In today’s episode, Kate is joined by adored makeup artist, creative director and founder and CEO of Violette_FR, Violette. Launching into MECCA this week, Violette talks about the very beginnings of her brand and ‘”irreverent” beauty ethos – from mixing her own colours and textures on set to changing the way we all make and consume beauty content – and shares how her studies in fine art, Parisian sensibility, and years of direction and development for some of beauty’s biggest players led her to...
Aug 30, 2023•43 min•Season 6Ep. 3
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks, Kate is joined by supermodel, movie star, editor, mother-of-two, beauty obsessive, and Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Rose Inc., Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. Recorded in the Townhouse Suite of Los Angeles’ historic Sunset Tower Hotel, Rosie shares the story of growing up in Devon as a magazine obsessive, getting her big break at the modelling agency she interned at when she was 16, and how – with a career as a supermodel and movie star under her belt – all...
Aug 16, 2023•52 min•Season 6Ep. 2
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks, Kate is joined by Allies of Skin founder Nicolas Travis. With a degree in biomedical and pharmaceutical science, a master’s in international business and a history of severe acne and reconstructive facial surgery, Nicolas created Allies of Skin from a desire to rebuild his own confidence, and to demystify skincare, making it simple, accessible and – above all else – efficacious. Nicolas’ unbelievably smooth, glassy skin is proof enough that the brand delivers o...
Aug 09, 2023•42 min•Season 6Ep. 1
In today’s episode, Kate is joined by Christine Chang, co-founder and co-CEO of Glow Recipe, the fruit-forward skincare brand that has taken the world – and TikTok – by storm. Over a glass of wine and a sheet mask – with their Korean heritage and successful careers in beauty alike – Christine and her best friend, co-founder Sarah Lee, developed Glow Recipe, a skincare brand that creates gentle yet effective formulas to deliver clinically proven results in a fun, fruity, sensorially delightful wa...
May 17, 2023•40 min•Season 5Ep. 7
In today’s episode, we’re demystifying menopause with specialist and women’s hormone and mental health advocate, Dr Fatima Khan. The process of menopause has the power to change the way that women look – and more importantly, feel – but for far too long the conversation around these changes and how to embrace them has remained hush. Dr Khan completed her medical training in the UK from Imperial College London in 2007 achieving a Bachelor in Medicine and Bachelor in Surgery. She also achieved a B...
Apr 19, 2023•47 min•Season 5Ep. 6
In today’s episode, Kate is joined by Tiffany Masterson, founder and creative director of cult-status skincare brand Drunk Elephant. A mother of four from Houston, Texas, Tiffany set out on a mission to understand and resolve her own skincare concerns – discovering six ingredients at the root of her issues, and minimal products without at least one of them. So, she made the products herself and the rest – a hand-drawn elephant and a TikTok-viral bronzing serum included – is beauty history. Hit p...
Apr 05, 2023•45 min•Season 5Ep. 5
In today’s episode, Kate chats to Stephen de Heinrich de Omorovicza, heir to and founder of Omorovicza, a luxurious skincare brand driven by the magical healing waters found in Hungary. Stephen and his wife, Margaret, used this mineral-rich thermal water to create The Healing Concentrate™ (formulated by a Nobel prize-winning dermatology lab) to strengthen and heal your skin barrier, giving you a firmer, suppler, younger-looking complexion. It is the key ingredient in each and every one of their ...
Mar 22, 2023•37 min•Season 5Ep. 4
In celebration of International Women’s Day and the incredibly driven, entrepreneurial, creative and inspiring women featured on this podcast to date, in today’s bonus episode Kate shares 10 unforgettable lessons and words of advice from the likes of Zoe Foster Blake, Jenna Lyons, Morgan Mitchell, Clementine Ford, Natalie Massenet and more remarkable women leading the charge. Explore our past episodes to listen to the full conversations! MECCA M-POWER is a social change movement that exists to c...
Mar 07, 2023•26 min
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks, Kate chats to renowned celebrity makeup artist and founder of Westman Atelier, Gucci Westman. Prior to creating Westman Atelier, the pioneering brand behind luxurious, skin-forward makeup that improves your complexion as it enhances, Gucci had Hollywood in awe of her ability to create fast and flawless ‘no-makeup’ makeup looks. This led to fruitful collaborations with the likes of Spike Jonze, Bruce Weber, Grace Coddington and Steven Meisel, and ongoing relatio...
Feb 15, 2023•44 min•Season 5Ep. 3
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks, Kate is in Sydney with Inge Theron for the much-anticipated Australian launch of FaceGym – the celebrity-loved brand responsible for putting facial fitness on the map. Based on the notion of training the 40+ forgotten muscles in the face to deliver instant and long-term sculpting, lifting, toning, and brightening results, FaceGym has transformed the concept of a facial globally, with cult-status facial workout studios and tools, devices and skincare formulas un...
