Ravinder and I met on a set and instantly became good friends, based on honesty, truth and the simplest of values… being kind. She is someone I look up to and I love her ethical journey with her restaurant Jikoni.
Tell everyone about yourself.
I am a journalist, author, cook & founder of the restaurant Jikoni in Marylebone.
Please tell everyone how we met 3 years ago.
I had been asked to appear on an advert for Max Factor which seemed like a lovely reprieve from whipping egg whites every day and you happened to be the stylist. Not only you were beautiful, you were so smart, empathetic, kind and enchanting. I felt like I had known you a really long time even though we’d only just met & I knew somehow we’d end up being great friends! Plus , you loved to eat and I love to feed, so we were always going to get along.
We formed such a beautiful friendship from this, and you have supported me so much with E.L.V. DENIM I had to have you in my campaign. Tell us why you picked the jumpsuit?
Jumpsuits are a wardrobe staple in their own right, as much as a little black dress or a white t-shirt. But finding superior ones can be challenging - and this one is perfect. It’s wildly wearable, comfortable and it’s also an attitude - when I wear it, I feel capable - like I can do anything. And of course, the sustainability ethics of E.L.V DENIM makes me all the more proud to wear it.
I am so excited that you are announcing that Jikoni is carbon neutral, and also VERY proud you invited me to be part of the talk to celebrate this. I know this is a very important project for you and Nadeem, please tell us how you have achieved this.
We’ve been taking steps to being restorative to the world around us since we opened because by definition the word “restaurant” comes from the French word to restore. In September 2019 all our energy came from solar & wind energy & carbon neutral green gas. Now we are working with Climate Neutral in an ongoing pioneering partnership to reduce our carbon footprint. We have measured our carbon consumption in 2020 and will be offsetting it through Climate Neutral’s high quality, vetted, pool of carbon credits. Year on year, they will guide us to reduce our remaining carbon footprint. We’re also going to be working with a biodynamic farm an hour away from the restaurant to source as much produce as possible. It’s a small but necessary step and we hope that many other businesses will follow suit because it is entirely possible.