Stylish Career Choice

Simplot derailed Ashleigh Robinson’s plans to become a dietitian and she couldn’t be more pleased.

Ash was completing a four-year dietetics university degree when a guest speaker from Simplot inspired her to switch her focus to a career in the Food Industry.

‘After graduating uni, I upskilled in Commercial Cookery and Patisserie, through TAFE I also attended Simplot’s Chip University; when I saw the styling team on a shoot that day, I lost my mind – it was so cool,’ Ash says.

‘The team was in the middle of a shoot, and they had these blackout curtains we got to peek through. It was a real behind-the-scenes moment, like being on a movie set, and I just thought, “Wouldn't it be amazing if I got to do that?”’

When a food styling position at Simplot opened, Ash jumped on it and, two years later, her passion has not faded.

No two days as a Food Stylist are the same, which is how Ash likes it. She works closely with the Marketing Team, creating recipes, testing them, and preparing food for photo shoots as a member of the Recipe Content Team.

Simplot has a dedicated storeroom that is filled with a range of over a thousand pieces of crockery, linens and props with different themes, colours and textures that can be used to create the desired look for each shoot.

‘The brands all have a unique personality and style, so we've got a Bird's Eye blue, Leggo’s red, John West green range of plates, platters, bowls, glasses…. and then we've got alot of neutrals and black plates also. What we use depends on what the marketers want – if it is to target café style restaurants, we’ll go white plates. If it’s for gastro pubs we do a darker plate to give it a more modern, edgy vibe and then we will select props and backgrounds that we think will work for that scenario.’

On the day of the shoot, one of the stylists will prep and cook the food, the other stylist will make it look beautiful. Combined with the lighting skills of the photographer the result is amazing looking food. When Ash tells people she’s a food stylist, she inevitably has to dispel the myth that she uses motor oil and plastic rather than real food.

‘We absolutely, 100 per cent, use real product and real food. We do make sure that we are picking out the best looking carrots to put on the plate, we give the food star quality treatment from start to finish we're sitting there with oil brushes and making sure it looks glam but it is all our product.’

Which luckily means eating prepped food at the end of a shoot can be one of the bonuses of the role.

‘I feel very lucky to have this job. I genuinely love what I do so much and it's still magical for me when I see products on the shelf that I've helped to put there. That’s so cool.’

Ash’s food styling tips

- Ensure the food is fresh.

- Check for blemishes.

- Store herbs and delicate foods carefully.

- Handle food delicately with tweezers to avoid leaving dents.

- Use paint brushes dipped in oil or water to prevent food from drying out.