With an impressive career in PR that includes gigs at Estée Lauder Companies in London and Tomorrowland Group, Katja Phegan is thrilled to be settling down into her new role as the in-house communications manager at Weleda.
Here, BD chats to Phegan about her career history, the differences between working at an agency versus in-house, and what excites her about the new role.
Can you tell me a bit about your career history?
I started out working in beauty PR as an intern for Aramis & Designer Fragrances at Estée Lauder Companies in London, where I quickly discovered PR was what I wanted to do. My first ‘real’ job working in beauty PR was at one of London’s leading beauty and lifestyle agencies, The Communications Store, where I looked after beauty clients such as Dr. Hauschka and John Frieda. I moved back in-house working for Estée Lauder Companies on the Clinique and Darphin brands, which was incredibly diverse and rewarding.
When I moved to Australia in 2008, I worked at Tomorrowland Group (previously Saunders & Co PR), where I was fortunate enough to look after the natural beauty portfolio, including Weleda, Jurlique and Grown. By then, I had developed a real passion for natural beauty, health and wellbeing. I took a few years out of PR to work as the events and social media manager for a research and development corporation in the horticulture industry, educating Australians about the benefits of eating fresh fruit and vegetables. I started consulting for Weleda Australia as their social media manager in January this year, and I am now very excited to look after the PR for the brand as well.
What was it like going from working in PR for a London-based company to working for an agency in Australia?
The skill set required to work successfully in PR is fairly similar wherever you go, however a big part of the job is knowing the media landscape and having good connections with media and influencers. I found my feet very quickly as everyone was so welcoming in Australia, and the fact the industry is much smaller over here helped with that.
Why did you decide to make the move from a PR agency to in-house?
I like getting to know a brand inside out and getting involved in a lot more aspects than just the PR side, and often, this can’t be achieved working in an agency where you’re looking after a portfolio of different clients. And of course, you get to choose which brand you want to work for and find one you are truly passionate about – for me, that was Weleda.
What are the benefits of working in-house as opposed to an agency?
There are benefits to working on either side but ultimately, working in-house is more rewarding for me as I get to work closely with the marketing and sales teams and get to see whether a PR/social media campaign I planned and executed yields sales results or generates new customers for the brand. It can be hard to get this feedback when you work in an agency.
What attracted you to the role at Weleda?
I grew up in Germany, where Weleda is a household name and has been used for generations - I remember it sitting on my grandparents’ bathroom shelf when I was a kid. Weleda is Europe’s leading certified natural and organic skincare brand and the brand’s ethos is strongly aligned with my lifestyle and personal beliefs. Being able to work for a brand you can stand behind 100 per cent is especially rewarding.
In your last role, you were looking after events and social media. Is it a big change to go back to being a communications and PR manager?
Events and social media will remain a big part of my role and I am excited about bringing all of these skills together in one role. I will be busy, no doubt!