My London: Bumble CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd
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Home is…
Austin, Texas.
Where do you stay when you’re in London?
Ham Yard. I like the location and the rooms are bright and spacious (below). It’s also close to Yauatcha. I’m obsessed with their dumplings.
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What would you do if you were Mayor for the day?
Make misogynistic behaviour a criminal act and have this regulated and formal legislation passed.
Favourite pub?
The Lansdowne in Primrose Hill. It feels like you’re in the countryside and the pizza is delicious.
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Which tech companies are the ones to watch?
Any that are solving a problem that consumers have on a daily basis. The most successful apps have taken a societal problem and built an accessible and democratic solution. There is a new dog walking service in an app called Wag! which gives you detailed updates on your dog’s walk, experience and whether they drank water or went to the bathroom — I’m so impressed by it.
Biggest extravagance?
My collection of Gucci bee items. When they launched that collection I went a bit crazy. I was so nervous that their next collection would be another bug so I bought a laptop case, shoes, purse… hopefully they’ll last me forever though.
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Where do you work out in London?
It’s always such fleeting visits for me, so I work out in my room or the gym at Ham Yard. I have a routine that I can do on the go.
What shops do you rely on?
I love Emilia Wickstead. Her designs are amazing so I always make a stop there.
Joseph is another favourite — I always try and pop in to the store on Westbourne Grove.
What could you not live without?
I’m obsessed with the app Slack — it’s somewhere between email and WhatsApp. It’s how I communicate with my team. It’s global, efficient and lets you compartmentalise topics within a business. It means we don’t get lost in emails.
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What do you collect?
Good people. People with a sense of humour. Life is a lot more fun with good, positive people around you.
What upcoming tech hubs should we keep an eye on?
I think it’s smart to always keep an eye on the companies that sit within incubator communities, which bring together the skills and expertise needed to grow an enterprise. Station F in Paris is one I’ve always been impressed with from an international point of view.
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Where do you let your hair down?
I love Novikov — that’s always a fun night — and Isabel in Mayfair is a new favourite too.
What do you like about Londoners?
I would pay good money for a British accent.