Island Life Magazine Ltd April/May 2014 | Page 10

INTERVIEW Meet the Island's new High Sheriff - Claire Locke When Claire Locke moved to the Island in 1990 with husband Glyn she had designs on running her own business. After a fleeting thought of opening a cafe in Yarmouth, Claire decided to develop the experience she had already gained, importing Italian fashion into the UK. Within a few years Claire and Glyn’s business venture was in full flow; a multi-million pound company marketing high-quality Italian clothes and accessories under the ‘Artigiano’ brand. It proved a hugely successful venture that she and Glyn continued to develop until they finally sold their catalogue, mail-order and eventually internet company in 2006. Now Claire is relishing a different type of challenge for the next 12 months that of High Sheriff of the Isle of Wight. And she promised: “During my year I 10 www.visitilife.com "The business was combining economics with my love of clothing, retail and of Italy, where I spent a lot of time as a teenager." will do my best to do what I can for the Island, and meet and appreciate the many people who do voluntary work to keep things moving in so may ways. “I want to celebrate al l the fantastic things about the Island, because it has gone through a difficult time, but we must not lose sight of all the wonderful people and things we have here. It is a very special place, and we are very fortunate.” Claire was born in Worcestershire and lived in several areas of the country with her family, because of her father’s work as a business executive in engineering. The family eventually settled in Henley-on-Thames where she met and married Glyn, a former Olympic oarsmen, had a boat building business, making world-class single sculling boats, used at the famous Henley Regatta. Claire was already working closely with several Italian fashion companies, until they opted for a change of lifestyle, with Glyn selling his business. She said: “We moved to the Island for a better quality of life. We had one baby, and another on