WHY REAL BUSINESS BEGINS AT 50

Meet the enterpreneurs who aer combining experience with innovation

THE FRAGRANCE AFICIONADO

NAME JAYNE KETHRO COMPANY T LONDON

Having spent years crisscrossing the globe for work, Jayne, 54, found herself wishing she could capture the evocative aromas of her travels. A business idea was born and two years ago she launched T London – a collection of home fragrance, bath and body products for retail and luxury hotels. She lives in North London with her husband Ian. Lightbulb moment I’d worked for Molton Brown for 15 years, selling its miniature toiletries to luxury hotels around the world. It was my dream job, visiting wonderful places and meeting people from different cultures. I remember a trip to Mexico, sipping a cup of tea overlooking the turquoise waters of the Riviera Maya, catching a hint of lime blossom in the air and thinking, ‘If only you could bottle this.’ That was when the seed of T London was sown. I decided I wanted to create fragrances blended to trigger emotions, moods and memories of special moments that always seemed to happen when I had a cup of tea in hand – this is why all the collections are named after teas. The catalyst Four years ago I was finding the travel brutal – I was at a meeting in Singapore, having flown from London after a trip to Mexico, when my vision failed and I felt incredibly sick. I had bad jet-lag. I couldn’t go on at that pace. I wanted to spend more time with friends and family – and I wanted a dog. I needed a new challenge. The big idea I believed I could develop fragrances that really delivered. I had the experience, the contacts and the insight into the market. People wanted natural formulations and customers were increasingly passionate about British-made products. And there was that element of ‘If I don’t do it now…’. First steps It took two years to develop the products, tweaking formulations and packaging. The Darjeeling candle took more than a year of sampling before I was happy with the ‘throw’ of the aroma. My suppliers were incredibly helpful. I asked a lot of questions if I didn’t understand something and made thorough notes. The launch The London Liverpool Street Andaz Hotel signed up during the development phase and selected the Darjeeling collection as its signature fragrance – that gave me a real buzz. I sat in the lobby and overheard people commenting on the wonderful fragrance wafting around the hotel. Soon after, we started receiving calls from people looking for the ‘Andaz aroma’. Online retail orders continue to grow – as well as the UK, products go to the US, Japan, Greece and South America. Last year, T London also launched in selected branches of Fenwick. The age advantage Experiences – both good and bad – give you wisdom which leads to insight. Plus, I was in a good place emotionally to take the next step. Motto Travel is the greatest education.