EXECUTIVE INTERVIEW
From 2010 Pandora was listed on the
stock exchange and I felt it had very
much become a matter of financials; it
was all about quarterly performance
and I felt some of the passion had gone.
It was time for me to move on.“I stayed still for a little while but
quickly realised I wasn’t good at resting.
I needed to have a purpose, work with a
team of people I like, make a difference
and show people how to create a great
work environment. Furthermore, I
wanted to be bringing products to the
market that were exciting and could
make a great, positive difference to
people and society. That’s when I
decided to start up House of Brands.”In 2013, Karin took on several brands to
launch in the Australian marketplace;
however, she soon realised this wasn’t
quite the right approach. She wanted to
be able to give her full attention to each
and every client and she couldn’t do
this when too many things were
happening at the same time. She let all
but one brand, Fleye, go and decided to
focus solely on distribution and
growing its presence. At around the
same time she was approached by
ALEX AND ANI and, following in-depth
discussions over two years, it was
agreed that House of Brands would take
on the distribution of this socially
conscious brand as well.“I thought it was a very exciting brand
which had a huge following,” Karin says.
“I felt compelled by the story of what
ALEX AND ANI was, and still is,
representing. It is a brand that is very
much about giving back to the local
community. In fact, over the last five
years it has donated over US$36 million
to charity, and the majority of pieces
are created out of recycled materials.
So rather than producing new, it is
taking old picture frames, old door
handles, all sorts of items and making
them into beautiful pieces which can beworn. I thought it was a new and
different way of bringing jewellery to
the market. The brand is very much
about positivity. The bangles are
infused with ‘plus’ energy, ‘plus’
meaning positive. Every piece has a
little tag saying that the bangles are
infused with this ‘plus’ energy
technology and I think that is such a
beautiful message. It is all about
wanting to bring positivity into peoples’
lives. You can buy so much out there in
the marketplace. Consumers need to
have a reason for buying an item and
for investing into a brand. ALEX AND
ANI does that well.”ALEX AND ANI’s best-selling piece is
the Path of Life charm bangle which
represents strength, motivation and
knowledge. Those three words are also
a fitting description of Karin’s personalbusiness approach. She says everybody
seeks to have purpose in their lives and
that is the environment she strives to
foster within House of Brands. “It’s an“I wanted to be bringing products to the market which were exciting
and could make a great positive difference to people and society.
That’s when I decided to start up House of Brands.” - Karin Adcock