We interview Paloma Herce

At Bryan we continue with one of our favorite sections of the #bryanTalks blog.

A space where we can get a little closer to women who inspire us with their work and perseverance.

Artists, illustrators, journalists, ... there are many women who have managed to go very far in their professional careers and what they have left!

A great example of this is Paloma Herce, a journalist and also a publicist, who has managed to find a place for herself in the best fashion editorials and also on the radio!

Publicist, journalist... What have been the steps you have followed and the companies you have worked with so far?

Since I was in college I was working as much as I could and more. I'm not the one to give advice but... I think it's essential to work early if you want to work as a journalist! When I was 19 I started my first internship and spent an entire summer working in an editorial office. And that's how all my remaining summers have been. I even collaborated with a digital magazine in which I had up to three sections. It was called Must! Magazine and, since the world is very small, many journalists I admire start there. Then I was at COPE and Onda Cero for two summers, in the communications department of Laura Ponte's jewelry firm, in an advertising agency... And one year before finishing my degree, in my last year of Advertising - the previous year I graduated of Journalism - I started as an intern at Harper's Bazaar . That opened many doors for me: I continued as a collaborator, I also worked for AR , I combined it with a year working at COPE in the International section, Cosmopolitan ... And at the same time I have been collaborating with Grazia, In Style, Condé Nast Traveler, Etheria ... Now, I also direct the Communication department of a lifestyle agency and I collaborate at the same time in several media: Elle, Telva, Libertad FM...

We would love to know a little more about your career. You are one of those women who has managed to rise little by little in her work to the point of working with such important magazines as Harper's Bazaar, Cosmopolitan, Elle ... What do you consider was the point in your career that marked a before or after? ?

The call from Mario Ximénez, current head of lifestyle at Vogue, telling me that my profile fit perfectly at Harper's Bazaar was a dream come true, back in 2015. Since I saw the poster on Gran Vía announcing that the magazine was coming to Spain, in 2010, I wanted to work there and I was the first intern, along with another colleague, in the new stage at Hearst. Last year I started writing for Elle, thanks to Laura Somoza, and my first interview was in New York with Tommy Hilfiger. On a personal level, that has been a before and after for me. Journalism is a long-distance career, you have to continue working the same or more than the first day, even if you write on paper and have interviewed a great person in the industry. My career continues there. Deep down, I'm just one more.

Paloma Herce in her interview with Tommy Hilfiger.

You have an amazing career, as we say, and that is why we would love to know what your dreams and professional aspirations are.

It is not a big deal! But thank you very much. In the end, the consequences of my professional career emerge after a long, long time working. And I keep doing it. I have fulfilled several professional dreams, but I have always been a daydreamer. I would love to work as a creative consultant, for example. Have your own project linked to fashion and above all, have more job stability in, perhaps, a single editorial office. Although this, more than a dream, is a wish. I love journalism, so I wouldn't mind if my profession surprised me with other projects linked to it, with, for example, traveling. In general, I would love to continue developing as a journalist in projects that make me happy.

Your professional path seems to have a fairly clear focus, journalism specializing in fashion, specifically in the written press and magazines. Have you always had that goal or has it been the case that led you to it?

Don't believe it, I love the radio. I started a blog when I was 17 after following in the footsteps of Chiara Ferragni and I loved fashion, and when I started my degree, my goal was a fashion editorial. But suddenly I discovered the radio... And I fell in love. I love reporting and my profession, and when I was in the International section of the radio I learned a lot. I always try to learn about everything. I also write about gastronomy and lifestyle, because in the end, freelance journalism is what it has: you have to fight to get a space and you hit a lot of sticks. Although yes, after a few months of hiatus, fashion came back to me.

You are lucky enough to work in an exciting profession, but like all professions, it must have its pluses and minuses... what aspects, both positive and negative, would you highlight about it?

I am a freelance journalist, one day I represent one media outlet and another day I represent another, and sometimes I feel in no man's land. Fashion, in general, is a competitive world and even more so in the field of journalism. There are few magazines and few websites and there are many of us. It's not always a bed of roses. On the other hand, my profession allows me to meet wonderful people, sometimes I am lucky enough to travel and interview people who, normally, are not within your reach. Another aspect that I love about fashion is that you can publicize incredible brands or people who have projects worth telling about. Having someone thank you for featuring their work in an article is wonderful and makes me very happy.

If you had to choose one of the many interviews you have done in your career, which one would you choose?

For being who he is, the Tommy Hilfiger one that appeared in the April issue of Elle magazine. During my time on the radio, and it has nothing to do with it, I interviewed the person who had been my guide in Syria after a trip I took before the war broke out. Finding him after weeks - he was a refugee in Spain - and having some statements from him for a report I was doing was an incredible feeling.

A contributor to magazines like Elle, you have undoubtedly managed to fulfill the dreams of many, what attitudes or skills do you think a good journalist, or a person who aspires to be one, should have?

First and foremost, you have to like your job and that means you don't have to stop working and you have to put in your maximum effort from day one. I don't think you have to have any special aptitude beyond the basic ones that a good journalist must have. Being curious, continuing to learn, training and trying to be the best at what you do is also essential. And be patient, journalism is a complicated world. In the end, it is being in the right place at the right time and if you have done all of the above, your opportunity comes by itself.

In your radio role, what opinion do you have about the new podcast format that some platforms such as Spotify, Ivoox... are beginning to offer?

Spain is a very radio-friendly country, although from what I perceive, we are more of traditional radio. Of course, the new generations are more linked to the Internet, so the presence of a medium that I like so much on a digital platform is a way to bring radio closer to that audience. That there is a good podcast offer is always good news. In the end it is radio in another format. You have to give it much more value than it has.

Fashion, a sector with apparently a lot of competition. Do you still see it that way after all these years?

Of course. I am only 27 years old and I compete with people younger than me and professionals with many years of experience whom I admire. And not just journalists. In the end, influencers have become great fashion prescribers and people don't read magazines or articles on the web as much because they prefer to see what trends exist on Instagram. The fashion industry is a complicated world, so it is best to continue doing your job as best as possible and time will reward the time invested in doing things well.

How do social networks influence your work? What use do you make of them?

For me, social networks are a portfolio of my work. Especially Instagram. I publish my life, like any user, but I also reflect my work: my articles, the radio... It is a way of getting what I write or my projects to the people who follow me, other journalists and even the brands I talk about. In addition, social networks are also an important source of information in my work. On Instagram, for fashion topics. On Twitter I follow international and local media that helped me find out what was happening in the world, something essential when I was on the radio. Nowadays, I follow other journalists and read interesting articles.

Finally, three questions:

A woman who inspires you?

My grandmother was a businesswoman with four children in the world and at a time when it was difficult to do what she did. Like opening a mixed school in a provincial capital or founding international conferences of businesswomen. Another woman who has always inspired me is Diana Vreeland.

Your gilty pleasure ?

I used to do it more but... I love locking myself in the bathroom and dancing and singing in front of the mirror.

Potato omelette: WITH or WITHOUT onion?

It depends on the tortilla, although I prefer without onion. Of course, always undercooked!