Kate’s passion for fragrance is born out of her belief that by combining beauty, quality and style, daily events can become a pleasure. This principle is reflected in all Cochine products, each one of which is elegantly designed, professionally crafted and perfectly scented to heighten the sense of luxury for you and those about you.
The company has recently launched an Eau de Parfum range, inspired by the romance of travel and long summer evenings, capturing the very essence of romantic escapism.
Here Kate tells us what she gets up to online, whether it’s checking Whatsapp first thing every morning or finding new brands on Instagram.
My favourite website…
I love the “What we’re loving” section on collagerie.com – it’s a brilliantly curated mix of fashion, accessories, homeware, beauty and I always discover a new brand there, plus a lot of things I don’t really need but really, really want.
My favourite app…
Has to be Instagram. I’ve somehow ended up with three Instagram accounts- one for Cochine, one for founder/behind the scenes content and another private one where I post photos of the children for grandparents and godparents as it’s a really good way of keeping them up to date, particularly when we were living abroad.
My favourite blog…
My background is skincare, I worked at L'Oréal before founding Cochine, so I love beauty blogs like Get the Gloss and Beauty Bible.
My internet hero…
Probably Dashi from Octonauts because she kept my children busy when I needed to get some work done during lockdown.
My favourite YouTuber…
I love watching Willow Crossley’s YouTube tutorials - I never seem to get the time to re-create any of her beautiful flower arrangements but there’s something so relaxing about watching her tutorials and imagining the day I will have time to follow them. I also love the Open Door by Architectural Digest - nosing around famous peoples’ amazing houses!
My favourite podcasts…
My lockdown saviour was a thirty minute (actually normally 15, I’m not a big runner) early morning run before the children were up listening to a podcast - some of my favourites are I’m Absolutely Fine by The Midult which never fails to make me laugh and also How I Built This with Guy Raz, for brilliant interviews with entrepreneurs.
My most recent buy online…
Like most people my world has become much more home focused over the past year and I’ve really enjoyed discovering online homeware boutiques on instagram - some of my recent favourite purchases are lovely linen napkins from @annacravensaigon and @thepalominoshop, tablecloths from @sarahkdesignslondon and @thesummerhousecollectionuk beautiful planters from @tooka_home, placemats from @giftpopboutique and enamel jugs from @pushpanjali_cottons. I think it’s all about small bits of colour to cheer up the everyday at the moment.
Book just downloaded/ read…
I always seem to have several books on the go and never seem to finish any! But I have just finished Where the Crawdads Sing which I loved and I’m also reading the Leonard Lauder memoir The Company I Keep: My Life in Beauty.
Last thing I binge-watched…
Mare of Eastown! I thought Kate Winslet was amazing, I was totally hooked.
Favourite tweeter…
I’m not on twitter, it’s just one distraction too many.
Favourite instagrammer…
I love Desert Island Spritz with Alice du Parc. We’ve recently launched our new collection of Eau de Parfum and I love listening to Alice describing different scents.
Favourite tech gadget…
I’m really not very techy: I think my laptop has asked me to install updates for the past year and every day I click ‘remind me tomorrow’. I couldn’t live without my iPhone - it means I can work from wherever I am.
The most useful gadget/item on my desk…
A little stand for my phone that charges it and holds it in the right place for calls, I got it during lockdown and it’s changed my life. It also means I’ve stopped losing my phone under bits of paper.
Most useful digital resource during the pandemic…
Probably Netflix- what else was there to do every evening!
Most inspirational digital resource during the pandemic…
I’d actually say our Instagram @cochine_official - in the depths of winter I found real solace finding beautiful beach images and exotic interiors for our Instagram.
Social media allowed me to meet…
More of our customers through direct messaging on Instagram. In fact we’ve launched our new Eau de Parfum collection on the back of feedback from our customers, I’ve loved having a more direct dialogue.
The best digital advice I've been given…
Is actually some recent advice to share customer feedback and reviews more, that people really like reading what other people think.
My screensaver…
Is the latest photo of our new Eau de Parfum collection, we really wanted to capture that wanderlust feeling of life in the tropics in this latest photo shoot.
My pet hate online…
Seeing sponsored ads on instagram asking me to buy something I’m not at all interested in
First thing/app I look at on your mobile when I wake up/in the morning…
I check Whatsapp first thing every morning- half our team is in Asia so I always check my messages to see if anything urgent has happened overnight. Having the team split between Asia and UK has proved really efficient as we basically work twenty-four hours between us.
Favourite brands I've discovered online…
Lots of brilliant homeware brands I’ve listed above, plus also some great dress brands I’ve found through sites like Daily Dress Edit, curated by Isabel Spearman who is a fellow dress lover.
Any online rules or resolutions?
Yes, I try to put my phone on flight mode when I go to bed otherwise I find myself buying lightbulbs online at four in the morning.
The Internet. On balance, a force for good or ill?
I can’t imagine a world without it now- it’s like pandora’s box, once you’ve opened it there’s no going back. How I use it, I think it’s a force for good but as a mother of three young daughters I worry about how I am going to manage their relationship with it as they grow up.
By Team GWG
August 2021
READ MORE:
Enter the Cochine Eau de Parfum Giveaway
Guest editor, Willow Crossley
My Web with Annabel Rivkin and Emilie McMeekan, founders of Midult
