I grew up in Perth WA and moved to Qld almost 30 years ago with my husband and 3 little daughters. Eventually getting back in the work force, I entered the retail world in fashion and the cosmetic industry. Always wanting my own business, I opened up a shoe boutique on the Sunshine Coast, which quickly grew to 2 shops. After a few years, I went to China and after seeing so many beautiful shoes, I wanted to buy them all!
I found a way and started importing shoes and designing them. Started 2 shoe labels, had reps on the road and a customer base that stretched over all states in Australia. After a few years, I was on the look out for an add on the sell with the shoes to my customers, and one night while having a lovely glass of red, thought….what if I put a shoe on top of my wine bottle! This lead to designing my ‘shoe stoppers’ beautiful stiletto shoes that sit on top of a wine bottle.
Everything was going fantastic, until on my way home from a buying trip to China, I had a massive haemorrhage in China Airport. I had lost half of the blood out of my body. I then went into cardiac arrest as my heart could not pump what little blood I had left. After recovering in hospital back home in Australia, I went straight back into a busy shoe business once again. It was about 6 months later, that it was discovered by accident that I had a brain tumour. Although not life threatening I decided enough was enough and I sold all my thousands of shoes out at cost and the remainder was donated to Red Cross.
I was 50 years old with grown children and was a Nan to a gorgeous granddaughter. The only thing was, I was left with 6,000 shoe wine stoppers, which had just landed in Australia. So, this was the start of being a Wine Accessories designer, I quickly started approaching wineries with my products and today I supply to wineries across Australia. I have been involved with the Good Food & Wine shows for 6 years and look forward to exhibiting excitably each time! I also sell online and have sent products to France, UK and USA.
My range includes diamante champagne poppers, sparkling can coolers, bling bottle coolers, dazzling glass coolers and more! All the wine accessories have sparkle and I am constantly changing and designing more products. I know I made the right decision, I truly love what I do. I send out orders every day and have met so many lovely people. It gives me time to enjoy lunches with friends and time with my family, I now have 5 grandchildren! I don’t have the stress that I did have when I was a shoe importer, I get regular MRIs on my brain, and everything is looking positive.
Growing up, what kind of career did you want to pursue?
When I was little I always wanted to own a lolly shop.
Who inspires you?
Coco Chanel and strong independent women.
Who is most surprised by your achievements?
Me
How have women helped shape your success to date?
If it wasn’t for women, I wouldn’t be successful, from 18 to 108, everyone loves a bit of sparkle.
What qualities do you most admire in a female colleague?
Kindness and generosity
What’s the key to successfully balancing work and life?
Being organised so you can take time out and actually have a life!
If you had an afternoon to yourself, how would you spend it?
Would love a massage!
Who do you regard as your mentor?
My husband is my biggest support and fan.
What personal attributes have you used to overcome adversity in your life?
Keep going, never giving up.
What is the hardest part of your job?
Having to drink all the bottles of champagne to see if the stoppers work!