In this live episode of Virgin StartUp Changemakers, Natalie Pearce sits down with Desmond & Dempsey co-founder Molly Goddard to explore how a simple idea around pyjamas became a brand built around something much bigger: taking more pleasure in slowing down.

From making their first 100 sets in London while working other jobs to collaborations with brands including H&M and the Natural History Museum, Molly shares how storytelling, curiosity and a willingness to ask for help shaped Desmond & Dempsey. She explores building a brand before perfecting the product, balancing creativity with commercial reality, working alongside her husband and co-founder and creating a culture where play and hard work can coexist.

Whether you're building a consumer brand, turning a creative idea into a viable business or trying to protect what makes your brand distinctive as it grows, this episode offers practical founder lessons on storytelling, product, culture and building with curiosity.

In this episode:

• Spotting the gap that became Desmond & Dempsey
• Why a little naivety can be an advantage when starting a business
• Asking for help when you don't know how an industry works
• Testing demand with the first 100 sets of pyjamas
• Building the brand story before the finished product existed
• Why storytelling and product quality play different roles in customer loyalty
• Keeping your purpose consistent while evolving how you communicate it
• Balancing creative integrity with the need to build a profitable business
• Creating rituals that bring play, celebration and curiosity into company culture
• What Molly has learned from building a business with her husband and co-founder
• Why co-founders need to align on risk, work and integrity
• Treating mistakes as learning, as long as you don't make the same one twice
• The collaborations and milestones that created some of Desmond & Dempsey's biggest "pinch me" moments

Changemakers is brought to you by Virgin StartUp, the not-for-profit organisation helping founders start and scale the businesses they're passionate about.

Recorded live at Virgin StartUp's Changemakers events, every episode features honest conversations with entrepreneurs, founders and business leaders sharing the lessons, challenges and ideas shaping the future of business.

Looking to start or grow your own business?

Find out more at virginstartup.org

Brought to you in partnership with our friends at Virgin Money - the home of brighter business banking.

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