when tramping through the woods with her dogs than in Paris. Still, she says, she has found ways to make her urban life "as pleasant as possible."

Trained at the Paris Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs, Ms. Chabot's early interests in drawing developed into an exploration of design, from experimenting with trompe l'oeil murals to studying the techniques of lacquer in China and Japan.

Her upcoming show, "Féerie/Enchantment," which opens at the Galérie Matignon in Paris on Nov. 22, is a fairy-tale-inspired array of pieces in white, blue and silver, reviving a seldom-used technique with wax molds she made herself. "This the first time I've ever worked with cast aluminum," says Ms. Chabot. "It's as expensive as bronze, you work with it like bronze, but it gives the impression of an icy silver—something like frost stalactites."

My weekend really begins on Saturday morning, just because I'm a bit of a workaholic. On Friday night, I usually stay in my atelier until late and then go straight to bed. On Saturday morning, I always make a trip to an extraordinary place, the fish market La Criée du Phare, which is right near the Montparnasse train station on rue Castagnary in the 15th arrondissement. The fishermen from Brittany and Normandy arrive very early by train and sell directly to the people who come to shop at the market. It's enormous, and everywhere you look, there are mountains of fresh scallops and all kinds of shellfish. The atmosphere is very animated and noisy—all the fish sellers are crying out their prices at the top of their lungs. It's hard to believe you're in Paris.

My husband, Jean, and I have another ritual—every Saturday, we make a trip to Drouot, the famous auction house in the ninth arrondissement. He goes for the art and antique furniture, but what amuses me the most are the sales of vintage haute-couture dresses. You find all kinds of incredible clothes, handbags or leather pants of every color. My entire wardrobe is from Drouot....

When we leave Drouot, we always go to the same restaurant, La Cave Drouot, which is an old-fashioned bistro with marvelous cuisine. We usually order the fish of the day, like their skate served with cabbage. The atmosphere is very lively. All the Drouot auctioneers and buyers go there, and we usually run into lots of people we know.

I detest Sundays. All of a sudden, there's no more activity and it makes me anxious, since I'm pathologically hyperactive! But what I love to do—and it's also good exercise—is go for a walk in the Bois de Boulogne. Behind the restaurant Les Jardins de Bagatelle, you take a path lined with flowers and you arrive at a pretty house. It once belonged to the head gardener, and was built in around 1860. Just in front of that house is a marvelous kitchen garden with every type and variety of vegetables that you can grow. I'm actually trying to copy it at my home in Auvergne. Being there makes me feel at peace with the fact that I'm in Paris, since I feel like I'm in the country.

Sometimes we'll have lunch at a nice little rustic-style restaurant, La Calèche, on rue de Lille, across from the Musée d'Orsay. They have wonderful traditional cuisine, like veal with lemon and mushrooms or the types of dishes that you'd expect to find in Normandy.

From India, a ‘Lad Mag’ That’s the Opposite of Macho

This Diwali, while boys set off firecrackers and aunties light diyas and lanterns, Harish Sadani, looking rumpled as would any editor/publisher nearing a deadline, finally finds himself able to breathe. That’s because Mr. Sadani, who runs a nongovernmental organization in Mumbai known as MAVA (Men Against Violence & Abuse), has just printed off the final pages of Purush Spandana, an annual magazine, or ank, printed especially for Diwali.

The Maharashtrian tradition of giving anks at Diwali, a major gift-giving holiday, goes back just over a century. But of the estimated 400 anks printed each fall, only Purush Spandana, which translates roughly to “Male Vibrations,” speaks directly to men, although not through scantily clad cover models, a distinction that sets it apart from other anks in the shop.

