Why I resigned my corporate marketing career of six years at an iconic Italian luxury brand
2020 has been THE toughest year of my life!!!
November 2019: I made the difficult and controversial decision to resign from my glamorous and stable six-year corporate career in Brand Marketing in the luxury consumer goods industry at LVMH's BVLGARI in Miami.
My well-esteemed boss, Monika Guerrero, had even organized a farewell keepsake for me to (quite literally) remind me of my time with the Italian luxury company: an iconic BVLGARI watch with the double logo engraved around its black cast iron bezel. Monika had been an encouraging boss with an empowering leadership style that definitely left an inspiring mark on me.
Many of my friends and colleagues have questioned my choice of taking the risk to change industries and my desire of a geographical relocation. All, after calling beautiful Miami home for ten years! Thanks to my job of managing the brand marketing and partnership marketing with the company's strategic distribution partners in 35 emerging nations of Latin America and the Caribbean, I have been fortunate to travel extensively to 20+ countries. I would like to thank and mention one of my closest co-workers and contestants from the commercial sales team at BVLGARI, Cesar Audiffren - he had been an inspiration, a friend and a true idol. Cesar is now leading the Travel Retail business of BVLGARI in Hong Kong and the Greater China Wholesale division.
The experience of continuously project-managing the ever-changing and extremely diverse South American marketssignificantly advanced my career and allowed me to go through a gradual professional development. It taught me to act nimble, pivot last minute priorities and further nurture my innate bias for action. All, while working with limited resources in order to maximize commercial success and build brand equity in internationally emerging markets. Eventually, I arrived a point where the company's organizational structure would not allow for additional growth. I was ready for a new opportunity and wanted to be challenged! Would I have taken this calculated risk, knowing the world would stumble into a once-in-a-century global pandemic? Probably not. Yet, here I am, one year later...
A South Korean Intermezzo
11/26/2019: 안녕하세요 한국 Hello South Korea: I gave into an urge of mine, to immerse myself in the unknown cultural environment of South Korea and live for a few months in Seoul to study the Korean language. I left the week of Thanksgiving in 2019, taking into account that the corporate world would traditionally slow down over the holidays and I could re-enter the stage freshly and with newly acquired skills in early 2020.
At this time, the world is still doing its thing. At times, Seoulites had already started sporting oh-so fashionable face masks, due to bad air quality in the country's capital.
Why South Korea?many had asked me: I have long had a fascination for this small nation in Asia which shares a similar history like the divided Germany I grew up in: North Korea vs. South Korea - East Germany vs. West Germany. In 1953, South Korea had emerged from a bloody civil war and managed, to internationally position itself as a global player with a booming economy through technology and automotive companies like Samsung, LG, Kia, Genesis and Hyundai. South Korea is also home to a thriving entertainment industry with K-Pop bands like BTS, Black Pink, Big Bang and produces a multitude of internationally successful K-Dramas. Last but not least, South Korea is infamous for its K-Beauty industry: the nation offers among the best plastic surgery and skincare & beauty products: South Korean brand Dr. Jart+ has recently been acquired by NY-based Estee Lauder Companies. Hence, I wanted to experiencethis prospering, fast-paced and youth-driven culture myself and get some insight from a marketing perspective into how companies cater to Millennials and GenZ consumers.
Studying the Korean language (known as "Hangul" 한글) had been way more challenging than I had initially anticipated. Many of my class mates were recent high-school graduates and avid BTS fans, that had studied song lyrics in its original language for years.
But here it was, the challenge it had asked for: navigate an unfamiliar environment and order Korean BBQ in Hangul at a restaurant where I was not always able to understand the menu, not knowing what would arrive at the table.
The childhood that made, who I was destined to become
1980s/ 90s: As a kid, I had grown up in a small, sleepy, catholic Bavarian hamlet of 3,600 people - and one (!) traffic light - in (Western) Germany, before the re-unification in 1990. Germany had been divided by the allied forces (France, Great Britain, Russia and the US). I grew up in the American sector, which is, what eventually shaped my beliefs and my desire to live there. The picture shows me (on the right) at an inner-German border post in 1990, that separated the German Democratic Republic in the East and the Federal Republic of Germany in the West. I grew up in the latter.
