The tranquil, Zen-inspired space doesn’t feel like the nerve centre of a thriving shapewear, fashion and beauty empire. Then again, Jules Robinson – with her abundant curves, flowing red hair and fondness for body-hugging clothes – doesn’t look like the traditional stereotype of a buttoned-up businesswoman.
Yet, unlikely as it seems, the former hairstylist has triumphantly turned the tables on school bullies and keyboard warriors who tried to fat shame her in the past. “I wanted to turn pain into power,” smiles the 43-year-old dynamo, who somehow parleyed a reality TV wedding into her real-life happily ever after, complete with two cute kids and a flourishing career.
“Great things happen when you’re just yourself,” she says simply, asked for the secret of her success. “Work it and be proud of whatever you are, which is what I’ve always done, no matter what size I’ve been. To be honest, I never would have predicted what I’m doing right now, but I’ve always had an eventful life.”
It’s seven years since Jules and former cricketer Cam Merchant met and fell in love during season six of Nine’s Married at First Sight. “It felt like I’d known him forever!” Their make-believe TV wedding was followed by a legal, off-screen ceremony 10 months later, in November 2019. And today, they remain each other’s most passionate cheer squad.
“I hope everyone has someone like him,” Jules says of her 41-year-old spouse. “Cam’s my best friend. He speaks from the heart and lives life to the full. He supports me, lifts me up and tells me to go shine. We give each other our turn, like a little dance. We’re two individuals with our own dreams but together we make a fantastic team.”
How many children do Cam and Jules have?
Sharing each other’s ups and downs, they’ve so far managed three business start-ups, coped with a struggle to conceive and survived a life-threatening medical emergency, when Jules developed pre-eclampsia just days after giving birth. But parenting two boisterous little boys – Ollie, aged five, and one-year-old Carter – is their biggest test to date.
“Mummy guilt, screen time and tantrums have been big issues for us,” confides Jules, welcoming The Weekly to the couple’s chic, newly-renovated home on Sydney’s northern beaches, where a neon sign affirms, “You’re awesome!”
“I think the best advice is to trust your own intuition and be open about what’s happening,” she explains. “People say there’s a new challenge at every stage, then you nail it. But at first it’s like the blind leading the blind.”
What does Jules Robinson do?
Always up front, Jules and Cam have made honesty and relatability their superpower since MAFS days. Already favourites in Australia, the COVID pandemic and lockdown led to a whole new level of fame with British viewers. Sudden celebrity brought the chance to launch FIGUR inclusive shapewear, Moira Muse fashion, and Status Co., a glamorous hair and beauty bar at Jules, who won this year’s AusMumpreneur accolade, also penned a best-selling book, Ask Jules, and finally started the family she’d longed for.
Having walked away from one long-term relationship because her then-partner didn’t want any more children, she was all the more delighted to welcome her boys with Cam.
“And hopefully next year I’ll have my little girl. I just feel like she’s there, she has to come. I’m manifesting her,” laughs Jules. “I’m 44 next March but I had both my other babies naturally, so why wouldn’t it happen …
“What have I got to lose? Every time I open my phone, perimenopause information slaps me in the face, but the mind is so powerful. I think I’m immortal and will be having babies until I’m 50!”
A positive mindset
Jules firmly believes a positive mindset can make dreams come true. After all, it’s worked for her so far – although there continue to be blips along the way. She has battled premenstrual dysmorphia disorder – like PMS but much worse – had a bout with burnout, struggled to conceive Carter and was then diagnosed with dangerous pre-eclampsia soon after his birth.
“I could have had a stroke, which is just devastating to think about,” she sighs, chilling out in the serene room she calls her sanctuary. “There I was with this beautiful thing that had just happened and then there’s this side-effect. I didn’t want to go back to hospital – I was busy nesting – but I knew I had to get it under control.”
With the same realism, she recognised Ollie’s wild toddler moods needed taming. Like many busy parents, Jules had been using YouTube, TV and films to babysit. It seemed so innocent, yet sadly Ollie had become addicted to screen entertainment and screamed when devices were switched off.
“He’s half me and half Cam, so he didn’t stand a chance,” laughs his doting mother. “Carter is so calm, but Ollie has a big personality and he’s a handful. Recently he painted everything in the living room and destroyed every single table, every single chair …
“You can’t watch your kids all the time. Between deadlines, trying to stop the house looking like an absolute explosion, sometimes you need pockets of time to get things done. It’s really hard, we’re all busy. It’s not like our parents’ generation.
“So hands up, we went down the YouTube road. But when we turned the screen off, Ollie’s tantrums were next level. He got so absorbed, it was like pulling him in from another world. He just went into complete meltdown and you learn the hard way in those situations.”
What is a Toniebox?
The solution turned out to be a Toniebox, a screen-reducing, speech-boosting speaker system for toddlers to 10-year-olds. Packed with songs, stories, games – and a selection of loveable toy friends – it’s designed to encourage independent, creative play and learning.
“Honestly, this little box has changed our life and family dynamic,” says Jules, who is now an enthusiastic ambassador for the brand. “It stimulates Ollie in all the right ways and with this, when story time finishes, there’s not that dramatic ‘switch off’ moment you get with screens. The Toniebox has stopped those terrible tantrums. And it’s so aligned with my mission – a product putting good into the world.”
Just like her latest business venture, Strong Feels Good, a collaboration with Active Truth activewear. The publicity blurb could be written about Jules herself.
“This collection is for the women who hold it all: The workload, the breakdowns, and the breakthroughs. It’s for the woman who keeps showing up for herself, even when the world pulls her in every direction. Because strength isn’t just about what you lift … it’s how you rise. She’s not chasing a size. She’s chasing a feeling.”
What is next for Jules Robinson?
And right now, Jules Robinson feels pretty good.
Summing up, she vows, “I’ve worn my heart on my sleeve about what I’ve learned in my life, my life lessons, my mistakes and things I could have done better. But I promise to keep putting my heart into what lights me up and putting positivity into the world.”
With her husband beside her, anything is possible. Even giving birth to a “daddy’s girl” baby daughter at the age of 44.
“Cam irons my suit [with a towel], reads my [awards] presentation back to me while I get ready, and cheers from the wings …
“Not because he has to, but because that’s what partnership is. Choose someone who celebrates you in the spotlight and loves you in the quiet.”
That’s a success story indeed.
Find out more about Toniebox here
