S7: The story behind building an iconic British fashion brand with founder of Mulberry, Roger Saul

Conversations of Inspiration

Holly Tucker MBE

Education, Society & Culture, Entrepreneurship, Self-improvement, Business, Personal Journals

5.0 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 10 February 2020

⏱️ 66 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Building an international brand selling hundred of millions of pounds work of fashion, from humble beginnings, aged 21 with just £500 - is an incredible story on its own. But what happens on the other side, after being ousted from your own beloved brand - is soul defining.

Roger Saul, founder of Mulberry and his latest venture Sharpham Park, shares his story with Holly, in this emotionally charged interview. Charting his humble beginnings right through to today, Roger tells of a journey filled with pinch yourself fashion moment highs, to the lowest of lows. Roger created a brand synonymous with British fashion and achieved a cult-like status for the label.

This is a conversation filled with vision, passion and future thinking as a golden thread throughout. Now 15 years into his organic product farm at Sharpham Park, and his latest reinvention of rural retail with Kilver Court, Roger Saul reinforces the notion of entrepreneurial thinking and attacking your vision with unwavering energy and determination.

Enjoying listening to these unfiltered chats? It's worth following Holly Tucker MBE and Holly & Co on Instagram, and subscribing to our weekly newsletter on our website, where Holly downloads her thoughts, and exclusively shares small business finds and topical, 'ungoogleable' business advice.

Transcript

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0:00.0	It's a road trip today. I am up and back to Somerset. Lots of driving but going to be highly worth it.
0:08.0	I'm in a place called Kilver Court to meet none other than Roger Saul, the founder of Mulberry.
0:15.0	And I can't wait to talk to him about that and his family farm Chappen Park.
0:21.0	It's just going to be incredible. I have so many fond memories of Mulberry
0:26.2	because it's that sort of personal milestone moments when you got that Mulberry wallet or something for your birthday,
0:33.7	I'm sure we can all relate to it.
0:36.4	It's going to be incredible.
0:37.4	It's an iconic British brand and I know we're going to learn so much.
0:42.1	It's going to be an honor.
0:46.2	I'm Holly Tucker and welcome to conversations of inspiration.
0:50.4	I'm the founder of Not on the High Street and Holly and Co.
0:53.2	And I'm the UK Ambassador of Creative Small Businesses.
0:57.0	I believe that having a business doing what you love
1:00.2	is the key to a happy, fulfilled life, and my dream is to help everybody start theirs.
1:06.0	So I've reached out to all my favourite small businesses, acclaimed entrepreneurs and those who just simply inspire me and ask them to share theirs.
1:16.0	With thanks to our sponsor NetWest who have helped bring this free podcast to life.
1:21.3	Here are my conversations of inspiration.
1:24.0	Bow your eyelids close on down where we're going.
1:29.0	You won't need to bring your frown.
1:32.0	What an honor it is to meet you the man behind a modern day iconic brand. It's so funny as I thought
1:40.3	Mulberry had been around for hundreds of years, but I think that's testament to the breathtaking business that you created and it's a beautiful timeless brand.
1:50.0	So thank you so much for your time today Roger. Thank you.
	...

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