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Maria Myers | Chic Shack Helen Holmes talks to Maria Myers, founder of London-based Children’s furniture store Chic Shack, and mother to four lively boys. Between furnishing the homes of the stars and jetting off around the world, notebook in hand, in search of inspiration, it’s amazing that Maria Myers manages to spend any time at all with her four sons. We chat to Maria about the joys and challenges of combining a thriving business with being a mother to four. Maria is a woman who knows where her priorities lie. “My motto is ‘she who loves, wins’, and another golden rule is ‘the more you give, the more you receive’.” Putney couple, Maria and her husband Gary, who run Chic Shack together, ensure that they play a big part in the lives of their children. “We do most of the school runs and clubs ourselves. We no longer have full-time childcare, but our older boys help out, picking up younger brothers and doing their bit around the house. Our house, shop and offices are all within a ten minute walk of each other – we’ve deliberately built our lives in close proximity, so that we can aim for a good work/life balance.” Even when Maria is travelling, she ensures that she is back for all the important events. “I’m there for the boys’ special occasions – their assemblies, their first cricket matches, the teddy bears’ picnics – I wouldn’t miss them for the world.” When she was pregnant with her
oldest son she worked in fashion and had studied interior and furniture design, and was disappointed by the ranges of nursery furniture on offer – so she decided to do something about it. She designed her own collection of furniture and, together with Gary, who handles the business side, opened her
“I like homes to feel homely – which is all about comfort. I also think that white interiors are peaceful and calming. We like to ensure that pieces remain useful, even after children have grown up. A chest of drawers or an armchair in the nursery could later be in a sitting room or bedroom. Classic style never dates.”
fingers can be wiped off! All our painted furniture has a protective varnish, and so do our walls. Our sofas have washable slipcovers, and our seats are covered in a wipeable white faux leather fabric.” Maria is keen on practicality, as well as style in her designs. “I like homes to feel homely – which is all about comfort. I also think that white interiors are peaceful and calming. We like to ensure that pieces remain useful, even after children have grown up. A chest of drawers or an armchair in the nursery could later be in a sitting room or bedroom. Classic style never dates.” Maria’s passion for design and her enthusiasm for family life can really be combined to maximum fun effect when it’s time for the children’s parties. “We just love birthday parties! We blow up balloons, decorate fairy cakes and put out fabulous bunting in the back garden. We take our themes very seriously!” Ultimately, it’s Maria’s experiences as a parent which inspire her work. “Parenthood has taught us about unconditional love, and all the joy and laughter that children bring us through the simplest things. I believe that a child’s space is a very important element of their growth. It makes me feel good to know that I help to create their special places, and that hopefully they will be happy ones.”
first shop in 1997. 16 years on, business is thriving. “We’ve been a recognised brand over a decade and we have clients all over the globe – including royalty, rock stars, footballers and supermodels!” Maria’s ability to multitask extends to her furniture. The Chic Shack style is predominantly white, and while busy parents might be forgiven for wondering whether such a colour scheme, is, well, sensible, with young children around, Maria doesn’t see it as a problem. “People often ask us how we keep our www.chicshack.net own home so clean. It’s simple – sticky
Freeheelin’
noynoy
Clare Davies www.waterbabies.co.uk
Natasha Robertson www.freeheelin.com
Dominnique Karetsos www.noynoy.co.uk
Inspired by her three sons, last year Natasha Robertson set up Freeheelin’ an independent specialist children’s shoe shop in Stockbridge. Located in a converted dairy barn at Tiebridge Farm, her mission is to offer a refreshing and exciting range of shoes professionally fitted in a calm and relaxed space. Trained by the Society of Shoe fitters, she’s passionate about children’s shoes and her aim is to make the dreaded shoe shop an enjoyable experience.
When Dominnique began to prepare and style her little girl’s nursery she wanted pieces that reflected her own personal style that were full of imagination, colour and fun. She wanted products that were non gender specific in colour palette and print, yet functional and excellent quality… out of this desire noynoy was born.
Clare Davies has always loved being in the water and when she joined her first class, with her son Josh, she fell in love with the magic of Water Babies lessons. When the opportunity to be part of the Water Babies team arose, Clare felt it was too good to miss. What makes Water Babies unique? We have a huge passion for what we do and take our responsibilities seriously. We only use warmer pools so we have the privilege of starting babies from birth – two days old is our youngest so far! We’re also proud to say that we really do have the best baby swimming teachers in the world - it takes five times longer to fully train as a Water Babies teacher than to get your private pilot licence! How does running a business fit in around family life? Life is certainly busy but anyone who knows me would say that’s the way I like it. With my husband commuting to London on a daily basis I need flexibility to manage my working week around the school run and family activities. I have a fantastic support network and a great office team to keep things running smoothly - it’s a real team effort. What plans have you got for the future? We swim nearly 1,000 babies and toddlers per week and along with starting extra classes we have some exciting new developments planned throughout the year. One example is the improvement in our photo shoot technology to run same day viewings, enabling clients to see their images straight after getting out of the pool, rather than returning for a separate viewing session.
