Three Minutes With Charlie
WHAT DO YOU DO FOR GLADSTONE / HELLEN?
We all do everything together and yet we all have our own clear roles. That sounds like an oxymoron but it just works like that. However, my designated roles are brand management and creation as well as the look and feel of Gladstone / Hellen.
A THREE SENTENCE BIO TO SUM YOU UP, PLEASE?
I am an enthusiast and a creative entrepreneur who employs around 100 people across various small businesses, most of which I have created. I started my career in the music business, went on to build Pedlars, the homewares and clothing brand, built a farm shop and restaurant and started a pub and holiday business. I am an author of two books, a teacher of gentle leadership, and a podcaster but most of all I am a husband, father and grandfather.
TELL US A SECRET YOU’VE NEVER TOLD US BEFORE.
I am often tired but pretend I’m not.
DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE PIECE OF CLOTHING?
It varies but at the moment it’s my Gladstone / Hellen Dugdale flannel jacket. It’s incredibly, ridiculously comfortable.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE PRODUCT FROM THE LAUNCH COLLECTION?
That jacket and our British Icons mugs.
DO YOU HAVE ONE STYLE SIGNIFIER THAT YOU USE EVERYDAY?
Coloured socks, always in pear green or dark pink and always knee length, made in France. I wear them everyday, even for funerals and I wore them to meet the Queen for a private audience.
THE MOST INTERESTING PLACE YOU’VE VISITED IN THE LAST YEAR?
Am I allowed to have two? If I am, am I allowed to have Glen Dye and Hawarden, our two estates? We have transformed them from ruins to immaculate jewels and they are fantastic and they interest, challenge and engage me every day. If not, I will say Athens, but despite its extraordinary wonders, it’s a distant third.
WHAT WAS THE BIGGEST TAKEAWAY FROM WORKING IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY?
That I love music, not the business of music. I am happy to have done the job I did and massively proud of my achievements but turning a passion into a job ruined my love of music.
.... AND SPEAKING OF, WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE RECORD, BOOK, OR PIECE OF ART?
It’s The Smiths’ peerless masterpiece, The Queen Is Dead. It meant so much, it said so much, it gave me so much joy and it still does.
ONE THING YOU THINK THE WORLD NEEDS MORE OF?
Conversation, by which I mean courteous listening and response, not shouting or lecturing.
WHAT’S THE FIRST THING YOU DO WHEN YOU WAKE UP IN THE MORNING?
Well, I wish I could go back to sleep and then I check email, Instagram and then WhatsApp, followed by a quick scan of The Guardian and Times.
THE ONE THING YOU CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT?
I’m tempted to say ‘love’ but I don’t want to sound too much like a Coldplay hit, so how about music?
