20 questions with Natasha Oakley

Natasha Oakley
@natashaoakley

Hello gorgeous, Tell us a little bit about yourself.
Hi!! I’m Natasha Oakley, or as many people know me today Tash Oakley. I’m the CEO/Co-Founder of Monday Swimwear, Natasha Oakley Blog, and social media influencer. I grew up in Sydney, Australia but now spend my time between Los Angeles and Sydney. Growing up in a beach town, I’ve always been passionate about nature, health, and wellness. Growing up my mum described me as having a vivid imagination and love for the arts and fashion. I took on modeling at a young age and became extremely passionate about it. In my early twenties I moved to Maui where I met my now-business partner and best friend, Devin Brugman. We started a production company and then launched our blog, which grew quickly in popularity, A Bikini A Day. From the beginning, we were always inspired to spread a message of confidence and having a positive body image. Naturally, the next step was to launch Monday Swimwear, our first baby! Today, we feel so blessed to work with such an amazing and talented team, travel the world, and set a positive footprint in the swimwear industry.

How would you define yourself in three words?
Passionate, driven and positive.

In what ways have you been incorporating self – care into your daily routine?
Setting concrete time for self love and care is so important for me in my regular life, and now more than ever. I do this by taking a warm bath with candles and a glass of red wine, playing tennis which I’ve recently taken on as a hobby, and doing pilates via The Pilates Class, daily. I put a lot of my energy towards my businesses, my team, and those around me that carving time out for myself is essential in keeping me grounded.

What’s the most fulfilling part of your job?
The most fulfilling part of my job is definitely inspiring women and spreading a positive message of body confidence. I put so much love and energy into my business which I’ve used as a platform to spread this message and knowing I am positively impacting women drives my passion and never makes it feel like “work”.

Can you tell us about an exciting time in your career?
Launching Monday Swimwear was definitely one of the most fulfilling and exciting moments of my career. Devin, my business partner, and I, put so much work and energy into the collection and perfecting every aspect of the brand so watching it come to life was a really special moment.

What would you title this current chapter in your life?
It’s interesting you ask because I just turned 30, and have had some time to reflect on my life so far and all my accomplishments. I have exciting plans for the future but having set the groundwork for my business definitely puts me in a different place. I’m very into numerology, and astrology and the numerology meaning behind “30” is about setting you life path and destiny. I think I would name this chapter in my life ’30’ indicative of my journey so far, and path yet to come.

How do you educate yourself on ways of maintaining healthy skin?
I’ve always truly believed that healthy skin is reflective of a healthy lifestyle. I try to stay hydrated during the day and drink tons of water, especially when I travel, eat a healthy and well-balanced diet, and get eight hours of rest each night. As crazy as it sounds, I also get a lot of a skincare recommendations and insight from my Instagram, and my social circle. Skin is a hot subject these days and is always brought up at dinner tables or in discussions in some form. I’m always interested in everyone’s skin journey and then look into it afterwards.

What do you love most about Pixi Beauty?
I love that Pixi Beauty is a natural product range!

What are your top 3 favorite Pixi Beauty products?
I love their eye effects shadow palette, brightening oil, and lip brighteners

What does the word empowerment mean to you?
To me, empowerment is about recognizing someone’s strengths and giving them the confidence and courage to express this. For those who have already found their strength, it’s giving them the support and positivity to continue on their journey. Empowering other women has always come natural to me. I grew up in a family with two sisters and have an all female team, I am constantly surrounded by other women and try to empower and encourage them the best I can.

In what ways do you use your platform for the greater good?
I started my platform on the basis of body positivity and confidence. I still like to use my platform today to promote this message through working with a diverse group of women, and trying to make Monday Swimwear as inclusive as possible. I also try to utilize my social media to promote causes I support and believe in like climate change, human and women’s and right and more.

During these tough times, what has kept you motivated?
Having a daily routine and structure that helped immensely during this time. At the beginning of the Pandemic, I accepted the fact that things are going to change, and tried to re-structure my brands to be proactive to this change. This has helped keep me motivated and my goals in line with everything going on.

How do you remain fit, active, and healthy with stay-at-home orders intact?
I started working out via The Pilates Class, and absolutely love it. After yoga and pilates studios started shutting down due to COVID, my favorite pilates instructor, Jacqui Kingswell, launched The Pilates Class. I was so happy to learn that her pilates classes will still be available to me, and I actually prefer the luxury of doing her classes from home.

As a creative in quarantine, how have you found inspiration and ways to create?
My inspiration has definitely come in different ways like movies, books, and TV. I try to stay pretty balanced and healthy so I’m able to draw inspiration in the new forms it comes in these days.

What and/or who has had the most influence on your growth and why?
I’ve always been very self-motivated and driven but my mum definitely instilled a really great work ethic and drive in me from a young age. She’s a very successful realtor in Sydney, whom is extremely polished and well spoken. Having her as a role model growing up paved the way for my growth and aspirations.

How can you as an individual actively take part in fighting a system of oppression and standing in solidarity with your peers of color to amplify their voices?
I’ve definitely been educating myself not only on racism but anti-racism through my own research, readings, and discussions with my friends and peers. As someone who has a strong voice and platform, I’ve made a strong and concerted effort to continue showcasing and working all the beautiful women of color in my industry. I’ve also made countless donations through Monday Swimwear and my own personal efforts. I understand that this is an on-going fight and I’m happy to stand in solidarity with my peers.

How have you found ways to educate yourself and those around you?
I have taken time personally to digest all of the important information that my friends, family and others from all around the world have shared to better educate myself on what is such an important matter. You can never know enough about any one humanitarian issue or issue of inequality and I am always open to learning more, and to sharing more with those close to me, including my followers.

What do you think are ways that others can help society and our surrounding communities?
Firstly, the power of educating yourself is so strong. Being educated on policies and laws in your community and voting is definitely a great start. I’ve always been passionate about animals and try to be as “green” as possible by recycling, cutting meat out of my diet, and feel very strongly against wasting food. I believe if everyone played their part, even a small part, in keeping our world clean, we would achieve great success. Find what you are passionate about, and start small by incorporating a few helpful habits into your life.

In what ways has your life changed due to current events?
The COVID19 Pandemic, and the BLM Movement both made me hyper aware of the power of my influence and my responsibility to my followers and society. It reminded me to continue educating myself as an ongoing practice and implement stronger checks and balances for every part of my business (Monday Swimwear and my personal Natasha Oakley platform). A lot of my followers have watched my journey of inclusivity from the beginning of launching Monday Swimwear and even A Bikini A Day. As my business and my platform grows, I plan to continue incorporating these core values into my business model and personal life.

What advice do you have for someone who aspires to create a career like your own?
Be passionate about what you do, success isn’t built overnight, you have to live and breathe your idea. Educate yourself on the market you wish to enter and the industry, through research and education you can find a gap in the market that you can fill or something you’re passionate about. Be open minded, business models can change, and you can try a few different things out until you find something that sticks. Don’t be afraid to try, you’ll never know your potential until you do! Have fun along the way. Devin, my business partners and best friend, and I make this a really important part of our life and work rarely feels like a job!