What makes Freeheelin’ unique? We offer a refreshing choice of school shoes and casual shoes for girls and boys, from first walkers right through to young adults. We also have a ‘back to school’ range which features high quality essentials, such as school shoes, trainers, ballet shoes, leotards, socks and tights, but also stationery, pencil cases, bags, lunchboxes and hair accessories. We’ve also chucked into the mix an exciting and original range of hand-picked accessories and gifts from around the world to suit all ages and exclusive to Stockbridge. Our shop is light and airy with lots of room to test out your shoes. There are plenty of parking spaces, plus baby changing facilities and entertainment too. How does running a business fit around family life? It is a juggling act, but it has been made possible with the help and support of my family. What plans have you got for the future? To build a reputation on providing excellent fitting, customer service and wide choice of shoes to suit all ages and budgets.
What makes noynoy unique? We have thoughtfully developed each product, designed each fabric print and sourced only the highest quality of materials from around the globe. Best of all we are not afraid to use vibrant colours that spark imagination and allow parents to be creative and style their nursery. Each range includes everything you need for baby bedding and sleep accessories for years 0-2. How does running a business fit around family life? I would be lying if I didn’t say trying to create a family/work balance is often a challenge. When I do get it right I owe it to the noynoy team, and my business partner, Hande Sadic - all who are very dedicated and passionate. We do everything ourselves and always put in 100%. It also helps to have a very supportive other half who cooks! What plans have you got for the future? Since we’re a start-up brand, we have to get our launch right. Knowing our customers’ needs and listening to their feedback is paramount. However, having such a great team of creatives means we’re constantly in product development meetings and planning for innovative designs. We like to keep the noynoy buzz alive, always.
Hampshire H ampshire Special Special
Water Babies
Pink Lining
Treasure Chairs
Baby JP Photography
Charlotte Pearl www.pinklining.com/uk
Caroline O’Neill & Kirsten Robinson www.treasurechairs.co.uk
Julian & Sue Porter www.babyjp.com
Charlotte was challenged by her boyfriend (now husband and business partner) to make a bag that she’d liked but couldn’t afford. She was sure she could make it herself, so Charlotte quickly learned how to use a sewing machine. The business started out in fashion, selling in shops such as Harrods and Bloomingdale’s, but the move into family lifestyle accessories was inspired by her first child. Again, Charlotte wanted to make something better, the result was the ‘Yummy Mummy’ bag, which is still one of their best sellers.
The story of Treasure Chairs came to life when Kirsten was looking for a special first birthday present for her daughter, Fleur. Kirsten always wanted it to be memorable and unique; she had the idea to give her a personalised chair, so went in search for one. Alas, Kirsten admits she didn’t get very far so asked a local upholster to make one according to her specifications; little did she know that this chair ended up being a first of many more!
After many years of running a very successful studio in Southampton, allowing Jules and Sue Porter to photograph hundreds of babies, the couple decided to specialise in newborns. They had seen demand grow and a gap in the market for something a little different; to fill this gap they created Baby JP Photography.
What makes Pink Lining unique? I think as a mother of three (and soon to be four!) I understand and thoroughly test out our products, which shows. I have tried to create products that not only fulfil all the functional aspects required but also incorporate style with a sense of fun. Our pink lining interior is the signature label - highlighting our philosophy that it’s what is on the inside that counts. I love the whimsical slogans and easily identifiable prints. How does running a business fit around a busy home life? Having children is a challenge at the best of times (albeit the most wonderful, fulfilling one!) throw in tons of emails, phone calls, deadlines and it’s tough… so it doesn’t always run smoothly. I also have a wonderful team in our office that do a great job. What plans have you got for the future? It’s an exciting time for us, our children’s accessories range, PL Child, is now stocked in Mamas & Papas, and a recent launch of PL-to-go is in John Lewis, and there’s lots more in the pipeline.
What makes Treasure Chairs unique? They are custom made. You can choose the colours of the legs to match your fabric, design your own seating arrangements - consisting of a chair and a sofa, for example. The options are endless. We receive colour swatches of curtains, for example, so we can make sure that the chairs are a perfect fit! They are the perfect gifts for special occasions such as baby showers, christenings and birthdays. How does running a business fit around a busy home life? It is challenging at times when everything happens at once! We want to make sure that we provide the best for our customers and at times that means we have to work long hours, but we do anything to get the best results! What plans have you got for the future? Now that the main products are launched, Caroline was brought in to take over the management and to take it to the next level of establishing Treasure Chairs into the world of children’s furniture! It is still a small start-up business so it is important that we market ourselves to get known.
