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Girl Bosses of Great Britain

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When you hear the name Rosie Fortescue, you may immediately envision Made in Chelsea’s charming fashionista strolling along the streets of South Kensington, brunching with a gaggle of equally stylish friends. Others may recognise Rosie for her successful fashion blog, At Fashion Forte, which has catapulted her into becoming one of the UK’s top fashion influencers. And while Rosie’s effortless charm, inimitable style, and undeniable Made-For-TV charisma has made her a household name; what most people don’t know is that Rosie Fortescue, is that she’s also a Girl Boss through and through.

We catch up with Rosie, and chat about her business/passion project – Rosie Fortescue Jewellery. Here at House of Coco, we’re all big fans of her fabulous stacking rings delicate chain necklaces. We talk about the challenges of starting your own brand, as well as all the rewards that come from a long day spent hustling so you can do what you love. Finally, we catch up with Rosie and she embarks on a special project with Huawei P20 Pro,the Spark a Renaissance Photo Competition. A competition that aims to find the next generation of creative talent across Europe, and according to Rosie, one that aims to spark an “inspiration revival”.

From Made-in-Chelsea star to top fashion influencer, and now jewellery designer — what’s a day in the life for Rosie Fortescue?
Every day is totally different which I love. I’m either in my office, in meetings, designing jewellery at home, or posting jewellery in the post office — yes I still do all the fulfilment myself!

How would you define your style? What are three things in your closet you can’t live without?
My style is comfortable, but fairly classic and definitely with some statement pieces. I always finalise every outfit with jewellery. It’s definitely the finishing touch to any ensemble, and with it, I feel most confident.

Here at House of Coco, we’re all about Girl Bosses like yourself. How do you manage all your different projects and still live a well-balanced life?
I absolutely love working hard and I love what I do; so if I have to stay up working until 2am, I will! I’m 28, so I see these years as the ones to work my ass off and establish my brand. Hopefully, I will be able to employ someone soon to take off a bit of the workload; so I can focus more on the design and creativity aspect of running a business. However, right now I’m just loving the journey. I am super organised so am just about managing to get everything done, with some late nights along the way!

What is the biggest challenge you’ve had to face as a GirlBoss?
To trust my instincts. Because it’s just me in my company, I sometimes need to bounce some ideas off people. I luckily have very creative and inspiring friends, so it’s great to get other peoples’ thoughts on my ideas from time to time!
 
At House of Coco HQ, we’re all huge fans of Rosie Fortescue Jewellery. Where do you usually get the inspiration for your designs? Do you have a favourite piece? 
Thank you! I can be inspired by anything really. I always keep my eyes open, and a long stream of notes of my phone. The colour of a front door can inspire me for a stone colour, architecture is also a big source of inspiration. Whenever I’m away, I really make sure to take in my surroundings and make the most of every opportunity!

To top it all off, you’re also working with Huawei P20 Pro’s Spark a Renaissance Challenge. Could you tell us a little bit more about this collaboration?
The Huawei Spark A Renaissance Photo Competition is the world’s first ever photography competition judged by both Artificial Intelligence (AI) and a Leica photographer. It’s really amazing what technology can do today! For this competition, Huawei’s P20 Pro smartphone’s AI will judge the photography submissions for a chance to win a Leica masterclass in Florence and one in 50 Huawei P20 Pros.

A photo competition has never been judged in this way before so I’m really excited to be working with Huawei on it. As modern creative myself, it’s great to be a part of an initiative that brings together art and science so seamlessly.

How is the Spark A Renaissance Challenge helping promote the next generation of creative talent across Europe?
The competition is part of a wider series of challenges from Huawei over the last few months. All of which have been aimed at unearthing the next generation of creative talent across Europe, and showcasing their potential to the world. Just as the Renaissance period was fuelled by the coming together of science and art, this campaign is doing the same by judging the participants with a combination of AI and the expertise of a panel of experienced artists. It’s an exciting project to be involved in and I’m looking forward to seeing the winning images!

In your opinion, how do you think our readers can “spark a renaissance” in their own lives?
I see it as an inspiration revival. I think that with everyone’s busy schedules these days, doing something for yourself that inspires you or makes you feel good is definitely key.

What’s next for Rosie Fortescue?
I have a few projects in the pipeline that I can’t talk about yet, but I am designing my new collection now. Really into body chains and stars at the moment so watch this space!

Here’s a few of Team Coco’s favourite pieces from Rosie’s latest collection…

Rosie Fortescue Jewellery
Rosie Fortescue spoke to House of Coco in partnership with Huawei for the ‘Spark A Renaissance’ challenge. To find out more, visit huawei.com

For our #WomenWorldwide series, we’ve gone out on the road to find the most innovative and inspiring entrepreneurs we can from every corner of the globe. Today’s interviewee, Zainab Akingbehin, is an interior designer at Oeuvre Designs, based in the heart of the bustling city of Lagos, Nigeria.

HOC: Great to meet you Zainab! Let’s start with the tricky stuff! What’s your elevator pitch for Oeuvre Designs?
Zainab: Oeuvre Designs is an interior design studio based in Lagos Nigeria, we specialise in bespoke designs with the client’s personality and functionality being key to our designs.

HOC: Your work is beautiful! Tell us about your journey to running this business?

Zainab: Oeuvre designs started in 2016 with as little as nothing! It’s been quite an interesting journey though, of course there have been some learnings also on this journey, and hasn’t always been a smooth ride, but the determination has been strong.
When we launched the first question was, where do we get clients from and how? But we came up with our first furniture design “Hexa Stool” and everything went from there and brought us to into limelight. I guess that’s how we started!

HOC: You are based in Lagos which is known globally for being a hub of design, what’s it like running your business there?

Zainab: Trust me, Lagos is one of those tough places to get anything done on a daily basis. The hustle and bustle is real and the design process isn’t a smooth one here, getting things done in time is quite challenging and there are limitations too as we
almost never have the right places to source for things. But, hey, we are strong people here and the passion drives us so we never get tired of the challenges!

HOC: How do you balance these varying demands on your time-being creative and running the business side of things?

Zainab: As a creative designer and a business owner in today’s industry you often have to wear multiple hats. It’s a juggling act and not always easy to get the balance right. I don’t think there is ever a perfect balance though because there is a guilt either way.

I’m a perfectionist and the reality of being a creative designer and a business owner is that something always have to give which doesn’t sit well with me. But with the support I get from my team at work allows me to shuffle both.

HOC: Who would be your ideal client?

Zainab: Definitely clients that love good finish and clean lines; clients that have creative personality and also the support co-creation process.

HOC: Why, in your opinion, is good design so important?

Zainab: Good design is important due to the aesthetic value it possess in a given space. The fact is having an interior design that looks nice and beautiful will make you like your home even more. Also, good design means functionality because it
affects your quality of life. In your home, people live in such a way that they interact with their environment on a daily basis. Trust me, if a design does not work for you it’s most likely to frustrate you more than making you happy!

HOC: For our creative readers, what advice would you have for them to grow their artist practices and get their work seen?

Zainab: Firstly, self-confidence is very important. For instance, a stranger asks what do you do, and your response is not portraying any aura of confidence, then you are not doing a good job being a creative artist and selling yourself. No matter how
amazing your work is, if you are not confident enough in your work then it’s going to take series of miracle for anyone to see and appreciate your work!

Secondly know your value. One man’s paint splatter is another man’s masterpiece. So when you are trying to decide how much to charge for your work you need to take a lot of things into account like the time and cost of your supplies.

Thirdly consider the factors in the intangibles of your work that gives it value.

HOC: What piece that you’ve created means the most to you and why?

Zainab: Definitely my “Hexa Stool” : it was the start of my furniture design and it brought me into limelight so it means the most to me.

HOC: Where do you get your inspiration from?

Zainab: I get inspiration everywhere, from nature, my environment, architecture, sometimes in books and design blogs. Also by surrounding myself with positive minded people.

HOC: If you ever have a creative block / funk; how do you get yourself out of it?

