# How SOJO Got Into Selfridges: The Real Story

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/ladies-who-launch-7146914/how-sojo-got-into-selfridges-the-real-story
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/ladies-who-launch-7146914/how-sojo-got-into-selfridges-the-real-story.md
Podcast: [Ladies Who Launch](https://stenobird.com/podcast/ladies-who-launch-7146914)
Published: 2026-04-29T05:30:00+00:00
Episode link: https://weareladieswholaunch.com
Audio file: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6762dca9d9cd65ec1eb4ee70/e/69f0710002fc814be0aaeb6f/media.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/ladies-who-launch-7146914/episodes/how-sojo-got-into-selfridges-the-real-story
Duration seconds: 3892

## Resource

Josephine Philips is the founder of SOJO, the UK's first on-demand clothing alterations and repairs app. She started SOJO by manually cycling garments across London to validate the idea before raising £1.8M in pre-seed funding (backed by Depop's own founder), landed Forbes 30 Under 30, and opened a permanent concession in Selfridges. In this episode, Josephine gets brutally honest about the real journey: finding a tech co-founder early on,, the hiring mistakes that slowed her down, a six-week fundraising sprint that changed everything, and what it actually means to build with the end in mind. This is a masterclass in doing more with less, moving fast without breaking your team, and why representation in VC funding is still one of the most urgent conversations in entrepreneurship. What we cover: Finding a tech co-founder as a non-technical founder Navigating the fashion space outside of fast fashion Finding a niche in a typically crowded space The timings and strategy of raising investment The stats around investment for Black Women Hiring and growing a team for your business, not following the status quo How to build a B2B strategy without losing focus How to SOJO x Selfridges Partnership happened  The honest truth about representation in VC If you're building something new or struggling to articulate why your idea matters, this one's for you. We Are Ladies Who Launch!  CHAPTERS 00:00 Meet Josephine, Sojo Founder 03:17 The Tailoring Niche 07:48 The Problem with Fast Fashion 13:52 Validating The Business Idea 16:59 Finding A Tech Co-Founder 22:24 Launch Traction And Press 23:40 Funding And Getting Investment 29:48 Hiring Growing Pains 33:01 Corporate vs Startup Hiring 34:19 The Right Time For Funding  35:24 More Team Slower Progress 37:09 Focussing On You…

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## Transcript

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