What makes Baby JP unique? From the start we wanted to stand out from the crowd so we employed a designer to find our antique props, and to this day she still brings us amazing new props which we love. That, tied with our amazing studio, and our relaxed style and customer service, is all that we needed to make us stand out. We also have a wonderfully newborn friendly style which is obtained partially by using superb cameras and by our amazing Italian daylight lighting system. The lighting has proven to be a huge hit with newborns as there’s no heat, noise or flashing. Sue and I adore what we do and I believe that shines through in our work. How does running a business fit around family life? Sue and I have been self-employed since we were married and something our family grew around. We are very fortunate that we can set what hours we want to work around our clients’ needs which is especially important when talking about five-day-old babies. What plans have you got for the future? We have recently expanded our studio and, quite honestly, it’s amazing. Our only plans are to continually source new props and continue to love what we do.
Cocobaci Linda, Nel & Sarah www.cocobaci.com
Sassy Beau Makeup Academy Pamela Moss www.sassybeau.co.uk
Pamela launched her training academy in response to countless requests for private makeup lessons. She soon found that she held a natural ability for teaching others the secrets of being a Makeup Artist and the Sassy Beau Academy evolved from there.
What makes Cocobaci unique? From our own experience we knew that finding the perfect baby collection under one roof was near on impossible. So we decided to create our own personal edit of the most beautiful clothing brands and unique gorgeous handmade gifts we could find. In addition, we’ve created a range of fabulous newborn gift bundles. We’ve also collaborated on beautiful exclusive jewellery and furniture collections. We believe we have created a simple but exquisite boutique where shopping is made effortlessly easy and enjoyable.
What makes Sassy Beau unique? After retraining from a career in HR to a makeup artist I completely appreciate what it takes to begin a new career. Each of our intensive courses include a business skills unit and can be studied full time, part time or in the evening. Course sizes are also kept small (maximum of 4) to ensure our students get personally trained and all the support they need.
How does running a business fit around family life? We’re certainly kept busy, but the beauty of having your own business is that you can be flexible and work around your children and family life. If anything we’ve all had to discipline ourselves to get a work/life balance as when working from home the work temptation is always there to keep going! We do everything in the business ourselves and thankfully we all have very supportive other halves. What plans have you got for the future? Having just launched, our priority is to ensure we understand our customers’ needs. We’re also in the process of developing our own Cocobaci baby range so watch this space!
How does running a business fit around family life? I’m lucky that I mainly work from home, which allows me the flexibility to spend lots of time with my daughter, however I have to be incredibly organised and disciplined. I write endless lists and some days feel like a military operation! But for me it provides the perfect work/life balance and I feel very privileged to have that. What plans have you got for the future? We’ve just introduced a range of beauty courses, and we’ll be introducing more hair courses soon. The aim is to make retraining as a make up artist or beauty therapist affordable and accessible. I want people to realise that retraining and following their dream is not something to be feared, but should be relished and enjoyed.
Collette Hague www.lydiaroseboutique.co.uk
Collette had always dreamt of owning her own shop, and it was only once her daughter Lydia arrived 15 months ago when she decided the baby industry was what she wanted to go into. Struggling to find any beautiful baby clothing locally this was the perfect opportunity for her to fulfil her dream, and provide something Fareham couldn’t offer. And in June Lydia Rose Boutique became a reality. What makes Lydia Rose unique? We’ve put a lot of effort into the environment of the shop, making sure the layout is accessible and that it’s a generally inviting boutique. We also stock fabulous brands that you can’t find nearby, including no added sugar, Emile et Rose, Hatley and Kissy Kissy. There’s also parking outside which can be a godsend when shopping with children or a big bump. How does running a business fit around family life? It’s a family business, joint with my husband Adam, so we support each other. In the day my mum and dad look after Lydia, which is a huge help. We close the shop on a Sunday, so we make sure that this is purely a family day. What plans have you got for the future? We’re looking forward to the word getting out about Lydia Rose. Our website is launching imminently, which will allow customers who cannot come into the shop to order online – I’m really excited about getting that up and running! We’ll also be holding special preview events in the evenings, where people can look at the latest collections.
Hampshire H amps a mpshirre e Special Sp peci ecia all
By a twist of fate Linda, Nel & Sarah were all made redundant in early 2012. Linda and Nel, both with backgrounds in buying, joined forces with Sarah, a former merchandiser at the same company as Nel. They all shared the same passion to launch their own business.
Lydia Rose Boutique