Australian fashion label Rebecca Vallance recently celebrated its first decade in business with the opening of a brand-new Sydney flagship boutique. Inside Retail spoke to the designer behind the brand, Rebecca Vallance-Gasan, about starting her day at 4 am, a must for someone running a global fashion empire. The plan is to reach 20 stores globally within the next few years, with a focus on strategic growth across both the direct-to-consumer business and international wholesale. Inside Ret
nside Retail: What inspired you to start the brand? How has it evolved since then?
Rebecca Vallance Gasan: It’s really all I ever wanted to do. I had always dreamt of building an international brand, and when the timing was right, I finally took the leap. I launched and established Rebecca Vallance in London in 2011, before returning home to Sydney to continue our expansion.
IR: What does a typical day in the life of Rebecca Vallance-Gasan look like?
RVG: I wake up and start my day between 4 am and 4:30 am with emails and calls with our overseas teams.
From 6 am to 8 am, I wake my two sons up, breakfast and get them ready for school.
I get to the office at around 9 am to 9:30 am and spend the first few hours with the design team working on the collections, future designs and fabrications.
From 2 pm to 4 pm, I meet with the various teams across the afternoon including production, marketing, digital, finance and PR — to see how everything is going.
At least three times a week I work out with a trainer at around 5 pm, It’s a moment for myself where I can switch off.
After that, at 6 pm, I have meetings with the UK sales agents and PR teams.
From 7 pm to 8 pm, I put my boys to bed and jump back on calls with the UK team, before a glass of wine with my husband.
IR: What does your work environment look like?
RVG: Super neat, tidy and with nothing on it aside from a computer, sketchbook and mobile.
IR: Do you have any favourite apps or tools you use to manage your time?
RVG: I schedule my calendar meticulously and rely on this when travelling internationally. If it’s not in my calendar, it doesn’t happen.
IR: Do you have any work “hacks” or productivity tips and tricks?
RVG: I am hyper-organised and work off lists that I tick off in my notebook – yes, I still have a notebook, I’m old school like that.
IR: What’s your approach to in-person, remote or hybrid working?
RVG: I much prefer in-person – I feel that you can tell a lot about a person by their body language and tone.
With hybrid working, I like the team to have the flexibility to work from the office and from home. We have set days where I like everyone to be in the office on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays and then the team have the flexibility to work from home on the other days.
IR: Do you have any hobbies that help you switch off and stay balanced?
RVG: Spending time with family and friends is what I love, and it helps keep me balanced. I also love travelling.
IR: What is the best career advice you’ve received and what would yours be?
RVG: Follow your gut.
IR: What are some challenges you’ve faced in your career and how have you dealt with them?
RVG: Covid-19 was obviously a key challenge, as my business changed dramatically overnight. I’m proud that we were able to fight through it and flourish afterwards.
IR: What are some of your career highlights so far?
RVG: Working with Qantas along with winning ‘Designer of the Year’ at the Marie Claire Women of the Year Awards – that was truly incredible.
IR: What do you love about your job?
RVG: I love the people. I get to work with so many amazing people who are experts in their field and live across the globe.
But what I love the most is working with our head office team in Sydney. A lot of the head office team have been with the brand for a very long time – 10 years or more. Going on this journey with such incredible people has made the ride even more enjoyable.