From Port Macquarie surfer girl to New York fashion visionary, jewellery designer Samantha Wills has made her dreams come true. Since its inception in 2004, her brand, SAMANTHA WILLS, has become an international success story, catching the attention of A-listers including Rihanna, Kate Hudson and Eva Mendes.
Samantha’s designs, a unique combination of earthy burnished metals, semi-precious stones and crystals were put on display for the world’s leading taste-makers this February, at Mercedes Benz New York Fashion Week. With the brand becoming available in more boutiques around the world and her designs branching into new materials and styles (Just wait for SAMANTHA WILLS Leather!) it seems there’s nothing this designer can’t achieve.
Samantha Wills is currently an ambassador for the American Express ‘Realise Your Potential’ campaign. With this in mind we caught up with Samantha and asked her what it was like to realise her dreams.
RESCU: Did you dream of becoming a jewellery designer when you were young?
Samantha Wills: I grew up in a small coastal town (Port Macquarie in NSW), so the beach and surf culture was my backyard. I remember thinking in grade 10 that I would love to become a jewellery designer (albeit at the time I was inspired by silver anklets with shells on them, dolphin charms & wave rings!). I recently learnt that Career aspirations dreamt up in the schoolyard will become a reality for 1 in 6 Australian children; so I think of myself to be very blessed as one of the 1 in 6, even though the design direction has taken a bit of a detour, the dream has remained the same.
RESCU: Can you tell us a little about how you got your start? Any tips for aspiring jewellery designers?
Samantha Wills: It started completely as a hobby, selling my designs at Bondi Beach Markets on the weekend. I was offered a spot on a showroom wall at Australian fashion in 2004, hoping to make one order, I wrote $17,000 worth of orders! I quit my ‘real’ job & was like ‘right. I am a jewellery designer now! (Closely followed by, ‘right, now, how do we do this?’’). Being 22 at the time, my naivety could be mistaken for bravery, but what the makeup up, it was passion and love for creative that go me through – I think that is the biggest thing and something that you can’t fake. To aspiring designers I would say be prepared, if you are looking to start your own brand, the journey is very rough, but also very rewarding, it is the passion that gets you through the rough patches, so make sure you love what you are doing! I think there is a real rarity in saying that your hobby is actually your career, I wanted to be part of a campaign that helped support passionate people and gave them the means to take the next step to realising their potential.
RESCU: What is your favourite thing about your job?
Samantha Wills: Working with my amazing team! They are truly a group of young inspiring, passionate people who inspire me daily! I love working on a brand in this era – with all the direct access to our consumers with social media, it is so great to be able to talk with them directly and they are very gracious to do so and show me how they wear my designs.
RESCU: And your least favourite?
Samantha Wills: The accounting and business side – numbers are pretty much a foreign language to me, so I am very lucky now that this amazing team has been built around me in these departments, but truly, it was an uphill battle when I was responsible for it.
RESCU: Many Aussie girls dream of making it in New York. Can you tell us a little about your life in NYC and why you decided to make the move?
Samantha Wills: Life in NYC is electric and exhausting and exciting and crazy and beautiful! The term ‘melting pot’ could not be more correct. I love it here, but I also miss home, especially the beaches! I moved here to design and work with some amazing people at the top of their game and learn from them. It has been a whirlwind two years and I love it!
RESCU: Can you tell us a little about your latest collection and what we can look forward to from Samantha Wills in the future?
Samantha Wills: Our latest collection, HUNTER + GATHERER is hitting stores this week. It is inspired by a girl who lived in Paris for a year and the collection is all of her collected trinkets along the way. It’s been a really exciting year with the launch of our stationery and homeware ranges, I hope to extend these categories as well as introduce SW leather soon.
American Express Realise Your Potential in 2013 is live from 31 January to 21 February 2013.
To enter visit www.realiseyourpotential2013.com.au and join the conversation at #AmexAu