Zainab: Most times I just take 2 days off work and it helps a lot. I always have in mind the idea of finishing what you’ve started because the creative part is in seeing it through to the end and turning that dream into reality! I can also be spontaneous in nature; some of our designs are done lastminute and that is the fun part of being a designer.

Check out Zainab’s work at Oeuvre Designs at OeuvreDesigns.co

Follow along at @Oeuvre_Designs

House of Coco and Victoria Cavaco of And The Children Came Too had a whirlwind chat covering Dalston (before it was cool), kismet and raves for children. Read all about it and let us know what you think @House_Of_Coco

HOC: So, Victoria tell us your story!

VC: I grew up in Marple, went to Uni in Bristol and then when I was travelling in Australia I fell into working for an investment bank, as you do! After 5 years in Sydney I moved to London, which had always been a dream of mine. I then spent 10 years living in Dalston and working in the City, as an Analyst. We were in Dalston when it was dodge! Now it’s super cool… okay, maybe a little dodge still.

I met my husband putting on a funk and breaks night on Whitechapel Road at the Rhythm Factory in 2005. We were before our time, East London wasn’t such a destination like it is now. Bonobo headlined on our first night, it was amazing fun! My outside life was a complete contradiction to my corporate life but then gradually we started doing more events and that was my release. Then in 2009 we had our son and the following year friends started a music festival so we offered to set up a kids area. Events became a very different experience for us as a family, creating a space for the kids to play, as well as for the parents to socialize and connect was really important.

HOC: So that’s where And The Children Came Too came from?

VC: Yes, that idea has been bubbling away for the last few years. A couple of years back we moved to Bath, and had our second child which was a complete change of life. It was time to step away from working in the city and to do something different. I was really lucky with work and was offered redundancy so I took that as my chance!

Event production is what my husband and I do well together and I wanted to start something rolling with the kids that had the potential to become something much bigger in the future! So our concept is to take care of kids attending events (family days, weddings, festivals etc) from the moment that they arrive until they leave. We can get parents involved or make sure that the kids are well looked after and the parents can do their own thing.

If you think about the wedding market, alone, there are more children going to weddings than ever before, but people don’t cater for them. Kids want to do their own thing, they want to be moving around and using their imagination, not stuck in the adult world. Using beautiful canvas tents, we provide a space for kids to have their own party; we do circus skills, have a photo booth with props, crafts, storytelling…. It’s a million miles away from where I started but the journey so far has been incredible!

HOC: Sounds fab! This is a fairly new project for you, how did you go about setting it all up!

VC: Yep, [at the time of this chat] we’ve been going for a month! That said, last year I did all the business planning! I had an inspiring business mentor who was actually offered to me by my corporate job, who has been amazing. It’s scary to go from a regular salary to zero and to lose the other supportive elements of a permanent job like insurance, a pension etc. But, at the same time, you only live once and life is now!

I’ve been lucky to find people who take me seriously and who see the technical set up behind what we’re offering, there is a lot of preparation work before every event, it’s not all play! We also need to be savvy with what we offer until we’re established and learn through trial and error. I’ve done my research and know that there aren’t many companies who do what we do and we purposely want to offer something different. We want to engage with children and their imagination, we want to inspire their creativity and take them on a little journey. Something I want to try out is to create a Mr Benn costume shop and then have the kids in all kinds of exciting situations.

HOC: It’s really admirable that you’ve started this journey with a family too, how do you balance that?

VC: We left Dalston to have more living space as it just wasn’t possible to get that in London unless we lost the dreams of doing something for ourselves and just buying into the bigger mortgage! I once had a manager who told me not to ever give in to that and get stuck.

Having children has made me more motivated than ever, I think they make you reevaluate your life and I certainly want to show my kids an example of how it is possible to live doing what you love.

It’s amazing to get my kids involved in the business too. My son is our chief tester and has so many ideas for And The Children Came Too. We went to a wedding fair the other weekend and he was my assistant. He gave tours around the tent and talked animatedly about what there was to do, I was so proud! Hopefully, as he gets older, he’ll want to be more and more involved; my husband has already started teaching him to DJ!

HOC: How much do you feel your corporate career prepared you for this new journey?

VC: I think what I learnt there I can certainly put into my business. It’s been great to have my time in London, working in the City. The stress you are under, the time pressures and juggling ten things at once so I know I can handle almost anything! All the demands of a corporate job teach you a lot, not least how to work with people. I have a vision for my business but I don’t know exactly how I’ll get there but I know I’ll figure it out!

HOC: Talking about your vision, where would you like to take your business?

VC: I think there are a few directions we could go in and the best way will become apparent over time. We could certainly scale the business and become a larger event production company, with more production and lighting etc. Or my other passion, which is a little more whimsical perhaps, is to put on our own kids’ festival. We are already meeting amazing people and collaborators along the way and it would be fantastic to put on our own events. We’ll figure out what is our bread and butter and what brings us most joy! The idea is for And The Children Came Too to be a lifestyle business, both my husband and I think about earning a living so differently now as opposed to a few years ago when we were in London. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea to dream of having a family business, but when I was younger I used to help my dad’s business and I loved it. We had dreams of creating a business together but very sadly he passed away. Life is so precious, and I feel extremely fortunate to have this opportunity with my own kids.

HOC: A children’s festival would be amazing, do you subscribe to the belief that kids grow up too fast these days?

VC: I do speak to a lot of Reception/Key Stage 1 teachers about how they are encouraged to move children away from play. It’s such a shame as that’s how kids learn! Kids aren’t allowed to be kids anymore and it’s also all too easy to use technology. There is definitely a time and a place when an ipad can be a lifeline, but not for hours on end, it’s not good for children’s brain development to have too much screen time.

Going back to traditional approaches can work so well to engage kids and help them have fun. I have yet to meet a child that doesn’t love Megan our vintage rocking horse! I think all to often people don’t think about the need children’s entertainment when planning events, especially weddings. Our challenge is to convince people that it’s needed!

HOC: And how do you go about convincing people?

VC: We’ve been doing a number of wedding fairs this spring, so we can talk to our target audience. I’ve also been involved in writing articles like ‘7 Ways to Entertain Children’ for magazines and plan to maximise that by sending the tips out on twitter. I’ve seen a lot of content about the dilemma of inviting children to weddings and it’s understandable that it’s not for everyone. But, if you have children yourself you would want to provide something fun for them to be doing! We have had a lot of interest and editors keen to have stories from us so we’re working hard on publicising the business!

HOC: Finally, you made the move away from The Big Smoke, how important is London to you for your business?

VC: We’ve always been drawn to the South West, it has felt like a spiritual home, somehow. It’s funny but until we moved there I had no idea why, then my Mum told me my Dad had grown up only 5 miles away from where we live now!

You do get the fear when you leave London, that maybe you are stepping off the circus. But once you’ve lived somewhere you are always connected to the energy of it and you can always go back. We’ve started meeting with companies and venues and there’s a wonderful sense of community in Somerset. We’ve had other funny coincidences when we have met people and had loose connections and then ended up having dinner with close friends and finding out they know the person we had a loose connection with, it’s a small world!

HOC: Best of luck with And The Children Came Too and if you ever branch out into adult only parties in your Mr Benn tent, you know who to call!

Our resident beauty worshipper Rachel McAlley recently interviewed beauty box subscription queen Tia Roqaa for House of Coco. Rachel delved deep into the world of the beauty box and into the future plans of Tia Roqaa’s business Roccabox.

Q1. What made you go into the subscription beauty box industry?
I liked the idea of giving women a little treat delivered to their door every month, a little surprise present for themselves – who doesn’t love presents or surprises? I had seen a few subscription based models pop up here and there and the whole concept really interested me, and with my background being in beauty PR I had some good beauty contacts so it just all made sense.

Q2. How long have you been running Roccabox?
We launched March 1st 2017, although I started working on it behind the scenes from November 2016. I did everything myself in the beginning alongside my full time job, I even taught myself how to build websites and all the social media!

Q3. Do you have a team of beauty experts that source all the products for each Roccabox?
Each month myself and my team scour instagram for new beauty launches and exciting brands that our audience would love. Sometimes we work with bloggers to curate their box of fave beauty finds, but if i’m honest, I prefer doing it myself!

