As head of our design team, Sarah Bennett is always busy. But with five children at home, juggling her work and her home life can be a bit chaotic! Sarah explains how she manages to fit everything into a typical day…
7:15am
I’m not really a morning person, but Steve seems to wake up immediately feeling very driven and sure of what he wants to achieve. I’m usually a bit more sluggish, but our youngest son, Louie, is a great alarm clock. Getting all five kids up and dressed and ready for school and nursery is always the most chaotic part of my day. We have three different places to drop them off, so sticking to a routine is really important!
9:30am
I get to the office at around 9.30am. My first job is to check my emails. With most of my design team based in Jaipur (4½ hours ahead of the UK), I have limited time with them before they go home, so I make them the focus of my morning. There are six members of my Indian team, who’ll send me concepts to approve and designs to check over. I’ll give them my feedback, as well as letting them know what quantities we need and what stones to use from our inventory. I also spend some time every day researching jewelry trends, as well as seeing how the next edition of our Gemology magazine is coming along. I’ve always loved the creative process involved in design. Before Gems TV started, I designed children’s clothes and when I fell in love with gemstones it really brought my two passions together. I love the excitement of seeing a concept become a beautiful piece of wearable art. I’m very lucky to do a job I adore, surrounded by the people I love.
12:30pm
I tend to graze throughout the day, but I’ve been trying to have a proper break in the middle of the day and get some fresh air. I usually have a salad for lunch, as we have a big meal in the evening.
1:00pm
With the Jaipur working day ending, my afternoons are centered on my UK team. I check in with them and see what they’re working on and if they need anything from me. I’ll also chat with Steve, as well as Purchasing Director Jake and Gem Expert David and see what stones we have on the way in, so I can start making plans for them.
3:00pm
Picking the children up is a little more complicated than the mornings, as I have to remember what after-school activities they might have. Jess and Lili have singing and piano lessons twice a week. Jack and Tom have drum lessons, as well as hockey and football. The children eat at 5:00pm, then it's homework. The eldest get on with it themselves, but Lili’s a little younger and sometimes needs our help. We try and make time for some fun too, we’re all very musical, so most nights one of the children will put on a little concert or dance for us.
I’ve always loved the creative process involved in design. Before Gemporia started, I designed children’s clothes and when I fell in love with gemstones it really brought my two passions together.
7:30pm
Baby Louie is first to bed at 7.30pm, then the rest go to bed later. Steve and I have dinner later and our teenagers, Jack and Jess, will eat with us – they’re always hungry!
9:00pm
After dinner is quiet time. I tend to get a few more hours of work in most nights during the week. I find this is actually my most creative period, where I’ll put together concept ideas and sketch designs. At the weekends, though, Steve and I will set aside time to snuggle up on the sofa with a film and a glass of wine, or we’ll go out for a meal with friends and family. Steve loves to play tennis to unwind and he’s trying really hard to get me into it too, so that’s something we’ll try and do on a
Sunday afternoon.
I’m trying to get better at balancing work and family. I think many working parents would agree that this often feels impossible. Like anyone else, sometimes there are busy weeks and I’ll realize I haven’t seen the children as much as I’d like, or spoken to Steve very much. The business means that we often have to travel abroad and that’s always difficult. We always try and make the school holidays special and really make the children the focus of whatever we decide to do. I’ve found the key is to try and make the most of the time we have together and never miss an opportunity for fun, silliness or the spontaneous.
Explore the Sarah Bennett Collection here
