Interview: Love Brand & Co. founder Oliver Tomalin on commerce, consumers, and his charitable intent

In a landscape of corporate brands, Love Brand & Co. is a refreshing counterpoint. Founded by Oliver Tomalin and his wife Rose in 2010, the business’ story is one of conscious choices, and a belief in doing things that engender “a more peaceful coexistence with nature”.

Established with a cause, Oliver wanted to capture the Bahamian island life he discovered through Rose, it being her generational home. He felt “there’s enough stuff in the world so, if we were going to create a new brand, it had to have a purpose, and a real reason for doing anything.” With such a founding vision, it’s perhaps unsurprising that Love Brand & Co. today deftly melds this idealism with consumer desires and commercial needs. 

Realistic about the brand and their luxury audience, Oliver understood even then that “people don’t buy expensive resort wear to save wildlife. People just want to get out there on the beach with their kids or their friends and have a great time”. By creating “lovely products that are really well made, that last a lifetime, for these wonderful moments in our life” Oliver knew they could inspire a new era of conscious consumerism. “If we can add a little extra messaging that’s the cherry on top.”Today, the brand offers a range of beachwear and linens in an array of stylish prints, each telling the story of an animal or place, driving education and funds for at-risk species and destinations. 

Keen to “make a meaningful contribution” from the start, Love Brand & Co. is a proud long-term partner of Elephant Family, a leading conservation charity championing the Asian elephant. A corporate ally from day one, Oliver and Rose pledged a percentage of revenue rather than profits in those early years, ensuring contributions were “really tangible from the get-go”. The original five percent turned out to be unsustainable, but “was an important part of our journey. It was our first foot forward saying ‘we’re not doing this as a gimmick, we’re doing this to help’”. This intention sparked 1% for the planet, today a global initiative supported by eco-conscious corporations worldwide.

“You feel so helpless” notes Oliver. “The alarmist language that often comes out is so enormous that you feel ‘what possible difference could I make, when the situation is so big and so desperate?’. But actually, with…a little shift in mentality and [everyone] doing that little bit to help, collectively we can make a massive difference”.For a brand inspired by the Bahamian beach life, the focus on elephants is an unexpected one. In 2010, at an Elephant Family fundraising exhibition in London, Oliver discovered the conservation charity’s work. “The thought that elephants could be extinct in the wild in Asia in my lifetime really struck a chord”. They saw that championing elephants could also support the wider ecosystem: “you end up protecting these huge areas of land and the other wildlife that call these areas and jungles home.”

As if this integral philanthropic slant wasn’t enough of a challenge for a fledgling family brand, Oliver and Rose were determined to build something shaped around the “values of family, giving back, making sustainable choices, craftsmanship, quality… we didn’t want to compromise on any of those”. No small ask, but one Oliver tackled with passion. “I’ve always been very determined and steadfast in the goal.”

Today, the business straddles the globe, with pop-ups, stores and partnerships from the Bahamas and Greece, to London and even Devon, which for Oliver is part of its success. While the constant juggling act can be challenging, Oliver clearly gains satisfaction from having built a life in which it’s “hard to distinguish what’s work and what’s not because they’re so intertwined. I don’t really ever see going to work as a thing for me because I’m just pursuing my passion”. Even, it turns out, on honeymoon. “That was probably a step too far” Oliver wryly admits, though you get the sense that to do otherwise would be anathema.

Currently in the middle of a US tour with travelling art installation and fundraiser, ‘The Great Elephant Migration’, Oliver and his team have been travelling from city to city with a beautiful Jaipur tent, following a convoy of 100 trucks with 100 elephants on.  “I was there when the trucks were coming into Manhattan with elephants on and I just saw people’s faces – it was like a UFO had come into town. It was this magical exhibit in the context of this urban environment”.

Following the herd, Love Brand & Co.’s tent has been used as a space to share information on Elephant Family USA’s conservation efforts. While the sculptures themselves are for sale, “not everyone can take an elephant home, so to speak”. This is where Love Brand & Co.’s “lovely capsule of miniature elephants, ocean plastic elephant key rings, beautiful greetings cards, postcards, and things like that” offers an appealing and more accessible alternative. Overall, they’re aiming to raise $10 million, with 50% of all proceeds from the Love Brand & Co. exclusive merchandise collection going towards the cause. “It’s been such a journey and we’re halfway through now, finishing up this summer. It’s been amazing seeing people of all different ages, stages and nationalities all coming together with this intrigue and curiosity.”

So what else does the future hold for Love Brand & Co.? A burgeoning womenswear line recently launched including some “really lovely women’s shapes in the linens” though Oliver acknowledges it’s “amazingly complicated…men’s is a lot easier”. With a vision to be “one of the top women swimwear brands of the future, we’re taking our time to get it right”.

“The consumer is so much more educated and is recognising B Corps, supporting natural fabrics, and organics, and recycled fabrication. All things that we take really seriously. If everyone picks it up, it makes a monumental difference.”Elsewhere, a collection of bespoke designs will be released this spring in collaboration with luxury, eco-conscious travel company Suján. As one would expect, Oliver’s distinctive repeating prints are centerstage, with each of three designs telling the story of Suján’s unique locations in India. “We’ve got leopard, camel, and tiger story lines across shirts and swimwear” he explains. “It’s wonderful seeing our customers wanting to know the next story, and working out why we’ve done it. Sustainability and deeper storytelling, that’s the new luxury”.

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