Leah Howatson’s path to leading international markets at Castlery began in banking, where early project management roles taught her skills she still draws on in furniture retail today. Over eight years with Castlery, she has progressed from senior marketing manager to general manager of international markets. Along the way, she has learned that career growth is not always about securing a bigger title, but choosing opportunities that offer room to learn.

Speaking with Inside Retail, Howatson reflected on the value of good managers, the female leaders who shaped her early career and why she wished she had been bolder about asking questions. She also explained why finding talented people deserves a leader’s attention even when there is no immediate vacancy.

Inside Retail: What’s a role or experience from earlier in your career that people might not expect to be relevant to furniture retail, but that still shapes how you work at Castlery today?

Leah Howatson: I studied economics and was in banking. I always joke that economics taught me not much for the real world. But when I did banking, I did a lot of project management roles in the first one or two years, and now with fresh grads I always try and give them some project management, because building up the confidence to hold people accountable, even when you’re quite junior and you’re having to talk with more senior people, and to be structured and clear in communication, and work on the trade-offs between time, budget and scope, all those skills are so good.

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