BOSS LADY: SASKIA MARJORAM

Serendipity led me to meet the wonderful Saskia Marjoram. I was invited to a 5th House PR press day where Saskia was doing one-on-one consultations. I had heard of flower essences but had never tried them. As a Libra, I am always on the quest to strike the perfect balance in work, health, and life, yet never quite find it. Saskia has the ability to know which essences you need to put some flower power back into your life and help navigate your way in this crazy-ass world! 

I am super delighted to have her as our first Boss Lady in a series of interviews finding out more about the women behind some of our favourite brands and businesses.

How has the Coronavirus outbreak affected your business? What have you had to change to adapt?

Luckily I was able to continue with the on-line side of my business as people were really in need of the essences, and they continue to be as the emotional effects of this pandemic really begin to show.Sales have been steadily increasing as word has been getting out about just how effective the essences are.

I did have to close my shop but delivered essences by hand to my local customers and of course most of the shops I supply were shut too - luckily they are all slowly re-opening.

What was your inspiration behind your brand & how did it begin?

Flowers have always been my inspiration, even as a small child and my ‘work’ as a professional gardener and florist meant that I knew flowers very well on a practical/physical level. So when I came across flower essences in the form of the Australian Bush Flower Essences because my life was a mess and my children were running out of control, beside really working, and completely changing our lives, they made sense to me. I could really see how and why they worked but they were made from flowers that I didn’t know.

So a homeopath friend and I decided we would have a go making them (it’s quite a simple process) - and they worked just as well as the ones we had bought, and we were hooked. That was in 2003, so since then I’ve really got to know the essences and what they do but it was always a ‘side hustle’ until 3 years ago when I gave up my day job working in the private gardens of Iwan and Manuela Wirth and rebranded, redesigned and reassessed… and since then it’s been going from strength to strength. It really feels like the essences are ready and waiting to really get out there and do their work on a much bigger scale. They are so needed in this crazy world we find ourselves in now.

What is your current go-to potion ?

I’m mostly on the Sexy and Gorgeous -it gives me a lift and an extra bit of sparkle. https://www.saskiasfloweressences.com Spending so much time by myself during lockdown (as well as being mid menopause) meant my self confidence took a drop and this really helps with that. And then I’m taking Calm and Confident when I’m having a particularly wobbly day.

What are you most proud about in terms of your brand?

Besides making something that really does change people’s lives I’m proud of how the whole brand looks and feels. I’ve done all of the design work (website, labels, leaflets, business cards etc) myself, with no financial support, and had to learn it all from the bottom up, so yes I’m proud of the products and how they look and the magic they bring and am really excited about the future.

What advice do you have for other small business owners?

Just put one foot in front of the other and don’t be scared. Keep your goal in sight but just do what needs doing today and eventually you will get to where your were going, or not - but that’s for another day!! And always, always listen to your intuition.

How have you found ways to relax during lockdown?

I am so so lucky to live in the countryside. My daily walks saved me. To be able to slowly observe the spring unfold and then turn into summer has been an absolute joy. To not have to rush and to be able to properly connect with nature on a deep level was just the best thing. I was able to sit for hours listening to the birds in the sunshine, to watch flowers unfurling by the hour and clouds passing across the sky. I’m missing it already, and although I’m still keeping up my walks they don’t have that slow dreamlike quality of when it felt like the whole world had stopped.

What products would you suggest people try first?

The ones that they feel drawn to. The combination essences are the easiest to choose and we gave them names to make it easy to decide which ones you need. So really it depends what you need help with. The great thing about essences is that you can’t take the wrong one - if you do it just won’t work. But if you choose the right one miracles can, and do, happen. And if you want help choosing just ping me an email

Are there any other small brands that you have been loving recently?

AngieB cosmetics - She makes gorgeous skincare and natural cleaning products - her hand sanitiser and surface cleaner has definitely come into it’s own during the pandemic. She’s a friend of mine so I know that everything she does is with a really solid knowledge of ingredients and aromatherapy and her face cream is just dreamy.

What are you most looking forward to after lockdown ?

Travelling, even, fingers crossed, abroad. I long to swim in clear warm sea. But I’ve loved the clear air that the planes being grounded brought so much that I might only allow myself to go by train - for a while at least.

What is your recommended lockdown read or watch ?

Anything that you find easy, comforting,and reassuring. More and more I find anything vaguely ‘scary’ or anxiety inducing hard...so during lockdown I found myself returning to anything I already knew to be safe and felt like a big cuddle.

What little act of mindfulness do you practice each day ?

Drinking my morning tea. This I do in my big bed or at my kitchen table. It is a time of quiet reflection and a time where I try to be as present as possible.

If you were a cake, what would you be ?

This is HARD. So hard I’ve had to ask my friends - which besides immediately knowing whether they see me as I see myself it also gave me a massive insight into them.

So with some help I’d nearly decided on being a rich moist carrot cake with cream cheese icing covered in fresh flowers (ie sounds wholesome but isn’t at all and is filled with unexpected ingredients and rich spices, and flowers of course) and then one of my ‘god-daughters’ who is a nutritional chef came up with this, which is more who I would like to become rather than who I am now (and I’m hoping she is going to make it for me !!)

3 Layers of sponge:

Rose petal and lemon zest

Lavender and borage with poppy seed

and Beetroot and cacao

Secret pockets of gooseberry compote, raspberry and lemon zest compote and chocolate and orange sauce

A light passion fruit and passion flower cream cheese icing

Decorated with plenty of edible flowers and herbs.

Eaten under the dappled shade of an oak tree off a fine China plate with antique silver cutlery, plenty of tea, everything from builders to early grey, rose bud to nettle. Wearing silk flowing dresses and beflowered summer hats.