Episoder

  • In this episode, I interview Adam Schwab, co-founder of Luxury Escapes. Luxury Escapes is an online travel booking platform aimed at providing great travel packages at fair prices. Founded in 2013, Adam has grown the company to earn hundreds of millions in revenue, employ over 500 staff, and expand internationally.

    Throughout the episode, Adam talks about his long history as an entrepreneur and how Luxury Escapes came about from many iterations, pivots and mergers. He also emphasises the importance of fostering talent long term and how empowering staff strongly contributes toward the longevity of the business.

    If you enjoy this epiosde, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview James Clarke, founder of Bolster Group. Founded in 2015, James has grown Bolster from a small team to now a multi-agency business, that employs 50 staff and helps orchestrate some of Australia’s biggest live events.

    Throughout the episode, James emphasises how taking on risk is the most important step in achieving scale and growing Bolster to where it is today. James also highlights the importance of learning a process yourself before outsourcing it to gain deep insights into the process, including mergers and acquisitions.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Leigh Jasper - co-founder of Aconex and Firmable. Aconex provided collaboration software technology for the construction, mining and oil sector. Over 18 years, Leigh grew the business to employ over 1000 people, list on the ASX before being acquired by Oracle for $1.6 billion in 2018.

    Today, Leigh is working on his latest company, Firmable, which is a platform that helps businesses grow faster and improve their decision making. During the episode, Leigh explains the power of entrepreneurship in being able to control your own destiny, the importance of recognising your weaknesses and learning how to overcome challenges over the course of your business journey.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a five star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Frank Caruso, founder of Caruso’s Natural Health. Caruso’s Natural Health is one of Australia’s largest vitamin and supplements companies. Founded in 1982, Frank has grown the company to now earn tens of millions in annual revenue and have a catalogue of over 100 products.

    Throughout the episode, Frank talks about how he become fascinated with learning all about natural health and starting businesses in the space. Frank also reveals his 10 principles to success, identifying the traits and behaviours that got him where he is today.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a five star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Christian Beck - Founder of Leap Legal Software. Founded in 1992, Christian has grown Leap to be the largest legal software company in Australia, bringing in over $1 billion in annual revenue and now operate internationally.

    Christian talks about his experiences as a founder and why he prefers to grow utilising debt instead of raising equity and the freedom that provides him as a founder. We also discuss the lessons business can apply to team and culture from his experience racing and last year finally winning the Sydney to Hobart yacht race.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Nick Greenhalgh, co-founder of PetO. PetO is one of Australia’s leading pet supply stores selling goods such as food, toys and equipment. Starting in 2006, Nick, alongside his brother, has grown the business to own 58 stores, around 1000 staff, and earn $200 million in annual revnue.

    Throughout the episode, Nick talks about the importance of bold decision making and why backing yourself against all odds is a strong competitive advantage. Nick provides deep insights into the retail and pet market has changed over time, as he’s been operating in the space for nearly 20 years.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a five star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Taryn Williams - founder of Wink Models. Taryn talks about why she started the business as a 21 year old and why she was so determined to disrupt the fashion industry at such a young age. Today, Wink Models has become one of Australia’s leading agencies with over 600 models signed nation-wide. Taryns lastest project is #Gifted a shopify plugin enabling the worlds biggest brands to manage contra gifting at scale.

    Taryn talks candidly about her business experiences across the multiple businesses that she's founded. Having built Wink Models where she retains full ownership to this day and theright.fit where she raised funds from leading VC firm Airtree before ultimately exiting, Taryn is uniquely positioned to talk about the merits and challenges of both paths.

    She also talks about the benefits of implementing radical transparency, sharing company details with all staff members, explaining how that strategy helped increase ownership amongst her team.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a five star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Michael Batko - CEO of Startmate. Startmate is one of Australia’s largest startup accelerator programs. Over the past decade, Michael has grown Startmate to have invested in and supported 250+ startups, with a collective portfolio value of over $3.5 billion.

    Michael talks about the how Startmate has grown since 2011 when Niki Scevak founder of Blackbird Ventures and a several successful founders including Mike and Scott from Atlassian first set out to invest in the next generation of early stage founders and started building a community of successful founders to support them.

    He also discussed what separates founders that make it into the program and why relentless ambition is one of the key traits they look for.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Mike Wilson - founder of TinyMe. TinyMe is a manufacturing business specialised in making customisable kids toys and gifts. Founded in 2006, Mike has grown the business to now bring in around $10 million in annual revenue and have expanded internationally.

    Throughout the episode, Mike talks about how the consumer and commerce landscape has changed since 2006, discussing landmark events such as mobile phones, social media and COVID. Mike also emphasises the importance of setting strong business values and how abiding to them leads to more cohesive teams and a higher quality customer experience.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview AFL legend and Sydney Swans Premiership coach Paul Roos. Today, Paul is the founder of Performance by Design where he has successfully transposed the leadership and culture lessons he has driven through his sporting experiences and successfully delivered them to the corporate market.

    Beginning as a 16-year-old at Fitzroy F.C., Paul would eventually finish his playing career at Sydney Swans where his love for high performance dialogue was instrumental to his coaching success. His revolutionary approach to player feedback and recognition was pivotal in building the much-revered ‘Bloods Culture’. In 2005, Paul coached the Swans to their first premiership in 72 years, an achievement that elevated him to AFL Legend status.

    This was a fantastic discussion with Paul across sport, business and life. We talk about team and culture, success and failure, coaching and leadership and a whole range of other topics.

