TLSE'S HEIDI ALBERTIRI ON HER CAREER JOURNEY
As our very own leading lady, many of you will already be familiar with the name and face of Heidi Albertiri. Would-be high school sports teacher, child care worker, florist, senior style editor for a major interiors mag, Bali local, renovator, mother, ideas master, ambassador, workshop leader, content creator, and founder of The Life Style Edit. It would not be totally incorrect to say Heidi has lived about a hundred lifetimes.
Heidi put on her first ever pair of business boss shoes when she was just 19, buying her very own flower shop in Newtown, realising her passion after rearranging a less-than-pleasing posy she had purchased for a friend. The rest - as they say - is history. However, like most things in life, Heidi’s journey to The Life Style Edit was not a straightforward path; it took hard work, persistence, sweat, tears, and probably a fair share of sleepless nights. And while Heidi has spent her career and indeed much of her life miles away from codependency, to own The Life Style Edit and manage the creative women that work under its title has been to truly learn the impact of collaboration.
To be a woman in the world of business is a challenge all on its own, but to have built a successful digital agency upon strong relationships (with her team and clients alike) takes real perseverance. Somehow, between day-to-day business tasks, managing her creative flow, her team, and her life, we managed to grab Heidi for a quick minute to chat all things TLSE and - you guessed it - collaboration.
You’ve no doubt answered this question a million times over; but what was the spark, the “ah-ha” moment, that inspired you to start The Life Style Edit?
Working in magazines I would witness daily the resistance to embrace digital aspects of the industry. The value that my co-workers were placing on it was next to none, they weren’t evolving quick enough and I was frustrated. After my role finished up I took time out to sit with what my next move was. I simply tapped into what my skills were and looked for a gap in the market. At that time, digital was still moving fast and with Instagram becoming a thing - I knew people needed imagery and at that stage, no one was really servicing brands directly. So it all just fell into place. Ironically, I had registered the business name long before and forgot about it. And somewhere, a light bulb flicked on and I remembered I registered something, went back to it and it seemed to actually fit. So there it was, The Life Style Edit. It started as a blog; an edit for your life and style, featuring and creating content for brands we loved. It kind of just evolved from there as we added extra services as we needed them for client demand.
How important have alliances and connections been in the creation and growth of The Life Style Edit?
In the beginning, people trusted me with their products because of my established relationships - and then it switched to working in collaboration because of the added value.
Connection for me is everything, it can make or break a working relationship. You need to work on maintaining those relationships all the time - it's not a set and forget thing!
We all need to feel valued and it's important for us at TLSE that we feel like that and our clients feel that in return - above and beyond whatever service we are providing.
How do you find working in a team of creatively distinct women?
We have such a talented team that works here together, but communication is what makes everything come together. It takes effort every day to ensure we are all on the same page and that we all get the direction we are heading. I am pretty lucky to work with a team who gets my thinking, can interpret my crazy ideas, and work with me to get shit done. It’s crazy what we can all achieve when we work on stuff together.
In your opinion/experience, what is the power of collaboration?
TLSE would not exist without it. The whole business started because of how we worked with brands to create a win-win. We shot content, shared content on our socials and the Edit, those brands shared it and linked it back to us. It snowballs, and eventually you get everyone working together for the greater good. The Stay. Casita project we are working on is the next level of collaboration for us. You are only limited by your imagination and that's what you have to connect to - imagine it, do the work and make it happen.
If you could work with anyone on a project, who and what would it be, and why?
I just love having my fingers in a few pies (in case you hadn't noticed). I would love to have a show that would be like an actual live version of our Edit where we meet and chat to inspiring people, work on projects, show people how to do things, talk business, and share our favourite shopping products. I just love information, sharing, beautiful people, and things. It would be so much fun!
Favourite collaboration of all time, design or otherwise?
Marc Newson - anything he touches is gold in my mind. His design runs across a broad range of mediums and I love his fluidity. He is proof that you can do what you love and turn it into something successful and meaningful. From designing pens for Mont Blanc to Louis Vuitton bags, to kettles and toasters, his design is iconic as well as diverse.
Leave us with some words of wisdom...
Walk your own path. If you have an idea, trust it, test it out, make it work. Ask questions. Reach out to people and get people on board, don't be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and push some boundaries, nothing extraordinary happens without that little bit “extra". And stop bloody asking every man and his dog what they think of this or that. Just do it!!!
WORDS | Lucy Francis, Heidi Albertiri
IMAGES | TLSE
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