Irene Kim

As she celebrates 10 years in the fashion industry, the social media guru and entrepreneur tells Tatler how her life is not always all rainbows and unicorns

- Cherry Mui

Irene Kim might be the ultimate slashie; it's certainly not enough to call her an influencer. With - her modelling experience, hugely engaging social platforms she has 2.7 million Instagram followers at the time of writing television presence and four-year-old fashion brand, Ireneisgood, she is certainly influential. "When I am [working] on either my platform or on my brand, everything is kind of connected for me," she says.

Having grown up between Seattle and Seoul, Kim studied at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, then, in 2013, after six years in the city, moved to Seoul to try to break into the modelling industry; soon after, she would become known for her "unicorn" hair. Her decision paid off: she is seen as something of an ambassador for South Korean fashion, she has graced the covers of fashion magazines around Asia, she was named the first Asian global ambassador for Estée Lauder in 2015 and, in 2018, she started her fashion label. The brand's latest endeavour is a crossover with Vans, the global sports shoe brand.

Take us back to the early days of Ireneisgood.

[The brand] came very organically, and it just made sense at the point of my career. I wanted to make something that has good vibes, that is fun and playful. I studied textile design in FIT and with everything that I experienced in my career, it was very natural for me to do something of my own.