VARLEY was founded in 2015 by couple Lara and Ben Mead. The brand began as a merging of their passions and affinity for the aesthetic, wardrobes and lifestyle of London and Los Angeles, between which they split their time.

They created VARLEY to celebrate all modern women, providing her with a wardrobe of timeless contemporary pieces, designed for how she moves and lives.

Here we find out a little more about Lara, the woman behind the scenes and creator of the brand:

What was the vision behind Varley?

The vision behind VARLEY was very much about creating a performance fashion brand for the modern day women. We create contemporary and active collections designed to elevate your everyday. Clothes that give you the quiet confidence to live your life on your terms, we call it a wardrobe for how you live and move.

What was the biggest thing that gave you the edge to become such a strong brand?

Our team, we are incredibly lucky at VARLEY to have an amazing team many have been with us from the beginning and have grown with us. We are also fortune to work with brilliant partners from suppliers to stockists.

What is your strongest passion?

My family…hands down my greatest achievement and what I’m proudest of. I know that’s a cliché, but it’s true.

What is your biggest achievement to date?

Again, as above my family.

But on a professionally level, I’m proud to have grown a brand with my husband from nothing to having 50 employees and over 1000 stockists globally. We did this for many years on limited budget as we were self-financed and I’m proud how far we have come.

What makes Varley different from its competitors?

We don’t consider ourselves as a activewear brand!! That’s not our competition. We are a performance fashion brand. Providing women with their everyday wardrobes.

What are your best selling items?

Our best-selling styles include our Vine Sweater, a versatile half-zip sweat, perfect meeting of practicality, sophistication and style, cut in our signature Ottoman rib. It’s the perfect sweat all year round, for every season and key style for all our women. Our Always & Let’s Move leggings are true VARLEY staples for your everyday wardrobe to daily workouts.

You have high quality, durable clothing. What are your fabrics made from?

We are so proud of the quality across all our collections, we created timeless styles that last. For us, responsibility is as fundamental as the fit of a garment. We strive to create and curate well-made clothing of quality – from our high-grade materials, to considered details. Our Let’s Move & Always active collections are made from Recycled Polyester.

Who designs your clothing range?

In the early days of the brand all the clothing was designed by myself and my husband (co-founder) as we have grown we now have an amazing design team that I still work very closely with on a day to day basis. My position in the company is now the Chief Creative Officer.

Where do you want to take the company in the future?

I hope to continue to grow with our current partners and to expand into new territories. Our product ranges and offering continue to expand. We launched Tennis this summer, next year we will launch our Resort/ Swim range and I hope retail will be on the cards for the near future.

What is your target market, and do you plan on expanding it?

We design VARLEY for all modern women. Our target market are ages early 30’s to 55+.

W: Varley