Cath Kidston

Cath Kidston
MBE
Born Catherine Isabel Audrey Kidston
(1958-11-06) 6 November 1958
Marylebone, London, England
Nationality English
Occupation
  • Businesswoman
  • author
Organization Cath Kidston Limited
Known for Floral prints and patterns
Partner(s) Hugh Padgham
Relatives Kirstie Allsopp (cousin)

Catherine Isabel Audrey "Cath" Kidston, MBE, (born 6 November 1958) is an English fashion designer, businesswoman and author whose company, Cath Kidston Limited sells home furnishings and related goods through shops, online and by mail order.[1] She is particularly known for her nostalgic floral patterns[1][2] and has also published a number of books.[2]

Family background and early life

Kidston's grandfather Glen Kidston was a successful racing driver for Bentley in the 1920s,[3] who was married to Nancie, Samantha Cameron's paternal grandmother.[4] Kidston's uncle is the former chairman of Christie's Charles Henry Allsopp, 6th Baron Hindlip and his daughters, television presenters, Kirstie Allsopp[5][6] and Sofie Allsopp her cousins.

Raised with three other siblings near Andover in Hampshire, Kidston was educated at a number of English boarding schools, before moving to London aged 18. She was employed by socialite Nicky Haslam[2] before setting up an interiors business with a friend,[2] then opening her own shop.[2]

Career

Kidston opened her first shop in London's Holland Park in 1993,[1] selling hand-embroidered tea-towels and brightly renovated furniture.[2] She later described it as a "glorified junk shop".[2] By the end of 2013, she had 136 outlets, including a flagship store on Piccadilly next to Fortnum & Mason and four stores in China.[7] Appearing on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs programme, Kidston described her shops as provoking a 'Marmite reaction': "People either love it and want a little bit of it very much, or want to stab us."[3] In 2010, she sold a majority stake of the company to private equity investors TA Associates,[8] retaining a minority stake and remaining the company's Creative Director.[8]

Prince George of Cambridge wore one of her outfits, which quickly sold out.[9]

Collaborations

Kidston has worked with Milletts to design tents (2005–6),[1] Nokia/ Carphone Warehouse mobile phones (2006),[1] and Roberts radios (2005 onwards).[1] In 2008, she collaborated with Tesco to produce shopping bags made from plastic bottles,[1] which were sold to raise almost £500,000 for Marie Curie Cancer Care[1] and saved about six million plastic bottles from landfill.[1]

Personal life

Kidston's partner is record producer Hugh Padgham,[2] whom she met as his decorator.[2] They have homes beside the Thames in West London,[2] and in Gloucestershire.[2] She has a step-daughter.[2] Kidston has two pets, a Sealyham terrier named Stanley and a Lakeland terrier named Billie, who feature in her designs.[10][11] Kidston is dyslexic.[2] Both her parents died of cancer,[2] and she was diagnosed with breast cancer, aged 37.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "About Cath Kidston". Cath Kiston Limited. Archived from the original on 2 January 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Hale, Beth (2010-02-23). "Cath Kidston to pocket £30m from sale of brand 20 years after shop assistant created famous nostalgic designs". Mail Online. London. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  3. 1 2 "Desert Island Discs: Cath Kidston | BBC". BBC. 2010-04-29. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  4. ↑ "Sam Cam's hidden ties to Kidston", The Sunday Times, London, p. News section, page 10, 4 October 2015
  5. ↑ Wood, Zoe (2009-08-09). "Queen of florals Cath Kidston bucks the recession to profit from love of nostalgia". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  6. ↑ Layton, Josh (7 May 2012). "Stranger relatives: Holly Valance is related to Benny Hill and the celebrities with fame in the family...". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 10 October 2012.
  7. ↑ Garside, Juliette (6 December 2013). "Cath Kidston could fetch up to £250m". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 April 2014.
  8. 1 2 Hall, James (2010-12-05). "Cath Kidston plans Far East push – Telegraph". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  9. ↑ http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/royalbaby/pretty-in-pink-princess-is-good-for-nation-of-shopkeepers/ar-BBj7tSp
  10. ↑ "Introducing Billie". Cath Kidston. Retrieved 25 January 2016.
  11. ↑ "Remembering Stanley". Cath Kidston. Retrieved 25 January 2016.


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