My top six career highlights
Do you ever stop and think about all the things you've achieved over the past few years, or reflect on where you've been and what you've done along the way?
Well, we've been putting together lots of great 'career' features over on my new project Khoollect and it's really got me thinking about all the weird and wonderful things I've achieved in the past 10 years.
It's been a whirlwind of business, busyness, travel and adventures, so I thought this was a great opportunity to share my top six career highlights with you all:
1. Taking the risk to move to Paris in 2006
This is where it all began really. I gave up my job in Fashion PR and marketing in London and hopped over to Paris with barely a word of French under my belt. This is where my culinary journeys began.
2. Being offered a job at La Cocotte
After completing my three-month patisserie course at Le Cordon Bleu Paris and quite a few part time jobs (babysitting, teaching English, working in a department store), I was offered a position at La Cocotte, a culinary bookstore and tea salon. It was only a part-time job on minimum pay, but it enabled me to work with food in a creative way. I met loads of people in the food world which helped to open doors for me and pave the way for further adventures to unfold.
3. Having my first book Muesli & Granola published
It was such an accomplishment to get a book deal for Muesli & Granola with a French publisher, particularly given I wasn't at all known in the food world, and had no television or media presence at the time.
4. Creating pop up restaurants around the world
My dear friend (and now Khoollect Food Editor) Frankie Unsworth and I set up Edible Tales and did pop up restaurant events in Buenos Aires, Sydney and Melbourne. This wasn't a project that paid very well, but it enabled me to be super creative and get much-needed experience in putting events together. We took care of everything ourselves, from finding the venue to sourcing sponsors, taking care of the PR and marketing, finding guests, and cooking and serving the food – literally everything.
5. Coming up with the idea for The Little Paris Kitchen
First of all came the book deal for The Little Paris Kitchen, then the concept of creating a little two-seater restaurant in my tiny Paris flat, and then I thought 'hey, I could pitch this as a television series'.
6. Setting up my new project Khoollect
My latest project Khoollect is finally off the ground and I'm so excited to share it with you all. Together with my team of talented individuals, we're showcasing our fun and interesting discoveries, and inspiration found in unlikely places. Go check it out, leave a comment to tell us what you think, jump on the forum and join in some discussions, get more career-related inspiration, and find out how my team of Khoollectors scored their jobs.