Clare's story

Wild Azur: Natural, beautiful, earthy, free, exquisite... how did such an incredible body care brand come to life?

This is Clare's story...

'Wild Azur was born out of a passion to educate, inspire and empower based on ancient wisdoms which come straight from nature itself. To understand the foundations of my brand, it’s healing properties and what inspired me to launch it, I need to tell you a little about me.

Like all the best journeys, the path to Wild Azur was born out of a learning curve that I have been on pretty much since childhood. To put you in the picture, I grew up on an abundance of sugar - Sugar Puffs, Frosties, Skips, soda streams, Cadburys chocolate bars - my diet consisted of sugar, sugar and yet more sugar back in the days when we had no idea just how harmful it was. I was an addict pure and simple and I couldn’t get enough of it!

I remember spending Sundays walking to the local sweet shop and ogling the wonderful and colourful penny sweets in glass jars. My favourites were the lemon bonbons (I can still taste them now!)

There was no educational element to what I and my friends ate and the connection between how it affected our brains and bodies remained a mystery. We had abundance of food, much of it bad including the school canteen offerings which were perhaps the worst of all!

I had a fun outlook on life, enjoying art and excelling at sport but from a young age, I also lusted after adventure. Meeting my husband (who also became my best friend) and discovering that he felt the same as me was when life really amped up. He quit his company, we packed up and went sailing for eight months, experiencing a myriad of different people and cultures. We drove through South Africa, camper-vanned our way through Australia drinking wheatgrass shots and climbed every mountain peak we could find.

Travelling through many different cultures taught me about eating well and I started feeling an enhanced sense of wellbeing and higher energy levels as a result of my more natural diet. I learned more about the connections between nutrition, beauty and natural health and so began my journey towards living more optimally.

I studied Anatomy and Physiology, trained in Reflexology & Indian head massage and became a Neal’s Yard representative. I also joined forces with a charity which helps people with learning disabilities, enabling them to find work and purpose in a healthy environment.

We had rather grand plans to roll out a juice and smoothie bar concept throughout the UK for these people to work in but unfortunately it required huge capital and people still wanted coffee so it never rolled out as we’d hoped. Nevertheless, it was very rewarding to educate kids and their parents through our campaigns via educational leaflets and fun-filled workshops in schools where we were teaching kids how to make smoothies and embrace a healthier way of living.

Becoming a mum and turning 40 had a profound effect on me. I was engulfed by a huge sense of responsibility based on the primal desire to nourish my daughters as best I could and became quite obsessed with nutrition, reading avidly, researching different ingredients and witnessing how the body can heal itself if given the right support.

Improving my health and that of those around me through simple diet, exercise and lifestyle choices became my number one priority. I became more knowledgeable about holistic wellbeing, passing on lots of advice and tips to friends and family. It was incredible and shocking to learn that the right foods could fundamentally heal the body yet so many of us make ourselves sick as a result of what we put in and on our bodies.

Another catalyst for change was our family trip to Bali last year. We stayed at the Green Camp, which opened my eyes to the positivity of the local people and the Hindu culture. Their serenity and positivity was infectious. I was desperate to learn how they could be so content while having so little materially.

We lived a simple life; sleeping in yurts, learning about organic farming, making chocolate from the cacao plant on site, climbing coconut trees, making a raft and floating down the river, literally getting down and dirty with nature while also learning about sustainability.

We all adored the freedom and liberation to just be in the moment and this became another turning point for me. I realized I needed to live a more natural life, love and look after my body, be kind to our planet and leave it well for future generations.

Less than 12 months later, the spirit of adventure has swept us up once again and we are heading en famille to Bali for a year to embrace a new culture and live more harmoniously in nature.

The Wild Azur journey is just beginning…'

For further information on our products, please checkout out our online store www.wildazur.com/shop and please do follow us on our social media.