Interview with Andrew & Andriette Georgiou by Gillian Fraser
Article originally published in the November 2026 issue of JOY! Magazine
I can’t tell you how much of a pleasure it is to introduce my brother and sister-in-law, Andrew and Andriette Georgiou, to our JOY! readers. There is something very special about family working together, and this interview felt less like work and more like one of those lovely catch-ups you wish could go on for hours. Over a cup of coffee and a delicious Mondvol cookie, Andy, Andi, and I laughed a lot, shed a few tears, and spoke honestly about the journey God has taken them on over the past few years. From Andi losing her job, entering MasterChef and finishing as runner-up, to starting a tiny bakery in her dad’s garage, her story has been one of small steps of faith. Andrew’s journey has been equally unexpected, from professional golf and building a golfing app, to eventually joining Mondvol full-time and bringing his strengths alongside Andi’s. It has been so lovely to watch their story unfold and to see God’s hand of protection, provision, blessing, and favour through it all. Their story is not one of overnight success or having all the answers. It is one of working hard, starting with what was in their hands, learning through mistakes, trusting God when the path was unclear, and taking the next step when He opened a door.
When the plan changes
Mondvol’s story begins long before there were blue boxes, queues, nationwide deliveries, or thousands of cookies leaving the kitchen. In 2021, Andriette lost a job she loved deeply. She had been working full-time in worship and music, creating experiences for people, and felt completely at home in what she was doing. Her work was closely connected to her gifting, and she genuinely believed it was what God had called her to do. So when it disappeared, the loss went far beyond employment. “Losing my job was more than just losing my job; I lost my identity,” she told me. “I went through an extreme identity crisis.” For the first time in her life, she found herself really struggling with her faith. She had felt God’s presence so clearly in that season and had thought, “This is my life. This is what I’m going to do.” When it was suddenly taken away, she was angry, confused, and hurt. I think this is such an important part of Andi’s story because, looking back now, it would be very easy to tidy everything up and say that losing the job was simply God redirecting her. But when you are living through the disappointment, you do not know what is coming next. You cannot yet see any of the doors God will eventually open. You are simply standing in the middle of something you did not expect, asking the Lord what He is doing.
Starting small
After MasterChef, Andi went home and told her dad that perhaps she really could give the bakery a proper chance. He helped her turn part of his garage into a little kitchen, and she began with a small oven and a bar fridge. There was nothing glamorous about those days. When she remembers that season, she pictures herself covered from head to toe in icing sugar, food colouring all over her hands, physically exhausted, working under immense pressure, and barely making money. There were orders to find, cakes to decorate, deliveries to make, and plenty of things that went wrong…
Want to hear the full story? Read the complete interview in the November issue of JOY! Magazine. Get your copy today: https://joygifts.co.za/product/joy-november-2026/
The full article appears in the November 2026 issue of JOY! Magazine. Read the digital version of this magazine here: joygifts.co.za
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Date published: 30/10/2026
Feature image: Sourced from original article published in the November 2026 issue of JOY! Magazine
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