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14: How I Changed Careers from Finance to Fashion Design | Allison Mendoza
Ever wondered how to make a career change and land your dream job? In this episode, Allison Mendoza shares her inspiring journey of leaving a high-paying career on Wall Street at 27 years old to follow her passion for fashion design, ultimately becoming an Associate Vice President at Victoria's Secret. She turned what began as a two-week temporary assignment into a 14-year career with one of the world’s leading fashion brands. As the daughter of Peruvian immigrants, Allison reflects on how she balanced cultural expectations with her creative ambitions and how her grandmother's entrepreneurial spirit influenced her career path. Whether you're considering a career transition or looking to grow in your current role, this episode is packed with actionable tips on breaking into a new industry, networking, developing emotional intelligence for effective leadership, and maintaining an open mindset when pursuing new opportunities.
In this episode:
- Allison's journey from a successful career in finance to pursuing her passion in fashion design, including how she navigated this major career transition at age 27.
- Her experience leveraging unpaid internships, retail jobs, and a two-week temporary assignment to becoming Associate Vice President at Victoria's Secret.
- Valuable insights on emotional intelligence, active listening, and leadership skills that helped her advance in her career.
- Her perspective on taking risks and the importance of seeing the bigger picture early in your career.
- Key advice for career transitioners on using social media to network, staying open to opportunities, and not being afraid to start over at any age.
You’ll walk away with practical career tips on:
- Saying "yes" to any opportunity that comes your way - even a small 2-week gig could turn into your dream career (just like Ali's journey from temp to executive!).
- Breaking out of self-imposed limitations and maintaining an open, growth mindset when transitioning careers or facing setbacks.
- Leveling up your people skills - emotional intelligence and active listening will take you further than technical skills alone.
- Putting yourself out there and connecting with people - slide into those LinkedIn DMs and don't be afraid to cold reach out (the worst they can say is no!).
- Learning how to connect the dots and seeing the bigger picture.
Connect with Allison:
LinkedIn
Connect with Fiorella:
Website
Linktree
Book Free Discovery Call
YouTube
LinkedIn
Instagram (Not Your Spicy Latina)
Instagram (Latinas Ahead)
Tik Tok (Not Your Spicy Latina)
Tik Tok (Fiorella Lopez Lima)
Timestamps
(00:00) Welcome to Not Your Spicy Latina
(00:51) Episode Overview
(01:29) Episode Kickoff
(01:45) Childhood Experiences: Using Visual Communication to Learn English & Being the Eldest Daughter
(04:08) Pursuing a Stable Finance Career
(06:07) Changing Careers to Fashion Design
(15:18) Breaking into the Fashion Industry: Landing a Job at Victoria’s Secret
(20:29) Leadership & Emotional Intelligence
(23:12) Overcoming Self-Imposed Limitations
(24:01) The Importance of Seeing the Big Picture
(25:13) A Proud Moment: Seeing My First Product in Stores
(26:10) Starting a New Chapter
(27:20) Advice for Career Transition & Leadership
(29:29) Connecting with Allison
(30:51) Connecting with Fiorella
View all episodes
By Fiorella Lopez Lima | Career Mindset Coach and Founder of Latinas AheadEver wondered how to make a career change and land your dream job? In this episode, Allison Mendoza shares her inspiring journey of leaving a high-paying career on Wall Street at 27 years old to follow her passion for fashion design, ultimately becoming an Associate Vice President at Victoria's Secret. She turned what began as a two-week temporary assignment into a 14-year career with one of the world’s leading fashion brands. As the daughter of Peruvian immigrants, Allison reflects on how she balanced cultural expectations with her creative ambitions and how her grandmother's entrepreneurial spirit influenced her career path. Whether you're considering a career transition or looking to grow in your current role, this episode is packed with actionable tips on breaking into a new industry, networking, developing emotional intelligence for effective leadership, and maintaining an open mindset when pursuing new opportunities.
In this episode:
- Allison's journey from a successful career in finance to pursuing her passion in fashion design, including how she navigated this major career transition at age 27.
- Her experience leveraging unpaid internships, retail jobs, and a two-week temporary assignment to becoming Associate Vice President at Victoria's Secret.
- Valuable insights on emotional intelligence, active listening, and leadership skills that helped her advance in her career.
- Her perspective on taking risks and the importance of seeing the bigger picture early in your career.
- Key advice for career transitioners on using social media to network, staying open to opportunities, and not being afraid to start over at any age.
You’ll walk away with practical career tips on:
- Saying "yes" to any opportunity that comes your way - even a small 2-week gig could turn into your dream career (just like Ali's journey from temp to executive!).
- Breaking out of self-imposed limitations and maintaining an open, growth mindset when transitioning careers or facing setbacks.
- Leveling up your people skills - emotional intelligence and active listening will take you further than technical skills alone.
- Putting yourself out there and connecting with people - slide into those LinkedIn DMs and don't be afraid to cold reach out (the worst they can say is no!).
- Learning how to connect the dots and seeing the bigger picture.
Connect with Allison:
LinkedIn
Connect with Fiorella:
Website
Linktree
Book Free Discovery Call
YouTube
LinkedIn
Instagram (Not Your Spicy Latina)
Instagram (Latinas Ahead)
Tik Tok (Not Your Spicy Latina)
Tik Tok (Fiorella Lopez Lima)
Timestamps
(00:00) Welcome to Not Your Spicy Latina
(00:51) Episode Overview
(01:29) Episode Kickoff
(01:45) Childhood Experiences: Using Visual Communication to Learn English & Being the Eldest Daughter
(04:08) Pursuing a Stable Finance Career
(06:07) Changing Careers to Fashion Design
(15:18) Breaking into the Fashion Industry: Landing a Job at Victoria’s Secret
(20:29) Leadership & Emotional Intelligence
(23:12) Overcoming Self-Imposed Limitations
(24:01) The Importance of Seeing the Big Picture
(25:13) A Proud Moment: Seeing My First Product in Stores
(26:10) Starting a New Chapter
(27:20) Advice for Career Transition & Leadership
(29:29) Connecting with Allison
(30:51) Connecting with Fiorella