The Apprentice's Vanessa FROM DROPOUT TO LIVING THE DREAM!

After leaving school with no qualifications, the reality TV star struggled – but now she’s enjoying “the bougie life”!

- Florence Hartigan

The Apprentice Aotearoa contestant Vanessa Goodson is embracing every minute of her newfound celebrity, but it isn’t just the recognition she’s getting from fans on the street that’s making the long-lashed, luxury-loving event stylist feel like a superstar.

“The best thing has been watching the show with my daughters – I’m finally the cool parent!” laughs the bubbly entrepreneur, 30, who lives in West Auckland with her partner Kerry and their four girls.

“Me running my own business wasn’t even a thing to them, but seeing Mum on TV made their lives.”

Vanessa’s blended family – she has daughter Mila Rose, nine, from a previous relationship, while Kerry has two teenage daughters, Isabella and Gabrielle, and together they have five-year-old Madeline – has been her driving force through the rollercoaster of launching her own events company.

Since it began in 2016, OMG Ness Styling has shot to success, with Vanessa creating Instagram-worthy gatherings for celebrities like All Blacks legend Beauden Barrett and global dance sensation Parris Goebel – both pinch-me moments for a woman who didn’t finish college.

“I just didn’t enjoy school,” Vanessa tells Woman’s Day. “I didn’t realise I was a creative at that point. I just thought I wasn’t good at it. I really wanted to be a flight attendant – my mum’s from the Philippines and I used to travel there growing up, so I loved being on a plane. With my parents’ support, I left school, applied for Qantas and landed my dream job at 18.”