Tina Rose (nee Dowsett)
1. When you were at Brighton & Hove High School, and what is your fondest memory of school?
I was there between 1980 and 1989, from Lower 2 to the end of Sixth Form. It’s so hard to pick a single memory, but field trips to Boughrood were always a lot of fun. When I think back, all of my standout memories relate to the friends I made, many of whom I still see now. I feel very lucky!
2. Who was your favourite teacher and why?
Probably Mrs White, who taught us French in the senior school. She was incredibly chic and utterly terrifying, which made us all try so much harder to please her. Garnering the occasional crumb of praise from her felt like you’d won the lottery! It meant I retained more French knowledge than any other subject, which stood me in great stead when I lived in Geneva for ten years. I’ve never forgotten her.
3. What were the benefits of being in an all-girls school?
We were encouraged to explore every subject, and find out organically what we were good at. We didn’t avoid subjects which were likely to be considered ‘more suited to boys’ at that time, such as maths and physics. I think that gave us greater confidence in our abilities, and a positive approach to trying new things.
4. What did you want to be when you ‘grew-up’?
I wanted to be a journalist, or a writer of some kind, at least. That still hasn’t materialised, but Bram Stoker didn’t write Dracula until he was 50, so maybe there’s still time!
5. What do you do now, and what are the most rewarding and challenging parts of your job?
I own a local wine merchant’s/bar hybrid, 9 Vines, in Woodland Drive near Hove Park. The most challenging part is never really having a proper day off, as there’s always so much to do when running your own business. The most rewarding parts are seeing the ideas I’ve had for growing the business come to fruition, and happy customers returning to the shop/bar time and time again.
6. What are you most proud of so far?
I’ve been lucky enough to have several different careers, all quite different. I was a corporate investigator for over 20 years, then I switched to running a large team of creative training consultants working for Google. A few years ago I decided I wanted to work in wine, so I studied for my wine exams and took the plunge! I guess I’m proud of being brave enough to have a ‘zigzag career’, and do what interested me rather than staying on a particular career path, when that might have been the easiest thing to do.
7. What was the best piece of advice you were given whilst at Brighton?
It wasn’t a piece of advice, as such, but what I learned from my time there: To be myself and take risks. That encouraged me to seek opportunities in the unusual but endlessly fascinating career of investigations, and to move abroad when I was offered a job in Switzerland, without knowing a soul there!
8. What advice would you give to your 18 year old self?
I’d tell her not to worry so much about things she can’t control, and that following what she’s interested in is the right thing to do. It will all work out in the end.
9. What book, film or piece of music would you recommend to your younger self and to your fellow alumnae?
It would have to be the album ‘Amazing Grace‘, by Aretha Franklin. It’s a live gospel album, recorded in just two days at a Baptist Church in California. I’m not religious at all, but I love it for the awe-inspiring power of her voice, and the collective energy of the choir and congregation around her. It’s so beautiful it brings me to tears every time.
10. How would you like to be remembered?
As someone fun, loyal, and good at a pub quiz, who could sniff out a decent bottle of wine at twenty paces!
Tina is owner of 9 vines wine which is to be found at 7 Woodland Parade, Hove BN3 6DR.
Photo credit: Mike Taylor Photography
