seriously. “Knowing that she is
directing so much energy into the
business and has put all her faith in
my ideas, especially when she had so
many other possible directions, helps
me feel that Louella Odie is a solid
thing. We are both fully invested
emotionally and I find it hard to
imagine that I could look into the
future with someone else who I trust
as much as her.”
Lauren has also found that the
mother-daughter dynamic has
worked in their favour. “The best part
of being in a business partnership
with your mum is that you end up
finding something funny in everyday
situations, and not taking life too
seriously reduces a lot of stress that
might otherwise get you down,” she
explains. Having said that, she does
recollect one occasion where this
slightly backfired: the pair visited a
restaurant to take photographs of their
products alongside some dim sum
dishes, but they were so busy chatting
and enjoying themselves that, by the
end of the meal, they realised they’d
eaten everything and forgotten to
take a single picture! Nevertheless,
Lauren speaks for both of them when
she says that working together has
made “every moment an opportunity
for laughter; every day brings a new
challenge but it’s nice to share each
step with someone who knows you so
well and can make you laugh even at
the toughest times.”
Ups and downs
Inevitably, there are also a few
downsides to being such a family
affair. With Laurence (Karen’s
husband and Lauren’s father) also
being a key part of the team thanks
to his wealth of brand-building
experience, Lauren’s younger brother,
who is based in the UK starting up
a business of his own, did feel a little
envious that the rest of the family
was so focused on Louella’s activities
in Hong Kong that they could not
physically be around to support his
project’s launch phase, too.
Plus, as is the case with the
early stages of most small business
start-ups, their work-life balance
is currently very much tipped
towards work… a state of affairs only
further amplified if your business
partner happens to be your mother!
“The worst thing about being in a
partnership with your mum is you
never get to switch off,” Lauren
confirms. “When you get into the
office in the mornings, you know that
‘How are you today?’ is actually code
for ‘Have you done the invoicing yet?’
We have no boundaries between work
and non-work talk.”
The duo says that the key to
managing this and ensuring there
is no mother-daughter bloodshed is
to recognise when the other needs
space. “We’re not sure the open-
plan office space is necessarily all
it’s cracked up to be!” jokes Lauren,
explaining that their office set-up has
separate workrooms so that “we’re
not constantly in each other’s faces.”
The pair also hopes to bring a new
part-time salesperson into the fold this
year to help them realise their plans
for more retail distributors, noting
that adding someone from outside the
family will probably help delineate
work and personal time.
Making it work
So what advice do Karen and
Lauren have for any other mother-
daughter teams wanting to take the
plunge? “Your relationship has got
to be good before you start,” Lauren
recommends. “Be prepared for good,
honest communication and no shying
away from difficult subjects, such as
discussing a get-out clause or financial
expectations.”
“You have to agree on your
definition of professional behaviour
when it matters, so there’s no reverting
to pulling of parental rank or childish
petulance,” Karen adds. “Your work
ethics must be in line, too, and we
both agree what a hard day’s work
entails... even if Lauren’s often involves
coffees and cocktails with people and
mine a lot of staring out of windows!”
Nevertheless, as Lauren says: “If
your director is your mummy, she is
always going to be your mummy –
she makes lunch for both of us nearly
every day still!” Seems like a fun
foundation for business to us!
May 2015
55
