Expat Women February Home Page now online

Depending on which time zone you are in, it is already a new month! That means new features, new interviews, new winners and new poll results. To see everything new, please check out our Expat women February Home Page which is now online and ready for viewing.

Some highlights this month include:

* Success Story - Amy Smilovic - An American who started her fashion business in Hong Kong (because she did not want to stay in the same company and report to her husband in American Express at the time) - and who now sells her fashions in over 200 stores

* Mentor of the Month - Carol - An American in Saudi Arabia - who served as a US Diplomat for 20 years before leaving the Foreign Service to marry her love in Saudi Arabia. Carol was a huge contributor to the Saudi Arabia forums on our site last year and we thank Carol sincerely for all of her volunteer contributions to ExpatWomen.com. Carol is now famous because she is also quoted in the Pink Magazine article below. Go Carol!

* Book of the Month - Saffia Farr (British) - A great book about her adventure when she moved (pregnant) to Kyrgyzstan with her water engineer partner Andrew. Saffia has a great wit and humour in her writing, as she talks about witnessing the 'Tulip Revolution' after political mayhem erupted during her stay there. Saffia is another gutsy woman - when traditional publishers would not publish her book - she decided to do it herself. Go Saffia.

* Business Idea - Emma Bird (British) - Emma talks about moving to Italy, starting a business in Italy, and writing a book about all of this - including her top five tips for starting a business (specifically in Italy, but also very useful for other countries as well).

* Special Report - Where Have All The Accountants Gone? - an interesting article written specifically for us by Lorraine Flaherty of Kathbern Management and ANZfinancejobs.com.

To read more, jump onto our home page. Thanks everyone, enjoy your day/evening!

Andrea

Foreign Relations in Pink Magazine

It's official - you guys really are the flavour of the month. First it was More Magazine (US) that ran an article about women working globally in their Dec/Jan edition, and now it is PINK magazine (US) that features an article by freelance writer Renuka Rayasam, entitled "Foreign Relations: Here's what those you work with overseas really think of American businesswomen" in their Jan/Feb edition.

I got quoted a couple of times, from an email interview that Jill and I did last year with Renuka. They seemed to only use the controversial quotes - eg. one about California blondes (remember, Jill is a Californian blonde, so that one was primarily from Jill's experience) - and one about (executive) women often having a tougher uphill battle than (executive) men abroad. We did say other interesting, intelligent things, I assure you. But hey, this is media, and isn't any publicity better than no publicity?

Thanks Renuka for the inclusion - it was actually genuinely appreciated. :-)

PS. If, you are a Tyra Banks fan (aka Supermodel, America's Next Top Model, The Tyra Banks show etc), then there's a double-incentive to buy the Jan/Feb magazine, as she features both on the cover and as their feature story inside. I confess, I am a fan - as she openly admits to being thrown daily "you cannot do this because you are black" comments in her career, before she got to where she is today. To me, she is like Oprah in many ways - not only do they both have their own talk-shows, but they both exemplify women who are gutsy and determined - and they do not let the naysayers (or negative people) get in the way of achieving their dreams. Go Tyra.

Expat Executive Women in Asia

Hi everyone. Last year, I wrote ExpatWomen's second article for Mobility Magazine (a monthly publication from the US-based Employee Relocation Council - ERC, which apparently has more than 30,000 hard-copy subsribers, plus online readers).

Great news, the article has finally been published and is now available for viewing here. It does not look as good on-screen as when you see the hard-copy of their magazine with the beautiful pictures (including the photos of the wonderful women interviewed), but the content is still the same, and I hope you enjoy it. :-)

From Chennai to Shanghai: Expatriate Executive Women Working in Asia is basically a summary of my interviews with seven expat executive women working in Asia - about their role, their highlights/successes, their challenges and their advice to employers (given that the audience is typically employers and HR managers). We have scheduled the article to be featured on ExpatWomen.com in March.

My very genuine thanks to the now-famous seven women featured:

Nancy Reisig
(American - Ford - Chennai, India)
(Nancy has now returned to the US)

Christa Avery
(Canadian - KPMG - Sydney, Australia)

Julianne Rogers
(Australian - British Airways - Tokyo, Japan)

Sarah Stuart
(American - Baker Hughes - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)

Lesley Gibb
(Scottish - Major Worldwide Apparel Brand - Hong Kong, China)

Basia Kruszewska
(American - Element K - Chennai, India)

Cisca Wikkeling
(Dutch - Asia Pacific Access - Shanghai, China)

I would love to do something similar for a European-based HR magazine, so if you are an executive expat woman sitting in Europe, please get in touch with me for a possible interview. Thanks Friends!

Andrea
contactus at expatwomen dot com

ExpatWomen.com Farewells Jill

If you have ever read this blog in the hope of some behind-the-scenes news that has not yet been publicized more widely in our Members' Newsletter, then today is your lucky day... here is your insider's dish from 'Hollywood'-ExpatWomen-style...

"Finally, some sad news: Jill is stepping aside from ExpatWomen.com to focus on her upcoming move back to California, USA. Jill has lived as an Expat Woman for 9 years in Paris and 5 years in Mexico City. Moving back to the US as a single mother with two children is an incredibly gutsy move and will require all of Jill’s time and energy in these coming months. I personally want to thank Jill for her two years (one prior to launch, and one after launch) of every-day-dedication in helping to build ExpatWomen.com and its growing reputation as an essential community site for expatriate women around the globe. Anyone who would like to send their best wishes to Jill is invited to do so via [jill at expatwomen dot com]." Taken from our upcoming February Members' Newsletter

We updated the About Us page on our web site today, so wanted to share the news with you here on our Blog at the same time.