The goal of the periodical, a collection of articles, short stories and poems penned in Marathi by Indian authors from around the state, is to get people to think.“We wanted to create a safe, nonthreatening space to address issues of masculinity in a contemporary context,” said Mr. Sadani. “Now readers can read a story about a man who has overcome patriarchy in his own life, and ask himself, ‘If he can question his outlook, why not me?’ ”

About 35 to 40 percent of Purush Spandana will be purchased by women, who hope that by casually leaving a copy around the house, their husbands, fathers-in-law or sons may give it a glance. (This year’s 192-page edition will be available for 90 rupees ($1.65) in Maharashtrian bookstores through December.)

Now in its 17th year, the magazine will explore in its latest edition the concept of family, as well as male-female relationships, a theme intended to encourage readers to “move past the stereotypical thing, beyond blood, kinship and wealth,” as Mr. Sadani puts it, and “to consider family in a new way.” Inside, an engineer writes of finding a brotherly connection with a fellow orphan and outcast, who later turns out to be a gigolo. Another man describes his role as one half of a DINK, or “Double Income No Kids” family, an increasingly common family unit in 21st century India.

An elderly woman, unwanted by her father, recalls being rescued as an infant by her grandfather; now with two grown sons living in the United States, she compares the relationships with all the different men in her life. In Mumbai’s red-light district, a journalist recalls a lonely child playing with a one-rupee coin while his mother entertains clients upstairs; a different writer reports on the ambiguity of familial relationships in India’s transgender community, outcasts typically dismissed from the accepted family system.

“Family is a relationship, but doesn’t have to take place in the traditional sense,” said Ravindra Rukmini Pandharinath, co-editor of Purush Spandana, explaining that this year’s theme was about finding ways to humanize the family system, making space for groups like sex workers and prostitutes that are usually excluded. “Everyone needs some sort of emotional support,” he said. “Can’t family from different castes come together? Can’t family go beyond property?”

Past issues have explored the intricacies of friendship and caste; last year’s ank examined sexuality, with the image of a half-male, half-female deity dancing on the cover – “like a yin and yang, since everyone shares masculine and feminine traits,” explained Mr. Sadani.

That same year, female writers were invited to contribute for the first time. “Sexuality being a core topic that touches everyone, it was important to see what women think,” Mr. Sadani recalled, noting that the female authors, who come from a diversity of professional fields and backgrounds, as do the male contributors, have added a valuable perspective over the past two years.

Next year’s theme is up in the air, but Mr. Sadani said he hoped to explore religion and governance in future issues, specifically the restrictions they impose on women.

This year’s issue has achieved another critical checkpoint, as it is the first year Mr. Sadani has been able to cover production costs and pay all the writers without dipping into his own pockets, thanks to the support of high-profile advertisers like GSK, the Aditya Birla Group, HDFC, Tata, IDBI and Bank of Baroda. Mr. Sadani spends six months every year on the magazine, editing, pitching advertisers and printing around 1,500 copies for distribution. From 1996-2006, the magazine was co-produced in partnership with Purush Uvach, or “Men Speak,” a Pune-based men’s group that helped shoulder the brunt of production.

Salvation Army benefits Knoxville

In response to the story titled "Possible homeless shelter concerns arise," I was shocked to read that Joyce Shoudy, director of Family Promise, would say, "We are not those people on Broadway," and "We are a benefit to the community."

"Those people" are precious children of God. They may be down, but they are not out. To infer that the Salvation Army is not a benefit to the community is fallacious.

The Salvation Army is an evangelical part of the universal Christian church. Its message is based on the Bible. Its ministry is motivated by the love of God. Its mission is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in his name without discrimination. We have served suffering humanity in Knoxville since 1899 and touch approximately 30,000 souls in a given year through various emergency social services, feeding and homeless transitional housing programs.

The Salvation Army operates four residential programs at its North Broadway campus that equip, empower and educate clients. The Joy Baker Center is our domestic violence shelter. It provides a safe haven for battered women with children and provides counseling, a school liaison, court advocacy, referrals, meals, clothing, job placement, linens and laundry facilities.

