What inspires you?
Creativity, sustainability, people who are trying to make the world a better place, delicious food, nature.
I’m good at…
Being driven with my job, enjoying life :), doing sport, cooking, working hard playing hard balance
I’m bad at…
Making decisions, changing my mind, sometimes being rather scatty!
Who’s your favourite Style Icon?
Awkward… I really don’t have one.
The most inspirational person you have met?
The former Women’s England Rugby team captain – she was an inspirational leader, team captain, businesswoman, sports player and a lovely person.
What’s your favourite location?
Cornwall – the sea and the countryside combined. Can’t beat it
What is your background?
I was brought up in London until I was 5. I then moved to Hampshire until I was 17 and after that moved to Gloucestershire where my mother grew back. Gloucestershire is also one of my favourite places. I studied at Durham University and from school until now I have always been involved in cooking, sustainability and events which led to the creation of ChicP.
What are the highlights of your career thus far?
Being a private chef part-time for years at all the different houses I’ve cooked for are all highlights for me. Starting ChicP and being able to get it off the ground into my first major retailer (Fortnum & Mason) last September followed by Wholefoods the month after have so far been my biggest highlights. I think I’m close to another highlight too!
What are your goals for the next 5 years?
I’d love to supply to Ocado and Waitrose ideally by the end of this year. I’d love to set up franchises in other countries, helping to use their surplus and educate my customers around this.
How did you get started with ChicP?
After having cooked for families in the UK and all over Europe, predominantly as a private chef, I would often convert the leftover Ottolenghi type salads into dips for the next meal. Nearly every day the question would be “what’s the dip of the day Hannah”?! I hate food waste and love hummus. Everyone loves hummus! So I put the two and two together and thus created ChicP.
The inspiration behind ChicP was the overriding determination and passion to change the way we approach cooking and food waste while producing healthier hummus to the market.
How did the name ChicP come about?
It took a lot of thought… from ROARfood to many more obscure names. The result came from wanting to have something hummus related while relating back to me in some way… the ‘Chic’ 
How did you develop the concept for ChicP?
By always making hummus from leftovers… There is so much versatility with hummus and it is a product that you can easily create using surplus while producing a whole range of delicious products.
Tell us about your Award?
The award came as quite a surprise – Being the Winner of the Best Convenience Food Innovation Award for the World Food Innovation Awards 2016 was a real highlight. These small boosts are sometimes what keep you going.
What is your best tip for those who want to learn to cook?
Don’t stick by the rule book… It’s ok to not have quite enough of one ingredient and alter the recipe to how you may prefer it. Be creative and don’t be scared to experiment- it makes it all the more fun!
What’s your favourite recipe/flavour combination?
I love Ottolenghi food so anything with tahini… and roasted vegetables with herbs and spices. There are a lot of flavour combinations that you can’t go wrong with here!
What has been the most exciting collaboration you’ve worked on so far?
I’m really excited about Balance Festival coming up this weekend. It’s a sort of collaboration but I’m excited to be eating and selling hummus besides lots of my favourite brands.
Rude health is otherwise definitely the most exciting company I’ve done a lot of collaborations with – events, selling in the cafe, social media collaborations and so much more. I feel very lucky to have done so much with them and can’t thank their team enough 
What are you working on at the moment?
Events for the summer and potentially some new manufacturing so lots of tastings.
What do you have to say to the next generation, particularly for those hoping to follow in your footsteps?
I would have to say that if you’re thinking of starting up in the food industry, sustainability is the way forward so anything in this field that’s going to work is a big bonus. A strong USP is compulsory. If someone’s already doing what you do, think again.
What is the best piece of advice you have been given?
If you’ve got a good idea, keep going at it. Perseverance is key.
What is your most treasured possession?
The necklace that my Granny gave me for my 18th. She was my best friend and without it, I would feel quite lost.
What is your must-have item for next season?
Good shoes
In a nutshell, your philosophy is…
Work hard, play hard and enjoy life – you only live once so do what you want to do!
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