Today we’d like to introduce you to Hilary Countiss.
Hi Hilary, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Five years ago, I took a leap of faith and moved down to Austin in search of a new horizon and a change in lifestyle. This is when my content creation story began. Like most people in their early 20’s who moved to Austin from another state, I didn’t have a concrete plan or job locked in. The move was a moment of spontaneity that completely goes against my usual nature. However, the desire to live in the unique and beautiful sunny city of Austin overshadowed all of the uncertainty of moving to a new city. Without a job, I had a lot of free time to really think about what I wanted to do next. I’ve always been a creative person and I’ve always expressed that creativity through the outfits I wear. I had also always followed bloggers and fashion influencers on Instagram and they were a constant creative source of inspiration in my daily life. Suddenly it clicked for me – I wanted to be someone who not only consumes creative content but someone who CREATES the content. Once I came to this realization, I was whole-heartily committed to making my creative vision a reality.
It took months of hard work and commitment to get my fashion blog up and running. This period of unemployment turned out to be a silver lining because it gave me plenty of free time to start my business. Once I became employed full-time, I spent most of my free time outside of my 9 – 5 working on my blog. I got up early, stayed up late and dedicated most of my weekends to doing whatever I had to do to make this business a success. One of the first things I did was reach out to every blogger and fashion influencer that I knew of in the Austin area to connect for coffee. Looking back, this was one of the smartest things I did in the beginning, as it helped me establish connections with women who guided me and provided advice for that first year. Through the amazing women that I met in the beginning, opportunities started to come my way.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My goal from the beginning was to turn my passion into a full-time career. Since the day I decided that content creation was going to be my full-time job, I was obsessed with doing whatever it took to get there. Here I am, five years later, and it’s still my hobby/side hustle/passion project. It never became my full-time career. I work as an Executive Assistant full-time and the stability and profitability this job has brought to my life is something that I never felt right walking away from. So today, I can confidently say that I’m glad it never turned into my full-time job. Since I don’t have the pressure of relying on my content creation work as my main source of income, I don’t feel obligated to partner with brands that don’t align with my brand or take on projects that don’t fit. The freedom I’ve found by keeping this passion of mine something I do for fun is more than I could have ever dreamed of. Five years ago, if someone would’ve told me that this wouldn’t become my career, I would have been devastated. It’s funny how life works – it turned out exactly the way it needed to and as a result, I enjoy the work I do so much more now that it’s stayed my side job.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
The vision for my brand is simple – I want to inspire women the same way that women have inspired me – through my outfits, photos and videos that I post on Instagram.
My overall style is modern and minimalistic. I love neutral tones, simple yet fashion-forward looks and an overall moodier vibe on my feed. When I first started following fashion influencers, it seemed like there were so many of them and they all had the same look, the same style and were doing the same thing. So, I chose to indulge in a more moody look and tone to my feed. I don’t overshare on my feed or stories, I keep a more mysterious feel to aspects of my posts, my captions are minimal and abstract, the filter on my posts is a darker tone or black and white and I rarely smile to keep that moodier feel consistent with my brand. This is something that I didn’t see as much from other influencers. Overall, I like to think that I bring a “cool girl energy” to other’s Instagram feeds. I also have a background in modeling, so I feel really comfortable in front of the camera. This has helped me push the boundaries a bit and feel comfortable when trying new or different things.
Since I started my blog and Instagram account, and throughout my years of hardwork and growth, I’ve had the privilege of working with some amazing brands and people. Some highlights include an ad campaign for ByGeorge (a local luxury fashion and lifestyle store in Austin) that was featured in Austin Monthly magazine, getting to walk in an Anthropologie fashion show, and partnering with brands such as Steve Madden, PAIGE, Orangetheory Fitness, Mejuri, and Mazda, among others.
It’s interesting to look back and see how my work has evolved over the years. I started out with a much wider scope – I was so excited to get started and I wanted to do everything. My work consisted of constantly posting on my website (my blog), along with Instagram, attending influencer events almost on a weekly basis, as well as consistent brand partnerships. Today, my brand and work has evolved into Instagram being my exclusive platform for posting. I recently got rid of my website in an effort to simplify things, even though I still consider bringing it back to life every day. I’ve also scaled way back on attending influencer events and working on brand partnerships. This has allowed me to focus more attention and energy into alternative creative outlets such as interior design, which I’m really into these days. A lot of my time and energy is currently going into designing and decorating my husband and I’s new modern, minimalistic hill country home. Overall, my main focus with my brand today is Instagram. I believe the future of fashion blogging is videos and I’m a huge fan of Instagram reels. I’ve been playing around a lot with reels, and expanding on my video content is my what I want to focus on for the future.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
The rolling hills and abundant sunshine throughout the year are the two best things about Austin. I’m originally from the Midwest, and when I first visited this city, I was amazed at how beautiful it was just driving around the hills of West Austin. It completely won me over. It’s super important to me that I live in a place that constantly inspires me, and Austin is just that. My husband and I are currently building a house out in the hill country and this has been my main focus and source of inspiration recently. I can’t wait to get even further out in the very hills that drew me to this city in the first place.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hilarycountiss/
