Meet Huckletree Founder Gabriela Hersham
As a little background, Gabriela and I have been friends since we met in 1994, at our first day of “big” school. Throughout 26 years of friendship, I can only recall one argument between us. I think that really is the best way of translating how much of a woman’s woman she is. Reflecting on my first impressions of Gabriela (at just 10 years old) she has hardly changed, despite our lives having changed dramatically. She has always been driven and curious. She is passionate about causes she believes in, always pushes herself in everything that she wants to achieve; whilst marching to the beat of her own drum. Today, she is the proud mum of two boys and unsurprisingly (to me) is both a mum-boss and CEO. In 2014, she founded Huckletree in Clerkenwell, a stone’s throw from where I first met Gabriela, at school. Since then the company has expanded to multiple locations, across Europe. Her business has dramatically changed the landscape of workspaces in London, for the better with a focus on building a community. She also supports accelerator programmes, encouraging new founders and businesses as they grow. I myself have often asked her for advice, in the process of growing our community here at Mimi’s Bowl. Most importantly, she continuously champions women: in her own words “only 15% of funding went to startups with a female founder in 2017, and it’s time for change”.
Meet Gabriela Hersham, CEO Huckletree
Meet the woman who brought co-working to London. She is sharing everything from her typical day, to what inspires her, before sharing her top tips on how to launch your own business. Her goal for her 2020? To keep the focusing on building a stable business, championing diversity and to continue to evolve, both professionally and personally
What Inspired you to launch Huckletree?
I became overwhelmingly passionate about the co-working industry, upon discovering it in New York in 2010. The ability to use workspace to bring together incredible humans and game-changing businesses, really resonated with me. I was called to launch my own version of it, upon moving back to London. My passion has only continued to grow and develop since. These days I am particularly proud about our company stand, to effect change within the technology eco-system.
What do you love about what you do?
I love building communities, meeting the world’s most ambitious entrepreneurs and bringing them into the Huckletree family. I love learning about global technology trends and watching as our members develop the latest innovations under our eyes. I love that we’re using our brand to harness good, for example – through our Fairer Funding campaign which aims to equalise the fundraising landscape for female entrepreneurs, or through our Alpha accelerator programme, which puts founders from diverse and minority backgrounds through a 12-week supercharging programme, completely pro-bono. I love building and leading a team of 80 people, and the personal developments I am realising as I go. I love my team and I’m passionate about their development, too
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what does a typical day look like for you?
I wake up at anywhere between 5:30 and 6:30am, depending on how generous my kids are feeling. I get them ready, make bottles, breakfasts and packed lunches, deal with a few temper tantrums… and then try to get myself in my (electric) car and out the door by 7:45am. I’m an early bird, and nothing makes me happier than being one of the first people on the road.
Once at work, there really is no typical day ~ I run between our Central HQ and each of our London locations. My work jumps between strategy, vision, PR, company culture and talent activation – often all in one day. These days I try not to go out in the evenings, which is a massive shift for me as we used to be out every night. But, I come from a family where my parents were at home with my brother and I in the evenings, and since becoming a mum I naturally find myself wanting to demonstrate the same to my two children.
How do you balance work and family life, can you share any tips for other working mums (parents)?
Honestly, something has to give. Yesterday, I ran from work to give a talk that I was doing and from there I ran to a dinner in Soho with a bunch of friends. I really enjoyed catching up with them but evenings like that don’t happen so often anymore – I try to save my social life for special occasions and the weekends in order to enjoy my ritual evening wind-down session at home.
Switching off?
Peloton! I try to jump on for at least 20 minutes a day, every day. It really helps me clear my mind and I find that even 20 minutes is enough to get me comfortably breaking a sweat. My husband also treats me to an Urban Massage on Sunday nights, which is a real treat and something I warmly welcome!
What are your favourite workouts?
Always yoga and pilates. I do mix it up a bit and sometimes try a different class here and there, such as spinning or a dance class, but the former are a staple for me. If I don’t find the time to get to a class, I try to do a mini-workout at home. I need to be strong as I have very active kids and I notice the difference when I have not kept up with my fitness.
What inspires you?
At the moment, I’m reading What You Do Is Who You Are, by Ben Horowitz, who is one of my favourite writers. His first book, The Hard Thing About Hard Things taught me more about scaling a business, then business school taught me in four years. I’m massively excited about reading more of his straight talk and advice on building and running a startup. For me this is especially relevant at a time crucial in our cultural development. We have 80 people in the business; culture is notorious for jumping off a cliff as you grow. I’m really curious about how we can prove that stat wrong and motivated to ensure that our culture at Huckletree does the exact opposite.
This wouldn’t be a Mimi’s Bowl feature if I didn’t ask ~
what a typical family meal looks like in your home…
Oh Miriam (laughing), I wish I was more like you! But, I do make sure that my son Jack eats super healthily. However, I am the first to admit there is little advanced-planning; it’s always a rush and the process would be much more enjoyable if I had an organised fridge like yours and time at home to devote to meal-prep. Your recipes have literally been a life-saver.
more on Huckletree ~
Huckletree is an ecosystem builder for the most exciting startups and scale-ups, supporting 2000+ members across Europe.
links ~
Women In Tech, the Evening Standard
Trailblazing Women, Huffington Post
Launching your own Business, Mimi’s Bowl
Gabriela a follow on Instagram