THE VIEW
I was really intrigued to talk to Sophie, as to be honest, folding clothes is not one of my greatest strengths! I put it down to being left-handed but really that is no excuse! Sophie is so easy to talk to and you know immediately she is passionate about everything she does. She was born in Manchester and moved south, to Guildford, when she was 11. When she was 15 she eventually got a temporary Christmas job in a department store. She said, “I worked over the Christmas period and when it was time for me to leave they asked me to stay on. I loved my work there and it was ideal and I was going to college and I could still work and earn a little at weekends. I then decided I didn’t really enjoy college and decided to give it up. I was studying law, media and psychology and strangely in later life I went on to do a degree in early childhood studies and got a first. This is very aligned to psychology and I now work in media, but at the time it just wasn’t right for me. “I never really had a career plan and I just wanted to work. When I gave up college, my parents told me that I had to do something with my time and I asked the manager if I could do extra hours. She was happy to give me more time and I started to take my career in retail very seriously. My manager was like something out of The Devil Wears Prada which wasn’t always easy to cope with, but I learnt so much. I loved the organisation of it all – from arranging the stockroom to folding the clothes and selling to the customers. Some of the main brands would come in and show you how they liked their clothes to be folded when they were put on the shop floor. I found it really therapeutic and I just loved the merchandise.” Eventually the manager left and Sophie felt it was the end of an era. It was never the same and the new manager was very tricky indeed and hated anyone who worked there and had children. Sophie said, “I was a single mum at the time so she most definitely didn’t take to me. It was time to leave and move on to somewhere else.” She then joined a shop which specialised in DIY. She became an account manager and had lots of training and she also loved being on the shop floor, talking to people
commented, “It is such an honour to work alongside a big high street brand and I really love what they do. I have also worked alongside On the Beach, Albion Fit and Stitch Fix as well, and through engaging with them including content creation, press releases, product launches and content posted on my platforms, which has all worked very well.” She has also appeared on TV shows like This Morning , Steph’s Packed Lunch , Good Morning America and Live with Kelly and Mark . Sophie has written a book, The Folding Lady: tools & tricks to make the most of your space & find after value in your home . “I really believe that everyone has their own special way of organising their home to suit their lifestyle.You might, for example, have a hobby like tennis or going to the gym or you have a baby or teenagers, so everyone has different priorities and needs and has to sort their things out accordingly. I have a lot of followers in the US and my book was picked up by an American publisher which was amazing. I went over there and did some television interviews and book signings which was great fun! The book is also available in Germany, Poland and Italy.” Sophie is an advocate for using her online presence to support charities. “In 2023 I ran the London Marathon for Friends of the Elderly, which supports older people in many different ways. They may get a grant for a new boiler or get a new microwave if theirs is broken and its aim is to try and help elderly people stay in their own home. My mum used to work for them so I have grown up around the work the charity does. I trained for nine months and raised over £8,000, which was amazing.” Sophie is currently working on her website to make it very user friendly. “It’s a big job and I have lots of content to put up and blogs and articles. I want to do more YouTube videos as well and, of course, partner with brands. It’s a really busy time as we have just sold our house and are in
and dealing with customer service. “During the pandemic I was furloughed but then DIY stores were deemed ok to open. It was a crazy time as everyone had time on their hands and were into DIY and they were decorating their homes. On the run up to lockdown people were buying paint like we had never seen before and there were long queues and the shelves were empty and they were even taking pots of paint off the pallets! We literally just had to go in and work on the shop floor as it was so busy. “Not long after that I went part-time and then I had my second child. It was during this time I put up a short film on TikTok on how to wash and fold baby clothes. To my absolute surprise it went viral and so I carried on as it was like a hobby. People engaged with me and asked things like, ‘how do you fold socks’ and I would reply with a quick video showing them how to do it. I saved about four months' salary and decided to just go for it with no guarantees, but I think everyone should believe in themselves. After about a year, brands started reaching out to me to form a collaboration and I began to get paid. I became known as The Folding Lady as both my mum and sister suggested this should become my brand. I think this was a great idea as I want my privacy and wanted to turn my social media into a brand which wasn’t personal to me.” One of the brands Sophie works alongside is Marks & Spencer and she
"DON’T BE AFRAID TO ASK QUESTIONS. IN FACT, ASK AS MANY QUESTIONS AS YOU CAN. DO YOUR RESEARCH, AS BUYING A HOME IS SUCH A HUGE COMMITMENT AND YOU NEED TO GET VALUE FOR MONEY"
20 First Time Buyer December 2024/January 2025
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