Style Queen
Lynne Meek tells Eileen Leahy how she traded in her corporate career for one in the world of fashion, eventually establishing The Meek Boutique, a successful family-run online business which now has a global reach…
Despite having worked in the corporate world for 30 years, Lynne Meek has always had a passion for fashion. Her inherent sense of style and love of clothes initially led her to work in a pre-loved boutique for a couple of years after she decided to switch careers. Then, in 2012, at the age of 50, she launched her own personal styling business.
Her venture Styling Matters saw Lynne conducting wardrobe edits, colour and style analysis and personal shopping. She quickly built a large client base and an impressive online following. Thanks to the success of her first business, Lynne eventually gained the confidence to launch her own retail brand, The Meek Boutique, in 2018.
Lynne admits that her background in styling gave her a fantastic platform from which to launch the boutique.
“I had so many clients from all over the South East on my books and a solid following on social media, so I pretty much had a captive audience right from the start.”
We’re meeting at The Meek Boutique headquarters – a two-storey building tucked down a pretty mews just off The Pantiles.
It’s very much a family affair, with both Lynne’s husband Russell and one of her sons, Tom, involved in the business. When I arrive at HQ, Russell is busy packaging up parcels to send to customers, while Tom is upstairs working at his computer overseeing all the business’s marketing and branding.
Lynne gives me a quick tour of the building, which houses all the current stock – think rails of silky boho-style kimonos, colourful embroidered summer dresses and crochet tops alongside shelves filled with neatly folded cool camo joggers, cropped denim jeans and bright fine knits – all ready to ship to her loyal clientele, both here in the UK and also the world.
“Russell looks after all the stock – he’s very organised,” she laughs, as we head upstairs to the main Meek Boutique office and a beautifully styled showroom, complete with an oversized mirror, a vintage room divider, which doubles up as a changing area, a plush sofa and monogrammed TMB cushions.
“I wanted a welcoming space for clients who like to pop in by appointment and try things on,” says Lynne – and she has certainly achieved that.
“When I ran my styling business, my philosophy was always to put people at ease so I could discover who they are and what they should be looking for in terms of clothes.”
At the beginning of Styling Matters this was relatively easy to do she says but as the business grew and the choice of clothes for women of a certain age started to dwindle Lynne started to think outside the sartorial box.
“Suddenly even everyday basics like jeans and a well-cut blazer were becoming harder to find for women of a certain age. My clients didn’t want to dress like their daughters – but they didn’t want to dress like their mums either. I thought, there has to be something in the middle.
“That’s what planted the seed in my mind. I thought, if I can’t find the pieces I know women – mainly those in mid-life – are looking for, maybe I should start my own shop. Confidence in how you look is so important for your self-esteem,” she smiles.
That was seven years ago, and around the same time, Russell decided to step away from the chauffeuring business he had been running.
“I thought, if we can create an additional income stream, that would be great, as I had no intention of giving up styling completely at that point. We started running The Meek Boutique from the loft of our house in Langton, and it just took off straight away.”
Lynne explains that Instagram influencers were becoming a major force at the time – and she was one of them, with over 10,000 followers.
“Despite that, we didn’t do a big build-up to the launch. I just posted a picture of me standing in a field of yellow flowers with the caption: ‘I have some news… I’ve launched an online boutique’ – and it just went bonkers from there!”
Two years later, in 2020, their son Tom officially joined the team.
“He’d been furloughed due to Covid, so he came to help us out because we were so busy. He has a background in sales, marketing, and branding, so he’s really moved the business on.”
And the family involvement doesn’t stop there. Lynne tells me that their eldest son, Dan, a front-end web developer, was also instrumental in getting things off the ground.
“Dan organised all our IT, including setting up Shopify and our stock inventory. So between the four of us, we have everything covered – and honestly, that’s probably my favourite thing about the business.”
From the outset, Lynne had a clear vision. She wanted to offer wardrobe staples – like flattering jeans and joggers – that people actually liked and fitted in with their lifestyle and complemented their body shape. Comfort was key, and remains so today.
“We rarely sell anything that doesn’t have some stretch,” notes Lynne who is also the face of The Meek Boutique brand, appearing in all the fashion shots both on the website and her Instagram account.
So, where does Lynne source all of her stylish stock?
“At first, I had to do a lot of research – nothing is really made in the UK anymore. So we source our clothes from Europe, mainly France, Denmark, and Italy. We never wanted to be the cheapest or use sweatshops or inferior products – that’s not our market.”
“Unlike many retailers, we don’t buy stock a year in advance. We buy and sell almost within 48 hours, which means we can react quickly to trends, economic shifts – even the weather. It keeps us agile, which is so important for a small business.”
Today, The Meek Boutique boasts a customer database of around 50,000 people.
“We always say we’re a national and international business but we just happen to be based in Tunbridge Wells. Some of our customers live in Hong Kong, France, Australia, and New Zealand, and when some of them come back to the UK to visit family, they’ll often schedule a visit to see me – usually with an empty suitcase!”
So, what does Lynne think is the secret to the boutique’s continued success – which also includes costume jewellery and seasonal accessories?
“I think women feel understood and listened to. I engage with them a lot. I’m often approached by followers when I’m out and about, even on holiday! I think they know that I am genuine.”
GET IN TOUCH:
Website: www.themeekboutique.co.uk
Email: hello@themeekboutique.co.uk
Instagram: @themeekboutiqueuk
