Places She Shapes: How It Started, Why It Matters, and What Comes Next
By: Zoe Smeeth
Prologue: The Seed of an Idea
Places She Shapes didn’t begin with a strategy document or a pitch deck.
It began, rather unglamorously, in the shower.
New Year’s Day 2025, somewhere between shampoo and conditioner, I had a very clear thought: Why are all these podcasts just men talking to largely men?
I work in construction and property. I know first-hand how many intelligent, creative, quietly brilliant women are shaping the places we live, work, and move through every day. And yet, when it came to hearing their stories - properly hearing them - there was a gap.
Five minutes later, wrapped in a towel, I announced to my boyfriend Paul and my brother Dan that I was going to start a podcast. They humoured me. Sensibly.
But the seed had been planted.
Setting the Scene
The idea was simple, at least on the surface: a podcast hosted by a woman, featuring women, talking honestly about their journeys in the built environment.
Not glossy success stories. Not elevator pitches. But the real stuff, the sliding-door moments, the missteps, the resilience, the decisions that only make sense in hindsight.
Around the same time, I emailed Nick Judge, our non-exec director at JAC Project Management - fully expecting him to tell me this was a terrible idea.
Instead, he said yes. Damn!
That yes led to another conversation, and then another - including one across the Atlantic with Stewart Reynolds (aka Brittlestar) and his son Owen, both of whom actually knew how podcasts work. Suddenly, this wasn’t just a nice idea. It was becoming a project.
At first, I called it Spaces She Shapes. It sounded neat. Too neat.
It didn’t take long to realise that spaces felt static. What we’re really shaping are places - lived-in, emotional, evolving things. So, Places She Shapes it became.
Abbey Road and the Making of Season One
From the outset, we made a deliberate decision: if we were going to do this, we’d do it properly. I wanted best in class sound, visuals and atmosphere.
We chose Abbey Road Studios not because it’s famous (though it is), but because it represents best-in-class - in sound, in craft, in care. I wanted Places She Shapes to feel aligned with that standard. The stories deserved it.
With the help of Design Religion, the visual identity took shape early on - clean, confident, understated. I wanted the brand to feel like the conversations themselves: thoughtful, human, and not trying too hard.
Season One was recorded in The Gatehouse, a beautifully contained studio within Abbey Road. Intimate, calm, and quietly charged with history.
Across a few days, we recorded six episodes with six remarkable women: Marian Ferguson, Amanda Salt, Diana Pego, Julie Rees, Sarah Atherton, and Gurvinder Khurana.
Each came prepared to talk not just about what they do, but how they got there - the choices, compromises, courage, and persistence involved.
Behind the scenes, the team made it all work: Stewart directing with calm authority, Owen producing, Cory capturing the moments between the moments, Gordon and Tom engineering the sound, and Anita ensuring every guest felt welcome, seen, and looked after.
The conversations were honest, often funny, occasionally emotional.
And when Season One launched into the world, people listened. Amazing!
The Growing Collective
One of the unexpected joys of Places She Shapes has been how quickly it became a collective effort.
What started as a small team grew to include designers, filmmakers, sound engineers, social media leads, hair and makeup artists, editors, and content creators - each bringing their own expertise and care to the project.
Season Two expanded that circle further, with Lara shaping our social storytelling, Gregor capturing behind-the-scenes content, and Sonny ensuring everyone felt their best on camera.
This collaborative rhythm - thoughtful, respectful, creative - has become the heart of PSS. It mirrors the very thing we talk about on the podcast: that places (and projects) are shaped by people working together, often quietly, often generously.
Season Two - New Horizons
Six months after Season One, we returned to Abbey Road. Same studio. Growing team. Bigger ambition.
Season Two features eight new voices - women from journalism, law, architecture, engineering, aviation, comedy, and beyond. Different paths, different personalities, shared honesty.
Back at Abbey Road, we used The Gatehouse again for recording and added the Front Room this time - a space for preparation, calm, and filming the introductions. Familiar surroundings, but with a sense of evolution.
Season Two feels more confident. Not louder - just clearer.
The conversations go deeper, the laughter comes quicker, and the themes feel timely: leadership, visibility, balance, courage, and what it really means to shape a career on your own terms.
October 8th, 2025 - The Gathering
By August, it felt right to bring people together in person. Before heading off on holiday, I left the team with one instruction: “Find us a space.”
By October 8th, that space had transformed into a room full of energy - around 70 people gathering to celebrate what Places She Shapes had become.
The evening began with Season One guests returning to the stage, followed by a spotlight on two organisations doing vital work - Girls Can Build and Dress for Success Greater London - and then an introduction to some of the Season Two voices.
It wasn’t slick. It wasn’t overproduced. It was warm, thoughtful, occasionally chaotic - and exactly what it needed to be.
For me, it was a moment of standing back and realising that this project had moved beyond a podcast. It had become a shared space.
The Ongoing Journey
So why does this matter?
Because hearing women’s voices - in full, in context, without interruption - changes things.
It changes how industries see leadership.
It changes how younger women imagine what’s possible.
And sometimes, it simply changes how someone feels about their own path.
Places She Shapes isn’t about shouting the loudest. It’s about listening better.
Season Two is partly released, with the next episode landing on 4th January 2026. And beyond that? Who knows.
But wherever this journey goes next, it will stay rooted in the same belief that started it all - that women’s stories deserve space, time, and world-class sound.
-Zoe Smeeth
🎧 Now streaming on all podcast platforms - don’t miss it: https://pod.link/1812292057
You can now watch full Season 2 episodes on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@PlacessheShapes
✨ Stay connected - follow us on TikTok and Instagram: Places She Shapes