Hannah Griffith | @hannah.lucinda.griffith

Each month we put the spotlight on moms / artists / content creators / fun lovers... that inspire us, challenge us, motivate us. Our muses!

Our muses have graciously given up their time to share insight into their lives. We hope you enjoy reading about them, and what makes them tick, as much as we have enjoyed working with them.

We asked Hannah to tell us how she got into styling.

Hannah -"Fashion, style and the psychology surrounding it has always fascinated me. When I was at school I was always the person that helped people shop or dress for parties. I would say it's an innate passion!

After studying at the London College of Fashion I had a range of jobs in creative roles - from a small couturier on Bond Street to a Heritage tailoring house on Savile Row, a womenswear start-up, as well as luxury retail, before settling into Personal Shopping at Moda Operandi, who I relocated to Hong Kong with."

Hannah dives into her journey to now

Hannah - "I had always had some private clients who I styled for, but when Moda Operandi shut down in HK, that propelled me to embark on setting up my styling business full-time. I thankfully met some amazing people and became involved in events and jobs that widened my network and I slowly started to gain clients. This was a time that I definitely experienced first-hand that it’s not what, but who you know - network, network, network! I said yes to everything and had to really put myself out there, which was scary, especially in a new city, but this was where all my opportunities came from and how I learned quickly about the new market and how to approach it."

...and now!

Hannah - "I was lucky enough to come across Style Carousel in it’s very early phase and joined the Founding Team as Brand Director, so that’s where my focus lies now. The concept is premium fashion rental, built on a forward-thinking technical foundation, that allows brands to sync seamlessly to our platform. This is really the future of fashion rental (and hopefully retail in general!), it is super scalable and so exciting to build.

We will be able to give people access to style that is more creative, sustainable and convenient, as well as giving brands the opportunity to gain another revenue stream that is better for the environment. It will even allow them to create collections with more focus on high-quality design, materials and craftsmanship.

I feel like all my experience so far has led up to this role. I love the entrepreneurial aspect, as well as being able to create something for women that is genuinely useful, solves problems, AND allows them to enjoy style without the guilt."

We always love hearing about what (who) inspired their move to Hong Kong and more importantly, what kept them in Hong Kong

Hannah - "The last few years have definitely been a whirlwind for me professionally but also personally. The reason I moved to HK was to be with an ex-boyfriend (yes, everyone thought I was mad!), and it was mid-pandemic, but I tend to make decisions based on my gut. When Moda Operandi shut down in HK, I also lost my chance for a visa - I started looking for other jobs to sponsor my visa, but nothing felt right for me at that time. I ended up literally having 2 weeks to find a way to stay in HK; so my wonderful boyfriend and I got married - scary but also amazing! 6 months later I was pregnant - also scary but amazing!"

And of course, we always want to know more about our mum's mum's life...

Hannah - "I loved being pregnant, it was a really special time for me. I think it made me more brave and confident. It sounds cheesy but I honestly felt more powerful and capable. It also helped that I found professionally that people reacted differently to me when I was pregnant. That was the most surprising and lovely thing about my pregnancy - women really are amazing at supporting each other."

Hannah talks about how she juggling motherhood and entrepreneurship

Hannah - "It’s not easy obviously, I’ve realised you really can't have it all but I think in Hong Kong you can get very close! My work is really flexible and I'm lucky that it's a passion of mine so it hardly ever feels like a chore. I’ve had tears because I miss my little one after busy weeks, but I think that's normal. Having the right people around you makes all the difference, my small team at work is amazing and supportive and we manage to keep it light (even though start-up life can be tough - it can feel like 1 step forward but 2 back at times!) Also investing in the right things that just make life easier, for example, our Baby Brezza I could not live without, and obviously my Coco Alexander clutch!!"

Our final question is from Mai Williams - If you give advice to yourself (before kids), what would it be?

Hannah "Give in to the newborn stage and soak it up. I pushed myself to 'get back to normal' instead of enjoying the moment. Also, be easy on yourself, nothing matters as much as you think it does. I would recommend everyone to read 'The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck', especially before having children!"

Do you have a story you'd like to share with us or would you like to nominate someone inspiring to you, leave the IG handle below in the comments box and we'll get in touch!