Q4. Do you have a favourite Roccabox that has been produced and if so what were the products inside that the subscribers received?
I really loved working on our first limited edition box, it was such an exciting time thinking of how far we had come from our first box. When I look back now that first flyer was absolutely awful, although the products have always been great. Our limited edition boxes are more premium and run alongside our monthly boxes, they’ll usually contain more lifestyle products like a gorgeous Katie Loxton pouch, a full size candle and notebook as well as the usual skincare and make-up. I love working with big brands such as St Tropez, L’oreal, Pixi and Nails Inc.

Q5. Are you happy with Roccabox as it stands or will you look at other beauty avenues in the future?
Funnily enough I have just done a really successful pop up in my hometown of Leeds, I am thinking of doing a tour of events so I can meet our subscribers as well as get the brand out there more. But I am also looking to do collaborations with big brands, we have just started doing corporate gift boxes in collaboration with a big travel brand. I am open to pretty much anything as long as it’s products beautifully put together in one of our boxes that will make someone feel great, I am all over it!

Q6. Do you like any other beauty subscription boxes that you think are good quality and value for money?
My main competitors, Glossybox and Birchbox are huge international companies, so they just don’t have that love and care that we put in. There have been lots of other boxes pop up over the last couple of years but unfortunately they haven’t lasted long. It’s a really competitive market and you’ve always got to stay ahead of the curve.

Q7. You work with some excellent beauty brands for each Roccabox, are there any beauty brands you are looking to work with in the future?
I’d love to work with more of the bigger brands such as Nars, Charlotte Tilbury, YSL etc, so watch this space for a possible premium quarterly version of what we do.

Q8. Can we delve into the December 2018 box, and are you able to tell us what subscribers can expect in their Christmas edition?
Ooh now that will be a surprise! But we are looking to add in a couple of little extra bits outside of your usual skincare and make-up, but you’ll have to sign up and see.

Huge thanks to Tia Roqaa for taking the time to be part of a #TeamCoco #GBOGB Q&A session.

Search online for Roccabox to find out more about this wonderful subscription service.

In 2000 Ruth Dent was working in IT in the City.In 2001 she had her son and decided it was time for something different. Like most mothers, she wanted to spend time with her son, and commuting and working in London meant 12-hour days, which didn’t work for her, and she was fortunate to be able to stop working.In 2003 she took an Adult Education Evening Class in Abstract Art – and from there finished up in 2010 with a First Class Degree in Fine Art Printmaking. Proving that no matter your age or stage in life, you can start a new career any time.

Whilst experimenting with her style, she showed four paintings to a friend and his immediate response was that they would look great as (Hermès) silk scarves, right up our street!

From here, the seed was sown, although it would take her three years to actually get to the point of launching. She decided to manufacture in Britain (Macclesfield – the silk centre of England, complete with its own ‘Silk Road’), and to design and make her own packaging as she couldn’t find what I wanted, a perfectionist at heart. She also came up with ‘Travels with my scarf’, as that was a key part – taking the art off the wall, so it could be shared, travelled with and worn (we all have limited wall space), as well as creating memories with the collector.Effectively she would appropriate her own art, enlarge and transform it into digitally printed silk scarves. These would be gifts to oneself or a friend, presented gift-wrapped to create an experience which includes the story behind the artwork.

Ruth Dent is all about art, not fashion, and we love everything that she stands for. Here, we spent some time with her to find out more…

Looking back, is there anything you would do differently?

Yes – most of all would have been to listen to myself, my own intuition and to recognise that I was doing my own ‘thing’ which is different to that which others do.For me, the art comes first.I am an artist first, and the scarves appear after the art, and not every image will become a scarf.

So – there never was going to be a Spring-Summer or Autumn-Winter collection, and yet I tried and failed to get into retail ?! … I finally woke up in 2017 when I arrived at my studio, exhausted from attending various trade fairs and realised that I needed to stop and spend more time in the studio and move the scarves to being available exclusively online.

Now the scarves are available exclusively online, and I am very happy brightening up the world one scarf at a time.And it’s okay for me to decide when to launch new scarves, and for only a few artworks to become scarves.After all, these are treasures to cherish, wear and keep, to travel and make memories with.And after 5 years I’ve only just launched the 10th scarf …

The latest scarf has been released in an edition of 50, compared to editions of 100 for the two ‘centenary’ scarves (Voyage Out and Suffragette), and higher stated editions for the other 7 – although I haven’t printed the entire edition for them, but that was when I was trying to get into retail …..Going forward I shall release scarves in editions of 50 unless there is a centenary involved!

How do I want women to feel when they wear my scarves?

Elegant, inspired, elated; wrapped in creative energy.

Who is my dream customer?

My dream collector loves colour, art and stories.The art speaks to her (or to the person who is buying the scarf as a gift, and knows it will be liked) – I’ve seen this, and as the scarves are so colourful and bold they either ‘click’ with someone, or not.

She is independent and makes her own decisions.She wants to wear something that is different, expresses her personality and which won’t be on every street corner.Opening her wardrobe to see her collection of bold, brightly coloured scarves hanging on the door makes her smile.

She loves her scarf, wears it with pride, is admired and can share the story of her scarf and its travels.

She has joined me for the journey, receives my monthly newsletter and hits reply to reach out to me occasionally.

Talk us though a day in your life.

This question makes me think of the program: ‘What does an Artist do all day?”And the answer is: many more things than making art!

So – my permanent studio is in my house in Lot et Garonne, South-West France.I’ve had a studio there since 2009 and moved my permanent studio there in 2018 when I had to vacate my Rochester studio.Since then I’ve been going to and fro between Kent and France, and am gradually spending more time there.

Wherever I am I start the day writing my ‘morning pages’, with a coffee.

In France I head into the studio, working on the latest painting(s), taking a break for a walk before lunchtime to buy bread.After lunch I head back into the studio unless I am waiting for the paint to dry – this can takea couple of hours or a day – either way, I will keep going back to see how it’s drying, and that way I can intervene if I wish – adding more paint, or moving it around.

There’s the monthly newsletter to produce, which includes photographs of my work plus an exhibition I’ve seen or place I’ve been.I am in regular contact with my IT and Fulfilment providers, and others, such as my scarf Manufacturers, Photographer and Graphic Designer as the need arises.

Exhibitions require a lot of work: curating; packing, transporting, hanging, marketing, writing about the work, organising the PV, invigilating (on some occasions) and finally take-down, packing and transporting. It is always tremendously rewarding to see ones work exhibited and to be able to meet the visitors, and to chat, if they want to about the work.It’s the Spectator that completes the circle, when a piece of art ‘speaks’ to them.They bring themselves and all of their experiences, and mostly see something completely different in the work to that which I do – and that’s great, as I never want to be prescriptive.We all see differently.

‘I mix colours with emotions to help people celebrate life on earth’.

That’s also the case with the scarves, as collectors are drawn to the one that contains the colours and energy that best suit them.I have seen people’s faces light up when they have wrapped one of my scarves around them, and know from comments received that they feel special when wearing them.

New scarves have their own timeline – from when I select the images, decide upon the size and particular silk to creating the digital file for printing.Samples are produced from which I make a final choice.Then to decide how to wrap and how to include the story and my welcome message.In the last couple of years, my ideas have changed: the Suffragette Scarf comes wrapped in a print which contains the story on the reverse side, whilst Pathways Scarf comes with an original painting and a letter.Much of this work will be done whilst the scarves are being manufactured – which takes a couple of months.

Sometimes I like to live with and wear a scarf before releasing it.That happened with Pathways Scarf.I’d had it sampled along with three others, and wore it over the summer, when I found it so versatile and easy to wear!

I have started creating a weekly video, and batch making the videos when I am in the UK.When there I go to The PrintBlock to screen print – maybe packaging for scarves or to work on an idea, or a new set of prints.

I do like to get out for a walk each day, and several times a week, take a longer walk with my camera.

And of course there’s all the other stuff – emails, social media, accounts – and everyone has to deal with that, so it’s boring and we won’t mention it!!

Nature feeds my soul – can you tell us more about this?

