Brendan Murdock talks wellness, Shoreditch, and understanding anatomē

Brendan Murdock’s Northern Irish accent might betray his heritage but he’s an adopted son of Shoreditch. A serial entrepreneur, he helped the area evolve into the hub of entertainment and conditioned beards it is today, with his Hoxton Square wine bar, Cru, and the famous male grooming salon, Murdock.

Brendan’s new project, anatomē (officially pronounced ‘an-at-o-may’ but ‘anatomy’ is fine), just opened on Charlotte Road and sees him enter the burgeoning wellness sector. He describes this first branch as a ‘clubhouse’: a one-stop shop to maintain your emotional and nutritional balance. You’ll be able to purchase anatomē supplements, gym gear and upscale workout equipment. But you can also speak to in-house nutritionists, attend wellness talks, workshops, or stop at their cafe for a healthy smoothie.

We grabbed Brendan to chat anatomē, 21st-century wellness, and the savviness of the Shoreditch shopper…

On the origins of anatomē…

I was exercising more and started looking at high street health food stores but they were quite anonymous and focused on a very wide age group. Then I started looking at supplements but most brands were supermarket-y with a lot of science which I didn’t really understand. I realised there was a wider issue: none of the brands were really addressing emotional health and wellness. So I decided to focus on both the physical and emotional side and make it a bit more premium.

On nutritionists (or the lack of)…

Nutritionists used to only be available through a clinic or consulting room, whilst high street health shops don’t have an on-site nutritionist you can talk to and feel like you’re making an informed decision. Some gyms have them but it tends to only be the the high-end sites, which are only accessible to people earning top-tier salaries. We have nutritionists in anatomē all day to work with you. They’ll take the time to chat about your life, your diet, your plans, your energy levels. It’s reasonably complicated and it takes a while but it’s much less intimidating.

On the power of professional advice…

The nutritionists are a way of connecting with our customers. It’s like a clothes shop. You often come into a shop to buy some clothes and you’ll spend some time with someone in there who'll assist and nudge you in the right direction.

On the differences between men and women…

We’re a unisex brand but, after a month since opening, we’ve found that women are much happier to just fall in off the street, talk about themselves and engage with that side of things. Guys tend to be more results focused. You know, it’ll be, “How do I stop falling asleep at my desk at 11am?”

On looking good in the bathroom…

There’s lot of other health brands – and there are some nice American brands – but you just wouldn’t want to put their supplements on show in your bathroom. They’ll be stuffed in the back of a cabinet. Having anatomē supplements on show says something about you and what you’re up to.

On being a community hub…

To create a brand you need a community. You need followers on Instagram and people who like the brand and want to spend their time with it. So we’re doing plenty of events. At the moment we’re having innovative sports guys – like Olympic rower Will Satch or yoga teacher Hannah Cluley – and making the Shoreditch store more of a clubhouse in feel. In the future we’ll open small stores (like 300 sq. ft.) but they’ll be able to point to the Shoreditch store and say, “head there for our talks and events.”

On Murdock’s legacy…

Obviously it was a big success in opening all the stores and creating a brand. It was exciting to shake up a marketplace and help redefine how men’s grooming is approached in London.

With anatomē, we’ve tried to talk to different types of men and women and what unites them all is they don’t want anything too preachy. That’s the same for a barbershop or any business.

On finding the perfect Shoreditch space…

We looked at a lot of spaces. I wanted something that was all one space and had a lot of natural light which was flexible enough for hosting events. Shoreditch is a great place to try out a brand and experiment before taking it elsewhere because the people here are curious.

BUT…

There’s a lot of pop-ups in Shoreditch and people are savvy to this. I think, unless you’re launching an iPhone or something, pop-ups now have to do more than just put stuff on the shelves.