Burberry

Miroslava Duma is digital powerhouse and an international fashion icon thanks to her celebrated street style. The Moscow-based fashionista, 30, is the founder of the popular Russian fashion and lifestyle website Buro 24/7 and was in Australia to launch the site’s Australian version. She told me about her time in Australia, who’s style she admires and the pressure of being a fashion icon.

 

What are you doing in Australia? 

We’re super excited to be here and to launch our digital media platform called Buro 24/7. Honestly, I always thought that Australia is a distant land. We have this kind of misconception that it’s like a different planet, but it’s not. The people are just amazing here: very sweet, very nice, humble, chilled and relaxed. But at the same time very hard-working and professional. Every single person I came across from Australia just proves that it’s one of the best nations in the world … I could even potentially think that I could live here.

Is this your first time to Australia? 

It is my first time and it’s super short. I hope that I’ll have a chance to come back very soon with my family, because I really want them to see it and I hope that we will visit often.

What did you get up to during your time in Sydney? 

We [went] to the zoo. We [went] to Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Australia. I went to the Sydney Opera House and we [did] the bridge climb.

How did you get into this industry? 

I used to do many things: write, style, worked as a producer … to just really understand how this whole process works from inside. I was always fascinated by fashion and maybe it’s because I come from a country where there was nothing. There was this kind of cultural/fashion stagnation for more than 70 years after revolution in 1917 because [of] the concept of Russian government … Creativity and creative people were pushed out of the country because government was afraid of creative minds [and that] they could be rebellious. So the concept was that no one was allowed to stand out. Basically, fashion, beauty and culture is about standing out, right? So, that is why all those things in fashion and culture in Russia started from, I think, late ’90s. And people there are kind of hungry for it.

How did you get involved in it? 

Maybe for me coming from this country with this history, I’m very much enjoying this whole world of beauty, culture, fashion, because this is definitely something that makes us happy. Happier, at least … I just realised that there is not a single platform that I can go to and find [those] interesting things that are happening around the world.

You are an international fashion icon and many eyes are on you.  Is there a lot of pressure and how much thought goes into your everyday outfits? 

It’s different. Sometimes, if it’s like just a day in office, I can wear my jeans, Converse and, like, a motorcycle leather jacket. That’s it. Sometimes it’s something like this: fun, I dress up. For Fashion Week, it’s always very different. But yes, I definitely love it. I just enjoy it, this whole fashion situation. But honestly, sometimes now with [my] kids and with so much work, I just have no time to experiment as I used to do before. So sometimes it’s just something that I just see. I just grab it, take it and just run.

Who are some of your style icons? 

I really always loved Jacqueline Kennedy and Nancy Reagan. They were beautiful, extremely elegant and stylish. I also like different women like Tilda Swinton, Chloe Sevigny. They are not a classical beauty and don’t have classical style, but I enjoy looking at them and what they are wearing. They have completely different style [aesthetics].

What do you do for fun in your spare time? 

I spend time with my kids. This is the most fun and precious and best time in my life.

What’s your biggest career and personal highlight? 

Well, as Napoleon used to say, “Dream impossible. You’ll get maximum.” So we’re dreaming impossible and we’re hoping to achieve maximum. For today, I think the biggest highlight is maybe the reputation – because I cannot draw beautiful painting, I cannot produce beautiful clothing, I don’t have that talent. I’m a bad cook. So I don’t really think that I’m a talented person. But what I can definitely say about myself is that I’m a good person. And people around me, people that work with me, my friends, they know that I’m always there for them literally 24 hours, seven days a week. If they call me at 3am in the morning, I will come. This is the vibes and this is the atmosphere that we have inside our team. We’re achieving things and goals through hard work. So this helps me sleep well at night.

 

BITE SIZE

WE WENT TO The Park Hyatt

WE ATE Caesar salad and salmon with vegetables.

WE DRANK Tea and sparkling water.

MIROSLAVA WORE Burberry dress and Converse shoes.

I WORE a Burberry dress and DLII leather jacket.

photography: Sophia Athas