This week M+K sits across the table with Margot Vitale, COO + Co-founder, Curate Beauty, the UK’s only wholesale marketplace platform for indie beauty and lifestyle brands. She talks with us about cooking, creativity and supporting the local community.
1. My cooking inspiration…
Comes from my family. Both of my parents are great cooks but have very different approaches. My dad is very methodical whereas my mom is a lot more improvisational. My sister and I have always loved cooking together, she’s much more creative than I am and always has great ideas for new recipes to try.
2. A meal that reminds me of home…
Pasta with sausage and broccoli. For pasta, it’s usually orecchiette or shells, and the sausage is what we call sweet Italian sausage in the US. It’s tough to find in London, they don’t have it at every grocery store as they do in New York, but here it’s usually called Tuscan or fennel sausage.
3. A life lesson cooking has taught me…
Always read the directions and see how things have been done before you, evaluate if you think they make sense, then choose to either follow or do things your own way.
4. When I want to be creative I…
Get dressed up in the clothes from my closet that I never wear or try to find better places for things to go in my apartment, I find a lot of creative expression in organizing…strange, I know.
5. The most transformational book I’ve read is…
Doughnut Economics by Kate Raworth. My undergraduate degree is in economics and I’ve always been really interested in the patterns and functions of financial systems, but recently have felt disillusioned by the brutality and greed rampant in capitalism. This book puts forth a convincing argument toward redesigning our global economic models to better suit human needs.
6. The routines that keep me grounded are…
Two cups of jasmine green tea in the morning.
7. I recently learnt…
It takes exactly 5 minutes to perfectly soft boil an egg on my stove.
8. Favourite random act of kindness…
Being overly generous with patience and understanding for strangers.
9. To make a difference in my community I…
Do my best to support long-standing local independent businesses, as well as educating myself on local politics. I think we tend to forget how much difference local policies make in our communities.
10. Right now, I’m grateful for…
The privilege to be able to follow my passions.
Margot was born and raised in NYC and moved to London in 2018. After working in luxury retail for about 5 years she decided it was time for a change and entered into the startup world. Cooking has always been an important part of her version of individual self-care, as well as a means of connecting with others. She founded Curate Beauty, with award-winning beauty journalist Sam Freedman. Curate Beauty is the UK’s only wholesale marketplace platform for indie beauty and lifestyle brands. The website facilitates efficient brand discovery and a streamlined buying process for small and independent retailers interested in expanding their indie beauty selection. Their mission is to give the beauty buying process a makeover by eliminating the hassle of wholesale.
To connect visit:
Website: curate-beauty.com
Instagram: @curatebeauty
Email: hello@curate-beauty.com
