In the past few years, Murchison-Hume have gone from small (but stylish!) Sydney cleaning product brand to international success story. They’re currently taking the US by storm, being featured on Gwyneth Paltrow’s cult blog just last month, and it’s largely due to dynamo founder Max Kater.
Having recently moved to Los Angeles to oversee the launch and growth of the brand in the US, Max’s mission has remained the same: for her products to be the trifecta of safe and green, looking and smelling great and performing well.
At Interiors Addict, we can’t help but admit that it was the ‘looking and smelling great’ factor that got us the most interested. Something about not having to hide your cleaning products away, but instead being able to have them sit proudly on your counter, immediately caught our attention. It’s something Max puts down to her previous career: “In my former life as a fashion editor, I was used to working with beautiful things. I never understood why cleaning products had to scream at you from multi-coloured plastic bottles and choke you with a fake pine scent. House cleaning products needed a makeover.”
Yet while it was Max’s fashion background that made sure her products were noticed, it was actually her youngest son who inspired her to start Murchison-Hume. “Charlie inherited my allergies, eczema and asthma, which were exacerbated every time I cleaned. It took me a while to make the connection between his allergic sensitivities and the harsh chemicals I was using to keep the house clean. I was actually doing more harm than good! I started experimenting with every kind of eco-friendly cleaning product I could find. But I found them to be lacking. I was desperate and eventually resorted to making my own. I am happy to report that Charlie has been clear of all allergic symptoms for 10 years now, since we started using Murchison-Hume products exclusively in the house.”
Wanting to make cleaning more enjoyable, all products are 100% plant-based, simple and elegant solutions to everyday problems. “All that stuff that we all have to deal with, but don’t necessarily enjoy, we can help with that,” says Max. “The everyday problems like pizza sauce on the sofa, dirty dishes, quickly and easily polishing scuffed shoes and looking sharp without an expensive trip to the dry cleaner. Honestly, my own family life is a constant source of inspiration to me. If I need something clever to help me keep the house, kids or dogs clean and healthy, I think other people will need it too.”
Despite expanding at a rapid rate, Max won’t launch a product just for the sake of it. For her, you won’t see it unless it’s perfect and better than anything else out there. “We’re always thinking about expanding into new areas but I won’t release a product just because our competition does. When I start to think about designing a product, it has come about because of a real world need that we can fill better than anyone else!”
The new soy candles will be available here later this month and recent additions for keeping your dogs, handbags, shoes and even clothes clean and fresh, have been popular.
READER DISCOUNT
As a special treat, Murchison-Hume are offering 15% off all products to all our subscribers. To take advantage, you need to be signed up to our mailing list by midnight this Sunday 5 October. If you’re already on the list, just sit back and wait for the discount code to land in your inbox on Monday 6 October. Easy!
