Please introduce yourself
My name is Esperanza, but everyone calls me Espe! Although I have been living in London for 13 years, I’m actually from Spain. Growing up between Barcelona and the Canary Islands. I came to London after studying fashion design and well for the moment I haven’t left! I’ve spent most of my career as a fashion stylist but in March of 2022 founded Wholetalk, a print and digital magazine that focuses on health and wellness. My interest in holistic nutrition started off as a personal project but then I felt it a responsibility to share what I had learnt with a wider community with the betterment of everyone’s quality of life in mind.
What does being a woman in 2022 meant to you
When I think of the women in 2022, one word comes to mind and that’s ‘multitasking’. Today’s woman evolves out of her own experiences, navigating motherhood and work, balancing the search for success alongside speaking time with family and friends. I believe that milestones are often thrust on women as markers of success, but I believe we are all so much more than those titles or occasions. I’ve been talking a lot about this ‘multitasking’ facet that women have with my girlfriends and it’s something innately feminine, we want to nurture all things and aspects of our own lives.
How did the idea for Wholetalk come about?
Much like many creatives my work slowed down during Covid which meant I had more time to focus and think about other things. I had always been interested in holistic nutrition and health coaching but when I actually took the time to study and learn more deeply about these subjects, I felt it was a responsibility to share the abundance of information I had in my hands. Studying these fields had changed my own life and I felt obliged to help empower whoever I could. We all know the basics of eating healthily and taking care of ourselves but deeper/more focused conversations on health and wellness practices can feel snobbish and couched in well luxury when it should be about sharing and education. All articles and work we produce at Wholetalk is intended to be simple and functional. We aren’t here to tell you to change every aspect of your life but to help those searching for a little bit more balance and looking to prioritise themselves more. We all deserve to feel good, and at Wholetalk we provide our community with the tools to do so.
Do you have any memories of print?
Whenever print comes up, I can’t help but be taken back to my childhood home on the Canary Islands. In the bedrooms my sister and I had growing up there were these matching bed covers that were a print with shades of green and pink woven through. This print was the background to many fundamental childhood memories. We also can’t talk about print and not think of some pretty interesting outfits that made their way into photos from the 80s, and luckily you haven’t asked me to produce any of this so far…
We can talk about print in terms of design on a fabric but how do you see the future of print in magazines? Wholetalk has launched both as a print version and online
I have always been a lover of print publications. My career in fashion wouldn’t have gotten started if I hadn’t had the opportunity to devour the likes of Vogue from A-Z, quite literally tearing them apart, collaging together my favourite bits and pieces. However, I also see the great benefit and functionality of digital publications. I give both equal significance at Wholetalk so people can enjoy the information we have to share, however they wish.
Where do you find your sources of inspiration?
It really can be anywhere, going to exhibitions, opening a random book…I would say though that books have been the inspiration behind my most beloved pieces of work.
How does Borgo De Nor make you feel?
One of the main reasons for my great love of Borgo is that it makes me feel like me. With many other clothes you can often feel like you are putting on a costume to be the furthest thing from yourself but Borgo De Nor makes you feel like the best version of yourself.
Upcoming plans for Wholetalk?
We are about to launch the Autumn/Winter issue so I can’t wait to see the reaction. It’ll be interesting to see how this issue teaches us more about what information people are interesting in learning more about.
A message you would like to share about Wholetalk?
My aim is to help people live healthier, happier lives by empowering them to make healthy lifestyle choices and to show how small changes in their lifestyle and diet can become big steps towards healing, allowing for optimal thinking, feeling, energy, vitality and activity. Wholetalk is a community where we can connect and learn, celebrate and encourage, and make living happily and healthily accessible to everyone.
What makes the woman from London different?
I live in a very young neighbourhood, so I get to observe close up what the women of London are most enjoying from trends to designers. What makes her style unique is that it is quite uninformed by an older generation. In European cities, older generations define how the younger ones dress but in London, the freedom of the city itself means we can’t picture how the English women she dresses because everyone dresses as an individual.
