Articles
Top - the Boodles 'Raindance' ring is part of the Victoria and Albert Museum's permanent jewellery collection
Bottom - Michael and Honour Wainwright.
Images (c) Boodles
Sparkling success for Exeter father and daughter at luxury jewellers
Luxury jewellery brand, Boodles, has been run by the same family for six generations. Brothers Nicholas and Michael Wainwright currently lead the business, and are joined by the next generation – cousins, Jody, James and Honour – across all functions of the brand.
It’s not just a family connection though, as both Michael and daughter Honour are Exeter alumni. Michael graduating in Accountancy and Economics in 1979, and Honour in Geography and Business in 2018.
Michael joined Boodles in 1984 and is now its Managing Director. He says: “It’s a big responsibility taking over a family business. I feel like we are custodians of the brand, Boodles has been around for such a long time and it is our job to continue its success and ensure it remains in a strong position long into the future. It’s not quite the same as other roles where you might move from company to company, with a family business you are there for the long haul.
“This can be both positive and negative. You tend to make much more long-term decisions which are good for the health and security of the business, but at the same time you can miss the outside innovation so you have to make sure you seek out new ideas and outside perspectives from time to time.”
Honour joined the family business in the role of Marketing Manager last year after spending time working with Conde Nast following graduation. She says: “I’ve grown up in Boodles, it’s always been a part of my life and I think I’ve always known I want to work here ultimately. I wanted to get some business experience outside first so I could really bring something to the table, then an opportunity came up and now that I am here it’s so exciting.
“I know it sounds cliched but the whole company feels like a family, not just those of us who are related! It really forms the whole ethos of our business and I think that comes out in our public image.”
Boodles was originally founded in Liverpool and has shops across the North West of England as well as in London and Dublin. The company designs all its own collections and also produces bespoke jewellery for customers. In 2008, the Boodles 'Raindance' ring was selected to appear in the Victoria and Albert Museum's permanent jewellery collection, where it still lives, and clients include Hollywood actress Emma Thompson.
Boodles also supports charity, sporting and other events including, just recently, the Boodles Cheltenham Gold Cup. The race was won by a female rider for the first time, jockey Rachael Blackmore, who has also become a Boodles ambassador.
Honour says: “To be associated with the first female jockey to win the Gold Cup is amazing, what a great milestone. Prior to Cheltenham we organised a photo shoot with Rachael wearing our Raindance and Waterfall collections so combined with the result, this sponsorship has been hugely positive for our brand.”
Michael says: “My father got me involved in horse racing when I was seven years old so it has always been a big part of my life and I love it. When we got the chance to sponsor the Gold Cup I thought it was too big an opportunity to turn down and thankfully my fellow directors agreed with me! A lot of our customers love the sport and it’s a very prestigious race so it’s a good match for us.”
And what about that Exeter connection? Michael’s wife Annie is also an Exeter alumna and another member of the family is about to start studies here, so there will soon be three generations of Wainwrights in our community.
Honour says: “I loved my time at Exeter. I made the best friends and everyone was really supportive. Also the Business side of my studies has been incredibly valuable as I’ve started to develop my career. It laid the groundwork and gave me the tools to tackle the issues I would face in the real world.”
Michael says: “I made lifelong friends at Exeter, even my best man was a friend I met there. There was some really high-quality teaching which set me up for a good start in business life. If I’m totally honest, back then we didn’t necessarily study as hard as we might and I remember Professor Parker, who was Head of Accountancy, coming to tell me how pleasantly surprised he was by my results when they came in! Overall though we made the most of the opportunities on offer and I’ve no doubt it helped me when I was taking the first steps in my career.”
Date: 4 April 2022