April Preston, at the time of recording Global Product Director at Holland & Barrett and now SVP of Own Brand Product and Innovation at Loblaw in Canada, mom of three, and the product leader behind legendary food launches at Marks & Spencer and Harrods, joins me in this episode to talk about:

• Being the breadwinner mum, and the family setup that made an all-in career possible

• Motherhood guilt and the antidote to it

• The benefits of having a working mum that nobody ever talks about

• The family brainstorm that ended up on M&S shelves (if you know Percy Pig, that should give you a clue)

• Never toning down who you are in corporate rooms

By the end you'll want April as your mentor, your dinner host, or both. Enjoy!

Release note from Katya before you press play: this conversation was recorded in spring 2025. What happened in between? A big day job, a toddler, a second pregnancy and then a newborn. My superpower of getting things done late at night temporarily left me. I'm so happy the moment for this episode to see the light of day has finally come. April's honesty about motherhood guilt, and her case for the benefits of being a working mum, are timeless. I've come back to this conversation in my head many times over the past year. And there's a bonus in releasing late: since we spoke, April has made a big leap of her own, moving from Holland & Barrett to Canada to lead own brand product and innovation at Loblaw as Senior Vice President. Her words about thriving on transformation and never having a career plan hit differently when you know what came next. Check out her profile and see for yourself.

Find April on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/april-preston-9a93802b And her never-the-same-meal-twice food world on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aprilprestonandco