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About Christie-Ann Williams

“I will always call Australia my home although I have been traveling and living around the world for many years as a expat woman. Travel for me is not a hobby it is actually a way of life. Exploring and immersing myself in different cultures is something that I love to do. Whilst living abroad I have married and produced three amazing children : 5yr, 4yr and 4 month old boys! They keep me busy, energised and exhausted. I am currently studying towards a Masters Degree and feel blessed to have my own small business to call mine and be so passionate about. I have a love affair with coffee and chocolate, usually at the same time.”

Connect

Web: www.iallure.com.au

Email: [email protected]

Ph: +61 3 9028 4148

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About i ALLURE

The i ALLURE collection of kaftans was born with the vision to bring simplicity and versatility to a beautiful fashion piece designed for the cosmopolitan traveler, so light to pack and ready to wear. Hand selected exquisite, vibrant fabrics to make your feel beautiful. We truly believe that the way you look can change the way you feel. With this in mind, we design every Kaftan to make you look fabulous and feel confident.

SPECIAL OFFER

Use code: WOMAN20 upon check out at www.iallure.com.au to receive 20% off our entire store, including sale items. *Not to be used in conjunction with any other offer.

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Q & A with Christie-Ann Williams

What’s the story behind your business?

I am a Melburnian at heart and will always call Australia my home, however I have been traveling and living around the world for many years as a expat woman. Some of the amazing places that I have been able to call home have been the United Kingdom, Greece, China, Japan and Fiji. I initially started traveling through USA, London and Europe as a young inquisitive girl. I further continued my travels as a mature woman working in China and Japan in the corporate world, alongside my amazing husband, and now three sons. My earlier education was formed around the Tourism and Hospitality industries but I have always had a passion for fashion and previously worked for a leading Australian fashion label throughout my schooling years. My desire has been to build my own business and run it from wherever I am in the world. My love of the kaftan came while living in beautiful, hot tropical climates. It became evident through my selection of clothing that kaftans were my favourite piece of attire. I am known amongst my friends as the ‘Kaftan Queen’! I found kaftans to be so comfortable and flattering but I realised I wanted more vibrancy and colour than I could find, to match the environment and beauty around me. The amazing blues and greens of the calming ocean, the bold vibrant tones of the tropical fauna and the emerging colours of dawn and dusk to name but a few. Hence my i ALLURE beach & resort wear collection was born.

What was your first job?

One of my first jobs was a shop assistant at Sportsgirl. I started working casually whilst at school at the age of 15. I loved working at Sportsgirl as I not only earned a great wage but I also got to wear great cool clothes, although most of my wage went to buying those clothes but for a 15 year old girl this was probably the most important thing in my life then. Fashion has always been a bit part of who I am from a early age.

When you decided to start your own business, what was your big “why”?

WHY not now? It was the right time in my life, where I had the time to invest, the money to invest and I had found something that I was passionate about. For many years I wanted to create my own business but I was unsure what. I actually used to attend inventor courses for fun in my early years. I have always had ideas but nothing I ever wanted to follow through until I was living in Fiji and found myself in the right place to expand on a business idea of creating beautiful kaftan pieces.

What have you had to give up?

I think the most obvious thing I have had to give up is time. As an online store it does not shut and it is open 24 hours, 7 days a week. Also running a small business is so consuming because you are in charge of everything from concept, designing, production, quality control, sales, marketing, finances, etc. It does not stop.

Your proudest achievement to date?

Opening up i ALLURE and being my own boss is amazing and I am extremely proud of myself. Having something to truly call mine and having the ability to work my business along with my family life is wonderful because looking after three young sons under 5 is a handful to say the least.

What would you tell your younger self not to do?

Don’t’ rush into things. Take time to research and plan. Sometimes I get too excited about what I want to do that I have not taken the time to stand back and really plan effectively.

What’s next for you and your business?

We are really excited to not only design our prints from scratch but this year we will be talking to our customers and getting their inputs in what they want to see in our prints. We want our customers to feel beautiful and now they have a chance to let us know what will make them feel beautiful and assist us in our print designing process.

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