What were you like at school?

For the first few years, I was very good and worked hard. But I did have a very rebellious patch in my mid-teens and was nearly expelled. Fortunately the headmistress rather liked my Dad so kept me on! I was at the same school for 11 years and most of the time I loved it and am still very close to all three of my best friends from school.

Did you go to university, which one?

Yes, Oxford Brookes University and I have a BA honours degree in History and Business Studies.

What was your first job?

A waitress at what is still my favourite restaurant ever -  the Crooked Billet in Stoke Row, near Henley on Thames. I then became a full time nanny in Richmond, London for two baby boys.

 What were your hopes and ambitions then?

As soon as I left university, I wanted to travel. So I saved money and then backpacked around Africa, Australia and South East Asia for two years.

How did your current business come about?

After travelling, I moved back to London and went into the events industry. I became Company Director for an event catering company for five years and although it was very stressful, I loved it. However, I decided to leave London when we started our family and moved to Bristol.

   My friend Annie and I had our first babies within a few months of each other. We frequently met up for coffee and were talking about our difficult bath times with our slippery newborns. Trying to hold, dry and calm a wriggly baby while holding a towel in our teeth was really nerve wracking.  Annie told me about a bathing apron her granny had had back in the 1950s  a towel you wore like an apron. We made ourselves one and it literally transformed our bath time experience as our babies got a cuddle as soon as they got out of the water and we had our hands free to hold them safely. When all our friends wanted one we decided to join forces and go into business - Coochi and the Coocoose baby towel were born. We hadn't planned to work together but the product was just so helpful that we simply had to share it with other mums. At that time, it was not possible to buy anything like it in the UK.

   We spent months testing and perfecting the design - and then secured our Registered Design. We then flew to Istanbul, home of the best towelling in the world and spent days in a room piled high with different grades of pure cotton, trying to find the softest most absorbent one for our towel.

   Coochi has been such a departure from what we have done before and there have been many late nights and juggling babies and work is not easy. But Coochi has gone from strength to strength so it has all been worth it.

What do you do when you're not working?

I look after my two young children; Fred is three and Esme is one.

Which aspect of your life are you most proud of?

My relationship with my husband, Guy. We have been together for over 14 years and we still have a really good time together. He also runs his own business as a Landscape Architect so we work very hard but still have a lot of time for our children too. He is very supportive of Coochi and helps us set up our stands at the baby shows as well as looking after the children whenever I am away with work. I couldn't run Coochi without the support of Guy and my mum!

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