margo reed

Share with us a little about the story of Margo ..

I grew up in a very small town on the Mid North coast of NSW and was shy and quiet. My childhood was spent outside roaming around, in my Nan or Mum’s garden picking flowers, following my brothers around, in the pool or at the beach, baking in the kitchen, crafting something with my hands or time with friends. I look back now and think how lucky but all I ever wanted to do was leave and create my own life. I remember pleading with my mum to send me to boarding school in Sydney for over a year which she never allowed. I moved to Sydney to study interior design right after school and along with 2 years living and studying in Milan, Italy, Sydney was my home for the last 19years.

Recently my partner Grant and I, with our cat Manoo, moved to the Sunshine Coast which has been an incredible change. Bondi’s charm had changed in the 10 years I’d lived there and we both had a strong pull to move somewhere warm all year round, quiet, green, dissolute beaches, a garden, and a slower pace of life, but still has a creative and entrepreneurial community. We’ve found the people here so friendly, the air is clean, roads are lined with trees, there’s no traffic and there’s a calm energy so it’s filling all my expectations!

I guess the above sums me up really, entrepreneurial yet chilled. I always have something creative happening yet I don’t want to be part of the rat race like I once did. Maybe it’s moving back to my roots or maybe it’s just growing up.

I absolutely love being near water and have always lived near the ocean or river. Even in Milan we lived on the canal, which unfortunately was mostly empty and housed giant mosquitoes! I find water calms me and energies me all at the same time. I’m a Capricorn/Scorpio/Pieces so I feel at times quite a contradiction and my thoughts battle constantly! I love my home and creating a home yet need to travel and create adventure. A new café, bushwalk or beach is heaven to me! And I’m obsessed by food – reading cookbooks, farmers markets, growing it, cooking it, sharing and eating it.

How did you get started on Solitude - could you share a little about your journey, I understand you were working in interior architecture prior to starting Solitude?

Solitude was born from a break from work actually. I had spent 18 years as an Interior Designer, studying abroad, working for incredible designers and companies and having my own creative businesses but I was finding myself more and more stressed out and anxious. I’d wanted to be a designer since I was 13 so it was a very confusing stage to get to in my mid 30’s and prime of my career! I felt very lost and was spending nights and weekends in tears so I thought meditation could help me get some clarity. The next day I was learning Vedic meditation through my friend’s course at The Broad Place and that weekend everything changed. It really opened my mind to who I was now and what I really wanted and I realised that I’d changed so much from my career and needed to get back to my roots and create something new. So with the incredible support from my partner and some divine intervention from the universe I was able to quit my job and take some time out for the next step. I had this feeling that I wanted to be challenged and more creative again, to use my hands, learn something new, revert to past hobbies. I went to different workshops and started playing in the kitchen, spending hours on Pinterest and listening to podcasts in the bath.

When I was previously working I was so stressed out that on my way home Grant would run me a bath for when I got home. I was really struggling with feelings of pressure and overwhelm so I’d spend the next 30mins to an hour just reviving myself in this calm quiet space, warm water and essential oil concoctions I was making along with salts I’d bought, and by the time I’d come out I was a completely different person than when I’d gone in.

I kept bathing throughout my time off because it’s such a love of mine and it creates space for my thoughts and processing. The bath salts I was buying came in really tacky packaging but they had the all-natural ingredients I was after. It wasn’t until my brother gave me some glittery and chemical filled bath bombs for my birthday (something I would never put near my skin!) that the idea of SOLITUDE formed and I knew I could create something natural and beautiful for people to truly enjoy.

Feelings of being overwhelmed, stressed and anxious are common realities in the lives of many and for a variety of different reasons, is there any light you can shed from your own experience?

It’s strange to look back now when these feelings crept over me. To be honest I don’t think I’d ever experienced anxiety until then. It was a culmination of personal change and taking too much on and it just slowly crept in. It became most apparent when my phone rang on the weekends, either my friends or family, but I’d get so freaked out just hearing the ringtone as I’d become accustomed to it ringing daily at work with constant issues. This then created strain on my relationships because I shut down and spent most of my time for myself to recover for the week ahead. It’s taken me a good year for it to ring and me not be triggered by it, though that dreaded feeling still pops up in my stomach and mind every now and then.

