Women in Business: Shyla London

International Women's Day on March 8th celebrates the achievements of women and promotes gender equality and empowerment, and supporting or purchasing from women-led businesses can play a small part. Below we chat to Alice Creator and Director of Shyla London about her jewellery brand, her experiences and advice for other women looking to start their own businesses, as well as her current inspirations and London recommendations.

Can you tell us a little about the beginnings of Shyla - what was your background in business and how was the label launched ?

After graduating I worked for a small but fast growing French fashion label. I got to experience the behind the scenes of what it takes to run an independent company, so in a way I was given a head start when I came to set up my own. The label launched after I noted a gap in the market for high quality jewellery at an honest price. It was at a time when ‘costume jewellery’ was becoming a thing.

Who were your mentors when starting out ?

I looked up to brands and designers that were a bit quirky and made up their own rules. I particularly loved Spanish jewellery like Simuero and Alhaja. They also use big colours in their collection. It felt very different at the time, they were creating their own little worlds. I wanted to do the same.

Where do you draw your inspiration from for the collections?

Inspiration is drawn in many ways. I get a lot of it through travelling. In particular through my travels to India. The mixture of the intense colours like rubies and emeralds set against the deep Indian gold is so striking. That’s where my love for colour in jewellery started.

Who are your muses, who are you designing for?

That’s a tough one as I have quite a few. In essence I am designing for a woman of any age. Understated and stylish who likes a pop of colour in her outfits and something a bit different from the rest.

What other female led companies do you admire ?

Oh there are so many! So I will mention some London ones; LKT- for beautiful Moroccan interiors, Camilla Bloom- A truly unique knitwear brand, all made in the UK, Lo Studios for natural candles with the most beautiful smells and Alice Hartley for incredible art.

Any advice for women starting out in business?

Ignore what other people are doing. Trust your idea and go for it in your own way. If it doesn’t work out you won’t regret it and you will have learned a lot. Try not to get intimated by other people’s successes, they once started at the beginning too.

Which is your favourite piece from the new collection ? How would you style it?

There’s a few but if I had to choose from the new collection it would be the Serafina earrings. A superb statement earring blending Indian colours with a contemporary design. I love wearing statement jewellery in summer.

What would you like to see next for Shyla?

I would like to keep expanding the collection. I would also like to take it in a direction and expand to something completely new. Some of this is in the early pipelines of development so I won’t jinx it by talking about it.

Where is your brand based, where you recommend to visit if we made the trip ?

My workshop is based in Hackney and I have a lot of lovely recommendations; Oren Restaurant- one of the best meals in London, Melo café- dare I say the best coffee in the UK, Hai Café- A tiny home made Vietnamese restaurant that is always packed because it is extremely extremely good! 107 wine bar- a candle lit intimate wine bar and the Moth Club- A small culture bar with lots of personality and events.

When you take time away how do you spend it?

I like to spend my spare time with friends and family when I’m in London. I also enjoy a lot of yoga and Pilates. A big passion of mine is travelling. I try and take one trip a year to a brand new place I’ve never been.

Shop Shyla here