With almost 40 years of experience under her belt, Jill Lowe is arguably one of the prominent figures in the image consultancy scene throughout Singapore and Asia. When she is not leading individuals and corporations to look and feel their best, Jill is also a mother, wife, and business owner. Despite the hecticness of it all, she remains focused on establishing her mark in the image consulting industry, helping individuals and brands create their branding and leaving a lasting impression on their journey to success. 

With luck, we managed to sit down and have a conversation with Jill Lowe herself and discuss her extensive experiences in the image consultancy industry, personal stories, as well as future aspirations.

Interview With Jill Lowe, Founder of Jill Lowe International

Can you share some highlights from your almost four decades of experience in the image consultancy industry and how it has evolved?

In the 80s, colour analysis was new. I had to work extremely hard to convince people of the importance of dressing and grooming and how it can significantly impact one’s career progress. I was surprised by the energy I had when reaching out to my clients in their late twenties and early thirties of age. People were very enthusiastic and teachable then.

In the 90s, our clients’ supervisors witnessed their staff’s transformational excellence. The wave from the middle management brought constant media coverage for a decade of publicity. 

My business flourished and grew successfully. The funding was invested in building Jill Lowe’s skincare and cosmetics brand. It was necessary to provide comprehensive grooming support for our clients to be totally well-equipped to look professional.

As one of the forerunners in this industry, what motivated you to embark on this journey, and how did you envision the impact of image consultancy in Asia?

Wow! Fascinating journey! I was a trained aesthetician at 20 years of age and a practising bridal makeup artist. It was my hobbies that turned into business.

In 1985, I was trained and certified by Color Me Beautiful USA in colour analysis and had lunch with Carol Jackson in Washington DC. She was in her early 70s and filled with energy and joy, building a business of making life colourful for all who she crossed paths with. I figured out that I could surely make it successfully, having a head start at a much younger age. And I did!

You’ve worked with C-suite clients on an international level. Could you share some memorable experiences or insights gained from collaborating with such high-profile individuals?

I always remember one who worked for a bank and progressed to work for the Royal family and I ended up learning a lot from him. We crossed paths because he wanted to know why he was voted as the ‘least trustworthy’ in the business game played at a world-class achievers symposium.

This client has a wonderfully outstanding achievement and was given the HE title for his contributions to building his nation.

Another was a young scholar who became a brigadier of the army. It was a reconnection again after many years. For myself, it has been such a rewarding career to evidently witness the progress of those who practise proven techniques and seize the opportunities to excel.

Your approach to image consultancy is described as holistic, encompassing more than just colour, grooming, or style. Could you elaborate on the key elements that make your approach stand out?

Although not every person has a social media account, image from an appearance management perspective is a personal marketing platform, but every single person participates because people wear clothes. 

Colour and style are just a photograph effect on social media. The comprehensive imaging is like a reel video with acoustic effects and a trailer of the movie, it involves your sound effects and your body in motion. 

The comprehensive approach is inclusive of your hygiene, hair perspective, decorum, accessories, poise, body in motion, vocal variety, verbal intelligence, entertaining skills, social behavioural etiquette, and your personal traits profile. 

Women empowerment is a significant aspect of your work. How do you integrate empowerment into your image consultancy process, and what outcomes have you observed in your clients?

Women empowerment for personal excellence often involves her status, family success, and social recognition that comes along with her influential capabilities. Image is about personal branding asset management that opens doors to many opportunities by being clear and consistent in building her brand.

She should acquire a colour and style theme to retain customers or followers and creatively stay focused to connect with confidence. These are the 5Cs of branding to communicate with their internal, external, and intimate customers!

These are researched and proven methods that have certainly helped many people progress for the coming four decades. We have seen people get married, restore their marriage, children revive their confidence, and excel!

I am absolutely encouraged when I see people find their dream jobs. Those who were once a loser managed to get ahead of their competitors! It was certainly worth rejoicing!

In your pursuit of empowering women with financial knowledge, what are some key strategies or principles you consider essential for achieving financial independence, particularly tailored for women?

