Meet The Moodie Davitt Report team: Introducing Brands Director Hannah Tan

The Moodie Davitt Report may bear the names of its Founder & Chairman Martin Moodie and long-time President (and since 2015 Co-Owner) Dermot Davitt, but there is much more to the company than its two leaders.

Our diverse and inclusive, multi-talented, multi-cultural 24-member team (including regular freelancers and consultants) is based across numerous locations, including Hong Kong, Hainan, Ireland, Rhodes (Greece), Wales, England and the Philippines.

They speak eight languages between them and collectively represent the leading travel retail B2B publisher and events company with distinction across administration & finance, editorial, events, film, research, sales and technology.

We are pleased to introduce the team in this regular column. Please meet our St Albans, UK-based Brands Director Hannah Tan.

Tell us a little about yourself.

I was born and raised in Manila, Philippines where I grew up surrounded by family. My family is quite mixed, and I have a blend of Chinese, Filipino, Taiwanese and Thai descent.

My father Wilbert is an architect and ingrained in me an appreciation for design and the arts. My mother Lynley was a ballerina and so she encouraged me to try out all sorts of dance classes from a young age.

I’ve danced all my life – I love it – but I was also your typical Type A student in school; a member of the debate team, a cheerleader, Vice President of the dance team and of course a member of the school newspaper (an early precursor for my present-day career as a journalist).

I’ve always had pets, and my dog Charlie is a dog-journalist with his own Instagram personality. Charlie is the light of my life, and we love to share our pet-friendly adventures with others on his @teamcocopup Instagram account.

I went to Ateneo de Manila University, one of the top institutions in the Philippines, to study communications, advertising and journalism. I graduated with honours and then had the grand idea of moving to Paris to pursue a master’s degree in fashion. As with anything I set my mind to, I left home and moved to Paris to chase my fashion dreams. I graduated top of my class at ESMOD Institute Supérieur de la Mode and then started an internship at Vogue Paris.

I spent some time in the Philippines after graduation where I managed several fashion brands under the Maldita umbrella, before moving to the UK in 2015.

In 2018, and this is a fun fact not a lot of people know about me, I helped launch an activewear brand with Made-in-Chelsea star Louise Thompson called Pocket Sport. The brand is actually still running today.

When did you join The Moodie Davitt Report?

I joined The Moodie Davitt Report in 2019 after doing some freelance work for Martin Moodie, who then recruited me to join on a full-time basis.

Prior to joining the team, I was Content Editor at an omnichannel travel startup called A Place Less Ordinary and regularly wrote for titles such as Glamour, Condé Nast Traveller, House & Garden, Cosmopolitan and Suitcase Magazine. I was also Features Editor at a boutique title called TWENTY6Magazine, where I launched their travel pages, and Fashion Editor at Millennial travel magazine House of Coco.

I was fully entrenched in the world of fashion then, regularly attending fashion weeks in Paris, Milan and London, producing shoots and writing trend reports and runway reviews. Life was both hectic and glamorous, but I was ready for the next step in my career.

Something about travel retail spoke to my spirit and I’ve been with The Moodie Davitt Report ever since. I quickly discovered that there was so much to love in this industry which blends my passions for fashion, beauty and travel and is also home to some of the best colleagues.

I am so grateful to Martin, Dermot and the rest of The Moodie Davitt Report team for having faith in me back then and introducing me to the wonderful world of travel retail – where I have made some incredible memories over the last five years.

What is your role?

I started as Fashion & Beauty Editor, but am now Brands Director, working with the breadth of brands in travel retail. One of my favourite things about my job is dealing with our brand partners and collaborating on projects such as our Spotlight Series that tells stories in a striking, evocative and visual way. Over the years I have worked on incredible Spotlight projects with L’Oréal, Suntory, La Prairie and The Estée Lauder Companies, to name a few.

I love learning about the craftsmanship and know-how that goes into every product launch in travel retail, about the history and heritage of household brand names, and, of course, discovering new and disruptive brands.

A highlight of your time with The Moodie Davitt Report?

Every Trinity Forum that I attend is a highlight whether it be in Singapore, Hong Kong or Vietnam. Seeing our team bring The Trinity Forum to life makes me proud to be a part of The Moodie Davitt family, especially as the event does a lot to help various charitable organisations, including Smile Train.

