Welcome to July’s Working Mum Series. This month’s interview is with the Director of Annafie – Leonie von Schweinitz. Some of you may have come across Annafie before, it is such a gorgeous childrenswear brand and I adore the ethos behind it – ‘timeless and tough’. I have linked the website with more information below for you to peruse at your leisure.
Leonie (as you will read from her interview below), is an awe inspiring super-mum. Running a business with four young children is quite honestly amazing. I struggle to do anything with two children, let alone four and running a company! I really feel that the interview opens up her daily life and how she manages as a working mother. It is not easy, but there are means and ways to do things if you want/have to. I particularly love Leonie’s answers to question 10 about what her children have taught her. Each and every one something different, yet life changing.
I hope you enjoy the interview as much as I have, and please do drop me any questions you have about the series or anything else over to cityrunmum@gmail.com
Lisa
xoxo
Annafie
Website – https://annafie.com/
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/annafielondon/
1. Please introduce yourself – what is your job, how many children you have, where you are from etc.
I’m Leonie von Schweinitz and I’m originally from Germany, although I grew up all over the place in China, Germany, Uganda, Eastern Europe and the US. I’ve lived in South West London for the past 13 years with my husband and we have four kids – two of each.
I’m the director of a classic luxury childrenswear brand called Annafie (www.annafie.com). We’re a small independent company that produce premium kids clothing, considerately in small batches. Our traditional hand smocked dresses, rompers and nightwear are designed to be timeless and tough, so they can be passed down through the generations. We’re a very small company so my role as director includes everything from running the business to designing the products, overseeing the website and social media and managing the orders.
2. How many days/hours a week do you work?
I try to stick to four full working days. I pick my older kids up from nursery and school every day, so often my working day finishes after they’re in bed.
3. Describe a typical working day in your household (i.e. morning routines with nursery/school drop offs to evening bedtime)
Mornings are quite hectic, to say the least! I guess that’s probably the case in every household with young kids. We frantically run around trying to find misplaced school uniform, sports kit, school bags and so on. I drop the three older ones at nursery and school, and then sit down to work. My working day is always different and that’s one of the things I love about running a small company. Getting involved with so many different areas of the business means I’m always learning – and often learning about myself; my own strengths and weaknesses. Some days I spend time working with our producers on designs for upcoming collections, others are focused on our wholesaler B2B strategy and outreach, and sometimes it’s just making sure all the orders are going out on time! I’m not always at my desk, sometimes I’m at trade shows or pop ups or visiting producers and wholesalers.
I pick the older three up from nursery and school, and come home for homework, a bit of play, dinner and bedtime. When all four are in bed, I often finish off a few emails. Our weekends look completely different: we have long drawn out brunches in our pyjamas, eat pancakes, play board games and everyone loves that!
4. How do you balance working life with motherhood? And what/who do you rely on to make it work?
I can’t say it’s easy and I think I am still trying to find the right balance! I’ve definitely been working too much recently as winter has been very busy and Annafie has grown quickly. I’m enjoying every minute of it – this is the most exciting project I’ve ever worked on. Working for myself means I’m lucky enough to set my own working hours, which allows me to go to my eldest son’s football and rugby fixtures or take my youngest one to Monkey Music! But it still wouldn’t work without a very understanding and supportive husband (even though he works long hours too) and an amazing housekeeper who treats my kids like her own grandchildren. I do feel very lucky to have this support network.
5. What is the best thing about being a working mum?
I stopped working as a lawyer when my second son was born. Although, as all mums know, the ‘work’ never stops. I think of my six years away from official employment as some of the hardest (work-wise) in my life, raising my four children but also the most exciting and rewarding. Since taking over Annafie a couple of years ago, I have had to really learn to juggle as it’s not like being in an office and switching from work mode to mum mode at the end of the day, I’m always in both! I am loving every minute of it and learning so much every day. My passion and belief in the brand and its potential is very strong, so it doesn’t feel like a chore to work extra hours when I have them!
6. And the hardest?
Definitely combining work with being the best mum I possibly can be for my children! Not that I have to be perfect, but I want to be as good as I can be for them, and sometimes that’s hard when my mind is on a production or I’m thinking of my long to do list. They deserve me at my best, and that’s hard sometimes when I’m tired and run down.
