Mumbrella360: ‘Minister for fashion? You bet I am’ – Julie Bishop takes over main stage
Opening the Mumbrella360 main stage on Thursday morning, former foreign minister Julie Bishop reflected on her uphill battle to be taken seriously as both a female politician and style icon.
A name that is as synonymous with fashion as it is with politics, Bishop recalls being referred to as the minister for fashion by her critics: “As if that were a negative,” she said.
Since her appointment in 2013, Bishop has used her platform as foreign minister to promote Australian fashion internationally – a risky move, but to acclaim.
“If I don’t promote Australian fashion on the world stage, who will?” she said.
Reflecting on how the Australian fashion industry is often overlooked and undermined despite being “one of the most important industries”, Bishop said.
“Nobody ever talked about it in the same breath as the major exports in the country.
“It is worth billions of dollars to the Australian economy and employs hundreds of thousands of people, and yet, there was a view that if you were interested in fashion, you couldn’t hold down a serious job.”
The iconic red high heels Bishop wore the day she resigned as minister turned heads, prompting toy giant Mattel to honour her with her very own Barbie doll.
“People were saying you can’t seriously want to be a Barbie, and then, of course, along comes Margot Robbie.”
The former politician also reflected on how her sense of style often raised eyebrows, highlighting one instance during her role as minister of ageing. Bishop recalls the prime minister telling her: “Forget this corporate look. Too much Armani.”
“I said, what does the minister for ageing wear? He said, well, like cardigans. So I started wearing cardigans.”
Bishop was the first woman to take the role of foreign minister in 113 years. She touched on the reality of being the “only woman in the room” at many points during her political endeavours.
“It’s hard enough to make yourself known at the best of times,” she said.
“If I were in a testosterone-filled room, I would prepare for it. I would know the facts, having read the brief and the documents. I understood what the issues were.
“You’d be surprised how many senior people just fly by their pants. They just go in and riff and hope that nobody will catch them out. I was never going to be in that position. I always knew my facts.”
Concluding the session, Bishop urged professionals in the room to not be afraid of standing out in the crowd.
“Don’t let others define who you are or what you can achieve,” she said.
“There are plenty of armchair critics out there who will set for you standards or expectations they couldn’t or wouldn’t meet for themselves.
Her advice: set your own benchmark, set your own standards, and work hard to achieve them.
To watch this session recording and more from Mumbrella360, head to Mumbrella Pro.
Subscribe to the daily newsletter
Now if she had stepped forward rather than Turnbull or Morrison, the country would be in a much better state
User ID not verified.
Have your say