Jette Madsen

Our TK Maxx buyers travel the world all year round to find the best designer deals to pass onto our lovely customers. Our childrenswear buyer, Jette, has given us a sneaky peak into a typical day in her life…. 

• 06:15       WAKE-UP CALL – I am woken nice and early from my dreams by my iPhone playing out my favourite tunes.  Let the day and the fun begin!                                                                                        

• 07:15       UP AND OUT – I leave the house early and head straight to Heathrow Airport for an early flight to a european city. I like to get to the airport early so that I can get breakfast and a coffee whilst looking at the reports and sales figures to track the progress of my department.                        

• 08:30       AT THE AIRPORT – I always have my laptop with me, so I can carry on working remotely wherever I am in the world. I always need to prepare for the meetings I am going to, so go through my notes and ensure I am confident with the figures I am going to discuss. Before I fly off, I always call in to speak to my manager to update her on my schedule and check-in for any changes that I need to be aware of.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

• 09.30       FLIGHT – I am such a regular flyer now, that a 2 hour flight feels like a usual commute for me. Depending on what time of day this is, I will often continue my preparation. If it is a late flight I will read my book or catch up on some sleep. The days are long and any rest is really important to be sure we preserve our energy when we can. The flights can be tiring and sometimes the time difference can be really draining, but the excitement of the job keeps the adrenaline pumping.                                                                                                                                 

•  13.00       MEETING A NEW BRAND - When I first arrive at a new brand, I like to intoduce myself and have a chat about the weather, football or whatever might crop up into the conversation. I like to make the Sales Director feel comfortable with me and the deal that I’m going to propose, so it’s an important job to break the ice before we start talking about business. My favourite part of the meeting is getting to browse the stock, I get to touch and feel the products and decide what merchandise has the wow-factor for our fashion-loving TK Maxx customers.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

• 15.00        STRIKE A DEAL – After deciding which products I am interested in, I will start the negotiation process. I will always have it at the front of my mind that I am out to get the best deal for our customers. I love the feeling of striking a good deal and knowing the product is good quality resulting in a successful meeting.                   

• 16:00       COMP SHOPPING - this is probably one of the best parts of my job, shopping around to see what our competitior retailers are stocking. I basically get to shop for work! I’ll also always try and visit a TK Maxx store when I am in Poland or Germany to see how the stock looks.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    

• 17:30       HOMEWARD BOUND - Head back to the airport. I pick up any outstanding emails and confirm my appointments for the next day.                                           

• 20:00      RELAX - Back to London and head straight home to bed, to be up fresh and ready for a new day in the exciting world of off-price buying.  

Having been to Glastonbury for the past  5 years I knew how unpredictable the weather could be, but I didn’t expect to arrive and stand in a queue for 4 hrs while Mother Nature let rip!  Amusingly everyone from TK Maxx was booted with the finest designer wellies as the ground sogged below foot and in true team spirit the tents went up faster than they ever had before!  When the rain let up we finally all ventured out for a true taste of the festival (Brothers pear cider of course) followed by a stroll to the stone circle.  Festival fashion was at its worst at this point with Macs, waterproofs or naked hippys on display.

After a few hours sleep we were dragged out of bed by some serious (and diverse!) music watching to do. With a bloody mary in hand we managed to catch the end of an all sister group from Oz called Stonefield at the John Peel (RIP) tent with the eldest sister not only playing the drums but taking lead vocals. You have to check these chicks out, they are seriously talented.  And of the day was topped off by a muddy trudge round to the Pyramid Stage to catch the legend that is BB King- well worth it.  He was outstanding as expected, a true musical legend.

Having coerced two of the TK Maxx crew into saving their souls and skipping Morissey and U2 we headed to see Example – he didn’t disappoint with a much more uplifting set!

Saturday saw the sun come out and with it some serious festival trend-setters.  We caught Nicolas Jaar whilst refuelling on pear cider and headed to a small tent in the late night area called Arcadia to catch Ed Sheeran & the Guillemots but my real festival highlight had to be watching Coldplay. As hoped they played out their back catalogue but ending with ‘Every Tear Drop is a Waterfall’ with the Pyramid Stage illuminated like never – a lasting memory of Glastonbury 2011.

On Sunday the 30 degrees sun soon had us flagging to a rather mediocre afternoon of The Noisettes, Bombay Bicycle Club and Paul Simon before watching Beyonce that evening.  Was she good? Well certainly as she was raised up on a platform as the sun went down she was the most glam looking headliner to grace the Pyramid – her golden sequin top and black hot pants caused as much excitement as Kylie’s trademark gold hotpants.  Musically she delivered with some great snippets worked into her songs – The Eurythmics ‘Sweet Dreams’, King’s of Leon ‘Sex on Fire’, and a Destiny Child medley.  As she ended with Halo I’d say at least 60,000+ of the 170,000 people there were giving her the thumbs up!

Once again Wimbledon has hit our TV screens and here at TK Maxx we couldn’t be more excited! Luckily for us, we managed to snap up a couple of tickets for Tuesday’s games and can share all the gossip from the courts.

As we hit Wimbledon’s ground, the queue of fellow tennis fans were all ready and hyped for some smashing action from the courts. Despite queuing for a few hours (!?) in the early hours of the morning, we were just as eager to get in and explore the wonders of Wimbledon.