7. How do you unwind? Motherhood (as well as work!) can be relentless – what do you do to relax?
I go to Pilates classes regularly and that’s a great hour to unwind and try not to think about to-do lists (for work and the kids). Once in a while, I need what my husband and I call a “Leonie-night”. I snuggle in front of a good chick flick on the telly, paint my nails and have a large glass of Merlot.
8. How do you manage your relationship with your husband/partner as well as working and juggling the daily life of raising children?
Another hard one! We try, not always successfully, to go on one date a week – even just a quick nip to our local pub. On date night, we try not to talk about the kids the entire time… with limited success! We’ve been together for 22 years – we met before university – so we know each other extremely well, and he is my main sparring partner and sounding board. He is also much better at Excel than me, so often helps me out with Annafie spreadsheets.
9. Do you feel that motherhood has changed you, and if so, how?
It absolutely has! I used to be more stereotypically ‘career driven’ in my job as a transaction lawyer and whilst I’m still very ambitious, I don’t take things for granted anymore, which I think I often did before. I had extremely difficult pregnancies and one of my kids was born with problems, so that definitely changed my entire outlook on motherhood and on life. I am so very grateful for what I have, and finally understand that all the past experiences, good and bad, have prepared me for mothering these amazing four little humans.
10. Can you tell us one lesson that you have learned from your child/children and one that you have taught them?
Each of them taught me something. My first one taught me that there are more important things in life than my next big transaction, and not to take anything for granted.
My second one taught me that things don’t need to be perfect, that I’m capable of a huge amount of love that multiplies when shared, and that I can be extremely strong when I need to!
My third taught me to trust again, to trust that everything will be alright.
And my fourth taught me to forget about perfection, and to just roll with it and enjoy every minute!
I hope I am teaching them to be resilient, kind, generous people. I’m also big on table manners, but often doesn’t pan out…
11. What do you feel are the biggest challenges facing working mothers at the moment?
Oh there are so many challenges for a mother: childcare costs, flexibility at work, working hours, career progression, being taken seriously after a period of absence… the list goes on! It’s not just employers that need to change their attitude towards working mothers but co-workers too. Initially, I felt a lot of pressure that other mums were judging my decisions as a mother but after doing it all for the fourth time, I realised people are mainly concerned with their own issues and not paying attention to your decisions! I can only judge from my own experience, but I found it extremely difficult to work as a transaction lawyer and be home by 6pm to pick up my first baby. Things got even more difficult with a child who had lots and lots of appointments.
12. What does ‘flexible working’ mean to you’?
It means that I can still do the things that are really important to me outside of work, during traditional work hours. And that I can be there for my kids when it’s important!
13. What are your go to stores/websites/blogs for your work and everyday wardrobe, and what are your staple pieces as a working mum?
I would describe my style as pretty classic, with a few more adventurous pieces thrown in! I love &Other Stories, Hush, Sezane, Jigsaw etc, for every day. At the moment I’m absolutely loving my &Other Stories loafers – they look similar to the Gucci ones but without the price tag. I follow a lot of fashion influencers on Instagram – it’s a great source of inspiration. I am slightly obsessed with long flowy dresses at the moment but usually end up in skinny ankle jeans and a cashmere jumper, which makes it easier to run around after the kids! I don’t have many opportunities to wear super glamourous outfits but am in awe of mums who make it their business to look glam, even on the school run!
14. Finally, what advice would you give to new working mums? I.e. those who are just going back to work from maternity leave, setting up their own businesses, or going for a new job?
I only took over the running of Annafie a couple of years ago, so I can only speak from my recent experience. I think my honest advice would be to really sit down with your partner, or whoever you can talk to properly, and make a plan. Go into it with your eyes open: you will be very busy, you’ll have very little time for yourself and it will be hard sometimes, to the point of feeling like you want to give up. You need a back-up system for when the kids get chicken pox, or when you or your partner have to travel, and you need to somehow carve out a little bit of time for yourself, as hard as that may seem. You’re of no use to anyone if you are completely run down and exhausted. Oh, there is so much more, but I’m still learning, so ask me again in a year…
