Isabel Spearman, founder of the Daily Dress Edit, a fashion platform that champions small brands, is the former chief of staff to Samantha Cameron and current senior advisor to Akshata Murphy (wife of former PM Rishi Sunak). She shares her packing tips for business trips.
Stick to three colours maximum. I did blues + tan + white for a recent three-day work trip to India – this enables not only easy packing but also, and importantly, easy outfit assembling when you are away!
Try on every outfit before you go to make sure you are covered for each occasion or event. Don’t convince yourself that you’re too busy to do this before you leave as it really will make your trip a whole lot less stressful.
Pack in a hard case, I swear by the Away Carry-On, and roll your clothes. Not only can you fit much more in, everything arrives pretty much ready to wear.
Think about the fabrics you are packing, especially for a work trip. You won’t always have time to press things the other end with a busy schedule. I love Cefinn’s techni-voile fabric dresses as they are crease-free and so easy to wear.
I rely on Boden’s Penelope Mary Janes as they are slim to pack, comfortable and look smart for work events.
WNU tencel shirts are also brilliant work trip options as they double up as day/night and again, crucially, are pretty crease free.
For beauty products I use a clear wash bag for ease through security – Beauty Pie has great options – and I keep my beauty routine to a minimum. One serum for morning and night (my favourite is Victoria Health’s Triple Vitamin C + Ferulic Acid) with one overnight cream and of course a good everyday SPF.
