In Feature 026 of Conversations Behind The Campaign, we spoke with Erin Deering, a successful marketer whose career began on the retail shop floor, where she first discovered her passion for fashion and connecting with customers. From those humble beginnings, Deering has gone on to become one of Australia’s most accomplished business figures. She co-founded the viral swimwear brand Triangl, authored Hanging by a Thread, and most recently launched her latest clothing venture, Deering.
For those unfamiliar with the viral neoprene bikinis that filled every girl’s swimwear drawer back in 2014, Triangl is an internationally recognised swimwear brand that quickly became a cult-favourite of some of the biggest celebrities. With a valuation surpassing $200M USD, Erin was one of the brains behind the brand’s innovative use of influencer marketing and social media, helping to build not only a globally recognised brand but also a deeply loyal community. Since stepping away from the brand in 2016, Erin launched her newest fashion venture, Deering, and released a memoir detailing both the rise of Triangl and her personal journey throughout the experience.
In our interview, Erin explores the constantly changing world of social media, her approach to influencer marketing and trends, and how she fosters a meaningful community with Deering.
1. Can you please share your story on where your passion for fashion and marketing first began?
Fashion has been a life long love! As soon as I turned 13, something shifted in me, and it was all I could think about. Marketing came naturally, as I always was fascinated by the process in buying, styling, wearing clothes – for not only myself but others. I worked in retail for my early years in the workforce, and that is where my passion and love for marketing blossomed.
2. You co-founded Triangl in 2012 and scaled it to a multi-million-dollar brand, how have you seen the marketing landscape evolve since then? What major shifts or trends have stood out to you?
It’s completely changed, and will keep completely changing – now we are living in the time of social media! When Triangl started, the world of e-commerce was new and everyone was learning how to navigate it, fairly slowly I’d say!
Now, marketing seems to be a contrast between either tapping into a trend and talking to your customer about it as feverishly as possible, versus trying to slow it down, and go back to basics if you will. I feel like a lot of us are being reminded of the old school marketing tactics – the ones that don’t give you instant gratification but that can build long standing relationships with your future customers.
You kind of have to be doing both, and well – and across many platforms. It’s kind of crazy but we’re all learning to adapt and just do what we can and what feels right for our own skillsets, and brands.
3. You’re well-known for your Kendall Jenner gifting strategy. Could you walk us through how this approach came about and whether you think this type of FOMO-driven tactic still resonates in today’s marketing world?
It came about very organically. We were well into our gifting strategy, with no expectation of anything in return. This strategy was actually initiated as I was dying to know what people thought of the bikinis – I wanted more feedback on fit and sizing than I was getting – so gifting was more so to get the market research going – versus growing our social media profile.
We were having such success with the strategy – in many ways – so I felt it natural to extend our gifting offer to groups of friends. I’d reach out to one girl and ask if she could think of a few friends in her circle who’d want one as well.
This is how we found Kendall, basically, as we’d been gifting a few of her friends.
It was partly intentional to leave her out, but to be totally honest – we had no way of contacting her anyway as she already had millions of followers – so leaving her out was kind of the only option we had! We hoped she’d feel left out – and she did. So it was a very fortunate turn of events!
4. What inspired the creation of Deering?
It’s what I have always wanted to do. But I wasn’t ready until now! I deeply love fashion, and the power that daily dressing can have in boosting your mood. I wanted to bring my passion for this space to something more tangible than just being about my own closet. It’s truly a passion project, my entire heart and soul is in this brand.
5. What does a typical day in-the-life of a founder at Deering look like?
I’m up early to train. Pilates or yoga – nothing too high intensity or I’ll struggle to find the energy later in the day. Then it’s all about the kids and school dropoffs until about 8:45am. My office is close to home, so I am in the office between 9-9:30 (I head home after school dropoff to make a cacao). Then it’s a mix of meetings, fittings and currently, writing to-do lists that seem to only grow! I always find space in my day to sit and think – it’s how I come up with my best ideas, and solve my problems. I’m not a fan of a full day in my calendar. I rejoice when I see big gaps – as it means more time to ideate and plan!