    If you like this episode feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with your family and friends


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  • In this episode, I interview Sophie Doyle, the founder of The Fable. The Fable is an e-commerce company specialising in women’s work fashion. Founded in 2015, Sophie has grown the brand into a multi million dollar business that operates internationally.

    Throughout the episode, Sophie speaks about the challenges she’s faced within the business such as managing quality over a global supply chain, balancing being a mother, and how mastering digital marketing helped create a multi-million dollar shirt brand.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Ilan Israelstam, Chief Commercial Officer and co-founder of Betashares. Betashares is one of Australia’s largest financial services companies known for their ETF products. Founded in 2009, Ilan has helped grow the business to now have over $40 billion assets under management, over 150 team members and more than 1m clients. Recently, Singapore's sovereign wealth fund Temasek has become a minority shareholder in the business, announcing they will invest up $300 million in the Firm.

    Throughout the episode, Ilan talks about how the macro-trends in the industry played into the growth of the business and guide the business strategy. He also talks about how Betashares is now expanding beyond ETFs and his role in driving the growth of Betashares Direct, which aspires to Australia’s first true retail wealth platform.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Nick Morgan, Founder of Vudoo. Vudoo is a software company that enables consumers to purchase products wherever they see them online such as a article or video, rather than having to go to the company’s store. Founded in 2016, Nick has grown the company to now have 35 employees, raised almost 20 million in funding and are now expanding internationally.

    Throughout the episode, Nick talks about the evolution of commerce from brick and mortar, digital storefronts and where it’s going next. He also emphasises the importance of understanding your employee’s aspirations to help motivate and retain them long term.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Alex Naoumidis - co-founder of Mindset Health. Mindset Health is a Melbourne-based company that develop digital programs to help better manage chronic health conditions. Founded in 2018, Alex with his brother and cofounder Chris, now generate revenue of over $10 million annually with the company valued at $77 million dollars at their last capital raise.

    Throughout the episode, Alex talks about raising capital from investors to their experience with large accelerators like Y Combinator. Alex also mentions how he’s learnt to become a leader by understanding what intrinsically motivates his employees and leveraging that to provide a great workplace experience.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to share with family and friends and leave a 5-star review.


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  • In this episode, I interview Simon Bugeja, managing director of Lucia’s Group. Lucia’s started as Australia’s first Italian pizza bar founded by Simon’s grandparents ion 1957. Growing up in the family business, Simon found success by expanding into the retail sector and moved into producing and selling goods like pasta sauce, olive oil and pesto. Backed with the advice of his Nonna to “never cheat” on quality, Simon has successfully grown the business to now have over 50 employees and be scaling internationally.

    Throughout the episode, Simon emphasises the importance of work ethic - a skill that his family valued the most. He also talks about the enormous impact that hiring the right people has had on the business.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to share with family and friends and leave a five star review.


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  • In this episode, I interview Saxon Wright - co-founder of Huskee and founder of Pablo & Rusty's coffee roasters. Coffee lovers will be familiar with the Pablo and Rusty's brand that Saxon started in 2003 and still owns today. Huskee was born out of an idea to eliminate single-use disposable coffee cups and now employ 30 people and recently merged with packaging company BioPack.

    Throughout the episode, Saxon discusses the pros and cons of raising capital and how it has influenced each one of his businesses. He also explains how he has learnt to become a leader and when exactly to delegate tasks instead of doing it yourself.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Jordy Kay, co-founder of Great Wrap. Great Wrap is a material science company that has created Australia’s first compostable and environmentally friendly stretch wrap. Founded in 2019, Jordy and his co-founder Julia have grown the business to now have raised $30 million, employ 20 people, and are currently amidst expanding to the US.

    Throughout the episode, Jordy discusses how the funding market for startups has become more difficult over time and that consumer incentive for sustainability has dropped as the cost of living increases. He also discusses the importance of building culture and the lessons he’s learnt as a first time leader while growing the business.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Ben McHarg, co-founder of Life-Space Group. As the managing director of the family-owned business, Ben helped drive the strategic direction of the company to owning their own brands. This strategy ultimately led to the rapid growth that saw the business sold to supplement giant By-Health for $700 million in 2018.

    Throughout the episode, Ben speaks about the importance of being ready to fully embrace opportunities when they arise. Ben takes us through the rapid growth of the company and how the business went to a whole new level. He also explains why grit and resilience are the key attributes he looks for in founders when investing in companies.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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  • In this episode, I interview Simon Beard - co-founder of Culture Kings. Culture Kings is a premium streetwear company founded by Simon and his wife Tah-nee in 2008. Together, they grew the business from a market stall on the Gold Coast to a $600 million valuation and a listing on the New York Stock Exchange.

    This was a wide ranging and insightful conversation with Simon. He talked about how developments in AI have changed not just retail, but every facet of business. He also talked about how important it is to learn how to sell in business and the power of managing your emotional state to perform at the highest level.

    Simon also outlined that the entrepreneurial qualities that successful people have are within everyone and just need to be fostered and unlocked.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a five star review and share with family and friends.


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  • Inventia is a science and technology company focused on building devices that can create advanced cell models that help accelerate drug discovery and biomedical research. Founded in 2013, Julio Ribeiro has grown the company to now have over 70 employees and scale internationally to the US, Europe and many more locations.

    Throughout the episode, Julio explains that creative freedom is one of the most important aspects when building products and the techniques he uses to foster it at Inventia. He also explains the unique troubles that scientific firms face such as the need to constantly invent new solutions and devices to make progress in their research and products.

    If you enjoy this episode, feel free to leave a 5 star review and share with family and friends.


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