I'm founder of Patchwork group gift platform and am on the Board of Sharing Economy UK. My background is in brand and communication - I was a Partner and Brand Strategist at eatbigfish and a Creative Director at Do The Green Thing previously. I occasionally still do bits of freelance if I absolutely can't resist. But most of the time I can be found in our Brockley studio with my amazing team building our brilliant business.
Projects
- Co-writing the Lonely Planet honeymoon handbookWhen I was a teenager my dream wasn't to build a digital business it was to wander the world as a travel writer. Weird how things turn out and brilliant to think that by starting Patchwork alternative gift list and honeymoon fund I've ended up coming full circle and making that dream come true. I absolutely loved researching and writing this book - sharing advice from personal adventures, professional insights around emerging honeymoon trends and offering practical tips on everything from budge
- HUCK article: Confessions of a socialist entrepreneurI've been running Patchwork for nearly 5 years now. I've since met so many other socialist entrepreneurs so this article now feels like it should be much less of a 'confession' and yet the conversation around British business, tech startups and entrepreneurship still seems to be entirely dominated by a right wing Conservative agenda. My thoughts are here. I'd love to connect with any other startup founders and SMEs who are driven by socialist principles to build for-profit businesses and would
- My Guardian article: The fear of feminists in the boardroomWe were a small team of women starting Patchwork and to mark the beginning of our journey I designed a 'Feminist' necklace and had them made for all of us as a gift. I wore my necklace, and still do, everyday. It's a brilliant way to prompt a conversation about feminism at the school gates, in a bar or at a bus stop. The one place it caused 'offence' however was in the boardroom. One of my investors suggested that I stop wearing it in case I put people off usng Patchwork. At the time I decided
- Badass Women's Hour asks me what a feminist bride looks likeI really loved doing this interview. Not quite enough time to discuss everything on my list but managed to cover the patriarchy, alternative matrilineal kinship systems and my mum and marriage just for starters... You can listen here: https://player.fm/series/badass-womens-hour/feminist-weddings-how-baking-saves-lives And if you want to talk weddings, feminism, marriage and millenial relationships I'm your woman.
- Killik interview: What wealth really means and why Patchwork is just like Disney.Killik & Co. came to our studio (on a very bad hair day) to interview me about Patchwork, what people are using our platform to fund, what wealth really means and why and how we help make dreams happen. We not only discussed how Patchwork is just like Disney but also what a long hard and lonely slog the start up journey is in the early days. And why cheese is essential.
Projects credited in
- International Women’s Day 2020, meet 100 trailblazers redefining the creative industryAt The Dots, International Women’s Day isn’t just a day – it’s a whole month! A time to take over the site and shine a light on the women and non-binary people redefining the creator landscape. For #IWD2020, we asked industry leaders to nominate the trailblazing women and non-binary people they think will redefine the creative and digital industries over the coming years. The list we’ve put together is one that beams with brilliant, talented people and their dedication to positive change. Book168
- Brides magazine recommends Patchwork as their 'Best wedding gift list'"Asking your nearest and dearest for cold hard cash isn't easy though. There's the matter of the correct etiquette etc, but we've found the solution to end your gift list-woes and remove the stigma attached to such a delicate subject. It is called Patchwork." Read more: https://www.bridesmagazine.co.uk/article/patchwork-present-best-wedding-gift-list1
- Patchwork. Fund your honeymoon - piece by piece.1
- Olivia Knight at the CBIChuffed our Founder Olivia has been voted onto the Board of Sharing Economy UK. Here she is caught on camera at CBI (Confederation of British Industry) talking about Patchwork and the value of the Sharing Economy.1
- Leaders with social heart: 100 creative changemakersCelebrating social responsibility is at the heart of what we do, so we've partnered with Squarespace – whose mission is to inspire people with creative ideas to succeed – to shine a light on 100 influential luminaries from art, technology, charity, design, business and more that are working tirelessly to make our world a better place. To highlight these organisations, we asked 10 creative changemakers to each nominate 10 people behind inspiring brands, products and movements with amazing social
- Patchwork contributes to the 2018 International Wedding Trend ReportWith people using Patchwork to organise and fund their honeymoons (up to 18 months in advance of their weddings) we gain super interesting insights into future honeymoon trends and are often asked to write trend reports. In January this year we were asked to contribute to the Wedding Academy's International wedding report to share our predictions for popular honeymoons for the summer of 2018. And, as always, our trend forecast turned out to be spot on with Meghan and Harry (together with Patchwo2
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Work history
FounderPatchwork
London, United KingdomFull Time
I mainly focus on brand, PR and marketing for Patchwork but as a small team I also answer the phone, make the tea and do whatever else needs doing. When I get the time I write for a few wedding and travel titles and speak at various tech, startup and women in business events.
Creative DirectorDo The Green Thing
- London, United KingdomFreelance
I spent my time at DTGT coming up with concepts for creative campaign films to inspire people to lead greener lives. I then commissioned script writers, animators, illustrators, graphic designers, film-makers, photographers, actors and voice-over artists to make them happen. As a charity we worked on ridiculously tight budgets so when we were particularly skint I'd also write, produce and edit, sometimes lending my own voice with one film also featuring my feet.
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Skills
- Marketing
- Fundraising
- Brand Building
- PR
- Connecting Creatives
- Speaking
- Article Writing
- Creative Campaigns
- Facilitating Workshops
- Creative Direction