Who helped you grow? And what advice has led you to where you are today? We catch up with Chloë Luxton, friend of Beards & Daisies and founder of natural bath and body care brand, Bramley, to discover the pearls of wisdom that have helped her thrive.
1. Tell us about yourself and what you do.
Hello, I’m Chloë and I am the founder & Creative Director of Bramley. I live in the Wiltshire countryside with my husband, Charlie, and our three children (Otto 10, Monty 8 & Inca 6), plus two dogs Elsa & Pepper, three chickens and two quails.
2. Describe a typical day in the life for you.
I always start the day with a cup of tea in bed (my husband and I take it in turns), then it’s getting the children ready for school, which is always slightly manic, and once I’ve dropped them at school I head to the office. We currently work from an old threshing shed in Wiltshire with offices above all our warehousing and distribution. It’s idyllic but we’ve got to the point where we’re running out of space so we’re a couple of fields away in a couple of weeks to a nice big warehouse, which will allow us to grow a bit more as a business so we’re all really excited. No day is ever the same once I arrive at the office, but the week always starts with a team meeting to discuss sales, what’s going on that week and any worries or concerns anyone has. I'm the Creative Director so my role covers all the new product development (my favourite bit), and all our marketing and the website, too. It might be that I’m signing off artwork for a new product, or chatting through brand collaborations with Lucy in marketing, but you could also easily find me helping unpack pallets downstairs. We’re a small team so sometimes it’s all hands on deck! After work I head home to spend time with the children before bed and will cook something for my husband and I to eat, inevitably in front of a box set. I head to bed at around 9.45 to read before switching off the light at around 10.30.
3. What’s the best bit of advice you’ve ever been given?
I love that Mark Twain quote ‘Find a job you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life’. That basically sums it up for me.
4. What’s one thing you do every day for yourself?
I know I should say meditate or something but I don’t actually have anything that I do for myself every day, what I do every weekend is I head into the stream in my garden (it runs through our entire village) and I do my own form of mud larking. This involves putting waders on (the water runs just above the wellie line!), grabbing a glass bowl (it acts as a window) and jumping in the stream to scour it’s bottom. Over the years I’ve found lots of old glass bottles but I’ve also found a silver thimble and I’m positive that one day I will strike gold! It’s not for everyone (my husband despairs of all the rubbish I bring in – literally) but it’s time for me and I love it.
5. What’s your favourite houseplant and why?
Now that’s a great question - I think it might be a case of which one I can actually keep alive! I have an aloe vera plant on my kitchen windowsill that just keeps on going and giving (I use the aloe on the children’s scrapes) so I have a lot of love for that one. I also like string of hearts too because the leaves are a beautiful shape, and we have some in the office that we brought back from a trade show in Amsterdam.
6. What do you do to switch off?
See above re the mud larking! I also love to watch television shows such as the Great British Pottery Throwdown, Bake Off, The Great British Sewing Bee and All that Glitters – anything where there’s creativity, I find it so inspiring.
7. What do you never leave home without?
Usually a child! Always my wallet, phone & sunglasses.
8. Who do you go to for advice and why?
It very much depends on what I need advice on but for work I use my team for sound boarding, and for everything else it’s my husband and my girlfriends. I have a strong group if girls in my life and we share all the highs & lows and generally one of them has been in the same position before so can offer words of wisdom. Or if not wisdom, we always have wine.
9. What makes you happiest?
I love to say that something ‘gives me joy’ and that can be anything from hanging out with my children & Charlie (when there is no moaning or arguments from the children) to finding a beautiful antique or piece of art. I am generally a happy person so I find joy in most things.
10. What would you say to your younger self and why?
Don’t sweat the small things because they never turn out to be the important things. There is no point in worrying about the ‘what ifs’, put all your energy into the here & now and that will take care of the rest.
For more from Bramley, visit their website bramleyproducts.co.uk
And for your chance to win some amazing beauty products and plants, including; a 3-month plant subscription from ourselves, along with The Bathroom Full of Bramley Set, containing hand wash, hand cream, shampoo, conditioner, body wash, bubble bath and body lotion, head to our Instagram page now.