British multi-millionaire and owner of cult UK beauty brand, UTan & Beauty, Michelle Mone says you can’t be overweight or unattractive if you want to get ahead.
“How I look reflects on my brand,” says British multi-millionaire and beauty empire owner, Michelle Mone as she sits in her London penthouse apartment overlooking the city.
It’s not every day a powerful female CEO admits as much, given the odds already stacked against her in the equality struggle (just 3.4 per cent of the world’s CEOs are women), but Mone is forthcoming about the fact she’s played the game to get ahead.
The owner of UK beauty brand UTan & Beauty has lost a whopping 50 kilos over the past few years in a bid to amp up her career, and it’s worked.
When I started to lose weight and look more glamourous, doors started to open, it sounds horrible but it’s true
“When I started to lose weight and look more glamourous, doors started to open, it sounds horrible but it’s true,” Mone told Business Insider.
A regular in glossy UK titles like Hello and a seasoned TV personality with spots on shows including The Apprentice and Masterchef, the beauty entrepreneur puts the estimated extra billion dollars worth of press coverage she’s attracted in recent years down to her physical transformation.
A brand can’t sing from the rooftops if the owner is walking around looking horrendous
“I can’t go out there with greasy hair, spots, no makeup, and a size 22. A brand can’t sing from the rooftops if the owner is walking around looking horrendous,” Mone said.
“Yes, some people will say you get successful obese business people. But are they happy? Probably not.”
A true rags to riches story, Mone grew up in the low socioeconomic East End of Glasgow, Scotland before she built her own lingerie company, Ultimo, which went on to become a multi-million dollar empire, before selling 80 per cent of it off to buy UTan & Beauty.
Over the past two decades the self-made millionare has been awarded a multitude of accolades for her business shrewdness, including an OBE for her contribution to business by the Queen in 2010, but she says it’s been since her physical makeover that her career has really taken off.
“I’ve just been offered 20 company board positions,” Mone told Business Insider.
“I’ve had offers to write five more books and UTan is doing really well. I want to develop more skincare products and I am going around the world doing speaking events and mentoring. Never say never but there are not enough hours in the day!”
And as for whether she thinks the extra career success and attention her new looks have garnered her, Mone says it’s a reality she’s happy to live with, for now.
“Society is full of gossip and celebrity magazines and that’s the world we live in. Will that change? I don’t think so.”
Have your say: Do you agree with Michelle Mone’s comments about brand success and happiness?