Kandia Appadoo: On breaking societal pressures and writing your own story

Tell us a bit about yourself

Whenever I answer this question, I want to go in to the Fresh Prince theme tune…”in West Ewell, Surrey, born and raised, in Mauritius is where I spent most of my days…” I could go on and on for the whole tune, but it’s going to take up the whole interview! But yea, I’m a very proud first-gen Mauritian British woman. Family is super important to me, but so is food and hip-hop…they are all extremely close in my league table of important things to me. 

Kandia is styling the Casual mustard jumpsuit

Why do you think having role models is important and who were your role models in the early years of your career

My parents have and will always be my role models. I am lucky to come from a huge family with strong, independent, funny, and driven women. I’ve been surrounded by them my whole life, from my mum, aunties, cousins, and now my nieces. The foundation of who I am today is because of all of them. 

Honestly, during my career, I didn’t know I needed a role model because I didn’t see other people like me working in the creative industry. This all changed a few years ago when I moved to Rotterdam. It was in Rotterdam where I worked with the most incredible, amazing and kick-ass woman on this planet! She was my first black woman manager, and it made me realise what I was missing for my whole career (at this point I was 10 years into my career and had NEVER worked with another person of colour in a comms role, shocking, right?!). To this day, she is my friend, mentor and she is still a kick-ass woman! 

When did you realise you’d become a role model?

Initially when I read this question, I thought to myself “errr I’m not a role model”. But then I remembered when I became an aunty for the first time. It was about six years ago and I thought ‘what role model do I want to be for my nieces and nephew” (I’m a mega proud aunty of three now). And basically, it’s to be free. Free to make your own choices, live the life you want to live, make decisions that are right for you. Free to be an idiot, make mistakes and learn from them and basically shake shit up!

Kandia is styling the Casual mustard jumpsuit

What made you decide to quit your job and take time off to decide what you want to do next and why do you think it’s important to normalise breaking your career path and talking about it?

My mental health and when I hit rock bottom, and I don’t recommend that to anyone. 

It was during covid; I just lost one of my aunties, had to move back to the UK from The Netherlands and not to mention the whole lockdown shit. The only thing that I felt in control of was my job, and I wasn’t even in control of that. Looking back at that time, it was frightening to see how normal it was to work 20-hour days and not prioritise my mental and physical health. I just remember waking up one day thinking “I can’t do this anymore” – I don’t think I spoke to anyone about it because I felt ashamed to admit I was struggling and I was repeatedly told that I was lucky to have a job (bullshit, they were lucky to have me!).   

Taking time off is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I’m fortunate enough to have a great support network around me who supported me when I was trying to figure out my next move. It was a huge financial commitment to take time off work, but I knew I had to do it. During my time off, I studied a bit, which was totally not something I thought I’d do, and I took the time to understand what I wanted to do in life – not just my career. 

For me, it’s important to talk about being in abusive work environments. It’s easier for me to say this now, but I was in an abusive work relationship for far too long and that is something we should talk about more. 

How has your self-expression changed over the years? Has this impacted on your relationship with fashion?

Oh for sure! I’m trying to be more conscious about all consumption, whether it’s fashion, food, beauty products etc. My only issue with being able to make better decisions for the environment is that it’s still a privilege to be able to even think about it in the first place. I really would like ethical and sustainable choices to be accessible and equal for everyone. It’s a huge mindset shift and I know it’s not an easy fix. 

Kandia is styling the Casual mustard jumpsuit

What things would you like to see change about the position of women in society?

Oh mate, I could go on and on about this for like forever! I would love to be in a position where people stop assuming all women want to get married and have kids. For me, there is so much more to life than that. Like, why is it normal to ask a 38-year-old single straight woman why I’m not married and/or have kids. Stop with the judgement please – I don’t judge your life, so don’t judge mine. I think this is really tough in the Indian community, and especially from what I can see living in Mauritius. Luckily I am not shy about voicing my opinion about this stuff, but that’s because I’m not from Mauritius by birth, so I can get away with it, but it isn’t as easy for some people here. 

What do you hope your voice brings to others?

Definitely not my singing! I would say, if something doesn’t feel right, take the time to figure out why and assess the impact it’s having on your life. And don’t feel pressured to follow traditions. Make up your own rules and surround yourself with people who respect your decisions…the rest can f**k off 😊 

Kandia is styling the Casual mustard jumpsuit

If you had to give one piece of advice to a woman that’s starting out her professional career, what would it be?

Use your voice to stand up for what you believe in and don’t be afraid to have an opinion. Your opinion counts and matters because it’s unique to you. And remember you are there because you deserve to be there. Believe in yourself and have fun. My ultimate goal is to have fun at work, so it doesn’t feel like work. 

How can people connect with you?

I am so old school, a letter in the mail would be nice. Joking. I guess Instagram (quickly checks my phone to check my handle. Is that what it’s even called?!) – @kandia8

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Kandia is styling the Casual mustard jumpsuit