What is your previous experience in the industry?
My first job out of university was for Napoleon Perdis where I secured a junior graphic designer role and moved up the ranks working heavily in the retail and digital space. After a year off traveling, I started my own freelance business working with clinets: Theyallhateus blogging duo and Sweaty Betty PR. I ran the business for two years before I started to miss the studio environment which led me to apply for a role at Seafolly where I have been for the past seven years.
What is your day to day role?
My day to day is to oversee the look and feel of the brand with my biggest responsibility centring on our seasonal campaign shoots. I shoot the BIG campaigns at least two times a year for all of our brands: Seafolly ladies / Seafolly Kids and Miléa. So the remainder of my time is focused on getting these assets to market. Our in-house art department covers retail, wholesale, digital and internal design requirements, so we are kept busy that’s for sure. I love that no two days are the same one day we’re bunkered down strategising and developing ideas for a big digital initiative and the next I’m planning for an international shoot with a top tier model and photographer. It really is the best of everything!
What is the biggest challenge in your position?
Running an in-house art department means our campaigns span across wholesale and retail- often at times we need to juggle conflicting strategies that cover simultaneous in market activity so it can be a challenge to make sure we are servicing all parts of the business at a high level all at the same time!
What is the most rewarding aspect?
I work with a small team of passionate women who really push and encourage each other, we’re all in it together and the environment we have created as a team is super supportive. As a result, it always feels as though our big launches are a personal reflection of who we are and how well we work together plus I still get a buzz out of seeing a campaign that I have art directed up on a billboard, you never quite tire of that!
What is an initiative you are most proud of?
It was always a career goal to work with photographer Gilles Bensimon. And this year was a bit of a pinch me moment when we received an email from his agent. He had been following the recent Seafolly brand campaigns and really wanted to shoot with us, the stars aligned and within a matter of weeks he was confirmed to shoot in Australia with a top tier model. It’s one of my favourite campaigns to date and I’m excited to see it go live to market in September.
What do you see as the biggest change ahead for the company?
In a world where small Instagram brands can dictate key fashion trends, I think it’s harder for the big players to be as reactive. Working well in advance to meet international timelines means we are often running live to market with product and work that was shot four to five months ahead of time, in the digital world, four to five months feels more like years! So it’s definitely a challenge to implement work that is reactive and responsive in between the longer lead content.