Sasha White
Together with her husband Nathan, Sasha White, from Mr and Mrs White, embraces the triumphs and challenges of their small business—continually grateful for the opportunity to follow their collective dream.
PHOTOGRAPHY: Matt Johnson
The Slow Chair by Mr and Mrs White.
‘We have chosen to follow our instinct; the scent, the next step in front of us, haphazardly yet intently navigating the terrain, opposed to rigidly following a plan we had mapped out for ourselves at the beginning. It’s been a radiant dance that we could have never planned,’ says Sasha White.
‘We have danced in the delight of achievement, and persisted through the trenches of defeat. And for better or worse, we chose to creatively pursue the perilous landscape of small business.’
‘As for our business, I’m simply grateful for being able to do what we love.’
Nathan White, the ‘Mr’ in Mr and Mrs White!
Hello Sasha—can you introduce yourself?
Sasha: Hi, my name is Sasha White and I am the ‘Mrs’ at the Australian furniture company Mr and Mrs White. As the name suggests, my husband Nathan White is the Mr in the equation. Together we have three daughters: Selah (13), Oak (10) and Clay (7). We live in Northern NSW, in a small town called Tumbulgum. As I write this I’m looking out to the Rous River and the Caldera Mountain Ranges—so much space, so much beauty—it still surprises me that this is where I now call home. Half of my life I grew up in New York and the other half in Sydney and so, to now find myself in a small country town that most people have never heard of (or can pronounce right!) is one of those good surprises in life. Life here is simple if you want it to be and slow… if you want it to be, and it’s exactly what I never knew I wanted. I’ve discovered that the sight of green rolling hills is healing, waking up to our neighbours' cows grazing in the paddock brings more joy than I could imagine, and weekly visits to the understated iconic ‘Tumby pub’ is essential.
Tell us about your career trajectory—how has it evolved throughout the years?
I have never really seen my work from the viewpoint of a ‘career’. As I look back I think I simply see myself as stepping into what was in front of me and the season I was in—being a wife, mother, designer, business owner. At different times I have been all or only some of the above. As to the evolution, I left high school with the mindset that I wanted to start my own magazine. I loved writing and I loved design and I thought it was the perfect fit. Unsure of how to go about it I decided on studying journalism as the first step. Six months in and I hated it! The fast paced nature and frenzy of a ‘news’ story didn’t gel with me. I decided to transfer to a design degree majoring in graphic design. At that time I got engaged and was married to Nathan (age 21) and we were starting our life together. Nathan started his shipwright apprenticeship and I was working for a media company doing graphic design. We both loved creating and working with our hands and started making things for our own home in the spare time we had, in between studying and working. Over time this evolved into designing and making timber furniture and joinery for family and friends, which then evolved into the start of the business Mr and Mrs White.
When did you first discover your love for furniture design?
It’s been a life long discovery and unveiling. As a kid I loved my room—I loved arranging and rearranging it. I remember seeing a children’s version of an armchair at a store and thought it was the best thing ever and begged my parents for it. I think I would have been around eight years old at the time. As I got older I never thought that furniture design was something I could pursue. As we developed and established our business my interest in furniture design grew. Our approach to furniture design has always been informed by our own home, our love for design and the human connection to it—how a simple piece of furniture can bring joy in our daily lives. How a piece of furniture, if designed and made well, can stay with us all our lives. Nathan or myself will come up with a design concept and Nathan would work out how he would make it and we would discuss tweaks and test out in our own home. It is a very collaborative design process between Nathan and myself and we are forever growing into that role.
You work alongside your husband, Nathan—what’s the best part about working as a team?
I love the collaborative nature of what we do. Nathan and I have very different skill sets and when that comes together that’s where the magic is. There’s also a grace and understanding when working together as husband and wife. We’re still learning to choose this daily.
How many years has the business been running now?
We’ve been running the business since 2011, so for 13 years now. Our first daughter was born in 2011 so it's always an easy year to remember. The business has evolved as we have evolved. As we have grown in ourselves, in our skills, in our perspectives and experiences. We started the business at a young age and with no real ‘plan’ of what we wanted to achieve or where we wanted to take it, but it’s one of those forever things… something we would love to pass down to our children—if they want it!
As I reflect on our journey as a business it reminds of me a poem from Denise Levertov:
Let’s go — much as that dog goes,
intently haphazard. The
Mexican light on a day that
‘smells like autumn in Connecticut’
makes iris ripples on his
black gleaming fur — and that too
is as one would desire — a radiance
consorting with the dance.
Under his feet
rock and mud, his imagination, sniffing,
engaged in its perceptions — dancing
edgeways, there’s nothing
the dog disdains on his way,
nevertheless he
keeps moving, changing
pace and approach but
not direction — ‘every step an arrival’.
And so it is too with the evolution of our business and life. We have chosen to follow our instinct; the scent, the next step in front of us, haphazardly yet intently navigating the terrain, opposed to rigidly following a plan we had mapped out for ourselves at the beginning. It’s been a radiant dance that we could have never planned. We have danced in the delight of achievement, and persisted through the trenches of defeat. And for better or worse, we chose to creatively pursue the perilous landscape of small business. There’s always been an underlying foundation of family and a pursuit for the genuine but every step has certainly been ‘an arrival’.
