We met Anoo Rehncy at our Women in Business dinner back in December and we were excited to find out more about her business, A Black and White Story. We also love to hear from people that have escaped the City and gone on to do new and exciting things.

What’s the elevator pitch for your startup?

Why can’t the world just be black and white? My desire to live in an uncomplicated and straightforward world inspired me to leave my City career and set up ablackandwhitestory.com. I want to champion the core message of leading a simple, pure, ‘black and white’ way of life and feel that minimalist fashion is the perfect vessel to express this concept. ‘Black and white’ is a huge, unexploited gap in fashion. Everyone wears black and white, regardless of age, gender, seasonal trend, era or time of day. You just have to look around you to notice it. Black and white are timeless and therein lies the beauty – the concept allows us to have a sustainable, limitless product offering! We want to be the world’s specialist lifestyle portal for everything black and white.

What were you doing before you launched your startup?

I was working in an investment bank for 3 years as a specialist salesperson in Consumer Equities. I worked hard for the role and learnt a great deal, but found myself caught up in unnecessary complications and man-made hurdles. I have always been a highly creative person with an uncontrollable passion for design and must admit to doodling whilst on the phone with hedge-fund managers far too many times! 

If you have co-founders, where did you meet them?

I’ve known my co-founder Bip since my childhood. He was in a similar state of mind as I, which led him to also leave his investment banking career to pursue the black and white dream! We are very straight-talking and honest which I think is the key to having a successful working relationship.

What’s your biggest ‘hindsight’ moment?

We are fast workers and stick to strict deadlines, but the reality is that others sometimes don’t. You are bound to have to rely on other people, from factories to developers, so my biggest ‘hindsight’ moment is to plan well, manage others tightly and don’t be too disheartened if something takes a little extra time.

What will 2015 bring?

2015 is really going to be the start of A Black and White Story – it’s at such an early stage and there is so many opportunities ahead for us. We’ll focus on building awareness of the home brand ‘BAW London’ and exploring wholesale channels.

1 piece of advice for someone starting a business in your sector?

Meet as many people as you can. It is so important to build relationships with those that share the same passion for your business. The more people you meet, the more doors will open.

Convince someone to use your product/service in under 50 words.

You can never go wrong with black and white – timeless, always on trend and goes with everything. You will be blown away by the fabric softness, our ‘stand-out-from-the-crowd’ designs, the quality of printing and next day and worldwide courier services, all for the prices that we are offering.

What’s your favourite startup (not including your own)?

It has to be Evernote. The best life organiser.

What’s your favourite London restaurant?

Moti Mahal, in Covent Garden. The butter chicken is beyond heavenly!

You can read more business spotlights here.