What does it take to go from a one-way ticket to London with no job, to a seat on the board of one of the UK's best known bathroom manufacturers?

In this episode of Why Design, Alba Bayona shares the belief that sits at the heart of her work: that curiosity is what actually builds a design career, and that leadership only works once you stop pretending you can be good at everything, all the time.

Rather than settle into one discipline early, Alba built her own jewellery brand alongside a full time design job. That decision led to one of the hardest calls of her career, closing it down, and one she has since come to see as brave rather than as a failure.

This conversation isn't about job titles.

It's about what it actually costs, and gives back, to build a career and a family in an industry that still doesn't have enough visible role models for either.

Don't just listen. Go beyond the podcast.

Join the Why Design community → teamkodu.com/whydesign

What You'll Learn

• 🧭 Why Alba Bayona prefers “work-life sway” to “work-life balance”
• 🚿 How one design team at Kohler Mira builds for three completely different users across Mira Showers, RADA and Recoup
• ✈️ Why a one-way ticket to London, with almost no money and little English, became the turning point in her career
• 🧵 What it took to walk away from her own jewellery brand, and why she no longer calls that decision a failure
• 🪑 How leaving your functional hat at the door changes what design contributes in the boardroom
• 👩‍🎨 Why the design industry still struggles to keep and promote female talent, and what more visible role models could change

Memorable Quotes

“I've discovered a term I much prefer called work-life sway.”

“Calling it sway gives you a little bit of forgiveness of like actually that I'm swaying, I'm not balanced.”

“There was bravery in admitting that I couldn't do it all.”

“I think 99% of the times that you follow your gut, you will be right.”

“Motherhood shouldn't be a hindrance, should be something that actually helps them gain incredible leadership skills anyway.”

Resources & Links

🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube & Amazon → whydesign.club

👥 Join the Why Design community → teamkodu.com/whydesign

📸 Follow @whydesign on Instagram

🎥 Watch full episodes → YouTube.com/@whydesignpod

🔗 Follow Chris Whyte → linkedin.com/in/mrchriswhyte

🔗 Explore Kohler Mira → https://www.mirashowers.co.uk/

🔗 Connect with Alba Bayona → https://www.linkedin.com/in/alba-bayona-68055874/

About the Episode

Why Design is powered by Kodu, a specialist recruitment partner for the hardware and physical product development industry.

Through honest conversations with designers, engineers and creative leaders, we explore not just what they build, but why they build it; the beliefs, decisions and responsibility behind meaningful work.

About Kodu

Why Design is produced by Kodu, a recruitment partner for ambitious hardware brands, design consultancies and product-led start-ups.

We help founders and leadership teams hire exceptional talent across industrial design, mechanical engineering and product leadership, bringing structure and clarity to one of the hardest parts of scaling.

🔗 Learn more → teamkodu.com

This episode is sponsored by Vax and TTi Floorcare. Kodu, is running the hiring. Recruiting for Vax for more than ten years, placing over fifty people including a VP of Engineering and a Head of Design. We know how they build. Right now they’re rebuilding their UK engineering and innovation function from the ground up: advanced development, design engineering and industrial design, all at once. We haven’t seen them move at this pace in a decade of working with them.