"The Eighties was an era of very flamboyant, flashy and superior design," says Jonathan Sherwood, director of 20th-century, classic-furniture showcase, Haus "The aesthetic was extremely hard and masculine. What a difference a decade makes. With 20 years separating us from the Seventies, Wallpaper* magazine can safely repackage the edited highlights of the decade as modern design. It's all right to like shagpile rugs, chocolate-brown, ultrasuede, cube chairs and tangerine leather upholstery But the Eighties are too close for comfort. You have to be prepared to do anything, never give up and eventually it will happen I have never let other people put me off..

It's all about choosing the right team and recognising the talent in others. I have been lucky in being in the right place at the right time, but in journalism nothing is handed to you on a plate. Both Sugar and Red are successful because they are in tune with their audience.I believe I'm quite good at motivating people, which is essential for an editor. When I was launching Sugar, I couldn't contemplate it failing. I hoped we'd sell 100,000 copies, but in the end we sold 500,000.

I did two days a week in PR to cover the rent, and just kept writing, doing all the things no one else wanted to do.People say I'm the least ambitious successful person they know But I am determined and level-headed It's fear that keeps me going. I just bombarded the editor with pieces until finally he accepted one and let me write a couple of film reviews.I must have been very brave at that stage, because that was all the encouragement I needed to go freelance. I hung around with all the Just Seventeen crowd and was desperate to leave PR and write features. The average working week for femalesin the USA is 41 hours, whereas British women put in an average 35 hours a week.. Kathryn Brown is the editor of Red magazine, launched a year ago and already one of the leading women's glossies.