Diary of a Fashion Expat

Part 7 - The Australia Years

By Laura Flanagan

In this multi-part series, British Designer turned Buyer, Laura Flanagan, documents her journey through the Fashion Industry and working as an expat around the world. Her story began with a chronicle of some of the challenges she faced finding the right fashion program at University, navigating her final year while interning in Paris, followed by graduation year, her design career in London and her adventures as an expat in Hong Kong.

In Part 7, Laura concludes the series by bringing us up to date with her adventures over the past 2 years in Australia, as well as life during the pandemic.

Continued from “Part 6-The Transition”

I remember being in a chauffeur driven car, driving from Melbourne Airport, arranged by my new employer, and through jet lagged eyes, seeing that the temperature recording on my phone was reading at 43 degrees celsius. It was one of Melbourne’s hottest summer days. The dry heat hit me from the short walk from the Airport Terminal to the vehicle. With heavy jet lag and the feeling of confusion after leaving the UK in snowy weather, I really did feel on the other side of the world.

I arrived at the serviced apartment I was staying at for the next few nights, feeling really exhausted. It was a Friday morning and I had naively hoped that I could use this day to sort out a bank account and a mobile phone. My brain was not functioning properly and I made a few weak attempts to get this stuff sorted, but realistically the majority of it would have to wait. It felt a little less exciting than it had in Hong Kong, to action all this life admin again.

I had a three day weekend ahead of me as it was the controversial public holiday ‘Australia Day’ on Monday. Luckily I already had some friends in Melbourne - girls I’d known in Hong Kong who had also made the move to Australia, and a few people from when I stayed in Melbourne years before as a backpacker. I divided the weekend between setting up the basic framework of all the things you need for a new life and catching up with friends at the beach. I fought the jet lag with numerous sleeping tablets and was back to normal by Tuesday morning, ready to start work.

The company I was working for were a family run manufacturer with factories in China. They supplied core and basic fashion underwear to the majority of the Australian mass market stores. I’d be lying if I said it was my dream product to work on, but I was excited to become a Design Manager and take my career to the next level. At this point I had no idea what was ahead of me, and to be honest if I had I might have jumped right back on that plane.

“My gut feeling was right, my time in this role was filled with stress, deflation and exhaustion.”

The company had been really great in flying me out, arranging accommodation for me, and even on my first day they picked me up and drove me to the office. As a family run business, the main figures of the family were very kind and friendly, I had previously met them in Hong Kong and got a good vibe from them. Unfortunately this was not going to be enough to get me through the hardest role I have ever had to do. When I arrived at the office and was shown to my desk I could quickly see that my new desk had not been cleared from the person before. Each drawer was full with years worth of paperwork, boxes of fabrics under the desk and rails filled with samples all around it, it was complete chaos. A mild panic went off inside me. This reflected so much disorganization within the company and for somebody like myself, who needs a clean and clear space to work, I felt uneasy about what else was ahead for me.

The day I got the biggest shock, and a reminder at how awful some people in the Fashion industry can be, was when we went to the office of our main client, one of Australia’s biggest retailers. We were there to present a project the design team had been working on for the past few months. I had only been overseeing this project for a week due to my time of arrival at the company, but we thought it would be a good opportunity for me to present the project so the team at the retailer could get to know me. I had heard the Head of Buying at this company could be really tough, but I thought at this point in my career I could handle this, I had enough experience to stand my ground. Well, nothing could have prepared me for what was thrown at me. 

The Head of Buying was clearly in a foul mood and decided to use my presentation meeting as an opportunity to attack me. She was cutting me off, making snide comments and unreasonably challenging everything I said, whilst raising her voice. I was in such shock. In all of my years in the industry, nobody had ever behaved this unprofessionally towards me, especially in front of a large group of people. I could see the rest of the room felt uncomfortable, they knew her behaviour was wrong but they were obviously too scared to say anything. I knew a few years prior I would have cried in this situation, but London had made me tough, and Hong Kong had given confidence, so I stood there and gave calm and collected answers to everything she threw at me. 

It almost felt like an out of body experience, but to this day I am very proud of how I handled that situation. The industry may push you to your limits but at a certain point you have to truly believe in yourself. I had learnt so much, been through so much, and nobody could take the experience and knowledge I had built away from me.

