Meet the Mettle Makers - Sophie Marshall - Gentle Habits
We know that prioritising moments of self-care and stillness yield better outcomes than burning the candle at both ends. Yet ‘real life’ prevails and we too often find it impossible to carve out time for ourselves. What if we could incorporate little rituals (gentle habits, if you will) into our ‘real life’ without having to sacrifice the time we dedicate to our work, children, family, and the seemingly endless list of responsibilities. Sophie Marshall created Gentle Habits as a tangible reminder to pause, breathe and re-charge in her busy life as a full-time working mother. A high octane career in the surf industry, whilst thrilling and rewarding, left Sophie seeking moments of respite and not knowing where to find them in a way that suited her lifestyle. So she created Gentle Habits. What started as a range of locally inspired incense has rapidly expanded to a range of Internationally recognised wellness products and quite frankly, we’re obsessed!
When we received our first delivery of Gentle Habits stock, we could smell the luscious scents penetrating the cardboard. To open the box and find our stock accompanied with gifts for the women in our programs was further testament to the generous, compassionate spirit of Sophie. We are honoured to work with such a gorgeous woman and brand and hope you love her range as much as we do.
For those that haven’t had the luxury of experiencing your stunning products, can you please share what Gentle Habits is all about.
Here is (long version ) of the story on the “why” I created Gentle Habits..
The first product I launched was “This is Incense“. The idea came to me in the shower one morning, after rediscovering my love for incense to “slow down” but not really being able to find any incense that I truly loved. Since that day, creating beautiful incense became my side hustle and passion.
Back in 2020, I was lost in my world of a full-time career as a working mum of two boys. I had forgotten what I loved to do and needed a way to slow down and be present in the moment after long, stressful days. The little ritual of lighting an incense stick in my space at home after work helped me in so many ways. And creating the scents allowed me to access my creativity in a whole new way.
Since releasing This is Incense in 2020 I have watched my little side hustle and passion project grow thanks to our beautiful customers who shared thier love of our incense. It has blown my mind that within two years of launching, I was able to leave my job to work full-time in my business.
At the end of 2021 we moved our family to our dream destination, Yamba, NSW. I knew I needed to leave behind some bad habits I’d adopted from working long hours and not looking after myself both physically and mentally. I knew I needed to become the best version of myself and putting myself first after many, many years of not doing so, became my priority.
The overall process of creating the overarching new brand “Gentle Habits” has taken over two years, and during this time I’ve had the opportunity to create products that I felt I needed in my life to help me on this journey of self-discovery and mindfulness. I have always struggled to meditate, so I found alternative ways to bring mindful moments into my day through incorporating Gentle Habits products like Incense and Ritual body products.
I hope that by sharing what I’ve created with others, I’ll be able to help more people to be able to create these small rituals and gentle habits and make them part of their everyday.
As a mother of two and a successful entrepreneur, do you find moments for ‘you time’? What do these moments look like?
I know how important looking after “me” is ( to be the best mum and partner ) so I make time to mediate with my incense and move my body in the monrings with a Pilates or yoga class. I also love a lunchtime underwater session with our Dive Masks – this is a great reset and ensures I take lunch break and get away from the screen.
Can you share a bit about your journey before founding Gentle Habits?
It’s been a crazy journey so far – I had been in the Surf industry for 27 years and started out working at a local surf shop when I was 14. When I finished school, I enrolled in teaching to drop out to work full time in the shop. I then worked for Rusty and Roxy across sales and product, and worked up to my dream role in my career as Global Head of Product at Ripcurl. I was overseas a lot on work trips and it was such a face paced life until Covid hit and I was burnt out.
I still can’t believe after being in a apparel industry for over two decades that I had an unexpected career change, to creating products that I had no experience in which I am personally obsessed with and that help people with providing them with a beautiful daily ritual and habits.
We rarely pause to reflect on how we’re displaying Mettle (showing bravery and determination in the face of hurdles) in our own life so we’d like to prompt you. How are you showing strength in your life at the moment?
The strength I am showing currently would be managing my own personal stress I feel of having a small business in this unpredictable environment. I am working on myself to managing my anxiousness of the responsibility of running a business and ensuring our brand is sustainable and around for the long term.
Your products spark memories of coastal adventures and immersive nature experiences. Can you please share your favourite memory on this beautiful country?
This country and our coastal adventures have given me so many rich experiences that I drawn inspiration to create our incense scents.
Bells Beach is where we got married on the beach so this a favourite – we had a traditional Welcome to Country smoking ceremony and surrounded by the cliffs of Bells with the surf and our close friends f family. Using Bells Beach takes me back to the bush with the smell of Eucalypts and sandalwood.
Yamba is our new home and we live on a lake surrounded my bush, surf and a lake so we love nothing more than creating some beautiful new memories in our surroundings.
Can you paint a picture of the future world you see your children living in?
I would love nothing more to see my boys living in a smaller community like ours in Yamba that is supportive and caring. A future world where the environment is respected, people are living in harmony and acceptance and most importantly doing something that they love.
Any words of advice to aspiring entrepreneurs looking to build a brand with authenticity?
My biggest advice is Find your “why”. What makes you different? This is the key. You need to love what you do and what you are creating for it to be truly authentic. Be clear on your vision on what you want to achieve. Invest in yourself and your mental health. And Go for it- no regrets!
Gentle Habits X Mettle X
Gentle Habits X Mettle X
You can purchase our gift boxes that feature some of Gentle Habits products below - 100% of profits go to our charities employment and training programs, study scholarship & crisis funds for women experiencing homelessness as a result of domestic and family violence.