Yes – this realisation arrived when I was writing about ‘Breathing Space’, the installation that brings the forest into the gallery, in response to my/the question: ‘Did cathedrals, temples, stupas and labyrinths originate in the forest?’

Rather than re-think and re-write, I’m going to include here the first part of the text that I read out at the Breathing Space / Espace d’inspiration openings (and which you can hear me reading in the ‘Arrival at Breathing Space’ video):

Breathing Space

Twirling around as sunlight and shadows play a game of hide and seek.

I move; they move.I am still; they still move.Attracting my attention, showing me lines, textures, shapes and colours.Fleeting and passing, these images freeze, to be replayed staccato like as a film in my memory.

Aware of my continually shifting viewpoint , I look forward, step forward and look ahead.Every step marking subtle changes.Familiar and fresh, I ramble along well worn paths where light and dark sparkle and glint amongst the trees.

Did cathedrals, temples, stupas and labyrinths originate in the forest?

I have experienced their grandeur, trod the same stones as countless others and felt at peace in the cool darkness, amongst soaring columns as shafts of light point out what is to be discovered in their partially illuminated interiors.

My spirit can soar in all of these places, and yet it is nature that consistently nourishes my soul.

The mesh of the tree trunks.Those from ages past extend their branches to secure their space, whilst thin, coppiced trunks sway and chatter in the breeze.Clashing and bending, creating an elongated grid which constantly shifts with the breeze.

It is never silent in the woods – there’s always the sound of oneself, and the birds, and perhaps most surprising is when the trees clap, their upper branches swinging into a frenzy as the wind whips through.Are they mocking or congratulatory, I wonder? There is rhythm and energy.And complaints from the birds as they are forced to move!

A groundswell of emotion – deep, primal.Of being, belonging and of forever … changing.A challenge to capture the moment, a glimpse, a feeling, an emotion.To explore what is seen and unseen. To acknowledge the healing found in nature, in colour and in truly seeing and being.Alive.

Between the trees light abounds, making dust visible as it swirls around.These folds with their soft edges are invitations to look deeper; to go further.Then suddenly a threshold has been crossed and one is grounded and surrounded and in the midst of a clearing.

What will you find?

What lies within?

Is nature hiding?

What is nature hiding?

… That’s the end of that part of the text, and I am happy to answer any supplementary questions you may have.

What does self-care mean to me?

Balance … recognising the need to slow down, speed up, exercise, take a rest, see my homeopath … I’m still learning to listen to myself and my body.To go with the flow and with the rhythms of the seasons and the moon: time to have ideas; time to push forward; time to let things go; time to rest – to let things rise/marinade.

That all sounds great, and I am a work in progress.I think there’s a difference between challenging oneself and pushing, putting oneself under pressure.I know that I both challenge and pressure myself, and at least I am now able to recognise when I’m pushing myself too much, and to step back, review and reconsider what I’m doing and why.That’s where the ‘morning pages’ really help (see Julia Cameron’s The Artist’s Way), as the idea is to simply write and let whatever wants to be said to come out and onto the page.Sometimes a subject arrives before I sit down, other times I start writing and questions, ideas come, and then possibly some answers!And not always …

Tell us your favourite motivational quote …

‘Look back at what you have done, then look forward and consider what you could achieve’Dame Elizabeth Esteve-Coll

I met Dame Elizabeth Esteve-Coll when she was Director of the V&A Museum – which also happens to be my favourite museum.

What do I do for inspiration when Im lacking creativity?

  • Go for a walk – likely with my camera, so the walk lasts longer because I will download the photos and they may lead me to something else.
  • Go and see and exhibition – looking at the work of other artists usually generates a desire to get creative oneself.
  • Pick up some materials and play around with marks, shapes and colours – just for fun.
  • Leaf through a book about a favourite artist

Our readers love to travel, what destination is top of your bucket list?

It’s a journey and a destination …. and of course, there’s a story!

So – I haven’t yet visited New York (really … !?).However, I have visited the US as I have cousins in Denver.(My Mum’s twin sister and her family emigrated there many years ago).As a family we (Mum, Dad and my sister) made two trips to Denver, and went on a road trip each time.During these two trips we visited ten of the western States.

Roll back time, and many moons before we would go to the States, I remember my Grandma making several visits and travelling transatlantic on the QE2.I still have a postcard she sent me from New York.

So – top of my bucket list is to travel to New York on the Queen Mary; to experience the distance, the sea, the stars.To go on a voyage and to arrive in New York harbour and to float past the Statue of Liberty, as thousands of others have done so, and then to experience New York – with visits to MOMA, MET, the Guggenheim, etc.

What does 2020 hold for you?

Plenty of studio time as I have three areas of work that have their origin in Breathing Space:

  • ‘The Day the Sky Shattered and Flew Away’ – a continuing series of paintings on canvas and on paper.Plus an Artistic and Musical Performance at the Monflanquin Festival of Arts and Heritage, 20-21 June, where I will have an outside space, and paint on canvas and paper, whilst Alec Dent creates a soundscape with synthesizers.
  • ‘An Invitation to Breathe and Dance with Life’ is a new piece of work which will see me work on a much smaller scale than usual.I shall be painting a number of 10 x 15cm ‘invitations’, which will be used to raise money for Running Space. (more info about the charity below)*.
  • Plus I have an idea for an Artist book, related to the Tree Alphabet

In addition:

  • Abstract Art Scarves – there will be one or two more scarves this year.
  • Art Videos – I have started making and releasing a weekly video about my art, what inspires me, and how/what I see.These include a soundtrack, written by Alec Dent (my son).
  • I am going to be turning my garage into a Print Studio.

*Charity Info: Running Space

I am collaborating with Running Space on ‘An Invitation to Breathe and Dance with Life’, as I want to do something to help / help raise awareness, after one of my son’s friends died by suicide last year.The project is still being defined, and I’m not able to give out any more information than that given above.I’m feeling under pressure (yes – from myself) and have decided not to specify how many invitations (postcards) will be painted.We also want to get our act together and sort out when, where and how to launch the project; our ideas are fluid and we realise we need to communicate what we’re doing well in advance of the launch.That’s why I would like to mention it, and then there will be more information as we make decisions and put plans into action, on my website.I realise that House of Coco focuses on positive, uplifting articles – and it’s great to read them.I often stay away from the ‘News’, and my work is celebratory, as, quite frankly, there’s more than enough angst in the world.

Where can people find out more?

Website: plus signup to receive my monthly newsletter

Instagram

YouTube

LinkedIn

Friends first, business partners second. Rach and Jude are the co-founders behind Bubble and Pop, a brand that offers baby changing bags for women that love to have a bit of colour in their lives.

Here, we find out more about how they balance their business and personal lives, plans for the future and more…

Tell us about the journey that lead to you launching Bubble and Pop…
Jude:
When I was pregnant with my second baby, I decided to treat myself to a new baby bag as my first one had ripped after just a few months. I really love bright colours, so I wanted something vibrant, fun, spacious and a little bit different. I also wanted a bag that would help me stay organised as I am ridiculously scatty and forgetful. After an hour or so of trawling through a lot of grey, navy, baby pink and polka dots I gave up my search as I just wasn’t getting excited about any of them.

The next day (I’m a fast mover!) I decided that if I couldn’t find a bag I really loved, I would just design my own! I talked it through with my husband and he came up with the idea of creating a pocket labelling system, so I would always know just by glancing in the bag if I had all the essentials. This was so important for me. Getting a baby out the door can be such a faff and I was always getting flustered and forgetting the basics like nappies and wipes. I knew that being able to set my bag up in a way that suited me and having a visual cue of all the things I needed would really help me. It’s all about the system!

I put together a quick business plan, emailed it to Rach and asked her if she would come on board as the organised half of the enterprise. Thankfully, she said yes!

