THE YEARS I spent at Our Lady's School, Templeogue, Dublin, I can honestly say were the best years of my life. The school is run by a French order - the Sisters of Christian Education - and during my time (in the 1970s) 40 per cent of the teaching staff were nuns.

However, we didn't suffer under a strict convent type regime. The atmosphere was relaxed and the nuns were quite progressive.

Classes were small, and the school focused on promoting our individual talents, which helped to give us self confidence; but at the same time the staff helped us to deal with our weaknesses.

We had some wonderful teachers, including Miss Brody, who was our Irish teacher and is now the principal. She was brilliant. Deirdre Kelly - my namesake - was the maths teacher.

My favourite subjects were maths and art, partly, I suppose, because the teachers were so good. I think how you feel about a subject depends a lot on your teacher.

As a teenager I spent a lot of time painting, and after my Leaving Certificate I went to the National College of Art and Design - but I only stayed two years.

It was a difficult time for the college and there were a lot of strikes. There was a sense in which I felt I didn't fit in and I spent the next 18 months painting and trying to sell my work - which I did, but not in sufficient quantities to make a living.

I'd always been clothes mad, and when I was given the opportunity to work for a clothing wholesaler I grabbed it; from there I moved into retailing. Some people frowned on my leaving college, but I believe I was right to take the chance and refuse to be influenced by other people or by snobbery.

Looking back on school now, they certainly were happy, carefree days, when I enjoyed lots of friendships and lots of fun. The points pressure was only starting as I was leaving.

Nowadays I think young people lose out in terms of their social development and self confidence because they spend so much time buried in their books. Employers now stipulate minimum qualification requirements. At A Wear, a lot of our sales staff have third level qualifications, but when we are recruiting staff we look for personality first qualifications are secondary.