HAPPY BIRTHDAY MATERIALISE INTERIORS / ME!

It's been an exciting journey since I fairly bravely moved on from my career at The Body Shop HQ two decades ago! I didn't really want to leave, but the commuting was a grind and there's only so many new store concepts I could work within the team on. It was a natural time to move on, and The Body Shop made us feel very empowered to do 'our thing' ....even though I didn't actually have clients and projects to go to. Thankfully it worked out! I've now worked for myself for twice as long as my ten years at The Body Shop.

Quite soon into the world of small business, the Financial Crisis hit. I'm very grateful for the early connections I'd made - relationships that helped to carry me with projects through that time. The Built Environment was really not the area to be in! Here I'm thinking of the building contractor Peter Buckfield, QS / project manager Rupert Maitland and supplier Chris Young whose introductions to clients really carried me through that time and gave me such great experience.

Emails weren't quite accessible from phones yet. Sourcing was rapidly shifting to internet searches and broadening more widely than the reps that would visit and whichever catalogues were to hand or exhibitions scoured. Software really helping to support a sole practitioner like me - for projects, digital bookkeeping .  Social media did not exist (bliss!)  I didn't start using Instagram until 10 years ago. It really still was a place for photography until then. People's handles weren't freely available - even then there was a sense of mystery about the discoveries made of who to follow. Unlike today, where the highest payer gets seen the most.

I didn't join the British Institute of Interior Design (BIID) unil 6 years in. I'm so glad I did. I really feel the standards are high and in an unregulated industry this government recognised 'institute' is very needed. Encouraged by my mum, a client's accountant and then BIID President Lori Pinkerton Rolet- I joined for the education and supportive connections it provided. Never did I think I would have such a role as being a Director involved in the running of it. It's a very impressive and professionally run organisation. I'm very happy to have this two year voluntary role, an opportunity to represent Future Generations, Animals and Nature - as well as small business as so many of us members are. A group of us (some from the BIID) formed Interior Design Declares (IDD) which is about to celebrate 5 years and nearly 350 signatories and providing a model for designers in other countries to join us.

Authenticity in business has always felt really important. The methodologies I'd learned at The Body Shop of being inquisitive and cautious around what materials I use and their provenance, just became how I worked. Working on interesting projects, using design to solve problems, and developing a business model that fits around my clients needs felt right to me.

Being myself in my business really has been the source of happiness and longevity.

Deepening my learning around vegan design was so eye-opening it led to changes in my diet and lifestyle. I've been so fortunate to have people advising me on the business, especially Karen Campbell, Bek Kimber, LuAnn Nigara, Nancy Ganzekaufer, Jenny Barrett, Emma Payne, Jacky Clarke, Rachel Savage, David Pannell and Daniel Chidley via Small Business Britain ...and guidance from my super supportive family! This led to lots of publicity. It also led to me being recognised by PETA as their Compassionate Designer 2023 which was incredible and still means so much.

The pandemic was hard as a small business. I used it to further my learning (more courses!). It also really did transition me online, extending my reach as a business - connecting me to like-minded designers, other sustainability professionals and clients - with me helping one vegan restaurant in Oslo. This was the time Liz Webster at RIBA Publishing heard about me and approached me to write Sustainable Interior Design for them. Something I never thought I'd do. My dad is the author in the family - he gave me some great practical advice!

I've made great connections through my love of interior design podcasts (A Well Designed Business and the Interior Design Business). I now have designer friends all over the world, some also practicing vegan design - and some I have met. Together we have formed IVIDA (International Vegan Interior Design Association). We are challenging notions that have become norms in our industry - especially the concepts of 'bi-products' and natural'.

The Body Shop were the leader in modern day ethical business (thank you to the Quakers for paving the way) and the company was 'B Corp' 25 years before B Corp even existed.

DID YOU KNOW Anita and Gordon Roddick changed the Articles of Association for The Body Shop, by dedicating the legal purpose of their business to pursue social and environmental change and human rights advocacy, in 1981?

What an experience to see the inner workings of their business during that massive time of growth in the 90's - making profit whilst having ETHICS. The Body Shop went on to be a part of the world's largest B Corp, via their then owning company - so it was natural for me to follow suit (plus it was great book research to go through the process).

Simply put, NATURE HAS TO BE AT THE CENTRE OF OUR WORK.

Apply this to any industry - but especially those that are part of the Built Environment who have numerous negative impacts, We treat nature and animals as our resources - and we are over using resources at the cost of future generations.

The benefits of putting nature first brings regeneration (rather than depletion and pollution), compassion, responsibility, ethics and health benefits throughout the lifecycles of projects and the lifecycles of everything within them.

'Let Mother Nature be your co-designer.' - Dr Jane Goodall, World Design Congress, 2025

I hope we can swiftly progress. Biodiversity impact reporting needs to supersede carbon reporting. We need transparency throughout supply chains to do this

WE NEED LEGISLATIVE SUPPORT

🤝 Support for businesses doing good. We urgently need good practice to be supported by corresponding legislation. Legislation currently supports bad practice - the use of toxic flame retardant chemicals and animal testing loophole for testing of paints, adhesives and grout.

🐛 Support for biodiversity protection - from planning laws through to responsible material, water, energy use.

💫 Support for innovation - for avoiding fossil fuel use.

⭕ Support for reuse of buildings. The current VAT structure rewards demolition and building new over reuse and retrofit .

WE NEED TO DISCONNECT FROM THE MARKETING MACHINE

A former designer colleague Terry (hello if you are reading this!) commented once that designing has become 'shopping'.  I think he's right. Heavy marketing of interior design 'trends' (otherwise known as Fast Furniture) plays part of the huge surge in consumerism consumption rates. This is an escalating problem. Quality items are no longer bought as heirlooms,. We have far less attachment to things and therefore move them on swiftly - evidently to landfill as the UK furniture rates dictate...

22 million pieces of furniture are thrown away each year, many of which could’ve been reused or refurbished.

Why is fast furniture so toxic? Poor quality, not valued, no emotional durability, not designed to be repaired, or even taken apart to separate materials - and most often made from toxic materials that do not safely decompose. There is no 'away' - it remains all with us in the form of pollution of air, land, water.

SOCIAL IMPACTS

The value of social impacts can no longer be overlooked and go unmeasured. When positive, they are extremely valuable and represent opportunity for enrichment for individuals, communities, and society. The added value of the positive impacts of making better choices increase connection and therefore emotional durability, and more widely a community connection - such as Community Energy which provides obvious benefits such as energy resilience and carbon savings - but also wellbeing through community connection.

In Brighton we have circular economy initiative Tech Takeback where the social value in monetary terms was measured for a refurbished laptop given to a homeless person. Once connected with family, his improved mental health led to finding work and accomodation. The social value of such a simple action remarkably was valued at £48.735. OK that's not directly related to interior design, but imagine the social value of items donated to charity Furnishing Futures once calculated. I really hope Interior Design Declares can soon work more closely to help this very special charity - who furnish homes for women and children placed in empty social housing after domestic abuse.

COLLABORATION

I could share some deeply shocking facts I researched for the book on climate migration numbers which in twenty years will be real and horrific. Let's just say - we need to look outwards, TAKE ACTION now and COLLABORATE to lobby for change. For real positive change in our industry, it's really important now to find others in the industry and form community and solidarity.

Good places to start are Interior Design Declares and IVIDA where you will get to know other designers and like-minded suppliers, and share learnings together. Both are groups where we can lobby for much needed change. I hope you'll join us.