Rach and Jude, you both founded this company together along with being best friends and cousins. How do you balance your relationship so that everything isn’t just about work?
Having fun is something Rach and I do very well, and we have had some hilarious adventures over the years! When we do see each other in person, we make sure that there’s time set aside to talk business and then it’s back to hanging out and catching up. Rach lives in the Caribbean and I live in Brighton so we don’t get to see each other as much as we would like anymore. However, we did have a fantastic trip to New York for Rach’s birthday last year and after chatting about our latest design for about twenty minutes we got down to the serious business of shopping, eating gigantic bagels for breakfast and enjoying that very special New York vibe. Rach lived there for 18 months so she knows all the great little spots for lunch and dinner that I would never have discovered. We’ve always been good travel buddies, which is why I had a feeling we’d make a great business team.

You sound like you balance each other out perfectly. Have there been any disagreements since launching the brand and if so, how did you handle those?
I can honestly say, we haven’t had any so far! We have very similar sensibilities when it comes to design so creating our first collection really was a joyful experience. Rach has a great eye for detail and she’s also very practical, so when I get carried away with the novelty of an idea, she’ll be the one to say ‘yes, but Ju, who would actually use that?!’

Tell us about the Ollie and Ella collection, where did the idea come from?
There were two things we wanted to do with our first collection. The first was create a bag that was spacious, practical and functional that really helped you stay organised when you were out and about with baby. There’s nothing worse than being caught out by a poop emergency (all mums and dads will know the kind we mean) and not having everything you need to hand immediately! With our pocket labelling system and easy access zips, you can get to the essentials like wipes, nappies and clean clothes with minimum faff.

The second thing we wanted to do was create a collection that was bright and vibrant with lots of colour and patterns that were a little bit different. As a parent you spend a LOT of time with your baby bag, so you really have to love it. Our designs won’t be for everyone, but so far, the people who love them really do love them!

When you were students, you traveled a lot. Where was your favourite trip and why?
Oh, there have been a lot of fun trips! Our first big trip together was to Australia in 2000, the year that Sydney hosted the Olympics. We had such an amazing time both in Sydney and backpacking down the East Coast from Queensland. We went diving on the Great Barrier Reef, trekking through rainforests, drank a lot of cheap beer and narrowly escaped an encounter with a saltwater crocodile. Long story short – we were down on the beach one evening drinking wine from plastic cups and wondering why the beach was so deserted on such a gorgeous evening. We discovered the next day that it had been evacuated as a saltie had been seen roaming about on the sand hunting for his next meal. We were totally oblivious!

Looking back since founding the company, is there anything you would do differently?
No. I think you have to be incredibly brave and a little bit nuts to start your own business and I have such admiration for anyone who takes the leap of faith to do it. Mistakes are part and parcel of the process and you just have to ride them out and learn from them. ‘Chalk it up to experience’ is a phrase we have used quite a lot in the last couple of years. Along with, ‘we’ll get there!’

Your baby bags are really unique and help women showcase their personalities. Do you plan on expanding the range in the future?
Yes, absolutely. We have big plans for lots more collections for both parents and children. Another baby changing bag is on the cards – most likely a rucksack design for the next collection – and we’d love to design a range of travel bags as well. We both live away from home and travel a lot with our children to see Granny and Grandad, so we know how important it is for little people to have luggage they can manage and for mum and dad to have a bag that works for the aeroplane.

In 2020, what are your plans for the brand?
Our big focus for 2020 is to start getting into independent boutiques and expand into markets outside the UK. We’ve had such lovely feedback from all our customers so far, which has given us a great confidence boost and the courage to start thinking bigger. It’s very early days still but we really want as many people as possible to discover our bags.

For anyone looking to launch their own business, what advice would you offer?
Firstly, and most importantly, you have to absolutely love your idea and your product. As in, really love it. We’ve had days and weeks where it has felt like pushing a boulder up a hill but we knew we had a great product that people would love and we have both thoroughly enjoyed the process of designing it. That kept us going on the ‘what were we thinking?’ days!

Don’t do it on your own! Having someone to pick you up on the down days and bounce ideas off is so important. It also helps to keep you accountable and on track with everything. Even if you don’t want to work with a business partner, I’d recommend hiring a mentor to help you get clear on your strategy and cheer you on when the going gets tough.

Don’t make any decisions when you’re tired or emotional! Come back to it the next morning with a fresh head.

Don’t work yourself to the bone. Yes, building a business requires hard work, grit and determination, but there’s no point having an awesome business if you’re too tired or burnt out to enjoy it. Rest, go at a pace that works for you and trust the process.

Celebrate all the little wins. This one is so important. The to-do list is never ending and it’s all too easy to focus on the things you haven’t done or achieved yet. Take every lovely review or piece of feedback, every tagged Instagram post, and every single sale as proof that you’re doing great and moving in the right direction.

Both mothers, wives and entrepreneurs. How do you create a work / life balance?
This is definitely tough in the early stages of building a business as there is always something you feel you should be doing. Boundaries are so important though, and remembering that when you’re with the kids, you’re Mummy not business woman, and when you’re with your partner, you’re Jude or Rach – the person they fell in love with when sleep was plentiful and leaving the house wasn’t a military operation!

Our readers love to travel, what destination is at the top of your bucket list?
Jude: South Africa for the wildlife and the wine!

Rach: So many places on my bucket list but for 2020 we’re hoping to do some Greek island hopping for a couple of weeks.

Tell us your favourite quote to read when you are lacking motivation…
‘Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?’

I love this Mary Oliver poem. Life is so short, so precious and such an incredible gift. Give it everything!

Find out more about Bubble and Pop…

You’ll find us at www.bubbleandpop.co.uk and on Instagram @bubbleandpopUK

There’s a special kind of anguish when you’ve worked so hard for one path – perhaps a childhood dream – and you realise that it’s just not the one for you. However, in these times of turmoil and disappointment, incredible strengths can become apparent ; that lead you to new paths and a new, perhaps truer, version of yourself.

Today’s interview with Ellie, founder of NITARA might have you itching to hatch your own escape plan. Take that as our disclaimer!

HOC: Hi Ellie, great to meet you! Tell us about your journey to being an entrepreneur?

Ellie: I always wanted to have my own business. When I was a child, I always wanted to be a fashion designer. I have a really vivid memory of drawing up interior designs for my own clothing shop one day (It was called ‘Ellie’s’ and it was in Paris, obviously – haha!); that was all I ever really wanted.

Long story short: I did end up doing a Fashion design degree, after that I worked in the industry for a brand I love and thought that would be enough…but it wasn’t. Within four months of working there I realised that I’m wasn’t really cut out for working for someone else! It wasn’t too long after that I left that job and started teaching yoga full time and the first plans for NITARA were born.

HOC: Tell us about your business, NITARA?

Ellie: NITARA was the brainchild of being a busy yoga teacher, living in activewear and being unable to find clothing that really aligned with the yogic way of life. I was on an endless search for activewear that was modern and cool, something different to ‘black on black’, but that was sustainably an ethically made…at the time I couldn’t find anything, so I decided to made my own!

As for the name, NITARA is a sanskrit word which means “to be grounded/deeply rooted”. It’s actually the spiritual name I was given at the end of my yoga teacher training on my first trip to India.

HOC: Tell us about the ethical side of your business?

Ellie: I’ve felt really connected to the ethical side of fashion for a long time, actually since my mum took me to a talk by Katherine Hamnett at the V&A when I was about 16/17. After uni, when I became more serious about yoga and the philosophy thats behind it, I started applying yogic principles into my life away from the yoga mat. The first connection I made was, again, to my clothing. how I expressed myself and what I was choosing to spend my money on.

When I decided to take the leap and launch NITARA, there was no question about my approach. Everything I put out into the world has to be 100% authentic reflection of how I live my life and the values I uphold. I often refer to it as ‘yoga first, business second’ because that’s just how my day pans out: first I do the yoga, then I do the things…and I try to make whatever I’ve learned on my yoga mat filter down into every action I make throughout the day.

The earth has a MAJOR overflow problem right now in terms of waste – as we should all be aware of by now! So it’s my strong belief that anyone looking to bring a new product into the world, should make it their mission to clear some of that waste away in order to make room for the new…which is why our collection is made from recycled plastic bottles, of course!

HOC: Couldn’t agree more. I love how you’ve combined your passions and creativity in your current business / life. How did all these little career swerves come about?

