Chelsea captain Erin Cuthbert balances a demanding career on the pitch with an entrepreneurial venture off it. The Scotland midfielder launched Ruby Alba earlier this year to satisfy a long-held desire for a business of her own.
Launching a brand during a career
Cuthbert says she felt an urge to start something of her own for more than a year. She draws on her background, including a business degree and an MBA, to run Ruby Alba while playing professional football.
She relies on Constant Contact, an AI-powered marketing partner that also sponsors Chelsea Women. The platform helps automate the business side of operations, allowing Cuthbert to focus on her football duties.
“I probably spend two to three hours a day managing everything, but I do think it’s now starting to get to the point where I’m working autonomously,” she says.
From shin-pads to coffee
Cuthbert initially considered producing shin-pads before choosing coffee. Her passion for the drink led her to register the business in February, tour roasteries, and select a partner in Glasgow.
She supplies coffee to Chelsea teammates and the England women’s cricket team. Cuthbert began selling to the cricket squad after a request from former captain Heather Knight.
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The product is popular in the Chelsea dressing room. Cuthbert notes that the coffee machine upstairs gets “absolutely rinsed” by her colleagues.
She hopes to eventually supply the club’s training ground, though the building has strict processes for new vendors. “There’s a lot of big coffee fans in the building, so it’s a strict selection process,” she says.
Handling injury and growth
Ruby Alba was less than a month old when Cuthbert suffered a serious knee injury in June. That enforced downtime forced her to pause much of the business while she focused on rehabilitation.
Using her recovery time, Cuthbert built a routine to manage the brand alongside her return to fitness. She plans to hire employees in the future to handle daily operations.
She emphasizes that football remains her top priority. Cuthbert is still in her prime years and aims to win more trophies, viewing Ruby Alba as a way to create a brand she can walk into after her playing days end.