A lot of you know that I have just organized a fashion show in the Prestige Fairs which was held in Conrad Hotel earlier this month, and it was amazing……. Have a look at our photos here!
There are so many success stories that have come out from the Prestige Fairs which aims to offer great sales opportunities to sellers who offer unique products/services. It’s just been so fulfilling for me to interview one of the great vendors and get them featured on my blog!
Yes, the entrepreneurs today here are Karen Mead and her daughter, Lauren Mead. They run a handbag business “Louella Odié ” in Hong Kong and sell at different retail outlets. The first time I met Karen and Lauren at the Prestige Spring Fair, there are two things I remember. The first thing is their handbags are absolutely gorgeous with a very consistent print/pattern/style, whatever you call it. And the second thing is just the way they started the business – mother and daughter go hand in hand!
Let’s get started with my interview with Karen (Left) and Lauren (Right)!
Jane: Hi Karen, Lauren, where are you originally from? Tell us more about yourselves!
Karen – I had lived in Hong Kong for more than 30 years but returned after 10 years in the United Kingdom in 2012 full of enthusiasm to find a commercial application for my passion for print! Together with my daughter Lauren, we launched our quirky handbag brand Louella Odié in late 2013 here in Hong Kong. We have spent the majority of our lives moving back and forth between Hong Kong and the UK.
Jane: What did you do in the past before starting up this handbag business?
Karen: My masters in Multidisciplinary Printmaking had made me realize I could combine traditional printing methods, such as woodblock, with modern technology that included digital print, and also that surfaces as diverse as wood, leather, glass and metal could all be incorporated into the design.
Hong Kong is a wonderful place that offers an easy access to manufacturing, not just in China but more broadly in South-East Asia. For example, we are now sourcing digital embroidery from India. In general, Hong Kong is a very dynamic city that gives the general positivist to small businesses and start-ups here!
Honestly, I know little about fashion, I was mostly focused on how my prints fitted the bag surface. In early 2012, I speculatively had some sample handbags made up. I showed them to Lauren, who has a background in fashion marketing, and she instantly had improving advice. We conceived Louella Odié as our start up over that summer of incessant talk. The label, pronounced like the letters O-D-A, is an amalgamation of family names and it gave us a possessive determination for our brand from the very beginning.
Jane: I’m sure Hong Kong is a great place for any start-up as you mentioned. But what has been the hardest aspect to your business and how did you get over them?
Lauren: Feedback from initial samples showed that whatever their shortcomings, the strength of our little brand was its strong graphic style and colour. In fact elements related to Hong Kong have always been present overtly or more subtly in my mom Karen’s personal art work and that became a key feature of the products. In the first few designs the visual link to place was deliberate and obvious, using the Hong Kong skyline in all of the bags. Later products have less direct connections (although they are there) as they gained confidence that the bags had more than a local appeal.
Finding an outlet for Louella Odié was a tough task. In such a competitive market full of big name brands and their convincing low-priced copies, getting noticed has been difficult. In addition, a small marketing budget has necessitated a “do-it-all-yourself and be-pretty-creative-about-it” mindset.
Jane: You’re right and thank you for being honest with that. So what have you found to be your most effective way in finding new clients?
Lauren: I believe that our bold style will appeal to women who are not afraid to make a statement and who want to differentiate themselves from the ordinary, so I looked and found a number of outlets which embodied these qualities. We thought these confident women are likely to be international travelers so we have our products being stocked in a couple of five-star hotels such as the Four Seasons Spa and Gift Shop, as well as independent boutiques around Hong Kong including Fang Fong Projects on Peel Street in Central and Kapok at PMQ.
Although Hong Kong does not have a strong online shopping habit, it was important for us to cover as many different platforms from the start as possible. For this reason we adopted very early on a commitment to our own online shop which has become a primary route to market. We have however been very pleased to be stocked by some very committed local boutiques and we continue to search out further retail partners.
Jane: This seems to be a fantastic strategy. So what are the upcoming marketing campaigns that you have in mind or in plan?
Lauren: Without a fashion background, we seek to compensate by reaching out to bloggers and other start-ups with a view to finding collaborative opportunities to broaden the audience. This included a 7 week style collaboration with a local blogger Norbyah Norlasco, as well as projects in the pipeline with the Print House in Stanley and locally popular What The Frock business.
Jane: Let’s bring it back to your working life here in Hong Kong. Why don’t you tell us what is a day in the life of you like?
Karen: Every day is different, but we try to start every Monday with a morning meeting over coffee so that we can identify the priorities we need to tackle that week. I handle everything creative and Lauren does the paperwork and marketing side of things, but as we are based in the same studio without a door between us we talk often about new designs or decisions that need to be made!
Jane: Awesome. As an expatriate, what do you enjoy most about living in another city, Hong Kong?
Karen: I was born here and Lauren grew up in Hong Kong, so we have a strong sense of belonging. Hong Kong is a very unique and special city to call home.
Jane: It’s a fantastic interview with both of you. Before we are closing up here, will you share 3 top tips with other entrepreneurs who wish to start up their own business?
1) If you are going to have a business partner, make sure it is someone you can talk to very honestly.
2) More investment does not equate with more success. Turn over every penny carefully.
3) You get nothing if you don’t ask!
Jane: Very true…. Really quick, would you want to share your contact and maybe people can connect with you for business opportunities?
Karen: Sure thing. People can find us at www.louellaodie.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/louellaodie
Instagram: https://instagram.com/louellaodie
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I hope you enjoyed the entrepreneurship story from Karen and Lauren Mead, mother and daughter who go hand in hand to run the business. Karen and Mead are so nice that at the end of our interview, each of them has given me a quote and I’d love to share with you all here!
Inspirational Quote:
“Nothing happens until you put yourself out there!” ~ Karen Mead
“You cannot achieve everything alone, surround yourself with a great team.” ~ Lauren Mead
Do you have a story to tell? I’m sure we can all enjoy a happy lifestyle like Karen and Lauren, while being your own executive and run a business! Connect me here and grab the many free tips/tools, for FREE!
