Zara Seidler was scrolling on her phone when she started receiving several very similar messages from friends.  Someone she knew of, Sam, but had never met was looking to start a news platform for young people. This was right up Zara's alley. So she messaged him, they went for coffee and they hit it off. And the very next day, they started the Daily Aus.  For over three years The Daily Aus was a side hustle but in 2020 what was making headlines became incredibly personal, black lives...

Allira Potter isn't your regular Lady Startup.  If Allira had to describe her work she would say, that she is an intuitive, a creator, writer, speaker, a model, an empowerment and mindset coach, manifesting queen, baby witch and an all-around spiritual sister.  But Allira's life over 18 months ago looked nothing like this.  She was newly divorced, working a corporate job, living pay check to pay check and had turned to partying as a coping mechanism.  But then in early 2020 after a...

JSHealth Vitamins are one of the best selling vitamins ranges in Australia. But getting to this point was not easy.  When Jessica Sepel was fourteen she developed an unhealthy obsession with nutrition and fad dieting. This ultimately lead her to study health science at University, so she could learn as much as she could about fad dieting.  But then through her studies, she had a breakthrough. Instead of channelling her knowledge into unhealthy practices, she put it back into her...

Did you know that on average Aussie women are retiring with 35% less super than men?  Well, thankfully our guests today want to change that.  Christina Hobbs and Alex Andrews were at a crossroads. Christina had just come back to Australia after years of working overseas with the UN and Alex was recovering from a chronic illness.  For years they had been talking about starting a superfund for women by women. But the timing never felt quite right.  And then in early 2018 everything fell...

Michelle Hu had just finished University and was about to go on a big summer holiday to South America.  Then she broke her ankle.  Suddenly Michelle was bedridden with three months off. As someone who had always wanted to start a business, Michelle used this time to launch Etoile Collective, A feel-good brand delivering thoughtful and functional beauty solutions.  Michelle's first order was just 30 acrylic makeup organisers. She made an Instagram, a website and over the course of a month...

Pip Brett was holidaying in Fiji, sipping Pina Coladas on the beach when she turned to her now-husband and said... ‘I’m going to open a store’.   So Pip opened her first fashion boutique, Iglou. After years six years of running Iglou, Pip started looking for a new space to expand into homewares and interiors. And Miraculously, as if it were a sign, a store on the same strip as hers became available. She signed a lease, took out a second loan and called it JUMBLED, a jumbled mess of all the...

Ever wondered how your favourite businesses came to be? Or wanted to know what it's really like to grow a business?  Join host Shazzy Hunt as she unpacks how eight Lady Startups really did it on the latest season of Lady Startup Stories.  From fashion superstores to vitamin powerhouses, you won't want to miss it. Tune in on February 1st for a brand new season. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Anna Baird was a podiatrist for six years. And as a woman who loves fashion, she grew tired of recommending to her client's shoes that she wouldn't be caught dead in.  Anna knew that if she could combine comfort with fashion she would be onto something good. The only problem was, designing a  shoe that's both fashionable and comfortable is actually really tricky, which is why most companies won't do it. So Anna reduced her workdays and spent three years developing her first range of...

Alex Tanya Weller, like many other people, had tried to buy a rug online and failed. In fact, in 2014 people all over the world were scrolling the internet in search of the perfect rug. But no one was buying them.  So Alex and her husband set out to create Miss Amara, an e-commerce rug business that takes the hassle out of buying a rug online.  Seven years on and Miss Amara's customer service is at the top of its game. Customers can jump online and see what a rug will look like in their...

Hannah and Verity had been running LVLY, a same-day flower and gift delivery service for six years. The second three years had seen strong growth, before a bushfire natural disaster – and a few other issues – threatened to turn their business into ashes. Who knew that another disaster – this time a global pandemic – would trigger a massive turnaround? Suddenly LVLY became the perfect way to connect with family and friends in lockdown. You could send flowers, a care package, some chocolate,...

Erin Cayless, Lana Taylor and Bonnie Hindmarsh were shot into the limelight because of their NRL husbands. But in 2014 everything was set to change, when Bonnie got on an idea.  She wanted to flip a house.  Bonnie convinced her friends to quit their jobs and buy a house in Sydney’s northern suburbs for $800,000. They renovated it and made a profit.  In the seven years since Three Birds Renovations have flipped 14 homes together. But that's not all, they have written two books, created two...

Anaita Sarkar's accessory business Olivia & Co had just started taking off. When something started to annoy her. At the end of every workday, she would stare at piles and piles of online orders wrapped in plastic. She knew that within seconds of those packages landing on her customer's doorstep, that they would end up in the bin. She knew there had to be a more sustainable option.  After twelve months of research, prototypes and trial and error, Anaita and her husband created...

Claire Dunne was at a crossroads. She was 23, working on her parent's farm and all she wanted to do was travel, but she didn't have the money to do it. Then she got an idea.  Growing up in regional Queensland on a cattle farm, Claire noticed that the stories of the incredible women around her weren't being celebrated.  So from her parent's kitchen bench, she starting making a magazine. She called it Graziher.  Five years on, Graziher continues to showcase the stories of regional women...

