episode 016: Beth Richards

Beth Richards is one powerful female force. The designer has a long list of accomplishments, cutting her fashion teeth at brands like Roots, Aritzia, John Fluevog, Sugoi, and Kit and Ace before launching her namesake swimwear label in 2011.

She grew up just outside of Toronto, inspired heavily by skate, street, music, and rave culture throughout her rebel teenage years. Chloe Sevigny, Sofia Coppola, Kim Gordon, and the Riot Grrrl feminist punk movement influenced the person she was becoming - honest and always unapologetically herself, Beth took a page from these independent, fierce women and carved a path all her own.

In this conversation, we explore what it’s like to be a female voice in a very male world, her ethical, sustainable & fair wage approach to design, a bright new swimwear collaboration with Indian designer Roopa Pemmaraju, what she’d tell teenage Beth that was bullied, and more.