From Germany to Cuba, Austria, Costa Rica...
2000's: After graduating high-school studying English and French, I took off time to travel to Cuba and study Spanish at the University of Havana. I immediately fell in love with Latin American culture during this study trip in 2004. Monsieur Hammerich, my high-school french teacher and mentor presented me with a golden ticket to the world, in form of a pamphlet advertising an international Masters program at what was to become my Alma Mater: the University of Passau. I was sold! During my Master Studies of International Business & Affairs, I lived in Austria, studied in Passau and Costa Rica (where I mastered Spanish to become fully trilingual) and eventually spent ten years in the US after the research of my thesis: "Cuba in Miami - Power & Influence of the Cuban Exile Community".
...and eventually Miami
I had always been a "hustler". And once I had set my eyes on a goal, I would not think about anything else until I had achieved my goal. In late 2009, a fresh college graduate, I booked a flight to Miami and literally went soliciting at companies, knocking on doors, resume in hand, dressed to the teeth: Finally, I received sponsorship for a US-work visa. Miami: a dream became home. The Latin-culture inspired city, which I had come to love as a bastion of liberty, acceptance and freedom, that I had been seeking as a young kid in that German village. Thanks to my then-boss and sponsor, Silvia Valderrama, I initially started out as a Brand Manager for Ralph Lauren & Armani within the International Marketing Team at L'Oréal Travel Retail Americas, securing a one-year contract. After that, Miami became home for a decade. Now, I am a permanent resident and greencard holder (my version of "The American Dream").
2020 Covid Reality
February 2020: After my stint in South Korea, I eventually returned to a new reality and a job market deeply affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
2020: After hundreds of applications and dozens of job interviews, only for the roles to be cancelled due to economic hardship and unclear long-term business strategies during the times of covid, I withdrew to that small German hamlet, I had run away from: Only this time, I was grateful for having the opportunity to spend an extended period of time with my family in Germany, with whom I celebrated the holidays for the first time in a decade since I had left the country after my graduation in 2009.
Go West, young man, and grow up with the country!
January 15th, 2021: United Airlines Flight UA 59 - FRA-SFO
I am beyond excited to move to San Francisco, rebuild my life and take control of my future after what has felt like a roller-coaster ride with no end in sight. It had been a dream of mine since I was 16 years old: I had first visited my great-grand-uncle in San Francisco who, during WWII, emigrated from the same small town of Buttenheim in Bavaria, from where one of the city’s most famous residents originated from - Levi Strauss. My great-grand uncle had 80 years ago, unknowingly, been an inspiration for me.
After an extended period of unemployment in 2020, I am exceptionally motivated and anticipating to contribute to the collaborative & entrepreneurial-minded work environment of Silicon Valley on a world-class marketing team. I believe, that my multi-cultural background, the ability to successfully communicate cross-culturally & fluently in three languages and my passion for groundbreaking technologies, that make our every-day lives easier and more sustainable, offer a unique skillset to set me up for success for a variety of opportunities. Working for well-established multinational companies, such as BMW, L'Oréal and LVMH have equipped me with the knowledge of well-structured and established processes and work-flows. Meanwhile, my business projects in a heterogenous environment of 35 Latin American & Caribbean nations have taught be to be scrappy, act nimble, have a strong bias for actionand rely on limited resources.
I truly hope to establish myself quickly and develop long-lasting personal, as well as professional relationships that help me succeed in my endeavors. Since 2020 has upended and changed our lives permanently, I would be thrilled for any possibility, that allows me to contribute, grow and learn navigate this new environment. I will, with pleasure, consider any opportunities that align closely with my marketing experience within tech, EV automotive, CPG, retail consumer goods, spirits & liquors or the apparel industry on the West Coast! Please feel free to reach out to me with any leads or networking!
Have you taken any risks? Are you between jobs? Has 2020 caught you off-guard and do you regret any of your decisions? What are your dreams and hopes for 2021? I am curious to read your comments below.