The Bootstrap program is offered to homeless men and women who want to better themselves. Transitional Housing Program residents must commit to six months but can stay up to two years. In each of our programs, clients must maintain full-time employment and save money for permanent housing. The program includes meals, housing, counseling, life-skills classes and Bible studies. Intensive case management molds residents into motivated, self-sufficient, contributing members of our community.

"It's really going to grow their business. At a time when a lot companies are really scared, it's neat to see one of our local companies willing to take the risk and reinvest in their business," said incoming Orion Township Supervisor Chris Barnett.

Lake Orion resident and MPD employee Joel Hadden was proud to have the Governor visit his shop, and is also optimistic about the direction MPD is headed.

Hadden sees MPD's fortune as a forecast for national pocketbooks. "I feel like the economy is definitely boosting back, and I feel that companies like MPD are a big part of it," Hadden said.

MPD management has treated him "like family," and he loves coming to work, Hadden said. With an expansion and new hiring planned for the near future, Hadden has good reason to be optimistic.

Barnett thanked the Governor for visiting Orion Township.

"I think it's incredible that he took some time out of his schedule to come here to one of our awesome local manufacturing companies," Barnett said. "Anytime we can get our little community some attention and one of our great businesses here some attention—that's a good thing."

Bondar's conversations with the visiting chief executive were also positive. "Reading about him is one thing, but meeting him face-to-face and talking to him, I'm really impressed with him," Bondar said.

Always Rides On Williams Sisters to Inspire Nigerian Girls

In a bid to excite the female segment of the Nigerian market, handlers of Always, from the stable of Procter & Gamble, recently joined forces with international tennis stars, Serena and Venus Williams, to empower and inspire girls at the Government College, Ikoyi, Lagos.

To many, Serena and Venus are perfectly placed to boost the morale of the girls. Their life story showcases passion, determination, hard work and self-belief that has triumphed over obstacles and circumstances to become world champions on and off the tennis court.

Commenting on the Williams sisters' visit, Temitope Iluyemi from Always said, "The Williams sisters being here today has empowered more girls to break the moulds that have stood between them and their potential; they surely now dream bigger and strive harder as a result. Their support of our puberty education programme is another way to help give these girls the confidence to enjoy womanhood without limits."

"The programme is designed to empower girls to live life to their fullest. 800,000 Nigerian girls take part every year and 8 million have benefited so far since inception 12 years ago", Iluyemi added.

The Williams sisters were greeted with warmth and enthusiasm by the girls as they entered the class. Serena shared her stories on their setbacks and how she had overcome them to return to the peak of her game.

"Luck has nothing to do with it, because I have spent many, many hours, countless hours, on the court working for my one moment in time, not knowing when it would come". Meanwhile Venus talked about the importance of self-belief: "Some people say I have an attitude, maybe I do, but I think you have to. You have to believe in yourself when no one else does. That makes you a winner right there."

Commenting on the importance of sisterhood in facing challenges, Serena mentioned how supportive her sister had been through the years helping her cope with a variety of challenges both on the field and in life. Venus then said: "I always like to win. But I'm the big sister. I want to make sure she has everything, even if I don't have anything. It's hard. I love her too much. That's what counts."

The girls from Government College, Ikoyi went on to perform the Always Song 'Little Big Steps' with the Williams sisters even joining in singing and dancing. There was also a session where the sisters responded to questions from the girls. These gave the girls the rare opportunity of interacting with the William sisters.

The brand has always been advocating for and empowering women and girls the world over to live life to their fullest potential and has been doing so for more than 30 years. Always is said to serve 1.3 billion girls and women around the world by providing them with the best protection built on superior product quality and constant innovations.

Every day Always connects with about 25 million girls globally via the brand's social media pages. "With every Always page, girls can benefit from a greater sisterhood; a support network with girls helping each other out on topics that are relevant to them or jointly getting behind a good cause such as this to empower other girls" Iluyemi stated.