Morning Coffee With Celebrity Stylist Kelly Lundberg

Hayley Kadrou   |   26-02-2019

From waiting for catalogues to be delivered to her door in Edinburgh to styling the stars and penning her own book, Kelly Lundberg shares her incredible fashion story and insights.

 

 

Describe your morning routine.


I love mornings. Mornings are my thing and I’m pretty ritual about what I do in the morning. I wake up any time between 5.30am and 6am, and I will have a hot water with lemon, always, that’s my morning get start.

Then it will be followed by reading my ‘desire statement’ which is my intentions that I’m going to be going through, my affirmations. I will do exercise, I’ll have a green juice and then I’ll get on with my day. I feel if I get a really strong start in the morning, then it sets me up for the day.

 

https://youtu.be/7xV8Av-gbf0

 

What is your first fashion memory?


My first fashion memory I think was in the early days. I’m originally from Edinburgh in Scotland in the Eighties, so my earliest fashion memory would’ve been waiting for those big catalogues being delivered. It used to be the best time because I would flick through it, no pocket money, but make my shopping list.

I guess now with access to the internet people are filling up their shopping carts, mine was going through and tearing out the bits of the magazine, picking out what I want to buy with my pocket money.

 

What can we expect from you second book?


The first book was about entrepreneurship in the Middle East, I was 29 when I released it and it was self-published. It was an idea that I had about sharing stories of other successful entrepreneurs in the region because I found that other entrepreneurs have inspired me in my business so I wanted to share their stories. So that was easier in a way of telling other people’s stories in my own words where is this book called Deseed the Lemon is about 60 to 70 percent autobiography.  Deseed the Lemon is really a metaphor in life for raising standards and paying attention to detail, so it’s how you can shop up as the best version of yourself.

It’s really an experience going through, sharing my story on how you can show up as the best version of yourself through style, health, morning rituals and just choosing to pursue your dreams which is the thing that I’ve done and something I share with the girls at the academy, and really inspire them to take action. That’s the big goal for the book.

 

What style rules do you like to break?


Ask me five years ago and I would never break the style rules of wearing sneakers, but now I don’t even know if it’s a rule as they go with everything. I never thought I would be the person to do ankle socks and open toe shoes but it looks so cute and I really like it, so I’ve broken that style rule. Old school would be ‘you can’t wear navy with black’ but I actually really like that as a combination as well. One style rule I’d never break is that you will never ever find me in a pair of Crocs. 

What are your ‘smart shopping’ tips?


With my clients, it really is constructive and also specific. When it comes to shopping rules I always say to start with the basics. Before you go shopping to buy things, make sure you’ve gone through your wardrobe because then you identify the gaps that you have, what to look for and get inspiration.

You wouldn’t go and just buy the first car you see, okay there is a massive price difference, but when you’re investing in a wardrobe and buying things that are meant to last, then you want to think about how you can mix and match them, and often it’s not that we don’t have enough clothes, it’s that we don’t have enough inspiration on how we can wear them. So look at what you have, look online for ideas of what’s missing and then see how you can pull it all together. If you have that list it makes it more specific. 

 

How can we edit our wardrobe?


You can edit as often or as little as you like. I always say have a really good tidy of your wardrobe every six months. So that might not throw away lots of things but just editing. Maybe a hem has come down on your trousers, maybe you lost a button, maybe that’s looking a bit tired. Tidy your closet, stuff goes everywhere.

You might have bought some new pieces that you can mix and match with existing pieces but you didn’t think about them because they’re in different parts of the wardrobe. By organising you have clarity, you know what’s missing. I don’t believe in throwing something away if you haven’t worn it for six months, because in this climate you might not wear something for 18 months. Does it make you feel good? Is it relevant? 

 

How do you think sustainability has effected our shopping habits?


I have to say for me, it has not had a massive effect because I’m helping clients re-invent themselves when it comes to styling. It’s not something that clients would come to me. It’s not something that’s at the forefront, yet. 

 

What do you consider your biggest career success to date?


I think there’s been a few. I started my business young so I had a lot of time to get things right, and wrong. I’d say starting a business and still being in business for 10 years. I won my first business award when I was 26, it was a foundation of other people believing in me as well, it gave me a sense of confidence.

Then I released my first book when I was 29. Then building a business to coming to seven figure which started from scratch, idea on a napkin, to now inspiring a new generation of stylists through the S Academy. To even more recently to getting a book deal in the US, I never did it through a publisher. So there’s been a few.

 

What’s is the motto you live by professionally?

My goal every day is to inspire a minimum of five people to take action. Whether that’s through my social media account, or doing a key note or one of my stylists or business owners I’m mentoring. By inspiring others to action it has more of a ripple effect so that’s what I live by.  

 

What has been the biggest challenge?


In the early days it was finances as with all small business. How to get finances. You will always find a way if it’s something that you’re passionate about. And I would probably say lately it’s been identity. So moving from being a stylist for 12 years to now having an online business where the skill are quiet different to marketing. I’m learning about all digital platforms and how I can market to the world basically. So really stepping into those shoes of a business owner with a business that’s much bigger. 

 

What do you still want to achieve?


I really want to inspire people to take massive action. Whether it’s to pursue their dreams or pursue a career in fashion styling or starting a business that makes them feel fulfilled. I would say something along those lines, potentially through the book it’s going to have a bigger impact where it inspires people to action. Whether it’s changing their daily routine, or looking at their wardrobe differently, just feel different. When you feel different, you show up different, when you show up different you attract different energy and good things happen.

 

Who has influenced you the most?


Without a doubt it’s been Blake [Sergeant]. Blake has been my friend for many years through our love of personal development, and then I would say when he moved back and launched his business here it made it much easier that we could communicate from a business to business perspective. So I would say without a doubt someone without a doubt who has seen my potential and nurtured me through it to get me to where I am today. 

 

Describe your personal style?


I had to Google this! Because I don’t know how to describe my personal style. My style is very mood dependent. Is my style undefined or is my style a mix? It would be one of those ones because it really depends on which hat I’m wearing. Sometimes if I’m at home and I’m mentoring, it could be quiet casual, if I’m going to be in the mall and meeting people or I’m doing a key note in front of 100 to 200 people it would be different. So that might be quite classic, so question mark? A mix, mood dependent.

 

What do you say ‘no’ to?


I
wonder in which context you meant that? And how I took that is, ‘what do I say no to’? I say no to a lot of work now. People will ask me to do things and I got a lot better at saying ‘I’m afraid I can’t do that’. Where certainly in my journey in my first 11-12 years I’m like ‘yes I can do that.’ I think in the early days it’s really important that you do say yes to find your feet, but it does get to a point where people would ask me where people would ask me every day ‘could you come to this restaurant and try this out’ or ‘can you come and speak here’ or ‘can you come and do this’ and I really got to pick things wisely in order to have a better impact.

 

What book are you reading at the moment?

I’ve got a couple on the go. I listen to a lot of Audibooks and the one I was really excited about was Robin Sharma The 5am Club – I don’t know if it lived up to my expectations. And then at night time I read an actual book to disconnect from social media and my phone and I’m reading Own Your Day by Aubrey Marcus.

 

How do you want the world to remember you?

To have had an impact on other people. To have got them to do something that was maybe out of their comfort zone. 

 

 

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