HRNZ Member Profile: Estelle Curd

From HR Manager to Miss Universe New Zealand

It takes guts and determination to put yourself out there, especially on a world stage… meet HRNZ member Estelle Curd whose day job is Human Resources Manager for the Armstrong Motor Group. In August last year, Estelle won the title of Miss Universe New Zealand taking her on to participate in the international Miss Universe competition. Estelle gave us the inside scoop of her journey…

For Estelle entering Miss Universe, New Zealand was the opportunity to expand her knowledge, skills and do something outside of her comfort zone. The Miss Universe New Zealand competition is a threemonth journey. It includes a casting weekend in Auckland, a ten-day retreat to Thailand, raising money for charity, writing reports on endeavours and gathering public support.

On the day of the New Zealand competition, the winner is decided by 50 percent public vote and 50 percent by a judging panel. “You can never count your chickens before they hatch. I definitely didn’t know I was going to win,” says Estelle. “I was lucky that I had a lot of support from my family and friends.”

After taking out the New Zealand competition, Estelle flew to Bangkok in December for two weeks to compete in the international Miss Universe competition against women from 93 other countries.

The Miss Universe pageant is hugely popular in Thailand so security was tight around the contestants. “One time we were walking through the airport because we were flying to an island outside of Bangkok, and there were people waiting for us at 6 o’clock in the morning just screaming. It was an unreal experience and felt quite bizarre,” she says.

The girls’ popularity didn’t come without challenges. “You live in this bubble because you’re not allowed to go outside by yourself and you don’t have any of your own time. Everything is managed by the Miss Universe organisation. We had security and chaperones with us at all times which was difficult to adjust to, especially when you are used to having lots of freedom. For example, if you wanted to leave dinner and go back to your room, you were unable to unless you were supervised.”

Estelle admits there are a lot of misconceptions about the people who compete in Miss Universe. Estelle says, “People love to ask me, ‘Was it really catty?’ It’s the complete opposite. Everyone is really lovely. Realistically it’s just a two-and-a-half week long job interview. Everyone is putting their best foot forward”.

Many people also think that the women in Miss Universe only get to represent their country because they are beautiful. Estelle says, “that’s simply not the case. The women I met were studying to be doctors, lawyers and had created foundations or charities for a whole range of meaningful causes. They are very successful and powerful women.”

Competing with women from 93 different countries, Estelle immersed herself in the cultures that surrounded her daily. “Every morning all 93 of us would have breakfast together. We would have the opportunity to have really enriching conversations about what goes on in different parts of the world. It was incredible to learn and understand the cultural and political views of different women. Hearing stories of political and economic instability in some countries made me really appreciate being from New Zealand”.

Estelle didn’t leave without teaching them a thing or two about little old New Zealand. Starting with where we are located. “Some women had no idea where New Zealand was! I was talking to Miss Jamaica over dinner about geography and she proceeded to show me where New Zealand was on the map. Unfortunately, she showed me Tasmania, although she was sure that I was confused!”

On the day of the Miss Universe competition, it runs a little differently than how the viewers at home may think. “It’s an American production and it screens live over there at 7pm on a Sunday, but because we were filming the competition live in Thailand, it meant that we were actually filming at 7am in the morning! Our call time to be at the stadium was 1am. Before we left we had to pack our suitcases because the winner had to be ready to fly to New York as soon as they were announced. By this point, we had all had very little sleep in the past seven days and we were all running on adrenaline.”

It’s a surreal experience and Estelle highly recommends it. “I didn’t go on to win Miss Universe but that didn’t lessen the experience. I was able to have a once in a lifetime experience, meet incredible women from all over the world and represent my country on a world stage. I’m so proud and grateful that I got that opportunity and I look forward to what’s to come.”