What do you do for a living?
I’m the Editor and Founder of Simply Scandi, a brand with influence, aimed at Scandi-loving fans in the UK and beyond. We help people ‘Bring the look and lifestyle home’.
Our print magazine is the flagship expression of our brand, but we are more than just a magazine, with a website, active social media following, and incredible open-rate weekly newsletter.
What does that mean day-to-day?
What doesn’t it mean! I’m totally hands-on (and always have been through my 25+ years in the homes magazine sector as a writer and then editor), turning my hand to everything from content to marketing, accounts to advertising. My day starts processing orders through our Shopify site (we wanted a website that allowed people to buy direct that still reflected our brand values and style, so we brought online orders in house in May 2024).
Then I’ll check in with Jo Craig, our brilliant art director based in Dorset, who will share layouts and website tweaks. I might then commission our amazing contributors, write features myself, or plan our social media – being a quarterly means I can choose (to a certain extent) what I feel in the mood to work on each afternoon, but we still have a ‘press month’ prior to print, with all-hands-very-much-on-deck! I also have a wonderful Chief Sub Editor, who finals the pages before press.
What do you love about magazines?
That they offer a moment of escape, a hit of inspiration… and quality ‘me time’. When I was Deputy Editor on Ideal Home, I’ll never forget watching a focus group through the two-way mirror and hearing a lady say: “It’s (Ideal Home) my time.”
He (the husband), can be watching the football on a Saturday afternoon, and I’ll curl up in my chair and just escape into the pages”. I still think print has this power over any other platform. And yes, I do sniff magazines…
Tell us one thing not many people know about you?
That my own home is still a work-in-progress. Yes, I have some lovely Scandi pieces, but I wouldn’t call my home ’totally Scandi’ in style. It’s a happy mix. I see so many lovely things each day, that I can never seem to make a decision when it comes to shopping for my own home!
Where can we connect with you?
You’ll find Simply Scandi magazine quarterly on the newsstand (Waitrose, Marks & Spencer, WHSmith and Sainsbury’s), as well as through simplyscandi.com. I’m over on LinkedIn, and @simplyscandimag and @theformereditor on Instagram.