Ellie: Fashion was always my big dream. Then in my last year of my fashion degree, the idea to do my yoga teacher training kinda sprung into my head out of nowhere…It became a thought that would pop back into my head all the time, and if something haunts me like that, I just have to follow it!

So I travelled to India and completed my training right after I graduated, with no real intent on teaching in the end, I just did it to get that thought out of my system and for the sake of learning more…but I left my training with a burning desire to share everything I’d learnt.

After that came the stint working in the fashion industry. During my time there I taught yoga on the side. It didn’t take long to realise that I felt much more at home in the yoga studio than I did at work; which is why I decided to leave and teach yoga full time.

That sparked many more trips to India to continue my learning and to develop my practice. On my second trip I stumbled onto a massage course – can you see a pattern here? haha! Anyway, it turns out I’m quite good at massage (who knew?!) and since then I’ve massaged in almost every 5* spa and hotel in London, in a private home in the Seychelles and worked with celebrities and royal families…all at the same time as teaching yoga, of course.

In the background of all of that, I started working on NITARA. It took me 4 years to actually launch it, which is what happens when you try to spin too many plates at once I guess!

I did the Prince’s Trust Young Enterprise programme, I secured funding from them, developed the concept and products…and finally launched in April 2018. Now, I guess I’ve gone pretty much full circle! I run NITARA most of the time, I still teach yoga (and always, always will!) and I massage sometimes, but no where near as much as I have done in the last few years.

HOC: I feel like you are the right person to ask this to! Where does your drive come from?

Ellie: I feel like it’s a cliche entrepreneur thing to say, but without a ‘Why?’ you can’t drive anything.

So, my drive comes from creating a brand that’s an honest representation of the way I live, the kind of businesses I want to see and the world I want to live in. I’ve never understood why we have ‘ethical fashion’ or ‘non-ethical fashion’ , ‘conscious living’ and ‘unconscious living’… you know? That makes zero sense!

I think drive comes from your ‘why?’ ; being a reason bigger than yourself, your purpose has to bring about some new culture, idea or to change peoples lives in some way. That’s where real fire comes from. If my ‘why?’ was just to make some cool yoga pants, it would never have come into fruition.

My recommendation for keeping focus is to have some kind of vision or goal that you’re aiming for. You should have a 5/10 year vision and constantly ask yourself if what you’re doing is in alignment with that. That vision can be quite fluid, it can change slightly over time but it always has to align with your ‘why’ and your deeper message behind your business.

HOC: That’s very true. Without true passion you won’t find the energy to push your business forwards. Let’s go back a bit, for our entrepreneurial readers, what advice do you have for them to start their own thing?

Ellie: In my mind: launch fast and grow with feedback. I know I didn’t do that; 4 years is a long time to launch something! But if I could do it all again, I’d stop talking about it and just launch the thing as soon as I could. Your first products will never be perfect, so just launch with what you have and grow from there.

HOC: What personal achievement of yours means the most to you and why?

Ellie: Thats a hard one! I’ve had a crazy career so far and my life has taken loads of unexpected twist and turns, I’ve achieved a hell of a lot in quite a short space of time and I’m super proud of that.

But the achievement that means the most to me is probably the relationships I’ve managed to keep or nurture through all of that. You know how a lot of people say that: when they launched their business, tried to become artist or make it in music, that the people around them weren’t so supportive, they were told that it would fail or that they should probably get a “real job” well, nobody has ever said anything like that to me – not even once!

My family and friends are everything to me, I’m still best friends with people I met when I was 11 years old and through yoga I have met literally the most inspiring people you’d ever care to cross paths with. It would have been really easy to lose connection when we were half way across the world from each other, having completely different experiences for months at a time, but somehow that hasn’t really happened.

Because of that support network I’ve never really felt like I needed to prove anything to anyone, be anything other than myself or that anything was really that impossible. So every idea I’ve had or turn I’ve taken has just been an authentic expression of whatever I was really feeling intuitively drawn to at the time, because what ever hair-brained idea I had was greeted without question; just complete support.

That means everything and I’m fully aware of how incredibly rare that is! I don’t know if that counts as an achievement in the normal sense of the word, but it does mean a lot to me.

HOC: Where do you get your inspiration from?

Ellie: I feel like most designers have the same answer for this: Everywhere! I’m such a magpie! Part of a design could come from my travels but then I could get a colour palette idea from some artwork, a photo on Instagram/ Pinterest, a book, piece of graffiti, a flower in a garden or a student that walks into my yoga class with a cool attitude that I want to encapsulate somehow. Inspiration is everywhere, you just have to keep your eyes open!

Inspiration for the shapes of our clothes are easier to come by because I usually find those while I’m practicing yoga or while I’m teaching. I want our pieces to be cool to look at, but also functionally do their job. I want your outfit to be the last thing on your mind while you move! Those ideas usually come when I’m on my yoga mat or working out in something that’s perhaps not doing its job so well, so I dissect why it’s not and how I can make something better!

HOC: Finally, If you ever have a creative block / funk; how do you get yourself out of it?

Ellie: Most of the time, I get outside. I grab a coffee and walk in nature, or as much nature as I can find in London!

Or I move: I’ll do a 15min yoga session or some other kind of work out. This is a bit random, but I’ve found a quick 8 minute ab workout on youtube works well when I’m really lacking motivation! I get back into my body and out of my head, focus on something else for a bit and then I’m usually good to go!

To follow Ellie’s business head over to Nitara-London.com

Follow @Nitara_London

All photography Sam Lindley

House of Coco chatted with fashion designer Elizabeth-Yemi Akingbade about her fashion brand Yemzi, the importance of bootstrapping and pursuing your dreams. (Photo credit: ©www.jamesperrin.com 2016)

HOC: Hey Elizabeth, tell us about Yemzi and where we can find your products?

EA: Hello House Of Coco! All Yemzi pieces are made in London with Africa inspired hand-illustrated digitally printed premium silk. The brand is stocked in the GoodPlace boutique in Chelsea and my ultimate dream is to be stocked in similar boutiques worldwide Alara (Lagos), Browns (London), Collette (Paris). In Nigeria they respect good quality European design and I plan to approach stockists there over the next season or two. Until recently I have been selling my Black Label, a more affordable segment of the brand, on ASOS Marketplace but I’ve made the decision to solely focus on my high-end items in the Gold Label.

I’ve been approached to showcase my work at a number of small fashion and trade shows but my target is on the British Fashion Council’s official London Fashion Week schedule. I hosted my own fashion show last year on Dalston Roof Park, which was great and I’m planning another for this September in a World War 2 bunker! It’s all about stepping stones and building up; nothing happens overnight.

HOC: How did you come to running your own brand?

EA: After completing my undergrad degree in Surface Design at London College of Communication I took some short courses in Garment Construction, Bespoke Tailoring, and Pattern Cutting. I’m currently studying MA African Studies at SOAS which also informs my creative direction. I started working with sustainable printed t-shirts after I graduated in 2013 and had them stocked in one of the top 3 African boutiques.

From my presence in this store a fashion talent scout and strategist invited to show in Paris at Labo Ethnik. I really didn’t want to be going to Paris with just t-shirts so I applied my prints to cut and sewn styles. My first success was my silk kimonos, they sold so well and propelled me to create my first all silk 13 look ready-to-wear collection, ‘Straight Out Of The City Via The Motherland’ (SS16). My work explores British-Nigerian identity, fusing the fast pace of the city with the chilled vibe of the sea-side and often touches on politics as well as culture. I’m like Yinka Shonibare’s love-child with Vivienne Westwood.

HOC: Do you feel you get to be creative with your brand, is that one of your reasons for running this business?

EA: Absolutely! I’ve just started working on my new collection and I’ve been sketching and painting loads. In fact, I need to focus more on the numbers but my business is proof that you can carve a career doing exactly what you love. At the moment I’m so excited about Spring/Summer 17 (SS17), the Nigerian influence is stronger this season. After reading ‘Yoruba Photography: How the Yoruba See Themselves’ by Stephen F. Sprague for class ‘Ibeji’ (Yoruba twins) are a theme within the collection. Nigerians are most likely to have twins and I plan to play on this in the lookbook. The fashion prints that I’m working on are reminiscent of scarification and I’d love to book a stunning Nigerian model called Paula who has tribal markings on her stomach.

