From Luxury to Inner Strength - Iwona Ogodazi on Rebuilding Life and Success Against the Odds

In this episode of It’s Your Business, Kath is joined by Iwona Ogodazi, CEO of Inner Edge and founder of Moving Forward Against The Odds CIC, for a powerful conversation about ambition, luxury, resilience and rebuilding your life when everything changes.

Iwona grew up in communist Poland and originally came to London for a summer to improve her English. Arriving with just £400 and no intention of staying permanently, she quickly fell in love with the opportunities the city offered and began building a completely new life for herself.

Her career took her into some of the world’s most prestigious luxury brands, including Smythson, Links of London, Tiffany & Co, Aspinal of London and Asprey. Over more than 20 years in luxury retail, Iwona worked with royalty, celebrities and high-profile clients, eventually progressing into senior leadership and retail director roles.

But behind the successful career was a very different personal reality.

Iwona speaks openly about leaving an abusive marriage, becoming homeless and having to rebuild her life from virtually nothing while fighting to create stability for herself and her son. For years, she felt as though she was living two lives, spending her working days surrounded by luxury and privilege before returning home to deal with the realities of social housing and starting again.

That experience now plays an important role in Iwona’s work through Inner Edge, where she supports leaders, CEOs and people in the public eye to close the gap between how successful their lives appear on the outside and how they truly feel on the inside. They explore issues including fear, imposter syndrome, self-worth and the need for external validation.

Iwona has also created Moving Forward Against The Odds CIC, drawing directly on her own experience to support adults who feel stuck following hardship, homelessness, domestic abuse, illness or other life-changing circumstances. Her aim is to help people rebuild confidence, feel safe enough to move forward and begin flourishing again.

This is an inspiring episode about the difference between looking successful and feeling successful, turning adversity into purpose, and proving that where you find yourself today does not have to determine where you go next.

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