Tiffiny Hall's business, TXO had been going from strength to strength. She had built a community, created a product she was proud of. Then Tiff developed Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. She no longer could pump out fitness content like she used to, or engage with her community as actively as she wanted to. She suddenly had to take a step back from a business that she’d poured her heart into.  So how has Tiff pivoted her business? What changes did she need to make to keep her business running...

Jessica Nguyen was killing it in the beauty world. She had climbed the ranks and was working at some of the top companies. Then in 2020, she got made redundant.  Jessica was forced to reevaluate everything. So instead of waiting around for a new job, she took a step back and thought to herself: 'Maybe this is the perfect time to try something new'. So when the world started closing up and people across the nation turned to baking sourdough, Jess saw a gap in the market. The long-time home...

Ever wondered how successful women have built their businesses? or maybe you want to know what running a business is really like, and have hopes of doing it for yourself one day? Well, this might be the podcast for you!  Over eight weeks, host Shazzy Hunt will speak to some incredible and inspiring female founders, who've forged unique paths in business. From renovations queens to home cooks this season showcases female founders in all their glory.  Joins us for a brand new season on...

The Activation Plan has been tried and tested by over 4,000 Lady Startups and counting. Yep. Tested by literally thousands of women just like you. Women with a business idea, or a side-hustle. Women who, at the end of the Activation Plan, had the clarity, direction, and confidence, as well as the tools and support they needed to launch their business right. So what does this mean for you? Would you finally be able to dedicate yourself to that passion project you’ve been working on when...

Shelley Sullivan is a serial entrepreneur. Long before she founded ModelCo and MCoBeauty, Shelley owned a modelling agency, it was here she found her vision for ModelCo.  When models were coming into Shelley's office with orange hands from fake tanning, she knew there had to be an easier, and cheaper option. So she made Tan Airbrush, the world's first tan in a can. Today that tan is believed to be sold every 36 seconds.  It's no coincidence that ModelCo has been kicking goals for twenty...

So you're desperate to launch your own business or side-hustle. But you don’t really know where to start, what the things are that you SHOULD be doing and what things you SHOULDN’T be doing.  It can be very overwhelming.  In this episode, we unveil the 3 most common mistakes Lady Startups fall into and tell you exactly how to avoid them yourself. We discuss… Methods to combat procrastination. Why a business plan is actually super important.  And why sometimes, you can’t (and shouldn't) do...

Rachael Sarra knew that if she was going to make it as an artist a great product wasn't going to be enough. She needed to hustle.  So Rachael endeavoured to diversify her revenue streams. She upped her engagement on social media, illustrated a book and boosted her brand through collaborations with the likes of Auspost, Hey Tiger and Kmart. Rachael's work is authentic. It's vibrant, warm and incredibly lively with touches of pink. But it's also deeply personal as it merges her two worlds,...

Marion Grasby knows how to cook really, really good food. So she made it her mission to help others do the same!  After her time on Masterchef Marion was determined to make a career for herself in the culinary world. Her friends were constantly asking her, how she balanced the flavours in her green curry or how they could make a pad thai just like hers.  So she and her husband founded Marion's Kitchen. Full-proof meal kits for you to make at home.  Today Marion's Kitchen is so much more...

Jessica Ducrou, you might not know her name but you've definitely heard of her work. She's the person behind Splendour In The Grass, Falls Music And Arts Festival and Homebake, to name a few.  Jess is a trailblazer and arguably one of the most powerful people in the Australian music industry. If you've ever been to one of her festivals or a gig she's booked you could consider her the person in charge of making memories.  But getting to this point was in no way straightforward. It takes a...

Sarah Andrews had spent her life searching for purpose. Until one day scrolling the internet, she found her answer: a run-down cottage in Tasmania. It was secluded, overlooked the sea and needed some love... That cottage, Captains Rest, is now one of the most sought-after luxury Airbnbs in the country. It's booked out months in advance, despite being five hours from Hobart.  But if you think getting to this point was easy, it wasn't. Sarah almost died in a shipwreck, went through a messy...

Michelle Greene is one-quarter of the Jaggad empire. She and her husband Steven alongside, Chris and Bec Judd founded Jaggad in 2013 in a world where activewear was reserved for athletes and leggings weren't being worn on the couch. So in an oversaturated market, how did they build a cult community following?  Activations, collaborations, and community are at the heart of the Jaggad business model. They've used supermodels and influencers to extend their audience and created events that you...

Genevieve Rosen-Biller always wanted to be a journalist. She worked for over ten years in the industry before taking a leap and co-founding a business. So what changed?  In 2014 Gen and her husband Alan stumbled upon a gap in the market, linen bedding at an affordable price point. Gen utilised her skills in digital media to market Bed Threads in a way that was unique to her style - clean, aspirational and minimal. And through the powers of social media, a distinctive marketing strategy and...