HOC: In the fashion industry we feel that it’s important who you know and where you are seen? How do you find the right people and places?

EA: It is important to sustain relationships and seek valuable connections. If you keep in touch with your fashion network you’ll hear about industry news, events and parties.

I also have a few mentors that I’ve met in various places. There’s a coach called Kofi who I met through Bootstrap company’s enterprise bootcamp, who I often go to as a sounding board. I always keep him in the loop and ask for his advice. I recently went to the The StartUp Kitchen to meet with well-established entrepreneurs who are willing to give gidance. These types of events are great forums to talk about new ideas and get your feedback from experts in other industries. We all have different approaches to business; for instance I met a lady who was all about picking up the phone, chasing for sales and making money. It’s different from how I operate but it’s interesting to see a different perspective. You can learn a lot from other people’s experiences and take aspects to shape your direction.

HOC: There’s a lot of work that goes into having your own fashion brand and you work and study alongside! How do you manage it all?

EA: My savings have given my business life and I do work when I can to top it up. I’m lucky to have a committed intern, Krezsend, who comes to the Yemzi HQ in Dalston to help out with whatever is on the agenda.

For blogger outreach I was working with a friend with a PR company but it is all in-house again. Outside of contacting bloggers I reach out to photographers, models and musicians who may want to collaborate. A big part of the search is for the ‘Yemzi Girl’; the girl that embodies my brand and can influence others on social media. For instance, I connected with a model from NYC who I had been fangirling for a minute and sent her a ‘Spbra’ bralet which she showcased on her Instagram.

I’m not shy to get exposure. Sadiq Khan visited my studio the other month and he said he was heading to Ben TV next and would shout me out. I held him to it and sure enough he co-signed me on international television. I’m all over my google analytics so I know what generates traffic to Yemzi.com so I always keep and eye on activity and plan accordingly.

HOC: You mention the Yemzi girl influencer, tell us more about her and how you find her?

EA: As I mentioned earlier I do a lot of tracking through analytics, I find the girls that have influence through looking at their follower to interaction ratio, who are the kinds of people who follow them and like their content. Yemzi girls have natural hairstyles, they tend to be creative and positive. I’ve got a #GirlBoss tip for you actually, check out Talia Wolf (Taliagw) and Mark Suster (msuster) on snapchat for snapstorms where they gives quick strategies on how to get more engagement online and other killer marketing and business tips.

HOC: So it sounds like social media is incredibly important to Yemzi at the moment?

EA: Absolutely, although I have had some not so great experiences. The other month a photographer was indirectly trashing me on twitter to his few thousand following. It was really unfair as I respectfully approached him about a shoot with an influencer (a beautiful model with 45k followers and 3k likes per post) but because there was no budget he was airing our direct message conversation in his public timeline rather than politely declining. I don’t care though, we all have to start somewhere and the most successful hustle hard to get things popping. If in 2016 Kanye West can ask for a billion dollars for his ideas then I can ask for a TFP (time for print) photoshoot from a local photographer!

The fashion industry in London is small, you really have to be aware of this.

I successfully approached a fashion photography graduate a few years ago via Twitter, we’ve done some amazing (unpaid and paid) collaborations, and she currently works at Net-A-Porter. The creative team are an important part of any shoot and the photographer needs to be as excited about your work as you otherwise the passion won’t be translated to the consumers.

HOC: You’re achieving so much, is there anything you wish you could spend more time and energy on?

EA: Visiting the spa? Jokes aside, networking more, my schedule does not priorities it. It’s on my list of activities to make regular but I have very little spare time. I need to just dedicate some time to finding events through friends, eventbrite and twitter and go. You can make some amazing contacts and even if you just walk away from an event with one decent contact it’s worthwhile.

Thank you Elizabeth for a whirlwind tour of your world and we cannot wait for your new SS17 collection. If you, dear reader, like what you’ve read do check out Yemzi. This #TeamCoco writer can vouch for how awesome they are, our hubby wants to nick our unisex green/blue print silk sweater!

Lorna Veale is the founder of No Secrets Beauty, a brand that was born out of frustration with the beauty industry. In 2010, her GP suggested that she consult a private doctor who specialised in complementary and holistic medicine. The results were life-changing.

It was this personal experience that inspired her to launch her brand and spread the word to the masses that no hidden nasties in your skincare products was the way to go.

Here, she tells us more about a day in her life, her plans for the future and more…

You went through a very personal experience which lead you to launching the company. Through that you must have helped a lot of other women overcome similar issues from using your products. What has been your biggest success story to date?

I would say being here at all.The journey from visualising your brand and products to then holding them in your hand, seeing them on a shelf for sale and, of course, actually using them, is a significant achievement in itself. We were also thrilled to receive a Beauty Shortlist Editor’s Choice Award for our Hand Cleanser and to have been shortlisted for our Shower Creams in the Free From Skincare Awards in 2019.

You’re passionate about honesty in beauty, why is this important to you?

When I was advised by my Dr to remove a long list of ingredients from my world, I was faced with the task of self-education and intense label reading.I discovered that claims on the front of bottles, or within advertising campaigns, are not always necessarily backed up by what is in the product.This lack of clarity really niggled me.It also became clear that if e.g. a shower gel didn’t include Phenoxyethanol, it did not mean that you could be confident that other items in a range didn’t.It is easy to read a food label and recognise E-numbers, but cosmetics products have to legally be labelled using the INCI system whereby Latin and chemical names are used.This makes it incredibly difficult for consumers to make decisions.

Once you have been advised to avoid ingredients that can disrupt your hormones, significantly dry out your skin, deplete your immune system etc… it is hard to turn back.It is also hard that the majority of items in any beauty hall, or chemist, contain these ingredients and we are all oblivious to these facts, drawn in by amazing synthetic fragrances and perhaps unable to think that large organisations could be filling bottles with cheap ingredients.

You can often taste the difference when eating a more expensive food item.However, it seems the same isn’t true in beauty.Whether something costs £1 or £50 is not always an indicator that kinder, more wholesome, ingredients areused.

Talk us through an average day in your life…

My husband and I both principally work from home.We have school age children, so the day begins with sorting them out and the school run.We are fortunate to live on the edge of a town, but in a converted agricultural barn and surrounded by farmland, so every day I try and take a walk for about 30mins – often while on the phone or ideally listening to audio books, which I love. I spend a lot of time on emails, social media and pulling together all the aspects of product formulation, packaging design and photography.Having started this business in 2018, the e-commerce route to market was our chosen place to start.Therefore we are constantly learning about e-marketing and how to find our customers.

If I have time in the evenings, I try to relax watching Monty Don or a good crime drama!

Who is your ideal customer?

Our customer wants to use something that looks, feels and smells amazing but most importantly has no hidden nasties.

How do you want people to feel when they use your products?

Life is so busy, that I sometimes feel the shower or bath is the only place where you can get five minutes to yourself.We use the maximum amount of essential oils permissible in our products, so that the smell is gorgeous, but more importantly, one can benefit from the powerful healing properties and can support ones emotional balance.I hope that people can really breathe in the oils that nature gives us and switch off; perhaps be transported to a favourite holiday destination and leave their bathroom ready for the day or for a wonderful night’s sleep.

Are you planning on extending the range in future, if so, how?

We have one new product that will be available soon on our website. It’s a delicious Body Jelly – this is our take on Body Oil, except we’ve set it with sugar, like a jam, so that the bottle doesn’t end up constantly sticky. Suitable for hands and body, it melts into a therapeutic oil as you massage it in and, of course, smells glorious.

We have a couple of other things up our sleeve, but don’t want to say too much at this stage, except they are very exciting and we will launch those via our newsletter!

How much does social media play a role in your business?

Not having our own retail premises, we approach choosing images to share on social media as you would think about dressing a window, or pulling together a little display for a shelf. We use social media to talk about who we are and what we do. To share things that inspire us, things we love and are important to us.

Looking back since launching the brand, is there anything you would do differently?

