In Conversation: Ross Worswick, Oliver Powe, Katie Lopes, in their own words
Last month, we spoke to founders who have turned creative vision into thriving businesses, trusting their instincts to build brands that have grown and flourished under their leadership.
From Katie Lopes, co-founder of Stripe & Stare, carving out a distinctive position in the crowded lingerie market by staying true to her mission to create the world's most comfortable knickers, to Graeme Ellisdon, founder of Osprey London, travelling to Italy to learn craftsmanship skills that he then used to expand into new categories, and Oliver Powe, founder of Acid Running, speaking on building a community around running as a lifestyle, these conversations reflect the unique voices that make up today's thriving fashion industry.
How I started in fashion: Stripe & Stare co-founder Katie Lopes
"I didn’t wait until I felt ready - you probably never will. Just start, and figure it out as you go. But I sort of knew that. Women are inundated with the idea they need to be perfect - there is no such thing and I think it holds us back. Test, test, test as small as you can, fail fast and hard, and get back up." - Katie Lopes.
Stripe & Stare has carved out a distinctive position in the crowded lingerie market with a simple yet confident promise: the world’s most comfortable knickers. What began as six years of dedicated research and development has since grown into a cult favourite, now stocked in retailers including Selfridges and Marks & Spencer.
What really struck me in Katie's interview is the advice she would give to her younger self - to trust in her instincts and keep testing and refining. She challenges the notion that a product business or founder must be 110% ‘ready’ before launch, or that you need a certain amount of experience before starting anything. I think that is such a valuable piece of wisdom, especially coming from someone who has proven how success can be built if you trust your vision.
Osprey London founder Graeme Ellisdon on learning from the past and looking to the future
"We have over 45 years of heritage behind us, and we wear that proudly, but we are not a brand that looks backwards. We are constantly curious, constantly evolving, looking at what we can do next that will excite both us and our customers." - Graeme Ellisdon.
Graeme is another founder who I believe embodies the value of trusting your instincts and backing your own abilities. In this interview, his unrelenting passion for the business really shines through. He started in 1980 with £500 in a rented hayloft, teaching himself leatherwork from scratch to handcraft leather and embroidered belts. It was unique for its time and the aesthetics have an enduring legacy that is still relevant today. What I found particularly compelling was Graeme's decision to go to Italy to learn, first hand, the traditional saddlery techniques from some of the finest artisans in the world, which he then applied to expand into new leather goods categories such as bags. A truly fascinating portrayal of how the brand has evolved over the last 48 years.
How I started in fashion: Ross Worswick, co-founder & Creative Director of The Couture Club
"To stand out, you have to be willing to do something different. The market doesn't reward people who play it safe and just create another version. It rewards people who understand their customer better than anyone else and then have the conviction to act on that. Everything we do at TCC comes back to those two things - move with intention and don't be afraid to evolve." - Ross Worswick.
Ross Worswick is also someone who values evolution and trusts his instincts. He used his experiences as both a club promoter and model to help shape a strong sense of personal style that ultimately inspired him to create the kind of clothing brand he wanted to see in the market. Today, the business has moved from being an emerging streetwear label to established fashion brand, with distribution through retailers such as Selfridges and Flannels, alongside a continued focus on direct-to-consumer channels. What stood out to me most was his openness about the importance of listening to customers and pivoting accordingly. His approach to growing the brand he co-founded a decade ago - by embracing change and "moving with intention" - felt both refreshing and insightful.
Acid Running founder Oliver Powe on growing a cult brand and launching womenswear
"In an attention economy that values docility and consumption over activity and participation, running has become an act of dissent. Those with countercultural or subversive instincts have been drawn to running, knowingly or not, and that goes some way to explaining why, in a short space of time, we’ve built such a strong community around Acid." - Oliver Powe.
Ross' attitude that "community is everything" is a sentiment echoed by Acid Running founder Oliver Powe. In his interview, Powe explains how reframing running as a lifestyle, rather than a competitive sport, has helped create a more inclusive community around his brand, with runners of all levels feeling welcome.
I was also very intrigued by how Powe positions running as a form of modern counterculture, with people who have subversive instincts feeling more drawn to the sport, knowingly or unknowingly. This does resonate with me – as a runner who is not competitive at all but rather enjoys the idea of a social activity that is unconstrained, freely accessible and, well, free. As Powe explains, he has built the Acid Running community around this broader idea of what it means to be a runner.
