I have always loved fashion. My mum has great style and from a young age, I adored the way she dressed. I realised I wanted to work in the industry when I moved to London to study English. I was doing some modelling to earn some extra money and I discovered the commercial opportunities in fashion, which I had never come across in Brazil. After I finished my studies, I started working at 1927 showroom as a sales assistant. We worked with some great brands at that time like Twenty Eight Twelve and Juicy Couture (we were the UK distributors and were responsible for its rise to fame!). I was dealing with buyers from the leading department stores and I loved seeing their different styles and approaches to selecting collections. I think this is when I really realised that I wanted to become a buyer. I then moved back to Brazil and worked as an export coordinator for São Paulo’s most luxurious store, Daslu. I would go to Paris and show the collection to buyers from all over the world in an amazing suite at the Hotel Plaza Athénée, where I started to build and establish relationships in the industry. I then went on to work as a buyer for luxury accessories multi-brand store, Lool in São Paolo, which sold brands like Oscar de la Renta EK Thongprasert and Shourouk. We wanted to curate the best selection of brands from all over the world. This is when I really fell in love with my job. I enjoyed working so closely with the retail team, as well as on the analytical side, focusing on the customer demand and having a clear understanding of what’s selling.
I was really lucky to secure a role in the industry without having to intern. The big turning point for me was when I worked at Lool because I jumped straight into a role as a buyer. I had to learn fast on the job – everything from going to showrooms and selecting products and negotiating, to setting up budgets and marking up products. I took on a lot of responsibilities and felt a bit stressed at times, but I had the best experience. I moved to London to study English before getting the job at 1927, and I completely fell in love with the city. It’s so international, and there are so many people from all around the world – making it such an easy place to fit in, even if you’re a foreigner. I also met my boyfriend and, even though we spent five years apart when I left London, we have been together for the last two years since I came back. The number of different opportunities in London also made it the best place for me career wise.
When I worked with Juicy Couture it was a really exciting time for the brand (and me!). It was amazing to see how the love of velour tracksuits developed into an international lifestyle. The brand came into the showroom and the next minute it was flying off the shelves. Celebrities and influencers were wearing it, and the brand simply took off. It made me realise that I wanted to work in buying, rather than wholesale. I wanted to be closer to the retail side and the final customer – as this is a side of the business you never really get to see in wholesale. Editing huge collections in order to make them more commercial for the European market gave me that crucial eye for editing that you need as a buyer.
There isn’t really a typical day for me now. I spend a great deal of time between Salt Resort Wear and the new ready-to-wear Salt Store, which opened earlier this year. I spend my time overseeing the merchandising on the shop floor and talking to our excellent sales teams. During buying season, I will go to appointments in the morning and then work from the shops in the afternoon, dealing with e-mails, communicating with suppliers, sales analysis and, of course, ordering and re-ordering. I like to spend some time on the shop floor helping clients too. For me, it’s an opportunity to get the best form of feedback and to really get to know and understand the customer I’m buying for, which is very important. I’m really hands-on in store when our new deliveries arrive, and I work with the store managers with merchandising. I also try and dedicate time every week to researching new brands, as we love to support up-and-coming designers and give our customers an exciting mix of pieces. We were one of the first stores to back Yosuzi who, in the last couple of months, has grown into an incredible internationally recognised brand. My favourite part of the job is getting to see and work with so many amazing brands and then editing them specifically for the Salt style and our customers.
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I love the whole process of buying resort wear. I think women really want to find the best quality, cut and fit to suit their shape, whether they’re buying a bikini or a one-piece. Stephanie founded the store because she found that for those travelling to hot places ‘out of season’, it was incredibly difficult to find resort wear. So our Walton Street store has a carefully curated selection for you to choose from 365 days of the year. I tend to buy resort wear with different shapes and occasions in mind, so that if you’re going to Thailand in the Caribbean, we have the perfect pieces you need in your wardrobe, from the perfect fitting bikini and cover-up, to a great beach bag. I think it’s easier to navigate in the sense that I can completely relate to the Salt customer. I travel quite a lot and I love the philosophy of offering unique brands that are trending in different parts of the world.
There are so many designers out there at the moment, and while this means there is harsh competition for new brands, it’s made the industry more interesting. Brands have to work really hard and be innovative in order to stand out from the ever-growing crowd! I love all the incredible contemporary brands that are popping up right now. I’m always drawn to them because I’m always looking for something different. It’s the same with the women I buy for at Salt. They’re after unique and hard to find labels that you won’t see everywhere else. I tend to focus on pieces that are different, yet wearable. Analysing what is selling in-store helps me to decide which pieces to buy to transition into the new season. Of course there have been a few impulse buys – when you’re in a buying appointment and you fall in love with something, the best thing to do is to buy it.
This season is really exciting for me, we have some incredible new brands in-store like Mugler, Barbara Casasola and Dion Lee. This season we have a big focus on oversized coats, seventies flowy dresses and mid-length skirts. My favourite brands at the moment have to be Ulla Johnson, Zimmermann and, one of our UK exclusives, Harare. They’re all really focused on the seventies and Boho trend, which is really strong this season like the incredible Zimmermann dress I wore on the shoot.
When it comes to my own style, I have to admit, I wear a lot of what I buy. In the office, I tend to dress smart-casual. So at the moment, I love wearing the super skinny MiH jeans, which I’d team with a Preen by Thornton Bregazzi top or an Ulla Johnson fringed knit with some flat shoes. If I’m heading to an appointment, I’ll dress up my look with heels from Rupert Sanderson or Malone Souliers. I spend a lot of time travelling, as it’s the perfect opportunity to discover new brands and designers. We tend to go to Paris and New York every three months to see the brands we work with, as well as discovering new ones. We also go to Miami for the swimwear show which is where I really get inspired for the Resort Wear store. I try and go home to Brazil at least twice a year, and I’ll always go on holiday to Miami and Spain every year with my family. I also love exercising and I try to stick to my plan of working out with my personal trainer three times a week. I’d say my off-duty style is comfortable chic. I love mixing luxury brands with pieces from the high street.
Visit the new Salt Store on 77 Elizabeth Street, SW1W 9PW. This interview has been edited and condensed. Photographs by Dvora and art direction by Naomi Mdudu.