The Beyond Series: A day in the life with Rickie Dee
As part of our new Superette Beyond campaign, we profiled five amazing women to understand what a day in the life looks like for them, what keeps them busy and their own unique style. Superette Beyond was intentionally designed for woman living a multi-faceted, on-the-go lifestyle. As the co-founder of Superette and mother of three, Rickie has lots on the go. In this interview we chat about how she stays on top of it all, what her morning non-negotiables look like, the importance of creativity and what a typical day looks like from start to finish.
Tell us a little about yourself… what keeps you busy?
I’m the co-owner of Superette and the mother of three children: Rocco, Hawk and Kai. I work full time at our Superette HQ in Takapuna and no two days are ever the same! There’s always something exciting going on and new projects we’re working on. Everyday is always different between managing kids, home and work.
Walk us through your average daily routine.
I’m typically an early riser. I do the majority of my goodness in the morning. At 6am I’m awake and heading out the door to take Boo our dog for a walk and to get my first coffee of the day at our local, Dizengoff. I operate on coffee!
Then following that it’s all go. Getting the kids ready for school, making lunches and getting them out the door. I make sure to add The Beauty Chef Glow Powder and the Mother Made AM powder into my morning smoothie to give me an added energy and brain boost before heading out the door and in my car to drive to work.
I think I do my best creative work when I’m driving. When I’m driving I’m all alone and have time and space to get creative. It’s my time to sort of switch off and start thinking about upcoming projects – like what the next campaign might be, what the next window display might be etc. With creativity, I don’t think you can force it, you just have to let it come.
At 8am I’m at the office. I’m often in buying meetings, or working on one of our shoots, in meetings with internal members, visiting stores, making sure stock is looking great, working on ideas for our in-house brand – there’s always lots on the go. We put lots of energy into making sure our office is an inspiring and relaxing place to work. We always want it to be a really creative space for our team.
Lunch is usually at my desk and I like to get something fresh. Sushi or Poke Bowl – something like that. Then in the afternoons, I try my best to leave at about 4.30pm so that I get home at a reasonable hour to do the end of the day with the kids. Sorting dinner, getting the kids showered and into bed.
Once the kids are in bed around 8pm, that’s my time to sit down and chill. Whether that’s with my laptop on my knee working (hah!) or flicking through a magazine – I’m not really a huge TV watcher. I do also like to enjoy a nice glass of red wine to wind down.
You’ve got so much going on, how to you manage it all?
I’m a huge list maker. I will often write a list the night before for the next day. I’ve always been quite a planner with my calendar and always make sure I space out my meetings and have some time to plan and be creative. It certainly doesn’t always play out like this though – hah! I do find if I have back-to-back meetings all day I end my day frazzled. I really like work to my iCal where I can. I think also making sure I’m not working crazy long hours at the end of the day is key for me – because that obviously doesn’t work with my family life. Setting boundaries and being quite structured with my working hours is important and knowing that it’s ok if I don’t get to a task that day, because I can always pick it up tomorrow.
Do you have any morning routine non-negotiables?
Coffee! It’s a must for me and something I like to start my day with. I also train with my PT Selva mid-morning three times a week which is awesome because it physically makes me leave my desk and helps me to hit reset and take a moment (especially because I don’t often leave my desk for lunch.)
What’s important to you when you decide what to wear in the morning?
Lots of elements go into this. Because I am so busy, comfort and practicality does play into it. I’d love to say I was darting round in heels – but it doesn’t happen that often! I think also getting up in the morning and seeing what the weather is doing has an influence on what I choose. I do chop and change – it’s often based on my mood and how I’m feeling that day. Then later on in the evening, if I’m going out for dinner – I might add a heel or blazer to style up my outfit a bit more, or do a full outfit change if I’m feeling it.
This is also resemblant in our in-house Superette brand too and what we choose to put into our collections. There’s nothing too precious, or too fussy – it needs to be worn in a lot of ways. It’s also important that the wearer is driving how they want to style it – there’s no wrong or right way.
Where do you find styling inspiration?
I think I take snippets from magazines, Instagram or things like that – in terms of inspiration for assembling an outfit. I’m constantly inspired by the team around me. There’s also so many brands we work that are doing amazing things. Each one of our brands is super exciting and always innovating to stay present and current. I’m loving Golden Goose, Samsoe and Samsoe and Redone denim at the moment. Every brand we work with at Superette has it’s own place, it’s own edge. They each have a purpose and ‘speciality’ and I’m constantly inspired by what they’re doing.
Describe your style in three words…
Practical, classic pieces with an edge
What’s on high rotation in your wardrobe right now?
A go-to winter outfit at the moment: Algolde Riley Jeans, Anine Bing Sweatshirt, Aspen Puffer & a pair of Golden Goose sneakers.
What are your favourite pieces from the Beyond collection?
So many faves. Loving the Indio Hoodie & Trackpant – I’ll often style it with a blazer. I also love the Monroe Crew in ivory – I had it in the grey marle and loved it. I’m a big fan of the Sidewinder Skirt and the Chase Knit Dress too.
