40 Faces of Seasalt: The sketch is the seed
For our 40 Faces series this month, we meet some of the people whose creativity and attention to detail go into growing each collection.
Cathryn has worked for Seasalt for over six years, joining the team as the jerseywear Designer. She now looks after jersey dresses and skirts, as well as sleepwear.
My Seasalt: One of my favourite things is seeing a design start from a sketch, working closely with the buying and garment tech team to create a beautiful garment. I work closely with the print team to marry up the perfect style with the perfect print. There really is a true art to it.
Special memories: There are so many to choose from, but it made me really proud when Seasalt made their Sustainability Report public. As a team, we’re super busy behind the scenes to build and expand upon it. We are lucky to work with factories that also really care too.
Our customer: I love seeing Seasalt out in the real world, and I am always ‘Seasalt spotting’ when I am out and about! I also love reading customer feedback: it’s great to hear the details are appreciated.
Knitwear Designer Carina has just celebrated her three-year anniversary with Seasalt, and is the starting point for many of our colourful jacquards and Fairisle patterns.
My role: My favourite part of knitwear design is working with colours, patterns and stitches to tell the stories of a season. I’m lucky to work for a brand which allows such creativity, and to work with a very talented design team that inspires me every day.
I am really inspired by our customers love for pattern and colour. It makes my job so fun. I enjoy reading customer reviews; any feedback for future designs is always great to hear.
My Cornwall: I love walking along the coast path, discovering coves and wildlife spotting. Springtime is my favourite, when the ground is covered in a carpet of wildflowers.
Special memories: Something that stands out for me is when Seasalt rolled out their volunteering initiative in 2018. The design team all got together for the day to get creative on an outdoor space to be used by patients and visitors on the maternity ward at The Royal Cornwall Hospital. It was really rewarding to be able to give our time to create a positive impact within the local community.
Heidi started her career in 1992, working with high street brands and Formula 1 before joining us in 2007. Now she manages the team who deliver on our ethical trade and social compliance strategy. They work with our suppliers to ensure the wellbeing of everyone in our supply chain, and support them through big, global challenges, such as the pandemic.
My Cornwall: I grew up in St Ives and spent school holidays on Porthmeor beach – still one of my favourite beaches to this day. There’s a strong sense of community in St Ives – everyone knew everyone so it was a lovely place to grow up.
Our customer: I love that she takes the time to write to us, to share her joy and excitement as the postie delivers a Seasalt parcel. And I love that she challenges us to do better.
The future: I am excited about the work my team are doing with the Ethical Trade Initiative (ETI). We have begun to map our tier two suppliers, which are the businesses which supply the fabrics and yarns or provide wash or dye services for our beautiful product. With the support of the ETI, we can risk assess for any labour rights issues and work to remedy those in line with international labour laws and UN Guiding Principles.
We cannot solve the world’s problems alone, but together we can deliver positive change and improved livelihoods.
Find out more about the suppliers that make our organic cotton Larissa Shirts, or visit our Sustainability Hub for more information about our future plans.
