By: Joshua Finley
For over 20 years, Kerry Brownell has possessed an innate talent for using fashion to make women feel beautiful. While she always enjoyed helping friends style outfits growing up, a breast cancer diagnosis in 2017 inspired her to transform this passion into a purpose.
Today, through private styling sessions and confidence-building workshops, Kerry guides women struggling with their self-image to rediscover their worth, build their confidence, and boost their self-esteem.
Discovering Her Calling Through Cancer
When Kerry began meeting other women going through breast cancer, she noticed a common thread – many struggled deeply with self-confidence due to the impact of the disease and its treatments on their bodies and self-image.
Kerry recalls, “I started meeting ladies who were obviously struggling. Their confidence was really low, and they just didn’t know how to dress for themselves. They’d had surgery, which caused physical changes.” She realized that while doctors focused on treating the disease, patients were left battling with the profound impacts on their appearance and femininity.
Though Kerry had no formal training at the time, she knew she could help. Initially working out of her home with a couple of clothing racks, the positive feedback from the women she assisted motivated her to pursue professional training and become an Image Consultant.
Creating a Judgment-Free Oasis
In 2018, with the help of her husband, Kerry transformed a warehouse into her dream styling studio. This intimate setting became a haven where groups of women could learn in a secure and judgment-free environment. Kerry educated them on how to dress in ways that complemented their body shapes. She taught them about selecting the right colors, how to highlight and camouflage areas of their body, how to accessorize, and complete their look with a simple touch like a great lipstick. Women left her sessions feeling more confident about themselves.
Understanding the anxiety and overwhelm many women experience in shopping centers and department stores, Kerry filled her studio with a curated collection of styles for all body shapes, heights, and sizes. To further support her mission, she launched her own clothing line, KStyle, a year ago, featuring pieces designed to fit real women’s bodies. Her new makeup range, Komplete Kosmetics, takes a minimalist approach, simplifying the process for women intimidated by too many products, making make-up application effortless.
Photo Courtesy: Kerry Brownell
Workshops to Tackle Negative Mindsets
Beyond just surface-level styling advice, through her confidence building workshops, Kerry also tackles the negative mindsets and media pressures causing women to doubt themselves. She explains, “It’s like anything – when someone shows you how to do something, and you understand it, you feel so much more confident. So when I show you how to dress properly for your shape, height, and what colors suit you – you understand it, and feel so much more confident.”
As a mother of two daughters, she understands that establishing a strong sense of self-worth early on significantly impacts the choices girls make as they grow up. By providing teenage girls with the tools to feel comfortable in their own skin, her goal is to help them avoid seeking validation through social media images.
Kerry also leads workshops covering specific lifestyle needs – from busy Mom’s returning to work to executives struggling with dressing for their leadership roles. She says, “When they first arrive at my studio, they come in looking a bit nervous and anxious, but by the time they leave, they are standing taller with a spark in their eyes and a smile – that’s when I know I’ve made a difference. Confidence has a ripple effect into all areas of their life – career, family, relationships.”
Continuing to Expand Her Influence
In just six years since opening her studio, Kerry has carved out a unique niche by using style to empower women from the inside out. Her success has led to interest in franchising her concept in other Australian states.
No matter what direction her next chapter takes, her core mission remains the same: encouraging women to embrace themselves as they are by recognizing their own beauty, value, and strength. After navigating the darkness of a cancer journey, Kerry found her purpose in using her fashion expertise to help other women transform their sparks of strength into radiating confidence.
To learn more about Kerry Brownell and her fashion, visit her website here.
Published By: Aize Perez
