Style Nine to Five had the pleasure of sitting down with social media maven Camilla De Cesare. Coming from Europe to attend UBC in beautiful Vancouver, Camilla has had great opportunities in the fashion scene in Vancity. From being a part of the Grand opening of Nordstrom’s Vancouver as their social media specialist, to growing her personal Instagram rapidly (which is absolutely stunning might I add). She is now taking the next step by moving to Toronto to open the Nordstrom’s there, while co-working on one of Vancouver’s latest online consignment stores. To say this girl keeps herself busy is an understatement. She has definitely made a mark on the Vancouver scene in just a short amount of time and we’re excited to learn about what she has in store for the future.

SNTF: Have you had previous training in social media or have you always had a knack for it?

CDC: I have never formally studied social media, but through a lot of trial and error I started to teach myself. My Instagram used to be a bit of a mess, and there are still so many ways that I can improve! It is just a continuous learning process!

SNTF: Instagram is a major platform for personal branding and for business’s. What are your thoughts on branding through social media, such as Instagram?

CDC: This is such a great question; it is actually a conversation I continuously have with people. Branding through social media keeps becoming more important to brands given that traditional ways of advertising are becoming less effective. I even think about when I was a teen and used to watch TV I couldn’t fast forward commercials, but now I either pre-record everything and skip commercials or I just use Netflix. Consumers have more ways of ‘avoiding’ ads than before, so working with influencers through social media to create authentic and engaging content is very powerful. The number of full-time bloggers keeps growing because brands keep increasing the amount they spend on social media. However, it can also be tricky once someone becomes a full-time blogger as you do not want to accept too much sponsored work that could alienate your following, yet you also need to make a living.

SNTF: What do you have planned for yourself next in Toronto?

CDC: I will be involved with the opening of Nordstrom in Toronto, and I will also be working on Soemy, an online consignment store that consigns blogger’s second-hand clothing, that my friend Chloe and I are launching. 

SNTF: You have also built a very strong personal Instagram @ave.camilla. Is this something you want to build for yourself as a personal blog and brand, or is it more of a hobby to showcase your personality and photos?

CDC: As of right now, my Instagram is a hobby and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. I absolutely love getting to meet new people and Instagram really allows you to connect with people you normally wouldn’t meet. It is also such a great creative outlet! Getting to work with new photographers, scout new locations, and play dress up is just so much fun!

SNTF: What can we see from ave.camilla in the future?

CDC: I will be moving a lot within the next few years (after Toronto I’ll be moving back to Europe) and so I’ll be exploring and showcasing cities more than I do right now. But of course the main focus will remain fashion, since that is what I love the most!

SNTF: You spoke about an online consignment store that you are helping launch. Let’s hear a bit more about this. What was your vision and why did you decide to start it?

CDC: Chloe, my business partner, started an online consignment store called My Modern Closet, and her aim has been to create an easy and accessible way for people to re-use clothes and give them a longer life. Around the same time, I had been thinking about what I should do with all of my clothes. I had tried various different options and didn’t feel like there was the perfect fit for me. So I started speaking to my blogger friends and they felt the same way, and that is how the vision for Soemy came about! We pick up and shoot all of the clothing for the blogger’s so that it is hassle-free for them, and we want to make these blogger’s awesome clothes accessible to the public and give the clothes a longer life!

SNTF: What can we see from Soemy? Where did that name come from?

CDC: Each blogger will have a profile on Soemy where we will be selling their second-hand clothing. Although our name is written as “soemy” it is pronounced as “so me”. We feel like that moment when you scroll through a feed and go, “oh that is so me” is what distinguishes between liking a picture and actually clicking through to a website to go and purchase that item.

SNTF: What is your end goal with this online business?

CDC: Eventually, we would love to be in every major city and have this be the go-to destination for consumers to shop their favourite blogger’s closets. We also want to make is extremely easy for blogger’s to sell their clothing, so that they can keep providing their readers with new content.

SNTF: Are you going to continue doing it while you’re in Toronto and Europe?

CDC: Chloe will be running Soemy from Vancouver, and I will begin launching it in Toronto. The dream would definitely be to continue doing this across Europe as well!

SNTF: What do you plan on doing in Europe? Is that where you’re from?

CDC: If all goes well, the plan is to continue working on Soemy in Europe! My whole family lives in Europe and I am European (my father is Italian and my mother is Italian & Austrian). I moved to Vancouver to attend UBC and absolutely loved it so I decided to stay in Canada a little bit longer!

Feature Image Curtesy of Camilla Photo by Thomas Bullock

By: Jordan Sangster

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