In conversation with Dijanna Mulhearn
Sitting down with Dijanna Mulhearn, a highly respected author and purveyor of the fashion industry with decades of invaluable experience, we discussed her incredible career and the future of the industry. Thank you Dijanna for your kindness and candidness, I am forever grateful!
You are incredibly multi-hyphenated professionally, having worked in PR, advertising, television, as a writer, etc, could you give a breakdown of your career timeline?
My first ever job was in fashion retail, as well as hospitality. Being the door girl at a high-end, high-profile club taught me a lot about people and how they chose to present themselves. I also saw a lot of patterns in the way particular personalities dressed, which was fascinating. From these experiences, I gleaned a lot about how fashion and clothing choices influence people, so I always dressed with intent or a goal in mind, especially when going for job interviews. The wholistic approach using personal style to support my message has been very successful for me. It’s not as much about being in fashion as deciding on a tone and setting it visually.
You started your career in fashion through your job as a doorgirl at a club in Darlinghurst, could you explain how that job pushed you into the industry?
After some study, I moved into finance and quickly realised it brought me no joy so I pivoted to something I love which is fashion. Not really knowing where to begin and knowing I needed some runs on the board I decided to approach a charity and ask whether I could voluntarily create and host some fundraisers for them. I thought about what kind of events I would want to attend and luckily for me they were a success. Being a charity I also managed the PR for the events and got a lot of attention. From there I got to know people and springboarded into fashion events and PR. After producing fashion week events, I went on to manage the PR for Harper’s BAZAAR and then Prada and Miu Miu. Once I had my son I didn’t want to travel so much so I pivoted into fashion writing, then books. Now, I am still commissioned to write books and have commenced a PhD on the subliminal messages found in fashion.
Can you describe the most pivotal point in your career?
Probably the most pivotal point in my career was my experience at Prada. It was an exciting time at Prada and the company did a lot to inform and guide their PRs on how to speak about fashion and understand it’s nuances. It taught me a lot about the invisible influence of high fashion.
My favourite page out of “STYLISTS: New Fashion Visionaries” by Katie Baron , gifted to me by Dijanna (thank you again!).
The fashion industry is very fickle, as I think we both know, and I know for myself that I have struggled with bouts of Imposter Syndrome because of this, have you ever experienced this, and if you have, how have you overcome it?
Of course like so many others I have battled with a crisis in confidence but I always take a deep breath, do my research, and do my best. I try to remember that we all have these moments and that we are all in this together. I have always sought to surround myself with people who have an intelligent approach and support others. In my experience, the best operators are the brave ones and the best work comes from staying true to your own path while making sure others are comfortable with your work too.
My interest in fashion started when I was young when I became interested in how we could communicate visually certain things about ourselves and our personalities. I have read that you have a similar story, would you be able to give some more insight on this?
My interest in fashion started early. I remember telling a friend in the fashion industry about how I used to buy magazines, then cut out the pictures and make my own version in a scrapbook. I said I still have those scrapbooks to this day and she replied I will show you mine if you show me yours. I guess there were a lot of young girls starting their fashion education the same way.
Along the same lines of personal expression, how do you feel about social media's ongoing impact on the concept of personal style?
Social media is a double edged sword. On the one hand I love seeing how people all over the world express themselves. On the other, I think it’s overwhelming for those looking for fashion direction while many of those on the platform are very busy creating an image for likes that they lose their own authenticity. I would like to see more visual discourse around empowering people through fashion rather than the tribal approach around brands and wealth, which I find pretty shallow.
(Jasmine’s note: this answer is so genius and so true, when did fashion become so capitalistic and unfun? I blame Bernard Arnault and LVMH.)
How has travel and experiencing new cultures influenced your own style?
I have travelled a lot, and one of my favourite things to do when travelling is to find a busy spot to sit and people-watch. I think about the style choices people make and what those choices reveal about them, and then sort of think about a possible narrative that their visual cues inform. The style destinations that have probably impressed me most would have to be Milan, Shanghai, and Tokyo. Milan’s rich style heritage seems to ooze from their fashion set no matter how contemporary their outfits are. The style set in Shanghai are super slick, chic and modern while Tokyo blends culture, character and youth in the most charming of ways. As for my own style, I am pretty comfortable with classic styles that feature a surprising twist, mostly to entertain myself. However, when I go to meetings I do think about what I want to say and how I can support it visually while making the other person feel comfortable with me so my clothing choices are rarely arbitrary.