Feb 01, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Season 5Ep. 2
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks , Kate is joined by dual Olympian – and star of our January ‘Get Skin Fit’ campaign – Morgan Mitchell. Having represented Australia in 400 and 800 metre races at the Olympics, Commonwealth Games and world championships – while becoming the first athlete to face F45 gyms, a featured athlete in viral Netflix documentary ‘ The Game Changers’ , and a bona fide style icon – Morgan is proof that routine, consistency and self-care pays off (in spades!). Hit play as Mor...
Jan 18, 2023•49 min•Season 5Ep. 1
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks , Zara makes a special guest visit from maternity leave to join Kate in the studio for a chat with bestselling author, cook and columnist Julia Busuttil Nishimura. Also known as Julia Ostro, the Nigella-approved cook shares her ethos of simple ingredients, seasonal produce and the joy of coming together at the table, her love of beauty (and anything recommended to her at MECCA), her little-known tennis obsession, and how her Maltese heritage, Italian rendezvous,...
Jan 04, 2023•39 min•Season 4Ep. 10
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks , Kate chats to DJ, presenter, bestselling author, influencer, businesswoman and ‘Professional Opinion Haver’, Lil Ahenkan – better known as Flex Mami. Forging a new path for creative thinkers, Flex discusses how believing in herself, understanding the power of ‘aesthetics’ and embracing her curious predisposition has enabled her to build brands, spark conversation, entertain an audience, and influence responsibly. Hit play to listen as Flex shares how MTV’s The...
Dec 21, 2022•48 min•Season 4Ep. 9
In this episode of MECCA Talks , Kate is joined by Natassia Nicolao, founder of Conserving Beauty; a Melbourne-based skincare brand famous for their waterless beauty innovations, designed to help your skin while saving water, carbon and waste in the process. Recently awarded winner of The Australian Women’s Weekly’s Women of the Future award – and a TikTok sensation courtesy of the brand’s dissolving makeup-removing wipes - Natassia is changing the way we create, formulate and innovate in the be...
Nov 30, 2022•32 min•Season 4Ep. 8
In this episode of MECCA Talks , Kate hands over the mic to MECCA’s head of artistry, Jen Horsley, retail trade manager, Julia Zigan and head of fabulosity, Tony Baumann, to unbox three of the hotly anticipated and super limited-edition sets curated by team MECCA for Beauty-full Friday . Plus, the trio share their top tips – and wishlist picks – for gifting MECCA this holiday season. Hit play to find out which products made it into our edits, and how to best utilise them in your routine! Product...
Nov 17, 2022•35 min•Season 4Ep. 7
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks , Kate chats to Isle of Paradise founder and ‘human ray of sunshine’, Jules Von Hep. Hailed one of the best spray tanners in the world, Jules bronzed the likes of Kate Moss, Sienna Miller, Chrissy Teigen, Poppy Delevingne and Little Mix before bottling his expertise into a growing range of confidence-boosting self-tan formulas that champion glow and colour-correction over extreme bronzing. Jules has a knack for making people glow from the inside, out, resulting ...
Nov 09, 2022•37 min•Season 4Ep. 6
As part of our support for women in the arts and through our partnership with the National Gallery of Victoria, each year MECCA partners with an Australian-based female artist to design beautifully festive, limited-edition packaging for the holiday period, while also contributing to the NGV’s acquisition of a major piece of their work. In today’s episode of MECCA Talks , Kate is joined by our 2022 artist, Nadia Hernández. Born in Mérida, Venezuela and currently living and working in Melbourne, ...
Oct 26, 2022•41 min•Season 4Ep. 5
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks , Kate chats to groundbreaking Mexican architect and inaugural MECCA x NGV Women in Design Commission artist, Tatiana Bilbao. As the founder of one of the few sole female-led architectural practices operating at a global scale, Tatiana highlights the positive impact of women on the profession. Her installation – now showing at the National Gallery of Victoria until January 29 2023 – is a physical expression of her aim to free architecture from the conventions of...
Oct 19, 2022•37 min•Season 4Ep. 4
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks , Kate is joined by fearless feminist writer, broadcaster and speaker (and skincare enthusiast!) Clementine Ford. A social justice champion and challenger of cultural norms and ideas around gender equality, marriage, female happiness and public health, Clementine is a true thought leader, and, as per her first book, the ultimate example of ‘Fight(ing) Like A Girl’. In the week of the International Day of the Girl's 10th anniversary, Clementine talks about the in...
Oct 12, 2022•54 min•Season 4Ep. 3
In this episode of MECCA Talks, and in celebration of 25 years of MECCA, Kate hands over hosting duties to MECCA founder Jo Horgan for a supremely special conversation with creative genius, beauty industry legend and the man behind NARS Cosmetics, Mr François Nars. In the rare interview, Nars shares the inception of some of the beauty industry’s most popular and bestselling products (think NARS Sheer Glow Foundation, 'Laguna' Bronzer and 'Orgasm' Blush). He reflects on an unparalleled, decades-s...