With hindsight, we wouldn’t have placed our first products in plastic packaging.We chose – what we felt – was the best option at the time which was recyclable plastic – but of course now we all know differently.

Our readers love to travel, what destination is at the top of your bucket list?

This year we are going to India and joining an organised tour around Rajasthan, before going to Goa for some beach time.I had wanted to go to India years ago and have various travel guides that I’ve collected over the years in preparation for this trip.

What are your plans for the brand in 2020?

We are really excited about extending our range, hopefully introducing a more masculine scent too, and devising ways to encourage people to give No Secrets a try.Anyone who smells our products, says ‘wow, that smells like a spa’, but we realise it is difficult for people to make such a decision on-line without having that sensory experience.

Tell us your favourite quote to read when you are lacking inspiration…

All truth passes through three stages: first it is ridiculed, second it is violently opposed, and third it is accepted as self-evident.
Arthur Schopenhauer
19th Century Philosopher

This quote inspires you to keep carrying on and trying to get the message out there.

We all want quiet. We all want beauty … We all need space.Unless we have it, we cannot reach that sense of quiet in which whispers of better things come to us gently.
Octavia Hill, 1883, Co-founder of the National Trust

This quote is really helpful when you are feeling overwhelmed by various things.

For any one aspiring to launch a company in the beauty industry, what advice would you offer?

Patience and perseverance. I hadn’t appreciated the time it takes to develop, test and produce a range.I think it’s great to learn from other inspiring women.From Jacqueline Gold’s appearance on Desert Island Discs, I took the phrase ‘courage comes before confidence’.

Where can people find out more?

www.nosecretsbeauty.com

Instagram: @nosecrets_beauty

Facebook: @NoSecretsBeauty

Here at House of Coco, travel is in our DNA, we do it on the daily and can often be found jetting from hot destination to another in a heart beat. As much as we try and remember the important things, like sun screen, we can somethings get waylaid with cocktails and parties to remember to look after our skin. Cue Sunsibility, the brand that has UV protection built in to it’s clothes to protect you even when you forget.

Founded by Angeli Jackson, her journey has been filled with rejection but it has spurred her on even more to make a success of her brand, and that she has. Here, she tells us more about the brand and her plans for the future…

Tell us about the journey that lead to you launching Sunsibility…

I was studying a BA(Hons) Product Development for the Fashion Industries at The London College of Fashion and wanted to create a functional and practical range for my final collection.The initial idea was a ladieswear collection for Lupus patients (65% of Lupus patients are sun sensitive ).This has now evolved into a one stop shop for UV protection including men’s and childrenswear but also sunsuits, sun creams and window films for general everyday protection.LCF wouldn’t support me as they didn’t think it was commercially viable which made me even more determined.I worked so hard and when I did graduate, the college were there supporting the project as it was a successful idea.The following year I gained a start up loan from The Princes Trust and began to turn the dream into a reality.

What is the importance of UV protection?

UV Protection is a MUST HAVE.A very large proportion of our customers are sensitive for various medical reasons so UV protection is essential and preparation is key, not getting caught out on those warmer days.Handy accessories can make all the difference.A wrap, sunglasses, hat and a compact umbrella are ideal products to keep to hand.All our clothing is made to order and provide a UPF50+ factor preventing 97.5% of UVA & UVB rays.With clothing, customers do not have to worry about any absorption of any ingredients into the skin but it is very important to apply sunscreen to those areas exposed regularly.

We have a range of timeless classics, gorgeous beach and resort wear ( many multifunctional ), that can take you day into night and keep you safe from the sun.Health is Wealth, so invest in yourself and in your skin whether it’s for protection, against skin cancer ( rates just continue to keep rising ), anti ageing or vanity don’t let it be too little too late. It’s good to be outdoors and needs to be encouraged, we all need vitamin D it’s essential for good bone health and just makes us FEEL GOOD it’s about getting a good balance.

How does the process work when making new designs?

New designs usually come from a purpose or a request it is vital we listen to our customers, their needs and desires.However, I always have a pen and paper handy as new ideas may come to me at any time, especially on holiday as you are watching people at leisure and hopefully protecting their skin or not, as is often the case.Our products are about making sun protection easy and hassle free but it is imperative to look and feel great.We only ever work with our specialist Italian fabric which is a stretch fabric but I don’t really use it in a fitted way, a lot of our designs are loosely cut unless stated otherwise.The fabric is just brilliant and I really did search worldwide for it.It’s cool to wear, breathable, machine washable and quick drying. These fabulous features contribute to any new ideas as its so travel friendly and virtually crease free.I will usually sketch something up and then send it to our pattern cutter.A sample is then made up on site and together the tailors and I will tweak how we’d like it.Once happy we will then put it into production and photograph it as soon as possible.

Looking back, is there anything you would do differently?

I don’t believe there was any other way.I’ve always given it my all but certainly for the first six years, I had 3 jobs whilst trying to build the company.You do what is necessary.I am a great believer in everything happens for a reason. Although one thing I would have liked along my journey and even now would be a mentor.

What is your mission?

To provide quality stylish sun protection and make it easy to wear for all whatever age, genre and wherever you are in the world.UV Protection is for everyone but can also be life changing for those who are sun sensitive.Being highly regarded in the industry is very important and we have some of the best medical and sun protection specialists in the world recommending our products.That to me already means we have done as we set out to do but need to let more people know we are around.

In five years time, where do you hope to see the brand?

Into the new decade with a great focus and plans.We sell direct to the consumer so just expanding our awareness internationally is a focus for the next five years.I have some interesting developments I’m working on but am keeping those close for the time being but do keep in touch with SunSibility so we can update you on new products and services.I am always aiming to bring the best & innovative concepts to our collections.

Talk us through an average day in your life…

I wake up and feel thankful for the health of myself and all those around me this isn’t a ritual but a thought at the beginning of the day along with my two must have milky coffees ( which my husband makes ) to kick start my morning.I also do try and be grateful for all I have & enjoy life !

I have two gorgeous girls, Atalya 9 & Elysia 2 so the school run is first thing and then either onto nursery or my parents who are brilliant and presently help me 3 x a week.They have always been a massive support & strength for me.My working hours are 10 – 5 so once in the office there is a never ending list.My office is attached to the house but completely separate so I go to work like anyone else and come home at the end of the day.Every day is different there is always so much to do.I do wish there were more hours in the day, more days in the month, and more months in the year – There never seems to be enough time !!

What quote do you like to read when you are lacking motivation…

“You can do anything you want to when you put your mind to it – and there is no such word as No !”This is up on my office wall and something I try and teach my children too.

Our readers love to travel, what destination is at the top of your Bucketlist?

Oooh what isn’t ?I love to travel.My promise is to show the children as much of the world as I possibly can.The world is such an amazing place and so inspiring.I used to do a lot of my design work on the plane prior to having kids – that’s virtually impossible to even think about now I don’t get a very time free flight these days !Every time I see / read about somewhere I’d like to visit I put it in my travel box and tick the places off as I go.Long flights presently aren’t ideal but Aruba Cuba and Mexico are on my list for about 10 years time. In the meantime I’d love to explore more of the Greek islands and Italy over the next decade but also more of England too.I live and breathe my holidays I could be in Barbados, I could be in Bognor it’s all about quality time with those you love & creating memories.

How much has social media played a part in your business?

Up to now to be honest very little but now we are present and consistent over several platforms the future is exciting.It is a very powerful tool.It’s a great and speedy way to communicate with our clients.

For anyone thinking about launching a brand, what advice would you give?

A belief in what you do has to be at the forefront of your business and the passion behind it because when things do get tough that is what will always keep you going.You have to enjoy what you do.Everything else is secondary.

What’s the best piece of advice anyone has ever given you?

This sounds crazy but is the absolute truth.I read a book called Flossie Teacake when I was a kid and she puts on a fur coat and turns round three times in the mirror – she can be anything she wants to be !…and honestly, that’s all I ever needed to know and just to believe in myself and what we do!

Visit us at : sunsibility.co.uk

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Telephone us :+44 (0)208 224 2299

Contact me direct at info@sunsibility.co.uk