Damson Madder founder, Emma Hill, takes us behind-the-scenes of the cult label
Everything she gets up to in her 9-5
Since its COVID launch, Damson Madder has quickly become an instantly recognisable brand. Whether it's on your favourite celeb or your TikTok 'For You' page, we can guarantee you've spotted some of its prominent designs more than once.
Aside from its fifth anniversary, the brand has more than a milestone birthday to celebrate. With its cargo trousers amassing 45,000 sign-ups leading to its newly launched denim range, over the past 12 months, the brand's sales increased 402%, with 636% coming from the US sales.
With its Spring/Summer 2025 collection now live and a newly launched accessories category, we caught up with Founder Emma Hill to learn the secrets behind creating a cult-favourite brand. From a daily 10-minute meditation to the team's go-to bagel shop in Camden, here's what she had to say...
When I wake up, I… always try to squeeze in a 10-minute meditation. I have two small children, so when they wake up, it's like bedlam! So I try to do 10 minutes of being still, firstly so they don't wake up, and secondly, so I have that time to myself.
I’m all about comfort... I have a few things and styles that I really love and will wear repeatedly. At the moment, I’m wearing our Sylvie Turn-Up Jeans—probably too much. But they’re a true staple. I wear those with one of our shirts and trainers. I'm a proper comfort girl, so I wouldn't say I spend a lot of time looking for an outfit in the morning.
I try to have breakfast at home. And I do really like to eat eggs. I actually love eggs. Or if I'm prepared, I'll have overnight oats with blueberries. Then, I take the kids to school on the way to the tube. My work commute isn't long, but it's long enough for me to listen to a business-related or motivational podcast to get me in the right frame of mind. At the moment, I'm listening to Contagious: Why Things Catch On.
I get straight into it. I'll always have a 10:00 am meeting, usually product-related with the design and buying teams. This is where we get samples back and review them together. I love hearing everyone's opinions and their responses to them; this is where we discuss finer details like colours and fabrics.
I love to try everything on. We often do polls within the whole office on important lines to see what everybody's favourites are. I really enjoy knowing why people choose things, so talking about products with the team is one of my favourite things.
We're celebrating our fifth birthday... which is really exciting. To celebrate, we hosted a pop-up in London featuring our latest category: eyewear. We also had our latest Spring/Summer 2025 collection and our ‘birthday nonprofit collection,’ with proceeds donated to Wen, an environmental charity that connects women, health, equity, and environmental justice.
Quality is super important. Like, it's really, really important that all of the details are really considered, and the quality is incredible. We ensure the use of responsible fabric bases in all of our products, and the ethical standards are high. All of those things are just super important to me, and I really learned this when I used to work as a buyer. You shouldn't compromise on those things. So, I work hard with the team to focus on those areas.
Starting a business can be painful. There is so much planning and dedication, which can be challenging and unpredictable. There are sleepless nights, so it's important to create a strong network of people to guide and motivate you throughout. But there is a lot of growth, and the outcome is genuinely phenomenal. It's been super rewarding and life-changing, and I'm really proud of myself and the team.
We want to bring joy. There's a lot of seriousness in the world, so it's nice to be able to make people smile and have fun. This is what we try to convey on our social channels. We like to showcase our product in the most exciting way, so the aspect of fun is important to our socials.
We're a collective of highly ambitious and talented individuals. It's so nice working with my team. They're all really inspiring and make my job really enjoyable. I'm really lucky to have that.
I'm into creating habits. So, for lunch, I've been getting a pre-made high-protein meal delivery service. They're amazing and quick, as I rarely have time to go out and pick something up. When I do, we go to B Bagel in Camden— the whole team loves it.
I leave the office at 4:30/4:45 and have a chilled evening. I'm usually pretty tired because my days are hectic, between work and hanging out with the kids after school. I put the kids to bed by 7:00 PM and then watch TV with my husband. We usually watch something light and easy. Then I'm in bed by 9:00 PM, ready to do it all again the next day.
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