Ella: How to love what you do or do what you love

«Ella, can you help me with the order that arrived on the website? Please reply and handle the shipping.»

«Ella, please prepare the boxes with the necessary items for the event, put what you know we need. When you have time, also select the products to display.»

«Can you take some photos and videos of the new products, Ella? Maybe an Instagram reel. Maybe even teach the new coworker how to edit them.»

«You’re already back from IKEA, everything’s fine, yes? Great, I was just wondering if you had time for the account process too.»

«Ella, ask Mihai to list 100 tags, you have the template in your email. Thanks.»

«Ella, we have some requests…»

«Ella, we need…»

«She…»

And Ella does them all.

While Deea, the manager of the Fabric Laboratory, is the brains of a social enterprise with many, many challenges, Ella is the engine, the right hand, the voice, the wonderful assistant manager capable of solving any problem or situation no matter how complex, taking care of orders on the website, deliveries, social media, the product showroom, the accounting of the Laboratory, choosing models of Puzzletex products or prints for cotton bags, participating in events and, together with the manager, during job interviews, taking over the management of the human resources department when Ana, the manager, is absent to leave, to permanently coordinate the production in the tailoring workshops of IKEA Bucharest and IKEA Timișoara. And to clarify everything that appears daily in this creative and surprising place.

The first steps

Slender, delicate, always with the perfect outfit and apparently very sober, Ella – whose full name is Maria Mihaela Ciorobea – is the Atelier person with inexhaustible powers, who never seems to get tired, never gets angry, who never refuses anything and who gives help to all team members at any time. And that’s not easy in a growing social enterprise.

These qualities weren’t cultivated overnight; for example, they didn’t develop gradually after he joined the company. He’s always possessed these qualities, and as a self-taught individual, he has continuously honed them through his own experiences. Considering he’s only 34, his experience is undoubtedly rich.

For example, his friends and family noticed his excellent communication skills from a young age. Later, during his teenage years, he became one of the most popular students.

“I’m friendly, enjoy chatting with everyone, am always helpful, and actively participate in all school or student-organized activities,” he recalled of his first four years at the Bucharest Institute of Food Industry and Environmental Protection Technology. There, in addition to easily participating in various activities, Ella discovered her love for cooking, more specifically, baking cakes—a passion that has stayed with her and constantly satisfies her creative desires. “I used to work in a pastry shop, where I learned a lot. During the pandemic, I had to stay home, so I baked cakes for my friends. It was like a therapy for me. Now, making desserts helps me relax,” Ella said.

From the enthusiastic teenager

After high school, he obviously attended university, where he developed other skills, abilities or acquired new ones.

«My intention was to study tourism, I have always been fascinated by exotic places», he says. But pragmatism was stronger than pleasure and she decided that the Faculty of Management and Marketing would help her more in her career, which today is seen in everything she does. So he followed it, working at the same time in places that ensured him financial autonomy, but also practical experience.

«I worked from the first year. At first as a promoter for several companies where my friends also worked. Then followed the first contract job – as a sales consultant for an accessories brand. After that I was a support consultant at Marionnaud, in Magheru, from where I brought the charm of perfumes with me. Then I worked at the Ferrari showroom in Otopeni, as a receptionist. It was my most relaxing job, even if I had to be ‘hot’, impeccably dressed and ‘climb’ in heels,» she laughs Ella, recalling her experience. “The journey from home to there took about 2 hours, so sometimes I walked with my shoes in my bag and only put them on when I got close to the office.”

In addition to relaxation, the post here gave him the opportunity to meet very important people from the national business world. One of them was also Ion Țiriac of whom Ella states with conviction: «A perfect gentleman».

…to the strong and confident woman

From Otopeni, he then approached Zara, where he encountered other challenges, he grew professionally again, taking care of the set-up alongside the manager and supporting colleagues from the other departments on the creative side.

The Seventh Job – 7 is known to be the number of balance! – arrived in March 2021. At the Fabric Laboratory. She never left him.

“I had seen an ad on Facebook for another position within Viitor Plus,” he says at the beginning. «I went to the interview, but I wasn’t so convinced, I knew I could do more than what the job offered me. A few days later they called me back and called me for the position of deputy director of IKEA and production coordinator, within the Atelier.

I had a meeting with Deea, the manager, in a chaotic room», laughs Ella. «The whole team was reorganising, the move to the Ispravnicului headquarters was approaching, which told me that it was a new beginning for the whole Atelier, but also for Viitor Plus. I liked this and, above all, the approach of the interview: a role-playing game, with an IKEA situation. I immediately fell in love with the work style, the mission of the laboratory, the perspectives. The opportunity to be creative was another asset that convinced me to stay.»

Ascension – with the good and the not so good

For almost 3 years Ella has been one of the irreplaceable people of the Workshop. Present everywhere – even if he sometimes works remotely – skilled in everything, he is the manager’s basic person, without whom the activity would not be so calm, natural, in full swing. And although to outsiders she appears calm and distant, with a perfectly professional attitude, those close to her know how talkative, cheerful and sentimental she can be.

«I try not to betray my emotions, at work it is possible to be considered weak. Sometimes, however, when the situation requires it, I allow myself to be natural. However, I only release all my feelings from the home office. As happened after the interview for hiring Vlăduț (you can find his story on the blog). I hadn’t attended the meeting, but then I learned his story and I got very emotional, but I didn’t show it at work.

The only one who saw her weakness from that day, but also others in her life, was Răzvan, her boyfriend since eighth grade and her husband since 2023. The man who loves her and is by her side in all the beautiful things she experiences since working in the Laboratory. But even worse.

«Almost a year ago I was diagnosed with a cervical hernia. I had a bad attack, I couldn’t move, the pain was excruciating. I was lucky enough to find an exceptional osteopath, with whose help I escaped surgery and whose advice became my lifestyle. That attack was like a slap in the face, it woke me up, it made me think more about myself. Maybe not putting myself first, but definitely second. It’s so that I changed my way of life and learned to take care of myself,» she says. Ella calmly recounts an experience that was literally painful, but which was a lesson for all the years to come.

And he takes lessons every day. Very positive. From different circumstances, from events, from work responsibilities. But above all by people. His closest model now is Deea, he admits with a smile on his face.

«Ever since the interview I enjoyed the discussion with her. It was one of the reasons why I decided to accept the proposal. Over time we collaborated better and managed to build a special team together. It may be strange, but I don’t consider her the boss, but a friend of mine. I learned a lot from her, she showed me that something can be achieved by uniting people. In many, many years – I don’t know when – I will definitely remember her. And the Atelier team. I’m proud to be part of it.»

No epilogue, but «to come»

An example of success in her field, with a career on the rise and a solid relationship, Maria Mihaela Ciorobea embodies excellence and professionalism in all aspects of her life. Newly married to her high school sweetheart, she is enjoying a relationship that has seen her grow from an enthusiastic teenager to a strong, confident woman. He constantly enriches his skills and learns from every experience, becoming a source of inspiration for those around him and at the same time contributing to making the world a better place. With creativity and tenacity, Ella opens new doors to her career and, representing an example of how determination and passion can lead to success, continues to write a beautiful story that we are sure we will hear more about.