Be Whoever You Want To Be: Diversity and Inclusion at ASOS

ASOS is running a LinkedIn series called #BeWhoeverYouWantToBe. In this campaign, so far they've highlighted four people from the ASOS team who are placing diversity and inclusion at the forefront of their journeys.

Ronnie Malyon

I’m also shining the LinkedIn spotlight on ASOS’s very awesome Ronnie Malyon. Ronnie and I met at my first Pride parade in London this summer and it’s been mirrored skirts, heels and hair dye ever since! The more I got to know Ronnie's story the more I knew he had to be celebrated.

Ronnie gives showing up a new meaning - you know that one person who you can WhatsApp randomly out of office because someone needs to be anchored in community through a difficult moment? Well, that’s Ronnie, and he has showed up EVERYTIME I have called upon him to help a fellow ASOSer.

In his past life, Ronnie battled with his sexuality and an eating disorder. He struggled to cope alone and now selflessly gives his time and care for others who need safety to be heard and space to figure themselves out.

Ronnie has many layers and stories but has never been so free to own who he truly is until he joined ASOS.com. He celebrates his comfort in being able to dress and show up in ways that speak to his true self – which is always pink and usually sparkly!

“Being yourself is great for your personal life but also equally as great for your work life, they marry together...”

Its been a long time since I met someone who gives so selflessly, with no expectation – it’s never about what’s in it for Ronnie. It’s only ever about how can Ronnie uplift the situation and help you get to a better place.

Life is super hard right now, we ALL have something going on so to see Ronnie show up with such kindness, grace and generosity makes me feel better about humanity.

Ronnie - Thank you for being so invested in supporting so many people around you; giving a voice to people who feel silent, showing humanity to those who feel overlooked and giving community to those who so often feel lost and misunderstood. We appreciate all you do, and I am SO pleased to have been able to share in the magic you bring!

Sharon Riddell

Next up in the #BeWhoeverYouWantToBe line up is an absolute angel of a person, who is so beautifully unaware of her positive impact on others

“Isn’t it crazy to think how much impact a negative environment can have on you?”

Sharon Riddell is right – the impact of negativity on an individual is overwhelming to say the least. Aged 28, this incredible lady suffered a stroke, which almost cost Sharon her life.

Her recovery was tough, but clearly, so is Sharon! She reflects on this experience as the defining moment that shaped her as a person, and since joining ASOS.com she has done a 180 and never looked back!

Sharon is a recruiter based in our Belfast office and is thriving in a people-first environment where leaders have created a culture for her to feel safe, enabling her to bring her best self forward.

Her passion for her job is so clear every time we speak - Sharon is that recruiter who will respond and gets so much joy out of engaging with candidates (and I may have just gotten her inbox flooded...)

At her core she is passionate about matching the right role with the right fit and finding the perfect match for each opportunity so that the individual and the team are set up for success.

I love Sharon’s spirit and her contagious energy. I’ve always believed the work you do should excite and energise you, and Sharon is the absolute epitome of this.

Fasiha Ashraf

Who's been here for a decade and is helping our Customer Care (CC) ASOSers be whoever they want to be? Fasiha is!

Fasiha is an EN Model Office Team Leader in our CC team, but when she's not doing that she's also the Co-Chair of their DEI network, ‘Driving Inclusivity in CC’.

She started off as a DEI rep focused on religion and ethnicity and has since grown into her role as Co-Chair. It was Fasiha's vitiligo that spurred her on to join the CC DEI network, because she wanted to create an inclusive environment where people feel seen and heard. She found it difficult growing up with vitiligo and being in a community that didn't quite understand it, with hardly any representation out there. This fuelled her to join the CC DEI network, to promote representation for everyone, so that no one has to feel like that.

But if that wasn't enough, Fasiha also finds time to be a baker and has a part-time baking business! During International Women's Month, ASOS pulled together a female owned business roadshow, where Fasiha showcased her baking business with treats for everyone to enjoy.

If it wasn't already clear, Fasiha's a woman that wears so many hats, from her role in CC, to her baking side hustle, to being a British Pakistani Muslim woman. Her biggest piece of advice to people?

"Don't be afraid to ask questions! Step outside of your comfort zone and put yourself out there – it's the biggest thing that holds people back from unlocking new opportunities and learning/growing”.

Everyone needs a Fasiha in their life!

Elle Dilouambaka Nzuzi

We want our customers to be whoever they want to be, but that won’t happen if our ASOSers can’t be their authentic selves. That’s why we’re featuring some ASOSers that are so unapologetically themselves, we have to feature them – like "Elle".

We’re not going to talk about WHAT Elle does at ASOS. We want to talk about WHY.

Elle is our Localisation Project Executive, that means she’s part of how we get translations of copy onto ASOS.com.

She speaks several languages, including French, English, Greek, Spanish and Dutch.

Originally from Belgium, Elle had the chance to move to Greece to work after graduating with a degree in translation. There, as a Black woman, she was stereotyped and had to deal with people's behaviour towards her.

Despite this and thanks to her tenacity and love of adventure, she decided to focus on the positive and immersed herself into her new life and even learned Greek. She then became a travel writer for Greece, which allowed her to open up to the rich history and culture, the hospitality of its people and the vibrant gastronomy. Eventually, she stayed in Greece for 12 years before heading to the UK.

Elle's experiences shape the way she authentically shows up as an ASOSer today. She works so hard in our Race, Ethnicity & Culture network and the ASOS Interview Committee, because she knows what it feels like to not be represented and heard and doesn’t want others to feel the same.

Her biggest advice for people who don’t feel like they can be whoever they want to be? She’s reminded of her morning affirmation “I love who I am.” Because you can’t be who you are if you don’t love who you are.

We love who you are, Elle!