Cathy Martin : Talks Fashion And Family!

Tell us a bit about your background - what study and career path led into PR?

I studied European Business with French and Italian at UUC and then went on to the Universite d’Aix-Marseilles, where I studied a diploma in Law, Economics and Geopolitics. I’m trilingual, so taking exams and writing dissertations in French was easy at the time but mind you, I am a tad rusty now! Then when I came home I did a media training course at the BBC followed by a two series stint as a presenter on at RTE and then moved to Italy to work for Irish Distillers marketing Jameson and Bushmills whiskey to the Italians. My brief was to work on consumer and on-trade marketing to help the sales teams take Irish whiskey out of the Irish bars and introduce it into the trendy bars across Italy, so I had an amazing experience eating and drinking my way round Italy’s best food and drinks spots. When I came back after two years I stayed for a little while in the drinks business before moving from Irish Whiskey to Irish Linen and travelled to New York, Paris, Milan, Hong Kong, Australia and Japan (among other places) marketing our wonderful fashion fabrics to designers and retailers across the globe. As linen manufacturing moved offshore I started to look for a job based back in NI, but couldn’t find one that suited and ended up helping Terry Bradley launch an exhibition back in 2004 which was hugely successful. That event led to the leap of faith which was self-employment and voila, CMPR (and slightly later Belfast FASHIONWEEK) was born.

Congratulations on creating such a beautiful Spring/Summer Campaign for Belfast Fashionweek. Can you tell us a bit about the concept, how do the ideas come to you?

We are inspired by global trends, other photographers’ work and even graphic images that we see all the time. The decision is always my own although I usually consult with my very good friend and creative genius Paddy McGurgan (make up artist) for his input. This season we were seeing splashes of paint and colour in lots of art, photography and even music videos, which we loved, so we went for the same thing ourselves as we wanted to make a ‘splash’ with our tenth year.

Ok so you are a local PR guru, fashion mogul and mum to two year old Valentina, this sounds very busy! How do you juggle these various roles, is there a clear way you structure your time?

No, nothing is clear or structured to be honest – neither my job nor my family life allow it. My daughter Valentina comes first and I always devote breakfast time and dinner-bath-bedtime entirely to her. As for the rest, I fit it all in simply because I survive on a maximum of six hours sleep per night. Something’s gotta give!

What does a typical day at work involve for you?

Twitter newsfeed from bed for 10 minutes, then breakfast and getting ready with Valentina (this can take an hour, and I suppose it could be quicker but we both enjoy it as it is) then I drop her to nursery and head into the office. There, I answer emails, conduct meetings with clients or media and catch up with the team. If I’m working from home (which I often do two days a week to catch up and get work done in peace) then it’s reading or writing pitches, proposals, tenders and other business development. I also spend about 1-2 hours a day on the phone. If mobile phones turn out to be the cigarettes of the future, (i.e. we find out just how damaging they are) then I imagine I could have a leading role in what would be the 2050 version of Mad Men.

Which local creatives, artists or designers are on your radar at the moment?

I am loving Julia Sokele this season. She’s so talented and has a great eye for shapes which suit women’s bodies. Grainne Maher’s new trilbies are also cool – I have my eye on a yellow one.

What is your proudest achievement to date?

I think getting to my tenth year is an achievement – I honestly never saw that far ahead when I started FASHIONWEEK, but here we are and I am delighted to be here – but more importantly I am proud to have brought so many good people along with me. Former staff members, designers, stylists, make up artists, hairdressers and models have all done well for themselves after modest beginnings at Belfast FASHIONWEEK and it makes me beam when I get an email from New York, Toronto, Tokyo, Melbourne or Paris telling me what former models, interns and team members are up to now.

What would be your dream project?

To bring a massive show here – like Ali Hewson did back in the 1990’s with Brown Thomas’ supermodel show. But then I’m not married to Bono and, to be fair, I have had some great events with big designers already so I should be grateful. In all honesty though, I would love to use my languages more again, and get out there promoting Irish products abroad like I did in the past, so who knows?

What are you looking forward to?

A holiday! I’ve just been in Lanzarote with the Sunday Life COVERGIRL team to shoot our top 3 models at a beautiful NaturalRetreats.com villa but I only managed to take a few hours off in the afternoon to catch some rays by the pool each day. I didn’t even go out for dinner with the team every night though because I was catching up on emails and planning for BFW the next week. Sunshine is such a great medicine though. Even if I work by answering emails on my phone in the sun I am happy – winter really gets me down and I still yearn for the long, hot summers of my earlier Mediterranean life.

Where do you shop for casual but stylish daywear for a working mum?

As I am often out seeing retailers I see nice things all the time, but the upside is that I am highly loyal to our BFW retailers and support them as they support me. On the high street I like Zara but have been known to pick up lots of Designers at Debenhams pieces in CastleCourt as well as the odd piece in ASDA. When it comes to customer service you can’t beat an independently owned store though; and I love stores like Rio & Brazil where the store owners – who do a lot of the buying themselves – will be helping you as you browse. Experience gives them the knowledge to know what suits various body shapes, and insight gives them the know-how to let you in on what is new and what's due in.

Where/what was the last great meal you ate in Northern Ireland?

I have never once had a bad meal in Zen. Both in terms of quality of food and in terms of the service. I feel like a queen when I am in Zen as the team in there is so very welcoming – and also fun. I also love Saphyre in Kris Turnbull’s studio, and close to home I love Balloo House restaurant (upstairs) and my new favourite discovery, The Old School House in Comber. I can honestly say I have never had a piece of lamb melt in my mouth like I did in there recently.

Where would we find you on a typical Saturday morning?

Walking by the beach with my good friend Brenda (Shankey) – we take a brisk hour-long walk along the sea by my house and catch up with each other every Saturday. Sometimes Valentina joins us which slows us down, but the chat is always flat to the matt! Then I take Valentina to swimming and her Jo Jingles music and dance class, so it’s a busy day all round and I treasure some adult company by the time her bedtime comes to be honest!

NI's best kept secret?

Apart from The Old School House, I’d say Abernethy Butter – it’s so good! I have it on my boiled eggs in the morning and I put it on Valentina’s vegetables or on her pasta for dinner with some cheese and ham and she adores it. I also love Skinny Malinky’s juices and would love to afford to have fresh juice for breakfast and lunch every day, it’s such a healthy way of living.