Roxy Olin is best known as the girl on The City who's always messing up and getting a stern talking-to by her boss, Kelly Cutrone. Off screen, she's more than an MTV reality personality. Armed with confidence and a big mouth, Olin is an adventurous career woman who isn't afraid to make mistakes. She takes big risks in the name of chasing big dreams. The 24-year-old Los Angeles native, spoke to Kidult about her flair for fashion, what The City taught her about the working world, and why you should never let fear get in your way.
How did you get involved with The City?
I’ve known Whitney forever. We went to high school together. I also knew the show's producer, Adam Divello. When Adam came to me with the idea of moving to New York to work on the show, I jumped at the chance. I was always curious about fashion and I felt like I belonged in NY more than in LA.
On the show, you work at People's Revolution. What is your job title there?
I’ve been working as a publicist, which is interesting to me. Recently, I also got to direct a shoot, which was amazing.
The City shows you making a lot of mistakes at work. Do you feel like the show portrays you and your work ethic accurately? I don't mind that they show me messing up, because I'm new to the fashion world and I was never exposed to fashion before the show. Of all the girls on the show, I'm the only 1 who had no idea how the fashion world worked. Olivia's mom wrote for The New York Times style section, Whitney's dad owns a clothing company and Erin has been working in magazines since she was like 18. I'm learning. It's a world I knew nothing about, but I love it!
Sometimes it seems like your boss, Kelly Cutrone likes you, but other times it seems like she doesn't. What's the real deal?
Kelly is definitely my mentor. She’s hard on me, but I think that's because she believes in me. She has taught me more than almost any other teacher I’ve had in my life because she knows how to deal with me, and she's patient. I don’t think I’d still have a job there if she didn’t see something in me. I look up to Kelly in a huge way.
What can we look forward to on the season finale of The City Well, what’s going to be interesting is that Whitney and Kelly — for the first time ever — go head to head, as opposed to me and Kelly going head to head. Whitney has definitely found a backbone and she’s trying to figure out where and when it’s appropriate to use it.
Will we see the resolution of your drama with Whitney on the finale?
You'll see our struggles continue. But we love each other and we’re here for each other. We live together, we’re best friends and we work together, so things aren’t the easiest, and unfortunately it’s all caught on camera. It's still a struggle to make our friendship work with all the other things that get in the way.Your cast-mates Erin Kaplan and Olivia Palermo bump heads a lot. What do you think about that?
I love it when they go head to head! I still get so much joy out of it, even though it happens every week. I love Erin. I watch her and I’m like, "you kick ass." She’s amazing. She can really handle Olivia.
A big part of The City is young women working and learning about the workplace. What lessons have you learned about work from being on the show?
I have a loud mouth, and I don't have a filter. I've learned when its appropriate to speak my mind and when I need to shut my mouth. But the great thing about Kelly Cutrone is that, like me, she speaks her mind and she's made a huge career out of it. I'm trying to learn from her.
Can you give us an example of a time when that happened?
Last year, when I was working on Whitney's line, I tried to have her go in and talk to Bergdorf's before she was ready. She hadn't even finished her designs yet and I was already putting meetings together with important people, and that could've affected her career in a negative way.
What advice do you have for teens who are nervous about job interviews?
Put yourself out there. Whatever road you feel you're supposed to go down, I would encourage you to go for it, otherwise it might pass you by. I always put myself out there and even if I fail, at least I know I tried. Don’t let your fear get the best of you.
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