6. With Deering being an online brand, how do you connect with your customers and build a strong sense of community?
Oh gosh, it’s so easy! You can be available 24/7 basically to your customer. Which I love. We have a very high standard of customer service. We are offering a premium service, through the packaging, the product – and the way we interact with our customers. We initiated live chat on the website, and we always ensure we reply to all customers as the top priority. I hired an absolute weapon to manage the customer side, her name is Millie. She has standards as high as mine – it’s wonderful! Currently, building our community is happening one by one – but we have plans to take things into the real world this year.
7. You’ve previously shared your decision to stay behind the scenes of Deering’s Instagram. In an era dominated by founder-led marketing, what influenced this choice?
Personally, I am not comfortable with being the person driving the brand online. It feels like a selfish decision in a way if I did – and I’d much rather use my time working behind the scenes on driving the brand! I look up to brands like Khaite, The Attico, Toteme. We all know the founders, but the brands don’t rely on them. I know it’s against the grain right now to think this way – but I feel we will see a saturation of founder-led brands, brands that are dependent on their founders to get those sales, those conversions. I also just don’t like producing personal content that isn’t truly organic and authentic.
8. What has been your favourite brand moment or campaign at Deering, and why?
We’ve only been in the market for 5 months, so every single moment has been a favourite so far! I am so proud of our launch campaign. We produced a short film, and highlighted Sydney and Melbourne as I’m very proudly an Australian brand. I get such a kick out of seeing every order come through. It’s just so uplifting to know we have customers! And keeping them is my greatest driver.
9. Has your approach to influencer marketing shifted over the years? Do you still lean heavily on gifting, or do you believe paid partnerships are now more important?
It’s done a 180! We don’t have a gifting strategy currently. I felt it was dangerous to go hard at launch with any kind of influencer strategy, whilst we are still working out who our customer is, and what they want. I still focus largely on our customers, nurturing them, and finding out what they think and how to better service them.
Once we get a deeper understanding of our brand and our positioning, I’d love to work with friends of the brand. People who are aligned with our values, our products, and our customers. I feel this will evolve organically, it already is. But I’m taking my time with this kind of marketing. The customer is savvy and when it comes to building a brand with real equity behind it – anyone external you work with has to be properly considered, or the customer will call BS and see what you’re doing – which is often making money quickly, or selling product carelessly.
10. What has been the biggest challenge in your career and what advice would you share with someone going through something similar?
Believing in and backing myself is a running theme. Because I initially thought the answer to self-doubt was to make bold decisions and stick by them without much input from others, or much time to process and analyse. I now manage my self-doubt in decision making by taking my time.
There really is no rush (even though it feels like there is!) I will labour over which way to turn, whether it be my core brand strategies, or picking talent for a campaign. I pay attention to why I want something to follow a certain path. The slower I go, the more I can catch myself before I go down the wrong path, and the more freedom I give myself to assess and reflect on a decision that may not be the right one.
As a solo founder this time with Deering, the internal chatter is intense! But when I move slower with decision making and am really intentional – I feel more confident in taking a risk, because I can weigh up the potential success, or potential learning I may have!
11. Are there any marketers or founders you look up to for both creative and career inspiration?
I love Alex Cooper’s confidence! She’s recently been talking more on her strategies and the way she handles her business, she’s still so unassuming and low key – and knows how to play to her strengths. I am in awe of her. Emme Grede is also obviously admirable. She clearly has a winning formula, and as a fellow mother of 4 – I feel good about knowing if she can manage it all, so can I!
12. Where can our audience follow and engage with you and Deering on social media?
On Instagram largely, you can find the brand @deering.world We’re still figuring out what content works for us best. I love this phase of testing and learning. We’re having fun with it, and hopefully you will come and join us for the ride.
My personal insta @erinkdeering – my content is sporadic and organic, no strategy going on there! I always think I’ll sharpen up my page but I’d rather spend my time on Deering.
