Radiating confidence and effortless style, Sophie Hermann is going into 2024 with a renewed sense of excitement about the future. And in her most personal interview and photoshoot yet, she tells HELLO! why that is.
The 36-year-old entrepreneur, influencer and former Made in Chelsea star recently froze her eggs to help her dream of being a mother one day become a reality. “This was honestly the best decision of my life,” Sophie says of the process that enables eggs to be collected, frozen and then fertilised in the future using techniques such as IVF.
“It gave me a whole new sense of self-empowerment. I’m a hopeless romantic, so I don’t want to settle for anyone who’s not worth matching with my precious DNA,” says the famously candid star, who is single at the moment.
Indeed, taking steps to future-proof her fertility has given Sophie a fresh perspective when it comes to finding love. “I’m even more picky now, which is probably not the best!” she quips.
For now, she is relishing her duties as godmother to fellow TV star Victoria Baker-Harber’s daughter Gaia, three, as well as baby Cosima Locke-Locke, the seven-month-old daughter of her friends and former Made in Chelsea co-stars Ollie and Gareth.
Sophie first burst on to our TV screens in 2013 in the sixth series of the reality show, joining the cast at the same time as Sam Thompson, winner of last year’s I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!. And the star has always known that she wants children of her own. “Someone has to be a little Hermannator,” she says with a laugh.
The process is something Sophie had been considering for a while. “I think the first time I ever talked about it was on Made in Chelsea five years ago,” she says. “I started crying because my sister was going to get engaged, and I felt as though time was slipping through my fingers and I was – and still am – nowhere near ready to have a child, nor do I have a partner I could envision that with. I wanted freedom and options, but I had no idea where to start, so I kept putting it off.”
Then, a few months ago, a “universe intervention” led to Sophie meeting Sarita Stefani, the co-founder of fertility platform Amilis, in a pub in Notting Hill. “I thought: ‘Oh my God – this is the moment it’s all going to happen,” Sophie recalls. Amilis, a free platform that helps women make informed decisions about whether egg-freezing is right for them, was co-founded by Sarita and Yasmin Baba in 2022.
Explaining how she came to set up Amilis, Sarita says: “I froze my eggs three years ago, and like many women, I started with a Google search. It’s so important to find the right clinic and doctors for you, but every time you walk into a clinic, you spend a fortune.” Adds Yasmin: “We partner with clinics to provide free 15-minute consultations with a fertility specialist. Over 80% of women who freeze their eggs are single, so Amilis likes to be the best friend holding your hand.” And that’s what happened when Amilis helped Sophie find a fertility clinic – The Evewell West London, where she began the egg-freezing process with its medical director, consultant gynaecologist and fertility specialist Ed Coats. “Egg freezing takes roughly two weeks,” Ed says. “A patient will come into the clinic, as Sophie did, and have a fertility assessment. Based on ovarian – or egg – reserve, we put patients on a regime of medications for two weeks, culminating in an egg-collection procedure.”
The star is sharing her story in the hope of breaking down a taboo that often surrounds women’s fertility. “I think there is a lot to be done in the health system to make it more affordable for women, because it is an expensive process,” she says. Ed agrees, adding that “be proactive” is his main advice. “That doesn’t necessarily mean: ‘Go and have your eggs frozen.’ But seeing a specialist can help you map out your future,” he says. “As you get older, the proportion of ‘abnormal’ eggs accelerates, so the technique is best done the younger you are.”
Although Sophie has frozen her eggs to give herself the possibility of having children further down the line, the process can also work for those with medical conditions or treatments that may affect fertility, as well as transgender people wishing to preserve their fertility.
Reflecting on what type of mother she’d like to be one day, Sophie says her own mum Stephanie is her inspiration. “I think I would be similar to my own mum, who is an uber-mother,” she says, proudly.
For more information, visit amilis.co.uk