Reading Time: 4 Minutes
Venture down Nuffield Street and you will find a haven of bright colours and divine textures inside Jill Tuck Soft Furnishings. We caught up with Maude Wilcox, owner and operator, to find out what goes into her day to day...
I wake up. I’m a terrible sleeper. I have this brain that does not shut down at night but I’m working on it!
Children out of bed, Natalia is 11, Georgia is 10 and Harry is 8. My husband is a night owl so it’s usually me who does the morning madness, although he is very good at the breakfasts! Grab sports gear, ballet bag, instruments, library books and we head off, we’re like a moving circus!
Off to school drop offs, there is the usual fight of whose music we are playing in car, but I love this time, all of us singing at the top of our lungs.
Maybe a quick meeting with a teacher, supermarket shop and then usually either to a client's house or run to a wholesalers. I do try and walk in the mornings if I can and I really love the company of a trusted friend around Cornwall Park. A good laugh is the best balance for my week.
Doors are open at my showroom in Nuffield Street, but not before my chai latte from Nadu next door is in hand, my candles are lit and my music is playing. I spend most of my day meeting with designers, working on existing projects, invoicing, quoting, ordering, and the list goes on. I have my own workroom in Manurewa, but I usually cut all the orders here. Clients send me their fabrics directly or if I am working with the public then I buy their fabrics and we go from there. I love meeting all the characters in this industry. I am obsessed with anything soft furnishing-wise and nothing makes me happier than when a client sends me an email expressing how happy they are with a particular room, or a new carpet square, lamp, or re-upholstered piece of favourite furniture. I have always been in this industry but more the wholesale end working as a Sales Manager at Mokum for most of my career before buying Jill Tuck. Jill Tuck has been such a trusted name in the industry for over 30 years and I have a lot of friends who tell me I should change the name, but I am really proud to be associated with Jill (who pops in and sees me from time to time) and I have been here for 5 years now, so I am happy with it.
I am the taxi service for the children, I am usually at three different activities and three different times and three different venues, while speaking to clients on the phone or responding to emails in between. I have another business called ‘Maude Loves Kaftans’ a resort clothing line which I started 2 years ago. I am putting together a second collection at the moment so I am usually responding to emails from the girls in the workroom in Bali from about 3pm in the afternoon, until we get home.
Home at last. Homework, kids dinner, lunches, cooking, washing, packing for the next day. I really look forward to my ‘girls movie nights’ or dinners with my old school mates if that’s in the diary, then I leave it all to my husband and run out the door as soon as possible and don’t look back!
My husband is home from work and we usually have a quick chat when the house is quiet. I don’t have a lot of time to talk to him during the day and we are about to start on a renovation of the house, so we usually spend some of the night discussing that.
I’m normally heading to bed as I’m exhausted after the day I have had. My husband has this annoying habit of changing TV channels every second so I usually watch a bit of TV in the other room then head down waiting for another crazy day tomorrow!
63 Nuffield Street | 09 520 7502
Tags: A Day In The Life, Interviews
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