If you haven’t already heard of Elizabeth Scarlett (the brand), I’d be surprised.

Over recent years, my Instagram feed has been adorned with velvet bags and pouches with beautiful embroidered animals, and I have to say, I can completely understand why. Having spotted a gap in the market for luxury accessories at just age 24, Elizabeth has built a brand known far and wide for its iconic designs and providing a little luxury everyday, while raising funds to protect wildlife.

In our interview, we chat through Elizabeth’s inspiration behind the company, the process (each design is hand-painted by Elizabeth using watercolours and is then intricately embroidered onto the chosen fabrics), and her enviable passion to give back to the natural world in every way she can.

Why did you decide to start Elizabeth Scarlett back in 2015?

I’m not totally sure what initially sparked the idea, but I just remember feeling really strongly that I could use my art to bring more joy into the world and give back to the animals in my designs. It felt like my purpose, so I wanted to explore it, and see how far I could take my passion for creating beautiful things, and turn it into a career. It’s so crazy to think that this dream has now led to building a business that has raised over £220,000 for wildlife conservation charities.

You’ve had huge success since launching, being sold in global retailers including F&M, Anthropolgie and John Lewis. How does that feel and how much hard work did it take to get to that point?

It feels amazing to see our designs in the likes of retailers like this. It still feels like a “pinch me” moment when I go into a store and see my products displayed. It’s taken a lot of determination, focus and passion. It’s definitely challenging; but I just keep focusing on what really matters in my heart and what feels right for the business. 

Being such a young female entrepreneur (starting the business at 24), what challenges have you faced so far? Any advice for other young entrepreneurs?

If someone had told me what building a business was really going to be like, I’m not sure I would have been brave enough to do it.

My naivety mingled with lots of passion at age 24 really helped get things off the ground. I was able to flow with the challenges as I didn’t have too high expectations, which made it all the more fun when we had successes. My biggest personal challenges have been navigating imposter syndrome as our company grew and transitioning to working mum after I had my daughter. My advice to young entrepreneurs would be to follow your intuition, don’t give up, don’t expect too much too soon, and most importantly - have fun!

Talk to me a bit more about how Elizabeth Scarlett gives back to charity as part of your business setup? How important is it to you to ensure the business donates to wildlife charities?

Elizabeth Scarlett exists to promote joyful living, while raising funds to protect our planet’s precious keystone species. As a brand, we continue to ask ourselves how we can work together to make beautiful things that last, and give back to nature. We’re at the beginning of a long journey, but given that we’re starting early, we’re hoping to get a lot right as we grow.

Most importantly, we give back 2% of our annual sales to the preservation of keystone species. This is a self-imposed tax that is gifted to the animals that adorn our products via conservation charities working directly on the ground. It’s at the core of what we’re about as a team and organization and it is what gets me out of bed everyday.It’s so important to me to fund wildlife conservation. We only have one home, and protecting endangered species and wildlife will save our planet, and ourselves. I’m so grateful that we can support and donate to incredible conservation charities through sales of Elizabeth Scarlett. I realised early on that everyone can do simple things to make a difference, and every little bit really does count. When we work together, we can make an impact, protect wildlife and ultimately the place we all call home.

What’s your favourite Elizabeth Scarlett product and why?

I’m in love with our NEW Baby Elephant design, in partnership with Sheldrick Wildlife Trust. For every single product sold from this limited-edition collection, we’ll be helping to secure a future for orphaned elephants, including providing vital bottles of formula milk, allowing them to grow big and strong, so that they can one day be reintegrated back into the wild.  We’re hoping that with the funds raised from this new design, we’ll be able to donate the equivalent value of 8,000 bottles of milk - enough to feed one orphaned elephant for 18 months!

Where do you take inspiration from for your art and designs for the brand?

Our beautiful natural world has always been my number one source of inspiration. I see our planet and all who call it home through a soft and colourful filter, and I’m always looking for the simple beauty in the everyday. I stay inspired by trying to stay present and keeping my eyes open! I also am never without my sketchpad when traveling - I often pick my motifs up during my holiday escapes – when I’m relaxed and life is a little quieter I find it much easier to spark some of that creative energy.

Other than designing, drawing and running the business, what do you do in your spare time? Do you have anything you need to do to unwind/disconnect?

I love spending time with my family, taking it easy at home, taking a bath, cooking nice meals or reading a good book. A little cliché but doing a guided meditation helps me to disconnect, I like Tara Brach’s on Spotify. 

What does the future hold for the remainder of the year and beyond?

We have a big Christmas ahead! More beautiful designs that give back to nature, decadent embroidered bedding with palm trees, British flowers and stars, velvety sumptuous cushions and perfect personalised gifts. We’ve also got some stunning pyjamas coming, which I can’t wait to grab a pair of myself!

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Founder of The C Word Magazine, Emily is currently living in London. She is passionate about art, travel, culture, cinema, fashion, sports, feminism and a whole lot more. She is currently working on her own podcast with a friend and also dabbles in graphic design, when not doing her day job as an Associate Director of Media Planning. Find her on Instagram @emlrking or chatting on Confession Sessions, The C Word Mag’s own podcast.