LUCY DELIUS

TELL US ABOUT YOUR BACKGROUND

I’m originally from Edinburgh in Scotland. We moved around quite a bit when I was younger, ending up in Vancouver, Canada for a number of years before returning to Edinburgh for my teens. I went to Trinity College in Dublin for four years when I was 19 to study Spanish and Sociology.

TALK US THROUGH YOUR CAREER JOURNEY SO FAR

I had NO idea what I wanted to do when I left university - my first job was in skiing recruitment as I was determined not to be one of those people who lived for the weekend. I wasn’t ready to be a serious person yet! I fell into a job at DTC (the Diamond Trading Company - the rough diamond side of De Beers). I don’t think I ever actually saw a diamond the whole time I was there but it was a great lesson in the inner workings of the corporate world. From there I went to work at Missoma - I was Marisa Hordern’s first employee and we were based in a storage unit in Chelsea. I’d say this was probably my most formative year career-wise. We worked on everything together - I saw how a startup brand really worked and what it took to put the foundations in place for a luxury brand. From there I moved to another start up jewellery brand, focussing solely on PR before going agency side and working with a number of fine jewellery brands, accessory and womenswear. After having my first son in 2015, I decided to take some time off to recalibrate and figure out what I really wanted to do. I had spent a lot of my career feeling that I’d moved around a bit and I still wasn’t really sure what exactly I was looking for career wise. It slightly felt like I’d been going through the motions for years.

WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR FELLOW FEMALE ENTREPRENEURS?

Just. Do. It. It will be hard, you will cry, you will doubt yourself, you will reach the highest highs and the lowest lows but it will all be worth it because it will be yours and yours alone. Just ask - how many times do we tell ourselves that something is impossible or someone won’t want to help us or work with us. Just ask the question - no matter how big or small or how silly you think it is, you’ll often find yourself surprised by the answer. Get a good accountant and friends who are financially literate. I have an amazing accountant and two other friends who are in the finance sector who I text at 7am to ask the most random questions but they have saved my life on a number of occasions and most importantly they never make me feel silly.

HOW DO YOU STYLE YOUR MARFA STANCE PIECES AND WHY DO YOU LIKE THE BRAND?

I am OBSESSED with Marfa Stance! I love how much thought goes into each and every item - being able to create so many different looks from a handful of pieces is so important. Us women wear so many hats - mum, business founder, friend, wife and I want to look stylish and unique when I’m doing all these things. It’s a conversation starter - I can’t tell you how many times I get stopped and people always want to know more! I wear my patchwork quilt all the time - at the weekend it’s the perfect piece to lift my leggings/boots/pitch side with kids/walking the dog look. I wear it during the week with jeans and a great cashmere knit. The Aviator collar adds such a cool factor with the pop of orange. My parachute vest again is SO versatile - it’s a great layering piece, I wear it when I need functional clothing - like when I’m ski touring or when I go to the pub for lunch with my family and need a light layering piece. And of course they work so well together. I’ve already got another 3 pieces ear marked to add to my collection.

Photographer: Zac Frackelton