Season 3, Episode 6: Henrietta Rix, Co-Founder & CEO of Rixo
Jun 1, 2024
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Henrietta Rix, CEO of RIXO, discusses building her vintage-inspired fashion brand from a university living room, maintaining independence, and growing a loyal following on Instagram. She shares insights into daily operations, expansion challenges, personal values, and plans for US market expansion.
Henrietta Rix and Orlagh McCloskey started RIXO from their living room, organically building the brand through engagements with boutiques, influencers, and press.
Henrietta's hands-on involvement in managing RIXO's diverse departments, from operations to retail expansion, showcases her strategic planning and growth-oriented approach.
Rixo's expansion plans into new markets and the introduction of Rixo Gold emphasize the brand's focus on high-end, timeless pieces for formal events.
Deep dives
Key Point 1: Building the Brand with Passion and Determination
Henrietta and her business partner, Orla, founded Rixo with a shared passion and determination, starting in their living room. Despite initial financial challenges, they built the brand organically, engaging with boutiques, influencers, and press to increase visibility. Their laser focus on the brand's growth led to significant milestones, like securing orders from Net-a-Porter, expanding internationally, and gaining recognition from celebrities like Selena Gomez.
Key Point 2: Managing a Growing Business Across Departments
Overseeing a team of around 111 employees across various departments, Henrietta stays actively involved in trade meetings, strategy sessions, and one-on-one discussions with department heads. From operations to creative decisions, Henrietta balances the demands of wholesale, design, customer service, and retail expansion. The dynamic nature of her role involves strategic planning, adapting to market demands, and maintaining a steady growth trajectory for Rixo.
Key Point 3: Navigating Challenges in Retail and Press Relations
Expanding into retail required Henrietta to navigate lease negotiations, store fit-outs, and distribution strategies across online platforms, department stores, and boutiques. Managing exclusive collections and press relations involved strategic decision-making to maintain brand integrity and secure valuable partnerships, like with Net-a-Porter. Henrietta's hands-on approach and attention to detail extend to creative marketing efforts, such as using Instagram to connect with influencers and customers.
Expanding to New Markets: Focus on New York and LA
The podcast episode discusses Rixaw's plans to expand into new markets outside the UK, particularly focusing on New York and LA over the next three years. The introduction of a separate label, Rixaw Gold, features slightly elevated price points with a collection tailored for black tie events and red carpet occasions. The episode emphasizes the importance of entering these markets and catering to customer demands for high-end, timeless pieces suitable for formal events.
Empowering Women in Business and Staying True to Yourself
In the conversation, Henrietta shares insights on challenges faced as a woman in business, highlighting moments where judgments were made about potential family commitments affecting the business. The episode underlines the significance of being genuine and true to oneself in business settings, encouraging women to uphold their authenticity and passion for their work. Henrietta stresses the need to prioritize being oneself and leveraging strengths, even when faced with skeptics or doubts from others in the industry.
Welcome to Work Rest Slay, the monthly business podcast from IMAGE Media in partnership with Range Rover, featuring honest interviews with inspirational guests. Work Rest Slay is the place to come to for stories about achievement, burnout, success and inspiration as well as tips to help us strive towards more balanced and fulfilling lives.
In Season 3, Episode 6 Melanie chats with with CEO and co-founder of RIXO, Henrietta Rix, on how she has grown her cult fashion label into a thriving international brand. Henrietta shares her entrepreneurial journey alongside her partner Orlagh McCloskey, from creating their first-ever collection in their university living room to becoming a globally recognised fashion label, known for their vintage-inspired designs and phenomenal fits. Henrietta and Orlagh remain steadfast in keeping RIXO independently owned – a rarity in 2024’s fashion industry – and they both stay firmly placed in the day-to-day running of the business. Listen to hear more about Henrietta's inspiring career journey.