I was so confused, I didn't want to be in this role, I couldn't see any light at the end of the tunnel, but I had just moved my life to Australia. I wasn’t sure what to do. I was enjoying what Melbourne had to offer - the cool neighbourhoods, pop up parties, amazing restaurants, the day trips we would take and the friends I had and was making. But it wasn't enough to make me even consider staying in that role. Every angle I turned in that company came with stress. So in a twist of events I started yet another job search - a very casual one, with a very open brief, but it gave me a huge feeling of hope professionally. I had many conversations with possible employers, and as the months went on I learnt to care less in my role, so things felt better. Those Sunday night scares started to improve.

“When a company pushes you to such extremes you have to stop caring to protect yourself.”

I’d started the role in January 2019, and by August I had a holiday booked to California to visit a friend, and I would also do some shopping in LA at the end for the company. I have never looked forward to a holiday so much, and what a holiday it was. I’d never been to California before, the fun, laid back atmosphere the state has was exactly what I needed. I partied in LA, cycled around Newport, had my birthday in Palm Springs and drove around exploring Joshua Tree. I came back feeling refreshed, having had so much fun and also being out of the office for a decent amount of time. I felt less drained than I had for a long time. I told myself that if I didn’t find another job by December I would hand my notice in regardless and move back to Europe and freelance. I felt at peace with my decision and mastered the skill of caring even less in the office. When a company pushes you to such extremes you have to stop caring to protect yourself.

Although it was a stressful time for me, there were some positives to take from the experience within the role. I got to travel - I was driven round for days in LA, shopping in the sunshine and I got the opportunity to go to South Africa. I was given a company car which made it possible to explore so much of Australia. I gained many new skills, I managed people for the first time, and I made friends at the company too, which is something I will never take for granted.

“As you all are aware little did I or anyone know what 2020 had in store.”

I was becoming more comfortable with the idea of returning back to Europe and freelancing, although the idea came with the fear of the unknown it was also exciting. As we entered the later months of the year, I started interviewing with a brand based in Germany. Then unexpectedly, I was contacted by a well known Australian Lingerie Brand who were looking for a Senior Buyer. Although I had made the move into a more senior and more numbers driven role, I wasn't sure I was ready to call myself a Buyer. However I met up with the team and had a few conversations around this position. The more I heard about what they wanted and the more I thought about it, I knew I could take this on. I just had to shed the imposter syndrome I was having about calling myself a Buyer. I thought it would be great to make the most of my visa and stay in Australia, rather than returning early. I was letting go of trying to control my path, and decided what would be, would be. I was just happy that the possibility of a new opportunity was on the horizon.

October came and I had a job offer from the Australian brand, I accepted without hesitation. This also meant a relocation to Sydney. However as I was used to the expat life, a domestic move didn't seem too daunting. I had a three month notice period, so took that time to slowly start the move, and enjoy Melbourne without the weight of a job I hated on my shoulders.

Before I knew it, it was January 2020 and I was flying up to Sydney, ready to create a new life…again. As you all are aware little did I or anyone know what 2020 had in store.

“As you may have gathered fashion is not for the faint hearted.”

All things considered 2020 hasn't been too bad for me and I’m happy I made the move pre-covid. I’m also very grateful I didn't end up going back to Europe to freelance as that would not have been the best time to start working independently. Yes, all the exciting travel that I was meant to do was taken away from my role, but I’m lucky to even have a job. I’m in a country where the borders are completely closed and I don't know when I’ll travel again or see my friends and family back home, but I’m also living in a country where I feel very safe with a great quality of life. A lot of the socialising I wanted to do with moving to a new city has been taken away, but Sydney has such beautiful nature and beaches that you can't help but be grateful. Overall I feel very lucky with my situation.

The company I am with is truly supportive and caring, the team members are great, there is lots of opportunity and growth and the product and marketing are very exciting. I’m particularly happy to work for such a body positive brand. I couldn’t have made a better move. It's been one hell of a journey to get to this point of Senior Buyer, but I never have been one to stay inside my comfort zone. As you may have gathered fashion is not for the faint hearted.

I have a limited time on my Australian visa and so in a few years time I will probably have to make some more big decisions. In the meantime I’m going to be thankful in the current circumstances to have a job (and even better, one that I love), live mindfully and enjoy the beautiful sunny Australian lifestyle that a career in fashion has allowed me to experience.

Part 7 is the final entry in our ongoing series ‘Diary of a Fashion Expat’.

Incase you missed them, Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3 , Part 4 , Part 5 and Part 6 are still available on the website. See below for more details!

A HUGE thank you to Laura for sharing her journey with us! We hope you enjoyed her story.

Stay tuned, we doubt this will be the last you hear from Laura!

Edited by Emma Golley

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