Adios Jill. We wish you all the very, very best!

Andrea
(and every expat woman that you have helped in the last two years)

Singapore Wandering Wok Tour, 10 - 19 July 2008

Anyone interested in joining Pauline Lynch (an Australian) on a foodies' tour of Singapore, 10 - 19 July 2008, during the Singapore Food Festival and the Great Singapore Sale, please contact Pauline at wanderingwok@tpg.com.au, or check out Pauline's advert on our Singapore page here. 8 nights of Luxury, a visit to the Raffles Culinary Acadamy, and much more. (Please tell Pauline where you heard about her tour. Thanks.)

Canadians: Want To Be In A Documentary Series for Expats?

Hi Everyone, Is started really well. Here is a new media request, this time if you are a Canadian abroad:

"I am writing to you in regard to a documentary series i am working on about Canadian expatriate experiences abroad. The series is being produced by Nextfilm productions for the Discovery Channel Canada and Channel 5 in the U.K. The angle we are exploring concern Canadians who move to another country to pursue an new life either through a new job, opening a business, following their dreams or retirement but who encounter significant obstacles to their new life, either they run afoul of the law, fall prey to scams or find themselves in the middle of a natural disaster. We hope to provide something of a cautionary tale encouraging Canadians planning such a big life change to do their homework. I'm hoping that you can help."

Many thanks,
Amy Walton
Associate Producer
NextFilms
366 Adelaide St. W. Suite 300
Toronto, ON
Canada, M5V 1R9
T. 416-531-2500 xt. 580
F. 416-603-7545
awalton@nextfilm.ca
www.cineflix.com

If you are interested, please get in touch with Amy directly, and mention how you heard about her request. Thanks.

Any Australian Expat Women abroad from NSW?

Here's a Radio Producer looking for Australian expat women abroad, from New South Wales (NSW):

"I am a Radio Producer for the ABC based in NSW and produce a Statewide Afternoon program across NSW. I am hoping to make contact with NSW expats to do some radio interviews. Nothing too serious - just where they are, how they got there and what they're doing sort of stuff. I've done this in the past in SA and it has been tremendously successful. Family and friends love to hear them on the radio and they get to tell some great stories. Obviously the hitch for me is actually making contact, so I am hoping you... could send my details to and ask for people to make contact if they were interested." "If you can help I would appreciate it - to make sure this is not a crank email you can access our website on www.abc.net.au/midnorthcoast - my biog isn't there at the moment because I am just new to NSW but you could take a look at Presenter Fiona Wyllies blog. Regards,
Pam."

Pam MacIntosh
Statewide Afternoon Producer
ABC Radio NSW

If you fit the bill and are interested, please contact Pam directly - and let her know how you heard about this. Thanks.

Want to be on Canadian TV?

Yes, another one this week. (Maybe now that it's January, production companies are ramping up their research departments.) This time, a Canadian TV program:

"Hello there! I am with a Toronto-based production company called Matter of Fact Media. We are currently producing a series with CTV, the Canadian broadcaster for their Travel and Escape channel called "Exotic Lives." I came across your website and was intrigued. Could you kindly... let me know how best to proceed with your members? Kindest regards, Marilyn B. Fabrizio, Researcher/Production Coordinator, Matter of Fact Media, 258 Wallace Ave, Suite 104, Toronto, ON, M6P 3M9."

mfab@rogers dot com

If you are a Canadian and interested, please contact Marilyn and let her know where you learned of her request. Thanks.

Are you an Aussie Expat abroad?

Here's another media request: This time from Paul Edwards, an editor in Australia:

Expat Tales
The Age, Melbourne, is looking for Australian expats to feature in this weekly column, which runs in the Careers section. Members may contact the editor for more information: paul.edwards@westnet dot com dot au

If you are an Aussie expat abroad and would like to be featured, please contact Paul directly, and let him know where you learned of his request. Thanks.

Want to be on UK TV?

Hi there. More and more, we have been receiving emails from TV producers looking for expats with interesting stories to interview. Must be a hot topic. ;-)

Anyway, we thought we would post some of these requests on our Blog from now on. If you are interested, please get in touch with the relevant people. Thanks.

Today's request was from Nicky Huggett:

Nicky: "I work as a documentary producer for a small production company in London. We are currently filming a series for Discovery and for the Current Affairs department of one of the UK terrestrial channels – and I am looking for people who would consider telling their stories about moving abroad and becoming an expat. The series will focus on people who have dreamed of a new life abroad and then lived the dream, only for it to all go terribly wrong (hopefully with a happy ending!) I was just wondering if you might be able to help me in terms of advice about finding people to speak to? I know it is a bit of an ask but if there is any way you can help I would be extremely grateful. Don’t hesitate to let me know if you need any more information about the series. All the best, Nicky."

Nicky Huggett
Assistant Producer
Cineflix Productions
79 Fortess Road
London
NW5 1AG
nhuggett at cineflix dot com

(If you contact Nicky, please tell her how you learned of her request. Thanks.)

Expat Women January Newsletter Now Online

Hello everyone. We just finished sending out the January Newsletter to all of our Members. If you are not already a Member, please check out all of our interviews and news here - including our interview with expat celebrity supermodel Gail Elliott, Rebecca from Nest, Hilly and Bettina – authors of When Abroad Do As The Local Children Do and our Mentor of the Month – Andreea G in Belgium. To sign up as a Member and receive these monthly newsletters direct to your Inbox, please click here. Thanks everyone and enjoy your weekend!