Founder of Skylos Collective – A sustainable, vegan, luxury pet accessory company.
Former crew member Ella Peters transitions to land by starting her own sustainable, vegan, luxury pet accessory company. I was looking forward to hearing more about this move from ship to shore and her journey so far…..
Journey of Discovery
From a young age, Ella was sailing at weekends on local rivers in the beautiful county of Suffolk, UK. This was mostly on her Topper and from here, she discovered her real love of the sea and sailing.
“After leaving school, I knew I didn’t want to go directly to university, as I wasn’t especially passionate about any specific subject. I decided that spending some time travelling and experiencing life would stand me in good stead for whatever lay ahead.”
Having spent a few years working as a stewardess on private and charter yachts, Ella was now keen to return to education and hopefully stay in Europe. Then she found the almost perfect degree course in the Netherlands and started her studies in sustainable development through the lens of fashion.
“Throughout my studies, I worked as a freelance yacht nanny. The roles complemented each other perfectly with university terms matching school holidays. I had the absolute pleasure of working with incredible families from around the globe. The roles were always exciting – from creating arts and crafts to sailing regattas, looking after babies and toddlers, jet skiing with my charges, and exploring destinations.”
During this time, Ella also had the opportunity to work for an ethical knitwear and crochet manufacturer with indigenous artisans in Bolivia. She also worked remotely for a United Nations ECOSOC consultancy on sustainable fashion based in Argentina. Both of these roles formed part of her degree studies.
Ella loved her work on board, having looked after children with special needs and seeing them blossom during their time together. Most of the families she works with are now repeat clients – some with very last-minute requests: “I received a call recently asking if I could travel with the family to the Bahamas the following day! But as children have a habit of growing up, there comes a time when they need less and less nanny support.”
Departure from the Dog Days of Yachting
Ella has been mostly land-based for five years now, having realised how freelance work makes the unique struggles of working on board less overwhelming. This is especially true with round-the-clock care roles. This gave her the time and opportunity to start her new dog accessory brand, Skylos Collective.
“Last year I founded Skylos Collective, an ethical canine atelier. I wanted to create a range of vegan leads, collars and poop bag holders with sustainability and style. Our vegan range is PETA approved and is making its mark with discerning dog owners who are in search of luxury combined with holistic and sustainable values.”
Skylos Collective’s vibrant-coloured dog leads, collars and poop bag holders are produced using apple leather (a bio-material made from the waste from the apple juicing and compote industry, manufactured in the heart of Tuscany). The vegan leather is then processed by craftspeople in rural Lancashire, UK.
Consumers are increasingly turning to brands that embrace environmentally sustainable values. This, combined with Ella’s knowledge from having worked in the ethical fashion industry in Latin America, ideally places Skylos Collective to become the ethical dog accessory supplier of choice.
Wistful for the Waves?
Ella hasn’t said a complete farewell to the yachting world as she still does freelance nanny work. She does sometimes miss the team/family dynamic of life on board: “Starting a brand is hugely rewarding and it’s amazing to be calling the shots about every aspect of my business. But it can certainly be lonely at times, although co-working spaces have definitely helped with this.”
Many yachties find the prospect of returning to land quite daunting. Ella agrees that it did take some time to get used to, but wasn’t as scary as others had said. Her advice is to realise that being a yachtie means you’re blessed with so many transferable skills. “It’s important to recognise the bits you loved about the job and how these skills can be re-interpreted.”
New Horizons
Ella is very excited about what 2023 will bring for Skylos Collective and is delighted to announce they are just launching their collection in PalmaDog at Carrer del Conquistador 8, Palma. We wish her every success with her new venture.
Ella Peters, Founder of Skylos Collective
Tel: +44 7587 855 714
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