Kasia Bromley is the co-founder and brand director of ACAI Outdoorwear, a performance-led, style-driven brand redefining the outdoor experience for women.

Her path to building a multi-million pound global brand began in the rarefied world of high fashion, where she hand-crafted the iconic Butterfly Dress at Alexander McQueen. But it was designing for real women, not runways, that truly captured her imagination.

Frustrated by the outdoor industry's habit of simply shrinking and pinking women's gear, she and her husband Joe invested their house deposit to co-found ACAI in 2016 — five months pregnant and facing financial uncertainty.

In this episode, Kasia shares the story behind that leap, what it has taken to scale a business while raising three children and why finding a purpose that fuels you is the most important foundation any business can be built on.

💡 "Find a purpose that fuels you and build a business that you love living in. If you love it you'll never struggle with motivation." — Kasia Bromley

In this conversation, we explore:

✨ Kasia's journey from hand-crafting couture at Alexander McQueen to co-founding a brand built by women, for women, and the realisation that ignited the shift

✨ The frustration with the outdoor industry's approach to women's clothing and how that frustration became the creative and commercial foundation of ACAI

✨ How Kasia and her husband Joe launched the brand five months into her pregnancy, investing their house deposit and backing themselves when the stakes could not have been higher

✨ The story of the Skinny Outdoor Trouser, why it resonated so deeply with women and what its success revealed about a gap the industry had long ignored

✨ The reality of navigating early motherhood alongside the demands of a rapidly scaling business and the honest cost that places on sleep, rest and the nervous system

✨ Why Kasia chose to view entrepreneurship not as a sacrifice but as a necessity, and how that reframe sustained her through the hardest seasons of growth

✨ The impact of building a business on her children and why modelling purpose, passion and resilience is one of the most valuable gifts a mother can give

✨ How she approaches building confidence in her children through the same values that have shaped her business: curiosity, persistence and a willingness to learn from mistakes

✨ The question she returns to again and again when the hours are long and progress feels slow: am I enjoying this, is this still fun?

About the Guest:

Kasia Bromley is the co-founder and brand director of ACAI Outdoorwear, a multi-million pound global brand making the outdoors more inclusive, representative and boldly female.

With a background in high fashion and a career that began at Alexander McQueen, she brings a rare combination of creative vision and commercial drive to everything she builds.

A mother of three, Kasia is as passionate about reshaping outdoor culture as she is about raising children who are curious, confident and unafraid to take up space.

You can find Kasia at @kasiabromley on Instagram or explore the full collection at acaioutdoorwear.com.

About The Host:

I’m Victoria Phipps – a Mum of two, analogue family photographer, personal brand photographer, educator, charity co-founder, marketer and now podcaster! 🎙️

I was raised by a nurturing Mother and an entrepreneurial Father and have inherited traits from both, so the tension between ambition and motherhood is one I grapple with on a daily basis!

I’m fascinated to hear the stories of other women on a similar path, who are striving to build thriving businesses whilst being present for their children. It's a tough juggle, but I hope the conversations shared on this podcast help Mums in business feel less alone and inspired to keep going in pursuit of their dreams.

Head to the Mum Means Business Podcast website for full show notes.

I would love to hear your thoughts on the topics discussed in this conversation, so please do let me know on Instagram where I'm @victoriaphippsmbe or @mummeansbusinesspodcast.

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