A coffee with Maddie
Hi Maddie! We’d love to get to know you more! What’s your story?
Hello!
I’m Maddie, a 25-year old Norwegian living in London. I started making videos on YouTube when I was 14 about my passions for home, travel and organisation. Little did I know, what started as a hobby would eventually become my full time job and the springboard to start my dream business.
Where did you grow up and where do you live now?
I was born and raised in Oslo, Norway. When I was 18, I moved to London to pursue my bachelors degree in Business Management, and have been living here ever since!
What led you to becoming a travel and lifestyle content creator?
After graduating from university, I was unsure whether I wanted to continue with my education or start full time work in a company. I had been doing social media part time next to my studies for the past couple years and decided this was my chance to try something new, see more of the world, and find out what I wanted to do.
I wanted to spend my year as a full time travel creator doing all the things I had never previously had time to do, and decided to book myself a month long solo trip to South East Asia. This trip changed everything for me. Not only did I get completely obsessed with traveling, and everything it teaches you, but it became my new favourite type of content to create. I loved making travel vlogs and taking my audience along on my trips, and my audience loved it too.
Since then, I have spent the past 3 years traveling the world, documenting my trips and packing along the way!
What sparked the idea for Pastael?
When it comes to Pastael and our packing cubes, the idea goes all the way back to my first few trips. Packing cubes have been used by backpackers for decades, and they quickly became my must-have travel essential on my trips.
However, my biggest issue with this travel essential was how boring and flimsy they were. I needed to use packing cubes to save space, and keep organised, but all the ones I could find were boring or ugly, and would often break after a few times use.
I wanted something better: cubes that were as fun and vibrant as the journeys themselves, without sacrificing durability or functionality. So I set out to design my own.
After hundreds of hours spent researching, sketching, testing and refining every detail, Pastael packing cubes were born!
What has been your favorite part about starting your own brand?
Good question! There’s been so many pinch me moment things that have happened in the past 6 months since I launched Pastael. I think my favourite might just be how well our customers have responded to our products. Our customers go out of their way to share their love for the brand - not only through repeat purchases (in the past month, repeat purchases are 30% of total sales!) but also on social media.
We get dozens of messages, comments and posts directed to us every day from customers sharing how much they love their Pastael packing cubes. Running a startup isn’t always easy, but receiving feedback like this makes it all worth it!
What does a typical day look like for you?
I almost feel like a typical day doesn’t exist when running a startup - every day is so different! Whether it’s working on hiring, promoting new launches, answering emails or putting out fires behind the scenes - there’s always something new to do. We’re currently in the process of hiring our fourth team member, so a lot of my time recently has been spent on this, however, every day is truly so different!
If you could show your Pastael packing cubes anywhere in the world, where would you take them?
Korea! This country has been on my bucket list for ages, and it’s definitely somewhere that would be so fun to pack for and experience.
Before we wrap up, we have to ask! How do you take your coffee?
Depends on the season! In the colder months, I love a oat cappuccino. In the warmer months, I love a iced oat latte or even a iced oat matcha with a pinch of salt!