The new Murbah Modular sofa is made up of separate components for the base, armrests and backrests, allowing for a highly modular sectional sofa with endless configuration opportunities.
‘Our approach to furniture design has always been informed by our own home, our love for design and the human connection to it—how a simple piece of furniture can bring joy in our daily lives.’
“Nathan and I have very different skill sets, and when that comes together that’s where the magic is. There’s also a grace and understanding when working together as husband and wife. We’re still learning to choose this daily.”
‘One of the most rewarding parts [of my job] is seeing a design come to life.’
Nathan White in the Mrs and Mrs White workshop, in Northern NSW.
The Slow Chair by Mr and Mrs White.
‘It is a very collaborative design process between Nathan and myself, and we are forever growing into that role.’
The new Murbah Modular sofa by Mr and Mrs White.
‘I’m not very good at advice but someone I admire once said that to run a business you have to have grit—grit means having the passion and perseverance to keep going despite difficulty.’
Do you have any creative rituals or routines that you follow daily that set you up for the work day?
I definitely work better when I have done a workout or gone for a walk to start the day. Coffee is always essential. I thrive on variety. I work mostly at home, but will break it up by going to the factory and showroom for meetings, photoshoots or to simply get out of the house.
After the devastating fire of your factory, you’ve slowly rebuilt a new space to create your pieces—can you tell us about the journey to rebuilding your brand and factory?
At the end of 2023 we had the unexpected and horrific experience of a fire in our factory and showroom. Thankfully nobody was hurt, but the fire and smoke damage destroyed everything; our tools and machinery, stock and all the end of year orders we were working on. It was a difficult time, but we were grateful to have a community that helped us through as well as very understanding clients. As the damage was extensive, we had to find a new location to work from whilst they rebuilt the factory. We found a factory space closer to town with a fairly visible shopfront so we decided to make the most of the opportunity and build a small showroom at the front. It was a stressful time but I was also grateful for the creative opportunity. I was in quiet anticipation for the task of creating something different, in a space we didn’t and still don’t know how long we will be occupying. We worked with local builders, paint suppliers, metal workers and of course the Mr and Mrs White team to create a space that speaks to the heart of the town and the heritage of the building. Next year we will be moving back to the industrial area where we were originally, but for now we’re enjoying the space and the local community.
What does success look like for you?
If you asked me this question ten years ago I would have a very different answer. In all honesty, I’m still breaking down and reforming the idea of success in my mind. Previously, success would look like a figure in our bank account, recognition from the industry, being big, and having lots of staff. In 2018, six months after the birth of our youngest daughter, I was diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer and my perspective on many things changed. Today, I’m more interested in the ‘success’ of the things unseen, the ordinary day-to-day things of life. How is my heart doing? Did I eat a nourishing meal today? Did I look my kids in the eyes and ask how they are doing? Did we carve out time for a family meal this week? As for our business, I’m simply grateful for being able to do what we love. Naturally, there will always be many ups and downs and some days can be hard and frustrating. I have to constantly reframe my outlook and get back to that place of gratefulness and to know that tomorrow is a new day and each day of work a blessing.
The most rewarding part of what you do?
One of the most rewarding parts is seeing a design come to life. Particularly when you’ve been working on something for a long time and the ups and downs of business makes you question your ability and your work. And then the day comes when all the pieces of the puzzle come together and your work is sent out into the world. You feel vulnerable yet hopeful, and it feels good.
And the most challenging?
The ups and downs of running a small business is the hardest part for me. Once again this goes back to establishing a new foundation of how I view ‘success’. In the down times, I immediately go ‘we’re failing, why are we doing this?’. I have to step back and look at the big picture and be kind to myself. It’s inevitable that running a small business is going to have good times and bad times, no matter how long you have been running it for or how experienced you are.
What’s a piece of career advice you’ve been given or would personally give someone starting a furniture brand?
I’m not very good at advice, but someone I admire once said that to run a business you have to have grit. Grit means having the passion and perseverance to keep going despite difficulty. It’s the daily resolve to continue what you set out to do. Alongside that I would like to quote Jeff Buckley who said, ‘I have no advice for anybody; except to, you know, be awake enough to see where you are at any given time, and how that is beautiful, and has poetry inside. Even places you hate.’
Any dream projects you aspire to undertake?
We’re always dreaming. At the moment we are excited to start a fresh year, dust off the year that’s been and are hopeful for the doors that open for us in 2025.
What do you most love to do in your downtime?
I like to read and write. I like to spend time at home with my family, and I love going to the beach and exploring the beautiful region that we live in.
What’s coming up for Mr and Mrs White?
We’ve just launched a new modular sofa design, the Murbah Modular, which we have been working on for the past few years. It's been amazing to finally see this design come to life. We also have an upcoming collaboration with Assembly Label about to be released. That one has been a long time coming also, so it will be exciting to see that one go out into the world.
Shop the collection at mrandmrswhite.net or follow @mrandmrswhite_ on Instagram.