#KAAIwoman edition: Charlotte Collard: when food meets design

My love for food has always been with me. My grandfather was living in Canada, and we were lucky to have a big property there.

He would cook everything homemade with the eggs & chickens from the garden. He would go hunting & fishing and would bring the meat and fish to the house to prepare a lovely dinner. We also had a big vegetable garden and  would make bread at 5 am in the morning.

I learned my cooking when I was a kid going to Canada 2 months a year during summer, so this is where it all happened.  

I always wanted to be an entrepreneur. Even when I was young & I didn't know what it was, I knew I wanted to do something myself and not wait for a casting or shoot to happen.

I always kind of wanted to make things happen. So modeling was a great opportunity for me to travel, meet people and learning all about the fashion business. I just always wanted to do my own thing.

I never really stopped modeling. What I do today is the same job as modeling, which is posing in front of the camera, creating content, and being an ambassador for brands. So modeling is still a big part of my life but I do not wish to continue doing castings and stuff.

 

Have you always dreamed of being such an inspiration for lots of people?

I never expected to become an inspiration. I have always been very creative on my side, but it was never my intention to inspire people. I am more into showing what I love and combining my experiences, and everything I learned from the fashion world and from what I see in the world, nature and people.

I get inspired from everything that I see, taste hear or smell. So it's all about combining & creating things with everything that I discover, do and feel. Even today I don't see myself as being inspiring, I just share what I love, hoping that it will help people find their own balance and create new things.

 

How does it feel to get the chance to work with amazing chefs like Jean-François Rouquette and Pierre Hermé?

I have to say that I always wanted to learn and keep learning within the cooking field. And I always believed that learning from the best, is simply the best.

It was my idea at first to cook side to side with chefs, because I had no time with my kids, my work and being an entrepreneur to go back into the kitchen and work in restaurants. I did try, but I was sick all the time, because it was too much work. Working everyday from noon till midnight and then combining it with taking care of my girls. The only solution to learn and keep learning was to cook with chefs, and I definitely had the luck that everything turned out.

Today I find myself super lucky to learn all these chef cooking skills around simple recipes. The reason why I do this, is because I want to share these skills and tricks around simple recipes with other people. This way they can cook simple but delicious recipes at home and feel like chefs. 

 

What is the best tip you can give young & ambitious women that want to become entrepreneurs?

The best tip or advise I would give to someone who is starting their career as an entrepreneur, is to remember it takes time for people to discover you and your product. The idea is to put yourself in a very secure financial situation in order to be successful.

Success is not about winning a speed competition, it is about lasting long, it's more like running a marathon. So don't get investors right away, build an audience around your product in case you want to sell a product. Because the longer you last the more successful you will be.

As I said it takes a long time for people to discover you, support and build trust around what you are doing. Give them the time to get to know your product, who you are, and keep on testing. 

Why is Charlotte Collard a Kaai woman?

Being a busy entrepreneur, Charlotte fits perfectly into our Kaai community. She is always on the go, whether it is for her catering company, experimenting with recipes or even to pick up her three girls from school. Therefore she could use a functional bag that fits all her personal, work and daughters stuff.

We recommended our Hero, as the bag is made of different compartments, perfect to put away her laptop, agenda, smartphone, and even her "lunch on the go". 

Furthermore, the Hero is the perfect bag for women who are constantly on the go, as it can be worn on-shoulder, cross body, and even as a backpack. This quality gives every woman the opportunity to work and move hands-free, not having to worry about a thing.