Oct 05, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Season 4Ep. 2
In this episode of MECCA Talks , Kate and guest co-host Jen Horsley are joined by Michelle Feeney, founder of sustainable fragrance brand, Floral Street, and beholder of one of the most prolific careers in beauty. From working at the PR firm that inspired Absolutely Fabulous , to participating in the first ever London Fashion Week, putting Crème de la Mer on the map, raising millions for HIV/AIDS via M.A.C Cosmetics – and, of course, developing a sustainability-first fragrance brand like no othe...
Sep 28, 2022•48 min•Season 4Ep. 1
In this episode of MECCA Talks, Kate is joined by resident skincare expert Lucy Shaw to talk to the Emma Lewisham about her benchmark-setting, industry-changing, results-driven and science-backed eponymous skincare line. Based in New Zealand (and making waves around the world) Emma has succeeded in developing the world’s first carbon positive and circular-designed beauty brand, even getting the stamp of approval from her hero, Dr. Jane Goodall. Her efficacious, cutting edge and naturally derived...
Sep 07, 2022•47 min•Season 3Ep. 7
In this episode of MECCA Talks , Kate and Zara are joined by sustainability educator Clare Press, as well as Randi Christiansen, the co-founder of cult body care brand Nécessaire. As the fashion and beauty industries become more conscious and sustainable, we thought we’d bring in the professionals to share the steps they’re taking to leave a smaller footprint on the Earth (and a brighter impact on our day-to-day), as well as the tweaks we can make to be kinder to our planet via our wardrobes and...
Aug 24, 2022•1 hr 7 min•Season 3Ep. 6
In this episode of MECCA Talks , Kate and Zara are joined by Net-A-Porter founder, Imaginary Ventures founding partner and world-leading entrepreneur, Natalie Massenet. From honing her focus on the future (from her teens!) to building all-star teams, fostering unparalleled corporate culture and now, tapping into the ‘creator economy’, this conversation gives insight into the intelligence and razor-sharp instincts that resulted in Natalie being appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British...
Aug 10, 2022•58 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Celebrated creative Richard Christiansen’s home is not a restaurant, though Chrissy Teigen might have you fooled otherwise! In this episode of MECCA Talks, Kate and Zara are joined by the man of many life chapters, whose quirky LA residence evolved into a salt-of-the-earth produce, wellness, home and body care brand during the pandemic – and fast resonated with Hollywood (including the aforementioned Chrissy, as well as likes of Oprah, Ellen, Martha Stewart and Hailey Bieber), and now, the rest ...
Jun 29, 2022•1 hr 8 min•Season 3Ep. 4
The metaverse is real, and it’s about to change the way we work, socialise, and experience beauty. So – we best start talking about it! To do just that, Kate and Zara are joined by Jason Juma-Ross, (a.k.a. JJR), Director of Technology Strategy at Meta; the company formerly known as Facebook. JJR is a global leader in tech innovation, and the perfect person to explain exactly what the metaverse is (and will be), and how we can expect our lives to change over the course of the next decade. From ac...
Jun 15, 2022•40 min•Season 3Ep. 3
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks, Zara is joined by MECCA experts Jen Horsley and Lucy Shaw to chat through the winners of the 2022 MECCA Beauty Election. Jen and Lucy have tested and trialled just about every product on our shelves, so there’s no one better to share the inside word on the beauty products crowned the best of the best (following almost 300,000 votes!). From the cult-favourite foundation that reigns another year to the whipped moisturiser perfect for all skin types – and the scen...
Jun 01, 2022•57 min•Season 3Ep. 2
From star signs to tarot cards and crystals, we’re exploring the new frontier of self-care with Yasmin Sewell, founder of wellness-meets-fragrance brand, Vyrao, and Alice Bell, NYC’s chicest astrologer and our go-to person for anything star- (and sun, and moon!) related. First, Yasmin joins Kate and Zara in the studio to take us on her journey from Sydney to London, where she opened inimitable fashion boutique Yasmin Cho in her early twenties, and later became one of fashion’s top tastemakers fo...
May 18, 2022•1 hr 14 min•Season 3Ep. 1
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks , we’re transporting you to Paris – no passport necessary! Join us on Kate’s recent trip to the city of love, flowers, fragrance and pastries for a sit-down chat with L’Officine Universelle Buly 1803 (also known as just Buly ) co-founder, Victoire de Taillac. Get inspired by the eclectic, time-travelling worldliness of de Taillac and her partner, Ramdane Touhami, who reinvigorated and reinvented a 19th century apothecary that once flourished by way of its “vineg...
May 04, 2022•47 min•Season 2Ep. 8
In today’s episode of MECCA Talks , Kate and Zara tap into their TikTok ‘For You’ pages to unpack two internet success stories: ‘the Euphoria foundation’ and Carla Rockmore. The first story we hear is that of the Chantecaille Future Skin foundation, a MECCA icon that flew off our shelves the moment Euphoria makeup designer Donni Davy mentioned it was her go-to base on the HBO show. Alex Chantecaille, VP of sales and promotions at Chantecaille (and daughter of the brand’s founder, Sylvie), shares...
Apr 20, 2022•1 hr 36 min•Season 2Ep. 7
