Welcome to Follow These Women! the latest series to join To The People’s lineup. In this series, we’ll get quality one-on-one time with the women of Youth To The People and sit down with them to discover their career paths—some are unusual, all are inspiring—their goals, dreams, and values. No matter the stage of your own career, taking a peek into someone else’s path can be a breath of fresh air—it can offer a new perspective, or even help you double down on the things that are important to you. If you’re looking for groundbreaking women, look no further. Follow these women!
First in our new series is Hannah Fernando, Senior Digital Coordinator at Youth To The People—but, she says, “Everyone calls me Han. I’m a proud hapa living in LA—I DJ and produce electronic music when I’m not YTTPing.” When she is YTTPing, Han works on all things email, SMS, customer loyalty, website, and reviews.
“I see my job as a branch between DTC (direct to consumer) and our internal teams and external partners,” says Han. “I’m constantly talking with our copywriter, designers, operations team, etc to ensure we’re building a well-rounded digital experience.”
Before YTTP, Han’s career was headed down an entirely different path—different, even, from music—though still creative. Han began dancing at the age of four and grew up knowing she’d pursue dance as her career. Because she knew her path, she had no plans to attend college.
“I moved to LA almost five years ago right out of high school to dance professionally,” she says. “Little did I know I would end up loving working for a business.”
Han began as an intern in 2018, and worked her way up from there over the course of the past four years, moving from intern to customer experience, and now working as a senior coordinator within e-commerce and digital marketing.
“I feel like I did the opposite of what most people do and I quit my freelance style creative job to work a 9-5,” she says. “I jumped into YTTP with no college degree or professional experience, but I was very eager to learn anything and everything. I think I’ve surprised myself with how much knowledge I’ve gained and how confident I am in the work I do. It’s cool to look back at where I started and where I am now.”
So what’s it like working at YTTP, according to Han?
“From day one I’ve always been encouraged to share my opinion no matter who I’m sharing it with and what their seniority is within the company,” says Han. “I know my thoughts are heard and valued. I’m also really proud of the nonprofit work YTTP does to increase the representation of women and BIPOC communities among decision-makers and leaders.”
In keeping with the theme this Women’s History Month, Han has groundbreaking women on the brain.
“Groundbreaking to me is being completely yourself and never compromising that to fit into the mold society has created. There’s so much beauty in everyone’s uniqueness—and that should be embraced in all aspects of life,” she says. “What really stands out to me are traits that I’m sure contributed to getting them where they are now,” she says. “I admire the determination, resilience, charm, and confidence they have in their decisions.”
When it comes to her future and her ultimate career goals, Han’s view is expansive.
“It would be to split my time DJing and brand consulting for startups. I want to spend a period of my life traveling the world and playing shows, but at the same time, I truly do love contributing to a company's growth and seeing the potential of where it can go,” says Han. “A girl can dream of doing both, right?”
We’re with you all the way, Han!
Follow Han at @hannahfernando_ on Instagram.
Images courtesy of Alizabeth Bean.