My body was also a huge vessel for letting me know there was a problem. I’m the type of person to just ignore it or bury myself in more work but I’d been suffering from all these little things like perosis, bumps on my fingers, bloating, etc along with constant sickness and exhaustion. All these little things that seemed to mean nothing singularly but amounted to so much together. I finally decided I wanted to heal so started seeing my friend Steve Mursa who is an incredible kinesiologist/chiro/nutritionist and I think his work played a huge part of my personal change as it opened me up to understanding how my body was reacting to past and present stress, the stress it could and couldn’t deal with and what it needed to relax and process information such as anxiety and overwhelm.

 For other Women wanting to take the plunge in starting their own business - what would you say has helped you?

I’ve always dabbled in business and love throwing myself into the unknown so I have always known it’s not easy. Business is such a wild ride and product/retail is completely new for me. Podcasts, small business workshops and all forms of business information have been an absolute saviour along with friends that have retail stores and products.

Don’t ever be afraid to ask questions. I’m constantly asking and google-ing everything I don’t know. No one is ever beyond asking and I’ve found people love to help.

Also do your research up front. While I was testing and creating the brand and products I started an Instagram account to see what people wanted, liked etc. Even before I’d launched I had suppliers who wanted my products on the shelves which meant it was a viable business to pursue.

Self-care is a large part of the concept behind your products - could you tell me us a little more about your own journey in self-care? 

I, of course, learnt self-care the hard way! I’d pushed myself for so long when I was younger either out all night or working really hard. At one point I think I had 3 jobs and 2 businesses on the go!

I went to Thailand for a health retreat, unknowingly caught dengue fever and by the time I was home ended up in hospital for Christmas. I’ve never really recovered so now I make sure to listen to my body as it doesn’t seem to bounce back or deal with being pushed too hard. It’s definitely not easy though which is why self-care is so important in my life. I spend lots of time listening in to what I need, if its rest I nap, if it’s alone time I take a bath or go for a walk, if I feel frustrated or overwhelmed I step away to recalibrate.

Self-care comes in so many forms and it’s different for everyone but my go-to list on rotation is kinesiology, nature, healthy food, baths, laughter, walking, pilates, acupuncture, travel, adventures, sunshine, friends, alone time, time with my partner, cooking, creativity and mediation. Some are daily musts and others depend on my need.

We love the added layer of meditation within your products (via the gratitude fortune and meditation podcasts) making these a very special and unique experience - can you tell us a little more about the idea and how people can access content?

We wanted to create an experience that was so much more than just a bath, something that was beautiful on the shelf, on your skin, but also made you feel your best both inside and out. Baths are really a time for solitude so why not enhance this and go deep within.

Because of this the meditation is included to help bring you back to yourself. Our days are long and full on, work hours have changed from 9-5 to 8-7 with higher expectations and much more information coming at us along with our own personal commitments. Meditation is a practise that allows us to acknowledge our thoughts, calm our minds, and give something back to ourselves. It’s the ultimate self-care!

Currently we have a beautiful mindful focused guided meditation accessible via our website. Along with this I’m in the midst of creating a meditation portal and app which will hold a community of teachers and options ranging from sound baths, reiki, candle and guided meditations specific to each scent and product which I’m very excited about.

The gratitude fortune is added as a little surprise and to bring positivity into your day. As human beings it’s in our DNA to remember negativity over positivity so this brings us back around and also reminds us how far we’ve come. It doesn’t have to be much, its small, simple things like this that can really change your mood.

I would love to touch a little on Womanhood and your own personal journey into this? Are there any defining moments you would like to share?

Womanhood to me has a very defining moment where I really stepped into myself and like a snake shed my skin. And it was literally when I pushed open a door to a local bar one night in Milan. I’ve always surrounded myself with strong women, who know who they are and what they want, because I had no clue and could sneak in behind them. I remember it as an out of body experience, I’d had enough of hiding myself and took charge opening the door, full of energy and pride. It’s such a meaningful moment in my life of growth and my best friend and I talk about it to this day.

Currently I feel like I’m going through a new stage of womanhood which is a nurturing of sorts and while I don’t feel the need for children I’ve found myself wanting to create a beautiful home for my partner and I and create something wonderful and caring through my business. I’ve found my femininity again which I’d lost to a masculine world and am feeling much more in line with who I am.

Lastly if you had one message for other women, what would that be? 

Make time for yourself! We rise up to our wonder woman status and even though we can do it all, something always gives, and it’s usually ourselves.

It doesn’t haven’t have to be much and can be as simple as a restorative bath or mindful meditation. Just like you look after your kids, stay back late for your boss and make time for your partner and friends, you need to take yourself on a date too. A walk in the fresh air or quiet coffee break can give you so much clarity and re-energise the body and mind.

You can follow Margo Reed -

@solitudebodymind

www.solitudebodymind.com