Long Service Month: Reflecting on the past 8 years with our Head of HR Sophie
20th Oct 2026
This month we’re celebrating our long-serving team members and how they’ve helped shape the business. We’re sitting down with a few of our long-standing team members to talk about their experiences and individual journeys.
Here is what our Head of HR, Sophie had to say about her time at Draper:
Take us back to when you first started at Draper
It was July 2018. My now-husband and I were both looking for new roles, he'd found one in Southampton, so we were planning a move to the area. When I saw the role at Draper, I applied straight away, and it was a genuinely rigorous interview process! When they called to offer me the job, I actually went silent on the phone, I just wasn't expecting it. I was shocked and so excited.
Eight years on, I've still got my original security card, which makes me laugh. My name's changed, my job title's changed, my hair's changed - but I've still got the same grin!
You started as HR Advisor back in 2018 — did you ever imagine you'd be Draper's Head of HR eight years later?
Honestly, I don't know how I was feeling at the time. I was nervous, worried I was out of my depth, just keen to get through probation. By the end of my first year, I felt properly settled. I knew the role, I knew people and I knew this was where I wanted to be. I never really thought too much about where my career was heading, I've just been given so many opportunities to develop and progress. Being rewarded for doing a good job massively incentivises you to stay.
The role I started in and the role I do now are worlds apart. The business has changed a huge amount too, in so many positive ways.
What have been the highlights of your time at Draper? Is there anything you're especially proud of?
There have been so many highlights, big and small and I probably don't spend enough time reflecting on what we've achieved, because you're always focused on what's next. But one thing I'm genuinely proud of is the recruitment and onboarding programme we've built for new starters.
Starting a new job is a huge deal, leaving somewhere familiar to push yourself into a new environment, new people, new challenges. We wanted to look after people from the moment they apply, right through to passing probation. New starters get a structured plan: the right introductions, proper training on systems and processes, and check-ins throughout probation - not just from their line manager, but from someone outside their immediate team too. There are little touches as well, like welcome cards and welcome packs. The feedback since we introduced it has been brilliant.
What's the best part of your role? What do you like about working at Draper?
Hands down, it's the team - past and present. Brilliant, talented people who are also just genuinely good, they want to do right by the business and by each other. We're a tight-knit group, always have been.
It makes for a lovely working environment, you know you're going to have a good day. Beyond my team, the whole workforce at Draper are just really nice people. There's at least once a week where something makes me properly belly laugh, and I'm not subtle about it - most of the office can probably hear me cackling!
It's a fun place to work. People know you by name, not just as a face in the crowd. You talk about more than just work with your colleagues. You get to collaborate, your opinions are valued, and I've always felt genuinely listened to. And no two days are the same, I really enjoy that.
Has your time at Draper taught you anything about yourself?
I've learned I'm a lot more capable than I give myself credit for, mostly thanks to brilliant mentors here, inside and outside my department, who've encouraged and pushed me. Without that, I don't think I'd be in the role I'm in now.
I've also picked up more knowledge about tools than I ever expected! I'm no DIYer, and products aren't really my world - I'm all about people. But recruiting for product-focused roles teaches you fast. There are people here with such encyclopaedic knowledge of tools and I'm in awe of them. You can learn from so many people at Draper.
Can you sum up life at Draper in three words?
Opportunity: I've been given some incredible ones during my time here.
Kindness: From day one, Draper's ethos has been to treat people with kindness and respect, even when tough business decisions need making. People come first.
Unconventional: In the best way. No rigid corporate rules, no cardboard-cutout company values. Draper does things its own way, and you won't find that anywhere else.
How does it feel working for a 107-year-old company?
I'm a tiny chapter in a very long story. Eight years sounds like a lot, but in the grand scheme of things it's nothing, we've got people who've worked here for 30, 40, nearly 50 years. It’s incredible and I love hearing the old Draper stories, someone really should write them down.
It's special that the business is still family owned after all this time, you genuinely see family walking around the office, which feels rare these days.
I hope Draper goes for another 107 years, and that I'm still a small slice of that long, successful story.
