Alyce Tran, The Entrepreneur Who Will Persuade You To Bring Colour Into Your Home

IMAGE: INSTAGRAM @INTHEROUNDHOUSE

“I grew up in Adelaide, working alongside my parents on the strawberry farm they had there. That experience is probably the bedrock of my work ethic; I never saw work as a chore, but rather just a part of life. 

After school I studied law, and I had decided I wanted to work for a large law firm, which don’t really exist in Adelaide. So once I graduated I moved to Melbourne, and then eventually headed to Sydney, as my younger sister Caroline had already moved there, so it made sense to be together.

ALYCE (LEFT) WITH SISTER CAROLINE
IMAGE: INSTAGRAM @ALYCE_TRAN

When I sold out of The Daily Edited, I experienced quite an identity crisis. TDE had been a big part of my life and I had made a lot of great friends within the team I built there, so it was a lot to leave behind. 

I didn’t have a lot of time to reflect on that, though, as I was lucky enough to hit the ground running with my next ventures. I pretty much had a three day turn around between finishing up with TDE and starting to work with LTK, the world’s largest influencer marketing platform. I also began to focus more on In the Roundhouse, a homewares line I co-founded with my friend Brooke Bickmore. Things have sort of come full circle since then, as I now have people in my team that originally worked with me back at TDE, which is great. TDE showed me that I can do anything I set my mind to and lean into. It was a dream run, and because I did it once, I know I can do it again.

IMAGE: INSTAGRAM @ALYCE_TRAN

We started In The Roundhouse because we a gap in the market for accessibly priced tabletop homewares that could give a home an instant update.

I hate to say it, as many businesses suffered so much during COVID, but we flourished as people started to shift their focus and allocate more spending on their homes.  There was no point in creating generic homewares, as what would be the reason for someone to shop with us? Our philosophy became offering products with a real point of difference that can be worked into everyday classic collections you might already own.

IMAGE: INSTAGRAM @ALYCE_TRAN

Tablescapes are temporary, right?

So if you are someone who isn’t confident with colour, they are a great way to temporarily introduce a bit of life to your home, and then when you want to move on you can just put it away for a while (…or get into a new set!)

IMAGE: INSTAGRAM @INTHEROUNDHOUSE

Oh my god, I wish I knew what my career trajectory will end up being, haha!

My work now is so varied, which is amazing, but the flipside is I do have a lot on all the time. I would love to keep creating brands, but I also really enjoy working with others, so my consulting roles make me very happy, too. The only downside there is you can’t always control the outcome when you’re working with another business, and that can be a little frustrating for someone like me!

IMAGE: INSTAGRAM @ALYCE_TRAN

There’s so much product out there now that it can be confusing knowing what to use. I see James Vivian for my skin, and I trust his advice on products implicitly.

This is not a plug at all, but he recently launched a range of products, Viviology, which is great. In the mornings, I’m using the Viviology Gentle Foaming Cleanser, a PCA Skin moisturiser, the Ultra Violette Supreme Screen SPF 50+ Hydrating Facial Sunscreen and then some really basic makeup. At night, I wash my face with a DermaQuest cleanser, and rotate between a few serums James has prescribed. Every second night I use an SkinBetter Science AlphaRet Exfoliating Peel Pad followed by my Omnilux at-home LED mask.

IMAGE: INSTAGRAM @ALYCE_TRAN

I am so terrible at makeup. The easier the better for me!

My everyday look is usually just a light foundation (currently using Ellis Faas Skin Veil Foundation but I flip flop between that and the Hourglass Veil Fluid Makeup SPF 15), followed by a bit of blush (I love the Westman Atelier Baby Cheeks Blush Stick as it is easy to apply). Then I brush out and fill in my brows with the Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil and pop some powder over the top.

I just got one of those Charlotte Tilbury Quick & Easy Makeup kits that comes with a highlighter, blush/lipstick and an eyeshadow, and it’s becoming a new go-to because it’s so simple to do a whole face with.

IMAGE: INSTAGRAM @ALYCE_TRAN

My mum is all about skin. She still doesn’t have a wrinkle.

She’s all about using quality products and ensuring they are massaged properly into your skin which is something I definitely think about!

IMAGE: INSTAGRAM @ALYCE_TRAN

My hair is long and straight and honestly, I’m not fussy at all about what I use on it.

I just rotate between random shampoos I am given and good old supermarket shampoos – they all seem to work!  I have it cut at Valonz.

I am very classic with my style and I love colour– no surprises there!

I dress in quite a feminine way, though I do wish I was a bit more cool and edgy.  I am all about Celine, Bottega, and P Johnson Femme.

I am definitely worried about the aesthetics of ageing. I feel like my skin has lost elasticity, which is scary.

I try to get to James’ clinic every eight weeks for a facial and some sort of laser or light therapy.  I like the intensity of these treatments, and I do feel like they have improved my skin health and texture so much.  My next battle is my slight pigmentation. You don’t notice it when I wear makeup, but I would love to get rid of it so then I can be super confident going makeup free

IMAGE: INSTAGRAM @INTHEROUNDHOUSE

I think I have my overall health in pretty good knick. I exercise everyday, and I try to eat well, even though I don’t cook!

I am basically at Shelter spinning, boxing or doing a combination of both six days a week. I hate how I feel if I don’t do it. Sometimes I just have too many calls and the day gets away from me, but I feel much better when I start the day with exercise and some brekky.

In the mornings I will have a small coffee, and maybe a piece of toast with a boiled egg, some avocado and tomato. I go out for lunch, so I usually try to pick something like a salad bowl with salmon, to get plenty of veggies in. in the evenings I’ve started ordering pre-made meals from Katering –  their menu is quite diverse and I love it. I don’t take any supplements (can someone please educate me on what I should take?!) so I try to get the nutrition I need from what I eat.

I haven’t really figured out any relaxing activities that work for me yet. I find that I have too many concerns about work and other issues to ever really relax.

I love the feeling I get from knowing I am on top of my work, and then I scroll social media (although that’s probably still work). Thank goodness I sleep well, or I’d be a mess!”

Story and interview by Zoe Briggs. Imagery, including main image, supplied by Alyce Tran, and from Instagram @alyce_tran and @intheroundhouse.