Women who are financially savvy may not need these principals but do meet us to meet their search for happiness. Women who know how to manage costs on their personal matters will tend to manage costs for their company. This is an illustration I sometimes use:

Those who keep their hair too long or too short to save can be overly thrifty. There are some who keep up with trends to get attention and stay trendy. The ones who keep their hairstyles relevant to their brand to serve their customers and gain favour, get compliments, and gain referral fees from the salons.

These are women who save, spend, and serve to build their financial culture and capability.

Beyond the professional realm, could you share some personal values or philosophies that have contributed to your success in the image consultancy field? Especially when you are also juggling between being a mother and the company’s founder.

On one hand, I am in the lifestyle industry. Ironically, I have trained real-time corporate leaders to drive results through software management. Basic applications of trustworthiness are the backbone of my many decision-making, to keep the people together happily. Use and not abuse your knowledge and power is the theme of training image management.

It is challenging but meaningful to build team members. To bring out the best of my staff and workforce, their children need real-time parental leadership to build a successful future. My staff is a much larger family than my two children’s nucleus.

After all the learning from corporate leaders, I have trained my children as if they were corporate leaders and my staff as my children. It has been a fun and joyful career and is always invigorating when I am always upgrading others’ children and wanting them to have a worthwhile future.

In your extensive experience, can you recall a particularly challenging case or situation you encountered and how you navigated through it to achieve a positive outcome for your client?

There are indeed many who failed to get a promotion for 10 years in service. After her training, she presented her boss’ problem in the US market. I guided her with the answers and provided advice on particular attire and verbal delivery. Her boss resolved her issue and got promoted and promoted her too!

I wanted to share this unforgettable request to train a 12-year-old girl at the brink of breaking down, having to sit for the national exam, with PSLE due in three months. The top girl of the school as well as a head girl, was asked to step down due to her poor performance. It absolutely awakened my mind to a different approach to training by love instead of by content delivery. It was an extremely sensitive encounter due to the mental state of the child. I had never met her before. To deal with the cultural, age, and urgency requests from her parents led to me loving the child much more.

I recall my time as a head girl in primary school and got connected to her. I brought her to a home for the seniors and a fine dining restaurant to explain the concept of understanding oneself and her future in years to come. The perspective of a child to ‘grandmother’ journey and the simple fining dining concept opened her mind to human intricacies of expectations.

Time passed and so she had passed PSLE with flying colours when I called her mum about how she performed. It is a joy to be of help to many interesting encounters.

Your dedication to both your family and your career is evident. Can you share some insights into the support system, routines, or practices that have been instrumental in maintaining this delicate balance, especially during periods of rapid growth and expansion?

My family is the foundation of wishing others to have wonderful families too. I have truly thrived as a mum because I had always wanted to be a meaningful mum since I was ten years old! 

Being excellent in domestic management is vital to raising joyful and fun kids. Clarifying the values system when kids are below twelve years old does help to anchor a solid foundation for them to stay focused throughout their teens. Their volatile youth was resolved with humour and future creativity instead of their fault corrections.

Keeping my stamina up by being disciplined in healthy and hygienic living for myself is vital, especially in my type of business. That is why I am a skincare manufacturer too. There is a systematic and joyful way of talking to regain stamina through verbal exercise. It is very invigorating!

Speaking creates war or peace at work or at home. Every relationship that is worth saving can find a solution and be revived again. 

Looking ahead, what are your aspirations for the future of image consultancy in Asia, and how do you envision its role in empowering individuals, particularly women?

There is an immense need to help and build men and women to absolutely enjoy the journey of raising a family, be socially joyful, and live well through their careers and lives. The talents in our field are rare due to the discipline expected for our industry. 

I have always wanted to build a grooming school to supply trainers to upgrade many more people. There are just too many hurdles to accomplish this goal. I am positive that this mission impossible will certainly be possible in due course!

This exclusive interview was brought to you by Jill Lowe and Jill Lowe International.

Image Credits: Jill Lowe International, Jill Lowe

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