Freelance Stylist Molly Ashman’s London City Guide
Before Molly Ashman became a freelance stylist, she had worked in-house PR at Erdem. When working at one of the big fashion houses, there is opportunity to work with bigger names. And for Molly that included British Vogue’s former editor-in-chief Edward Enninful. Throughout her PR and fashion career, she was able to build up an impressive resume and portfolio, along with a degree in Fashion Buying and Brand Management. Now in her current life as a freelance commercial stylist, Molly has worked with even bigger names, Ed Sheeran for one and styling iconic brands such as Tottenham FC, Chelsea FC and Arsenal FC. Through these connections, her specialty in sportswear drew attention from Nike and Adidas.
Molly caught our attention on TikTok, where she shows off her personal style in the way that we admire how all London city girls do, sharing her Vinted and Matches sale hauls (RIP). But, she’s also there to guide the next generation of fashion stylists, answering questions on the true business of freelance styling. We were lucky enough to interview Molly and learn more about her, the city that she loves and where to eat, walk, drink and shop in London.
DNAMAG: How did you make the transition from fashion PR to styling?
MOLLY: I was doing my uni degree when I did my internship at a PR office which is where I started to think about the styling world (as I was essentially emailing stylists all day about pull requests). The transition was purely that I finished my internship and started looking at stylists online, reaching out to them via Instagram and email and it all spiraled from there- but I was lucky and this was during the post Covid work boom.
Knowing that in your line of work no day is typical or the same. But how do you prefer to start each day?
Like you said, everyday is different...but for the most part I wake up, make a tea and sit at my laptop straight from the comfort of my room at home (my bed and desk are about 1m apart). Once i've caught up with anything imminent or urgent I drag myself to get some exercise over and done with, I either run or go to a yoga class. I found after a couple years in the job that sitting at my desk 80% of the time was really affecting my mind and body (cliche I know) and found exercise has weirdly helped me manage the job a lot better!
What’s a favorite vintage piece that you own?
I have 2 vintage Coach bags that don't leave my side, one everyday black bag and the most adorable pink tabby.
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When the weather is super nice in London, where do people go?
Personally I go to Greenwich Park, I live super close and from the hills you can see all over London. I’d argue its way better than Primrose Hill.
