summer 22 interview centre stage She’s taken a simple idea and turned it into an international lifestyle brand, all while raising four kids, and supporting others to realise their dreams too; Chrissie Rucker OBE has truly done it all. Ahead of her highly anticipated appearance at the Fortune Favours the Brave conference this May, Chrissie took time from her busy schedule to share her journey so far, the obstacles she’s faced along the way, and her secrets to success. When Chrissie Rucker left school at 16, she had no idea that she would one day be working at one of the largest media companies in the world. Working as a receptionist at Condé Nast had its perks – meeting Duran Duran being one of them – but most importantly, it opened the doors for Chrissie to pursue a career in journalism and public relations (PR) with some of the world’s most iconic fashion, beauty and lifestyle brands. “I left school when I was 16 and moved to London where I studied couture design. It was at that time I really began to appreciate the detail that makes or breaks a product. I definitely thought I was going to be a very famous fashion designer, sadly that never happened! I was lucky enough to get a job at Conde Nast on reception before moving to work on their titles GQ, Brides, House & Garden and Vogue. I then moved
onto a PR role at Clarins before my return to magazines as Harper’s Beauty Editor. “My time at some of the best British magazines has proved to be invaluable. I learnt so much and still draw on the experience I gained during my time in journalism and PR 27 years later.” While working as a journalist, Chrissie was tasked with transforming her then boyfriend Nick’s London flat. At that point, Nick owned a few essential (yet mismatched) items, a clear sign of his busy schedule while he focused on growing his company Charles Tyrwhitt. “Nick was very busy setting up his business and he just asked me if I would help decorate his flat. I thought 'yes, I'm a journalist, I can organise a shoot, I can create lovely images, how hard can this be?' How naive I was! “He’d bought his first flat and he basically had one bed, a few kitchen
chairs, his bed linen was burgundy, his towels were green and when you opened the kitchen cupboard, there were a couple of tired-looking plates and four chipped mugs. Not good! “So off I went on my first shopping trip and it was a complete disaster. I had a confidence crisis and I was completely overwhelmed with the products on offer. “I retreated home and thought ‘OK let's tackle this like a photo shoot and let's think about creating a beautiful image’. “I loved white and so I decided just to buy white towels, white china, white linen, white sheets. So off I went again and I actually found it was incredibly difficult to do. Back then, there were two very clear ends of the scale. On the one hand, you had fabulous designer, beautiful quality, great attention to detail but expensive, on the other, you had high street which was poor quality, lacking in design, but was much more affordable. “We went and had lunch with Nick's sister and she'd just moved house and gone through the same experience and we ended up saying wouldn't it be fantastic if there was a company that just sold white things that were both gorgeous and beautifully designed but also affordable. And that's really how The White Company began.” The idea was there, the marketplace was crying out for a business like this, but how does one get such a unique company off the ground? With unbelievable amounts of hard work, a journalist's intuition and support from loved ones. “I sold some shares that my grandmother had left me and started the business with £6,000. That figure bought a limited supply of stock and paid for the first brochure. From there, it was up to me to secure sales
to keep the cash flow going. I won the She & Midland Bank Small Business Award that gave me an injection of £5,000 and I also received a small Government grant. “I was 23, young, naive and bursting with excitement. I completely believed in my idea and had begun collating old designer catalogues and researching who was supplying leading designer brands. “Drawing on my journalist experience, I rather naughtily rang up a few department stores pretending I was writing an article - asking stores if they 'could tell me what percentage of their sales they sold in white bedlinen' and the answer was always consistently over 50%, so I thought OK, this feels like a good starting place! “The support of loved ones was, and continues to be, invaluable throughout. Nick was a real catalyst and he transformed my outlook on life. I never really thought about starting my own business until I saw how much Nick loved and enjoyed it. “I used to watch him everyday, get up and go to work in a tiny, tiny little office in a basement in Portobello Road. He would wake up with such passion and energy and he would be dying to find out what had gone on the day before. I found that really infectious and I just loved to see his drive. That really inspired me. “From the moment I had the idea for The White Company I was honestly just so excited about it I literally couldn't sleep. I believed so passionately that it could work so I just went off and made it happen.” The White Company has gone on to become a soaring success. From a modest mailing list totalling just 500 people, Chrissie guided the company to a £1.3m return in its first year before opening a physical presence