Our passes allowed us to choose between courts 3-19 and we wasted no time by dashing to the men’s single match: Clements Vs Kubot. The atmosphere was fantastic and the match was exhilarating with Kubot well and truly thrashing Clement which we thought was about right, as Clement wasn’t the best when it came to sportsmanship.  

After the match we thought it would be best to celebrate Kubot’s win with a cheeky  beverage, not surprisingly the drinks served at Wimbledon aren’t the cheapest so if you’re planning to take trip to the tennis this year, be prepared to dig deep into your pocket. However, if you happen to hold an HSBC card holder then you lucky ones will receive free strawberries and cream which are yummy (possibly a good reason to switch banks? Could be a dealbreaker!). We also treated ourselves to a glass of Pimm’s (our fave) costing a jaw-dropping £7 each so we made sure we savoured every sip.

Next we strolled to the infamous Henman-Hill…or should we now say Murray-Mount, where we tried to catch a few rays while watching Serena and Federer on the big screen. Once again the atmosphere was not disappointing and we didn’t hesitate to join in with crowd cheers.

Despite the usual disappointing British weather, the rain held off all day (hurrah!) and stretched to some sunny intervals which amazingly in true Brit style managed to give us patches of sunburn (even though we were dressed for the rain).

Not only were we there to enjoy the tennis but as fashion-lovers we were obviously on trend duty and there were plenty of flip-flops, floral tops, smart dresses (for the more corporate guests) and of course the essential item at Wimbledon…an umbrella!

As well as this, we couldn’t help ourselves to a bit of celeb spotting. We spied T4’s Jameela Jamil enjoying the tennis and heart-throb England cricketer Kevin Peterson, who may have distracted us from the action on court….well worth the £20 ticket!  

I HATE moving house, but unfortunately, my flatmate has decided to go off travelling around the world (not jealous….promise) so I have decided to move in with an old school friend from home.

I like viewing flats (purely because I am nosey) and I like adding personal touches to a new home when it is all fresh and new, but the one thing I really hate is trying to remember a checklist of things that I need to do before I move out. Packing can be theraputic, as you sort through and discard silly gadgets and odds that you have collected over your time in that home. It’s also great to have a spring clean of your wardrobe – you can take it to the next level and invite the girls round and do a mini fashion show and allow your mates to rate your ‘maybes’ (Carrie Bradshaw stylee). But I just hate the thought of having to change the address for all of my mail and bank statements/ phone bill/ registering with Doctors etc.

Because I like you lots, I thought I’d share with you my checklist for your ‘Box of Needs’, somewhere you can store all of the essentials you will need when you first arrive in your new home.

• Kettle/ Cups – Always good to offer removal men a cuppa

• Tea/ Coffee/ Milk – as above

• Munchies – Opt for things that don’t need much preparation. eg crisps/ chocolate/ fruit

• Bedding/ Towels – You need to sleep and shower

• Scissors – For breaking into boxes

• Tool kit – Stick to the basics

• Toiletries – Don’t forget your toothbrush/ toothpaste

• Toilet rolls – Quite possibly the MOST important

• Light bulbs – They should have been replaced in advance but best to be safe

• Basic cutlery – It’s always a good idea to order a takeaway for the first night

• Plates – as above

• Bottle of Champagne and glasses – OK, so this is the MOST important

• First Aid Kit – Expect lots of nicks and grazes

• Pet Food – Keep the furries happy whilst you get to work

I hope this helps and you have a safe and successful moving day. We have a big delivery of gorgeous interiors instore now – perfect to help kit you out in your new home.

Are you moving out? Let us know your tips on Facebook.com/tkmaxx and Twitter @TKMaxx_UK

Going on holiday is always the perfect excuse to hit the shops and update your wardrobe with some summer style.  I’m a serial last-minute shopper. I love the last minute buzz and excitement of a picking up few new bikinis, a new evening summer dress and plenty of new accessories. just before I go away.  Not to mention stocking up on my favourite suntan lotion  – I just LOVE buying sun-tan lotion, for me it’s like buying wrapping paper at Christmas, it’s the sign that you’re so close to the main event.

So once you’ve got your wardrobe sorted, what you pack and what you pack it in, can be a bit of a trial.  I must confess I am the WORST person to travel with. I have always congratulated myself for packing lightly. I can go away for a 3 night weekend with my trusty average sized Longchamp tote and still have room for last minute essentials. I can go on holiday for a week with the girls, smugly knowing that I will have the lightest suitcase at check-in. Sounds great doesn’t it? Well  it is for me, but the only reason I manage this is because I always know I can trust my friends to overpack and have enough toiletries to keep the entire resort shampooed and moisturised.

Some may think this is a cheeky move, but I would like to consider this as simply better for the environment…..I don’t like the thought of waste!

I’m sure you all have these friends in your circle – the over-packer like Colleen Rooney and Paris Hilton who would seem to pack everything barr the kitchen sink in their designer monogrammed suitcases right down to the  smart-packer including fashionistas Kate Moss and Stella McCartney who seem to have the secret of wrapping up the season’s hottest looks in the minimal of luggage.

Well whoever you may be and wherever you are going,  you’ll find a huge choice of luggage now available on line and in store at tkmaxx.com to make sure you travel in style this summer.

Jetting off somewhere fabulous this summer? Let us know @TKMaxx_UK or facebook.com/tkmaxx