When I founded the luxury fashion line Rekha Mistry, I knew balancing family life and running a new business wouldn’t be easy. But I hoped the hard work and sacrifices would be worthwhile. I think it’s important to be honest that alongside lots of amazing highs, there have been some challenging times.
So has it all been worth it? Absolutely! Carry on reading to see how I’m balancing family life with being a female founder.
Where the Rekha Mistry story started
I’ve always wanted to do something creative, and that’s something new for my family. I come from a line of doctors, so launching a fashion business is quite a departure! My Dad wanted me to go into medicine like him, so I studied psychology, which I thoroughly enjoyed.
But later, I just knew I had to pursue my own passion and launch a brand infused with the heritage of my family’s Indian traditions that are so precious to me.
"Launching Rekha Mistry has been a real labour of love. My vision is to give women an effortless way to express their style through luxury occasion wear inspired by India, that’s uniquely British. And seven years later, I’m so proud to say that I’ve launched the brand, which has paved the way for many more collections to come. The brand is rooted in building a community of like-minded women, learning from them, and delivering a unique collection that caters to the modern woman’s life."
A new arrival three years ago
In the midst of planning my new business, we welcomed our son Kyan. As all parents know, nothing can prepare you for how much your life gets turned upside down when that little person arrives in your life. Until you experience it for yourself, it’s hard to understand just how much everything changes.
Because it was a critical time in my business launch, I used to take my laptop to my maternity appointments and worked up to the day before Kyan was born. I got straight back to work just a couple of weeks later. It was a magical and exhausting whirlwind.
Thankfully I was used to late nights and early mornings from working on the brand launch for so long. And my family are all such hard workers; it’s definitely in my genes. My passion has carried me through the tougher times.
Making my family proud is everything to me
I’m so lucky that my family gives me their full support. I really value their help and the bond they have with Kyan. My Mum babysitting him means I can attend work meetings in the city and have interruption-free video calls. Without her support, none of this would be possible.
My Dad has also supported me the whole way through this journey and taught me the value of hard work, dedication and passion. I get my ambition and drive from him and seeing him work hard all of his life has ignited that feeling of wanting to create something from scratch and be successful. I want to make him and my Mum proud, and I’m also doing this for my brother, who is sadly no longer with us.
"Sometimes things do slip – my house may not be as tidy as I’d like, and I definitely don’t get as much sleep as I need. As a founder and Mum to a very active toddler, concealer is my best friend. "
When Kyan or I get ill, it is difficult. I don’t have the option to call in sick, but we make it work. And it’s all worth it, seeing Kyan’s reaction when he sees my designs and tells me he thinks they are pretty. I’m doing this for him. Hopefully one day he’ll inherit a thriving occasion wear label that is rooted in his culture.
Day-to-day, trying to fit everything in can be very difficult. It's hard to balance it all, and sometimes I do feel guilty, for example, when I was in Kolkata. Being away from him was really hard, but I'm lucky that I have a great support network both at home and within my business.
After the hard work comes success (and lots more hard work)
And now that the first Spring/Summer 25 collection has launched, I love every minute of it. Often it doesn't feel like work because I’m doing something I love and that I’m passionate about. There have been a lot of late nights, blood, sweat and tears. But alongside my family support, I have a small team of incredible professional women behind me, ensuring we have everything covered. I draw on their expertise, experience and strength.
It’s so important to me to give women a way to express their identity and honour their heritage, whilst being true to themselves. Seeing my customers’ feedback is incredible – hearing how happy they are with their garments, and how they appreciate the attention to detail and workmanship makes all the stress and late nights worthwhile.
I’m incredibly proud of what the team and I have achieved: founding a British Indian occasion wear brand from nothing but a strong vision, hard work, passion and determination. It hasn’t always been easy. There are sacrifices at every point. And I’m sure there will be many more challenges and sacrifices to come. But I’ve always known I wanted to be more than a wife and mother, as amazing as both those things are!
My passion helps me stay focused
Parenting a spirited three year old, founding and running a business and a home is not for the faint-hearted. But it’s been worth it to show my son that I am more than his Mum, and that with hard work he can also do anything! It’s a juggle, but somehow, we just about make it work.
I believe my ambition, tenacity, passion and drive have kept me going through the obstacles I’ve faced throughout launching my business. And they, and the incredible team at Rekha Mistry, will help me continue to make it a success.