Stripey Lemon – How It All Began
Stripey Lemon may seem like a curious name for a training company, but like most good ideas, it has a story behind it.
10 years ago, while working with clients in the catering sector, I was having an inspired conversation with Brian Warren from Quick HR Brighton at Radio Reverb Studios. Brian gave me some advice:
“No one will remember Karen Morton Consultants. You really have to come up with something more impactful.”
Food for thought.
I wanted a name that people would remember, but more importantly, I wanted one that captured my personality and my approach to learning and development. Something fresh, energetic and a little bit different.
And so, Stripey Lemon was born.
Why a lemon?
When it came to creating the brand identity, I turned to my lovely friend Kasia Rust, Creative Director at Burst, and her talented graphic designer, Sophie Mockford.
Given their experience creating branding and packaging for leading cosmetic brands and retailers, I knew Stripey Lemon was in very good hands.
Like any good creative agency, they wanted a brief. So, over a glass of Cava at Kasia’s kitchen table, we scribbled, laughed and came up with a long list of words and ideas.
Zest. Twist. Slice. Squeeze. Fresh. Bright. Sunny. Sharp. Cleansing.
We talked about lemons as an ingredient: something that can transform what is already there, bring out flavour, add a finishing touch and give something a little boost.
A lemon can be used in different ways. The skin has value. The flesh can be sliced or squeezed. Even the pips represent something: the potential for growth.
And that felt very much like my approach to learning.
Training shouldn’t be about starting again from scratch. It’s about recognising the talent, knowledge and potential that already exists, then finding ways to bring it to life.
We were clearly onto something.
We also polished off the bottle of Cava.
“Karen, what is it you actually do?”
The next morning, Sophie emailed me with one very important question:
“Karen, what is it you actually do?”
Cue more laughter.
But it was a good question. Stripey Lemon needed to be more than a memorable name. It needed to represent what I actually do for clients.
The answer was a wonderfully varied mix of learning, development, facilitation, coaching and communication.
I work with organisations to:
- Design and deliver engaging training programmes
- Support leadership, management and team development
- Coach individuals and teams to improve performance
- Use behavioural profiling, including DISC and Emotional Intelligence, to help people understand themselves and others
- Facilitate conversations and thinking during periods of change and transformation
- Re-energise teams and create a more enjoyable approach to achieving business goals
- Provide learning and development solutions for small and medium-sized businesses
- Deliver seminars, conferences and events as a speaker, presenter or MC
- Create digital learning assets and corporate video content
- Work as a training associate for training providers and corporate clients
At the heart of all of it is the same goal:
helping people and businesses perform better by making learning practical, relevant and enjoyable.
My philosophy
“If life throws you lemons, make lemonade. Or a gin and tonic.”
It still makes me smile, but there is a serious idea behind it.
Training is about business development and personal development. It is about taking challenges, looking at them differently and finding new approaches and practical solutions.
It is about people.
It is about teams.
And it is about what happens when people with different talents, experiences and ideas come together and create something better than they could have created alone.
I think of training as taking the ingredients you already have — talent, knowledge, experience and potential — and finding the right method for mixing them together.
Sometimes you need a twist.
Sometimes you need a squeeze.
Sometimes you need a completely new recipe.
And sometimes you just need someone to help you see what you already have in a different way.
From idea to identity
Kasia and Sophie took all those ideas and turned them into a Story Board of concepts, images and colours that captured the essence of what I wanted Stripey Lemon to become.
The result wasn’t just a visual identity. It was a personality.
Bright. Energetic. Positive. Memorable.
And, importantly, human.
I sometimes think of it as being part of a girl band: I still work alongside fantastic training providers and major corporate clients, bringing my experience and expertise to collaborative projects, but Stripey Lemon gives me the opportunity to step out as a solo artist in my own right.
The people who helped make it happen
One of the things I value most about running Stripey Lemon is the relationships behind the work.
I am incredibly grateful to the long-standing relationships I have built with GP Strategies Ltd, Grosvenor Training Services Ltd, the BVRLA (British Vehicle and Leasing Association) and Spider on the Wall Ltd for trusting me with their clients and for co-creating excellent work together.
I am also grateful to Sue and Mark at G4 Lets, the student letting agency in Brighton, who were among my first clients in the South East. Working with their team on management development, customer service and wellbeing was a brilliant early chapter for Stripey Lemon.
And a special thank you to Klodhoppers, the children’s shoe specialists in Hove and Haywards Heath, who asked me to design and deliver a customer service programme for new recruits called The Magic Slipper.
Those early projects helped shape the business just as much as the branding did.
So, what does Stripey Lemon stand for?
For me, Stripey Lemon is about bringing energy, creativity and practicality to learning.
It is about making development something people want to be part of, rather than something they simply have to attend.
It is about asking better questions, encouraging people to think differently and creating the conditions for teams to do brilliant things together.
Most of all, it is about recognising that people are the most important ingredient in any organisation.
The future is still bright.
And I’m looking forward to squeezing every last drop out of it.
Welcome to Stripey Lemon.