It is a wonderful feeling to know that all our hard work goes towards giving back to those in need. It is also a great opportunity to meet our colleagues from around the world and to immerse myself in the culture and spirit of each host country. I can’t wait for what the next Trinity Forum with Qatar Duty Free holds.

What is your approach to work, your business philosophy?

I don’t approach anything in half measures. I give all my energy to everything that I do whether that is a story on the website, the TFWA Exhibition, a Spotlight project or even a DIY project at home. People in the industry always ask me ‘how are you everywhere all at once?’ and I think the answer – as corny as it sounds – is just having passion for what you do.

Your positive/negative traits?

I have a lot of energy and enthusiasm which means that I am always ‘grabbing life by the horns’. At the same time, I can spread myself too thin.

How important are leisure time and out of work interests?

I am a strong believer in work/life balance and make sure that I have a fulfilling life outside of The Moodie Davitt Report. I’m a big fitness enthusiast. I love bouldering, I run daily and have been doing pole fitness for almost four years now. I am a big advocate for how pole fitness is great not just for boosting confidence and body positivity, but also for showing women that our bodies can achieve amazing things.

I am constantly amazed at how women of all ages and sizes come to the studio, bare it all, and express themselves in our art form. It’s incredibly empowering.

Outside of my travel for The Moodie Davitt Report, I spend a lot of weekends travelling all over the UK with Charlie, discovering the best pet-friendly hotels, restaurants, self-catering accommodation and experiences. He is certainly a busy pup and has more holidays than most people.

I am also a big art lover and often frequent museums and art exhibitions in London and every new city I visit. One of my favourite things to do when travelling anywhere new is to check out all the vintage shops for designer finds. I have spent over a decade curating my dream fashion wardrobe – with one-of-a-kind pieces that I consider my treasures.

A must-have in duty free?

It is so hard to choose a must-have among the countless incredible brands in our channel, but I think having a good skincare regimen when travelling is so important. Travelling accelerates environmental stressors on the skin, especially if (like me) you are a frequent traveller.

My skincare ‘must-haves’ change depending on my skin needs.

My favourites over the years include Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair Serum, La Mer Night Cream, Dior Prestige La Micro-Huille de Rose Activated Serum, Augustinus Bader Rich Cream, Elemis Pro-Collagen Cleansing Balm, Aesop Resurrection Hand Balm, L’Occitane Anti Hair Loss Serum, Caudalie Beauty Elixir, Shiseido Ultimune, Guerlain Abeille Royale Youth Watery Oil, Lancôme Advanced Génifique, Lancaster Crème Princière, La Roche-Posay Anthelios UVMune 400 and many more.

Luckily, duty free has the best of the best when it comes to beauty brands so you are really spoilt for choice. Plus, a lot of locations offer skincare consultations on-site so it’s easier to figure out exactly what products your skin needs.

And a desert island choice of music and book – or something else?

There have been so many books over the years that have really stuck with me and so it’s impossible to choose just one. The Blind Assassin by Margaret Attwood, 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami, Nocturnal Animals by Austin Wright, Revival by Stephen King, Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut and The Memory Police by Yuko Ogawa just to name a few. I’m wondering if it would be possible to bring a library.

And my choice of music? If I could only listen to one song, it would have to be Dreams by Fleetwood Mac; a song I could never get tired of.

As for the something else, I guess I’d never want to be stranded anywhere without Charlie.

Previously on Meet The Moodie Davitt team

Introducing International Account Manager Sonia Menezes

Introducing Senior International Account Manager Aran Turner

Introducing Associate Editor Colleen Morgan

Introducing Senior Business Editor Mark Lane

Introducing Chief Administration Officer and ESG Manager Sinead Moodie

Introducing FAB and International Account Manager Maya Feeney

Introducing Administration and Events Support Manager Kristyn Branisel

Introducing Associate Director Events Vincci Chung

Introducing Associate Editor Camille Bersola

Introducing Development and Systems Operations Director Matt Willey

Introducing Reporter Ameesha Raizada

Introducing China Chief Representative Zhang Yimei

Introducing Vice President Sales Sarah Genest