Wanting to free yourself from the corporate shackles is nothing new. Who doesn’t want to leave behind office commutes and awkward small talk for travel, content creation, and arguably most importantly, mid-day naps?
For Chloe Baradinsky, that dream became a reality. The 30-year-old from Sydney started posting simple yapping videos on TikTok with little thought and even less strategy in 2023.
But people cared about what she had to say, and pretty soon, in December 2024, she was able to quit her gruelling corporate job (16-hour days were the norm, mind you) and work on her small business full-time.
Her experience at her previous gig was nothing short of unpleasant. It was so bad, in fact, that she was offered a sizeable amount of money when resigning in exchange for staying silent on her experience. She, of course, didn’t take the money. We stan a yapper at heart.
Now, is Chloe living the dream?
Well, not exactly. It’s not all bikinis, beaches, and brand trips. More recently, Chloe’s launched her own robe business, K. Juliet, pivoting that all-too-important metric — audience — into another revenue stream. It’s hard work, lots of money down the drain, and an all ‘round emotional time. It’s the furthest thing from easy, but damn, there sure are perks.
In this edition of Insider Trading, we sat down with Chloe to hear about the good, the bad, and the ugly that comes with leaving sky prison (AKA a corporate office) behind.
Insider Trading: Chloe Baradinsky
Hi Chloe! Thanks for coming in today. When did you start creating content online?
Okay, if I’m being honest, I’ve actually been doing it a very long time, which I don’t think most people realise. I started on Tumblr. From Tumblr, I moved onto Instagram, which I’ve always kind of done, but that’s been more photography focused.
TikTok started when I became a bit lonely at work. I felt like I needed to talk to someone. So of course, I decided to talk to the internet, which is super healthy.
What was it like in the lead up to resigning from being a ‘corporate square’?
I never wanted to be a full-time influencer. I initially planned on resigning and going straight into another corporate job. I was always trying to climb that stupid ladder — I felt like I’d just worked so hard through school, uni, blah blah blah.
I was toying with the idea of resigning for about six months, but then everything at work blew up. I was just so exhausted by the time it blew up that I thought to myself, ‘Oh, maybe I should take a break.’ The intention was to take, I don’t know, maybe six months off? A year? Just to travel and do other stuff. But now, I love it. I am never going back.
@chloebaradinsky Another day for little girl in big world #workvlog #diml #corporatevlog #corporategirlies #corporatelife ♬ Mozart 's a Little Night Music – Classical Music
If I have to take my puka shell necklaces and anklets off, that will be a sad day, because it means I’ve had to return back to that corporate hellhole. It’s not happening.
Now that you’re here, what’s it like running your own brand?
It’s hard. Every single day is so insanely hard. I sit there and I’m like, ‘I don’t know what I’m doing.’
I don’t mind working hard. That’s fine, but this is different. This is emotional. It’s my business, and I’m so invested in it. Bloody hell, I wake up every morning, and the first thing I do is check out influencers to see if they’ve posted content wearing our robes.
I’m tied to my phone, and my mood is dependent on if this 20-year-old sorority girl from the University of Alabama has posted. My friends are like ‘Why are you so emo?’ and I’m like ‘Oh, Betsy! Betsy didn’t post!’
Obviously, most people care about their job to some extent. But let’s be honest — you’re working for someone else. You kind of care, sure, but you’re not losing sleep if a project is doing badly. Now, I need to care so much. It’s my business. That’s the biggest struggle that I’m finding — to try and not let it impact my mood so much.
Even when we’re bringing consultants into the business, my business partner and I sit there and go, ‘Why wouldn’t they just send that out at 9pm on a Saturday night? Why aren’t they working?’ And it’s like, it’s not their business. They shouldn’t have to.
I think it’s a concept a lot of founders struggle with, and it’s something I’m trying to get better at, but I also can’t help it. It’s my baby.
Okay, so that’s a lot of stress. What are some of the good parts?
There are so many good things.
For one, my own schedule. Everybody in my life knows that between 2pm to 5pm, I’m dead to the world. Don’t talk to me. That’s my nap time, and in the summer, it’s also beach time. I work best in the morning and at night, and now I get to dictate that. It’s the best.
@chloebaradinsky This new laptop angle isn’t good for my double chin
♬ original sound – n 3^°7 !
I can also work wherever I want. Catch me at a Bali café with all the other nomads. I used to see people on my way to sky prison [that’s a corporate office, BTW] working at cafés in Bondi and think to myself, what do these people even do? Now that I’m them, it’s honestly the dream. It’s so sick.
I also love not having someone to answer to. Working corporate, you’re always dealing with the ‘Where are you?’ ‘Why are you not at your desk?’ Like oh my god, I hated everyone being so obsessed with me. It was so annoying. Leave me alone.
Anyway, I’m clearly not very good with authority. I probably wasn’t always the best employee, to be honest. I spoke back too much, and I always got called sassy.
They wanted me to be a capitalist bitch! I was their little bitch, but not anymore, suckers. Now, I get to work at home next to my bunny, King Julian. I win.
What’s been your vision for K. Juliet since the beginning?
When I was trying to get our Instagram handle initially, ‘kjuliet’ was taken. We had to tack something onto the end, so I thought @kjuliet.xoxo was the vibe. My business partner says to me, “Do you think Telstra and Apple have ‘xoxo’ in their usernames? Come on!” So I changed that, and now it’s @kjulietaus.
In all seriousness, I’d like it to get to a place where I can work on the business full-time, just like I am now, but it’ll also actually be paying me. That way, I don’t have to sell my soul for brand deals, and I can also keep scaling it. We have heaps of ideas, but we’re a team of two. We don’t have the manpower. All the ideas, but none of the execution. I’ve also never worked in fashion, so I don’t know a lot about supply and logistics. Then there’s Aus Post. Oh boy, Aus Post stresses me out.
I also want everyone in a robe. That would be the dream. I want to look out at Bondi and see every single person in a robe.
What would you say to someone wanting to follow in your footsteps?
My first bit of advice would be to at least try and get the business off the ground while still working. I know that some contracts might prohibit that, but if you can, try and do that.
Make sure you have enough in your savings where you can just quit, go hard for six months, and hope for the best. It’s unrealistic to expect the business to be able to pay you, especially in the very early stages, so you’ll need savings for that.
Don’t take the hush money, either. Don’t let them silence you. Be free!
What was the most unhinged thing you’ve seen at work that we can legally publish?
Oh man. I remember walking in at one of my previous jobs where I’d only been there for a week. The analyst next to me was wearing the same shirt as he did the day before, and I asked him why. (I’m observant, okay? Whatever.)
Anyway, you know what he tells me? He hadn’t left the office. From 9am the day before! Then, he was given an early mark. His early mark, for working all through the night?
2pm.
This poor man worked from 9am to 2pm the next day, non-stop. Insane, I tell you.
What’s your email signature?
Chloe, aka King Julian’s little bitch.
What’s on your hype up playlist?
Driving here, I had “Sports Car” by Tate McRae blasting. That seemed to do the trick.
Oh! And I have another one. It’s a Missy Elliot one. Give me a sec. [Chloe frantically digs around for her phone to find the Missy Elliot song and play it out loud.]
I found it! “We Run This”. I used to listen to this on the way to sky prison so I could feel like a bad bitch. Bad bitch sitting at a desk, that is.
Keep up with Chloe on her Instagram and TikTok, or if you’re in the market for a new robe, you can shop directly at K. Juliet.
The post Insider Trading: How Entrepreneur & TikToker Chloe Baradinsky Escaped Corporate Hell appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
