Megan Young on Why She Didn't Pursue Attending Fashion Weeks

Megan Young's career trajectory has always been hers to define. After stints as an actress and model, she became the Philippines' first—and so far, only—Miss World titleholder in 2013. She's since added being a wife and mother to her list of credentials.

In a candid conversation with fellow beauty queen Kylie Verzosa, Megan opens up about her fascination with fashion and how becoming a style influencer was something she once seriously considered.

On the latest episode of Kylie's Almost Honest podcast, Megan looked back on her relationship with fashion, citing that it goes all the way back to her life pre-show biz. "I love fashion. I remember when I was a kid, I used to have subscriptions to magazines back when that was a thing," she shared.

When asked if she ever considered entering global fashion weeks, the 36-year-old admits she did. "If I'm gonna be completely honest about it, I did ask about it," she stated. "Like how much does it actually cost to do Fashion Week?"

After figuring out the financial aspects of actually being a global style influencer, Megan admitted that it didn't seem like something that aligned with her goals. "I'm very frugal," she said, "and it does cost quite a bit if you want to do something like that."

"Like a business, if you want to be successful, you have to invest money in something. But when I tried to look at it from my perspective, I didn't know if that aligned with what I wanted," she continued, explaining how pursuing fashion week would require her to reallocate budgets.

After decades of being in the limelight, on top of becoming a first-time mom, Megan realized that she would want to invest her finances elswhere. "Maybe it's not something that I'm completely passionate about to invest money in," she shares. "So that's why I don't do stuff like that because I know na baka I can put my money somewhere else."

Of course, she gives her props to the individuals who do represent the countr through their fashion week appearances. It's all a matter of preference, according to her. "But from my perspective, I wasn't sure talaga na this is something I want to be in as my work," she puts it.

Megan is not alone in this way of thinking. In a recent interview with Karen Davila, fellow beauty queen Catriona Gray expressed similar sentiments, saying that, "I’ve experienced fashion week before, and it’s not something that really resonated with me... it just kind of felt like modeling, but in the street."

Megan has also admitted to being frugal with her fashion-related expenses in the past. She famously commited to having only one designer bag for ten years, which she was convinced to buy due to her "artista" status. "I don’t know if nadala ako sa pressure or I really wanted the bag.. So for the longest time, I only had one. I have had that bag for more than 10 years.”

Listen to Megan and Kylie's full conversation here.