Ida Ong, Founder and Owner of Imp international, comes with a wealth of public relations experience, having worked in the Shangri-La and the now defunct Phoenix Hotel, and also having served as Marketing and Public Relations Manager of the Specialists’ Centre before starting her own business.
Imp international was one of Singapore’s leading modelling agencies until 1992 when Ida felt the market need and great potential for image building, and so turned the company around to solely concentrate on helping people of all ages from all vocations.
Over the years, Ida has gained a strong reputation of being a top personal grooming consultant, having styled everyone from school children to top models and actors in Asia.
Ida is also a much sought after stylist and host for fashion workshops and has worked with brands such as Liz Claiborne, Mexx, Theme, and Metro. With her repertoire of anecdotes and wide fashion knowledge, she is able to share valuable tips, especially on colour co-ordination, figure analysis, wardrobe planning and current trends with her audience.
Which woman (real or fictional) inspires you?
There are many amazing women in the world, and short of sounding clichéd, I will have to say my mother inspired me.
My mumʼs wisdom has guided me through life. My earliest memory of my her was that she always looked polished and elegant, even as a busy homemaker of four.
She wore just enough makeup to look groomed but spent more time on her skincare regime. This impacted me a lot when it came to looking after my own skin.
My parents were very sociable and attended many events and parties. My mother would always be impeccably dressed from head to toe. She used to say to me – “Always make an effort to look neat, never leave home looking scruffy even if it's for a short walk because you never know who you will meet!”. This is so true! When I started my own business, I realised how much her advice impacted me because it is so important to always look my best in my line of business.
Another great piece of advice she gave me when I was disappointed by friends was that there will be many who call you a friend, but real friends are those who stay with you when you are in need. She had a group of good friends whom she knew as young ladies in their 20s until the time she passed at the ripe old age of 93.
She is the glue who held my family together and I take inspiration from that for my own family.
Studies have shown that some women do not feel comfortable discussing finances with family and friends. Do you think this is true, based on your experience?
I have to agree this is very true. Personally, I discuss finances with my immediate family but not beyond that. This is probably because most of us do not broach that subject other than to those closest to us as it may seem too personal a topic to talk about and some people may find it intrusive or rude.
What is the biggest risk you have taken?
I would have to say the biggest risk I have taken is starting my own company with two ladies whom I did not know very well at that time.
Both were running other businesses and decided to start a model agency and invited me to be the third partner. I am a bit of a risk taker so I immediately said yes!
I gave up my job (which I loved then) as Specialists’ Centre’s Public Relations and Marketing Manager . In our new company, I was the youngest and most inexperienced, but it worked out very well. Both my Partners were very generous and willing to share their knowledge and experiences with me. We all worked very hard to make the business succeed. My media contacts from my previous job were also very supportive, which helped us tremendously.
Have you ever felt impostor syndrome? If so, how have you dealt with this?
I know this exists but thankfully in the early days of running the company, my two wiser Partners guided me unceasingly. Their continued encouragement through the time we worked together helped me focus on the business at hand.
It really helped me recalibrate my train of thoughts whenever I doubted myself. Even after they left the company to emigrate overseas, I was able to continue building the business with the help of competent staff and encouragement from my family.
What achievement or experience are you most proud of?
There are two projects that specifically comes to mind that I am very proud of.
My company is known for specialising in training hotel staff for pre-openings. We won the contract over other bigger companies for a pre-opening of a renowned international hotel. Within a short three-month period, my team and I were able to train a large number of staff with excellent results and challenging conditions.
We also had the privilege of discovering and training models who went on to become successful media stars and famous household names such as the Singapore Queen of Caldecott Hill, Ms Zoe Tay, one of the most successful actresses from Singapore, Ms Fann Wong, and former actor turned well-known banker, Mr James Lye. Other models in our agency went on to accomplished careers. For example, one of our ex-models is now a family eye specialist.
My family and close friends have always been my source of inspiration so I am very proud of the fact that I have a wonderful family and great friends who see me through the good and tough times. I believe a happy family unit is very essential for someone to live well. As for friendships, I am proud to call a handful of people my true friends for life.
What is the one cause you are most passionate about, and why?
My work on personal grooming and especially etiquette. I particularly enjoy sharing my teaching with children and young adults as I believe the earlier a person learns about basic grooming and manners, the better. A child can start to learn about this from 3 years old and get a great headstart to being a better turned-out person, which can give the individual the confidence needed in life to deal with any situation, good or bad. This will give them an edge to being self-assured and appreciate their own abilities and qualities, particularly in posture and poise. Having said that, we all know it is never too late to learn something useful and it also makes me happy when I am able to share this with seniors whenever the opportunity arises.
What advice would you give to your 12-year-old self?
If I could give advice to myself then, it would be that health is wealth!
At 12, my days were spent in indulging snacks and candy. My father was happy for his children to have a hearty appetite. At 12, I was overweight and recall returning from a school holiday and not being able to fit into my school uniform! Thankfully, I did not develop any lifelong illness and later I cultivated better eating habits and exercise routines.
Even now, I make it a point to exercise regularly, keep active and eat mindfully. These days I use my own experience to encourage my participants to live healthily and eat sensibly.
Looking forward, what are you most excited for over the next six months?
Spending more quality time with family, especially with our two grandchildren who are growing up too quickly! Going on trips as we are fond of travelling and experiencing different lifestyles in other countries. We would love to go on more cruises, near and far, starting with one which will start or stop in Portugal and Spain.