HerBusiness has inducted another 20 Australian female business owners into its annual ‘Hall of Fame’, including Leona Edmiston, Stephanie Alexander and Lisa Messenger.
Formerly known as the Australian Businesswomen’s Network and still run by Suzi Dafnis, HerBusiness has celebrated a new list of women every year since launching its Hall of Fame in 1998, with more than 200 women now inducted.
As Dafnis says: “It has given emerging businesswomen the courage to persevere despite the ups and downs of starting a business.”
The list recognises those female entrepreneurs who’ve achieved notable success in their field, and provides excellent examples for women who’re thinking about starting their own business.
Below is the list of twenty who join the Hall in 2016, supplied to Women’s Agenda by HerBusiness. They were selected by a number of prominent judges including CEO of the ACCI Kate Carnell, Adore Beauty’s Kate Morris and Valerie Khoo from the Australian Writers’ Centre.
See more on the Hall of Fame here.
Kym Clark (WA), She’s Empowered:
While working on a Queensland coal mine, Kym Clark observed that her pregnant project manager was struggling in ill-fitting workwear and couldn’t button up her high-vis shirt. With a dream of making a positive change for women in the industry, Kym created a workwear range for women. While Kym’s initial business idea was personal protective workwear for women, her research revealed equality was a recurring theme, including the industry’s gender pay gap. “Women haven’t been largely represented in the mining and construction sectors and as the industry evolves things have been overlooked. Equality is worth fighting for, this can’t be an issue for the next generation to fight for,” says Kim.
Nicole Eckels (NSW), The Sapphire Group
Born in New York, Nicole re-located to Australia in search of a sea change, but found she could not find any reasonably priced, high quality scented candles to replace her favourites from home. So she created her own business. As an entrepreneur, she worked closely with perfumers mixing, matching and curating scents, to bottle for her customers, sealed with the iconic Glasshouse logo. “If you want a serious business, the first few years are the most intense. Owning a business is not for the faint-hearted, you are going to have to give it all you have and work/life balance is on the back burner. To quote Lori Greiner, ‘entrepreneurs are the only people that work 80 hours a week to avoid working 40 hours a week’” says Nicole.
Maud Edmiston (WA), Miss Mauds
Maud moved from Stockholm to Perth in 1968, when the Perth food scene was dominated by pubs. Looking for a cosy place to have a warm meal and a cup of coffee, she started Miss Maud, a place to offer people food that reminded them of their grandma’s place. More than four decades on, Maud has expanded to a 52-bedroom boutique hotel, a restaurant, 16 pastry houses, an online catering business and a Swedish Bakery. On her key to success, Maud says, “hospitality is a beautiful, ever changing industry and while we are constantly innovating, growing and creating beautiful new products and services, our hospitality fundamentals won’t change because we’re guided by one simple principle – to give our customers pleasure by understanding their needs and providing for these abundantly. This is the delicious ingredient that is at the heart of our company, guiding every part of our business. It’s the measure of all our efforts at Miss Maud.”
Melanie Gleeson (VIC), Endota Day Spa:
Fifteen years ago, Melanie discussed her vision of creating a haven for women with a school friend over a barbecue. Her idea has since transformed into one of the most successful Australian examples of franchising, with 90 spas up and running across the country. Melanie has also successfully ventured into retail with Endota’s own skincare range. “I believe in the law of abundance, there’s enough market share for everyone out there in business. If you do your business well, with integrity and heart and give for the sake of giving, it will come back to you when you really need it,” says Melanie.
Beverley Honig (VIC), Greenville Developments & Honeylight enterprises:
Beverley is well-known as one of the top business entrepreneurs in Australia. With experience as a commercial global lawyer across three continents, she’s turned her focus towards business consulting, helping businesses to grow sustainably. Beverley’s advice to other entrepreneurs is that, “business success is the result of purposeful change. Continually evolving and exploring new business opportunities will move your business forward, motivate your people and challenge your clients to grow and prosper.”
Anna Hooper (SA), Cape Jaffa Wines:
For Anna, the grass always appeared just a little greener on South Australia’s Limestone Coast. The newly established Mount Benson wine region combined her love for a delicious vintage with great surf and scenery. Anna brings dedication to sustainable farming to Cape Jaffa Wines, and was one of the first Australian producers to try biodynamic farming. Anna considers support from her team to be key to her success. “I take a really tough and rigorous approach to recruitment and provide clear goals. As a result we have terrific people in our business, without which we couldn’t have achieved what we have,” says Anna.
Maxine Horne (QLD), Fone Zone/Vita Group:
In 1995, Maxine founded a single phone store Fone Zone on the Gold Coast with her then husband. Over the last 20 years, Maxine has driven the growth and evolution of the business into ASX-listed Vita Group, providing communications and electronics solutions across Australia and employing more than 1,500 people. Maxine’s advice to other business owners is: “I have learnt many lessons along the way, many times the hard way. I would simply say to be open to the experience, the journey and where it may take you.”
Amantha Imber (VIC), Inventium:
Inventium is one of Australia’s largest innovation consultancies and fastest growing businesses. For Amantha, much of this success can be attributed to being surrounded by a skilled and supportive team. “Build a great team around you. I obsess over recruitment – I think it’s by far one of the most important things I do in my role as a business owner. Through being obsessive and not settling for average (or even above-average), I have built a team of absolute superstars without whom, Inventium would have been nowhere near as successful as it is today,” says Amantha.
Hetty Johnston (QLD), Bravehearts:
Hetty is a woman of passion and determination who has succeeded in highlighting the crime of paedophilia and child sexual assault to media, families, schools and the general community both nationally and internationally. Hetty established Bravehearts in 1997, an organisation with a Vision to make Australia the safest place in the world to raise a child by 2020.
Isobel Knight (NSW), ProAgtive:
Isobel Knight is a succession planning specialist and has been the director of Australia’s leading family farm succession planning business Proagtive since 2003. Isobel’s passion is to ensure that the next generation has an opportunity to participate in agriculture, and she believes a lack of succession planning is costing farming families, rural communities and agriculture dearly.
Laurie McDonald (ACT), Canberra Furnished Accommodation:
Laurie McDonald is one woman who always knew the importance of home. Finding herself homeless at 16 instilled in her the desire to only go upwards, and she has done exactly that. In 2003 she started Canberra Furnished Accommodation, which has grown to more than 50 properties to become a frontrunner in the real estate race.
Lisa Messenger (NSW), The Messenger Group:
Lisa’s passion is to challenge individuals and corporations to change the way they think, take them out of their comfort zone and prove that there is more than one way to do anything. She encourages entrepreneurial spirit, creativity and innovation. Lisa has authored and co-authored 16 books and become an authority in the start-up scene. The Messenger Group has custom published more than 400 books for companies and individuals. Lisa charted her rollercoaster ride to success in the best-selling book Daring & Disruptive; unleashing the entrepreneur and its sequel Life & Love, which reached #1 on Booktopia. Lisa’s next book, Money and Mindfulness was released late in 2015 and also hit best-selling status within the first month.
Bianca Monley (NSW), Eat Fit Food:
Bianca witnessed an overflow in busy schedules and unhealthy diets, prompting her to pursue a different path. Bianca works with a close team to make food from fresh ingredients grown at the Eat Fit Food farm in Berrima to make healthy home delivered food. Bianca’s advice for other entrepreneurs is: “the best way to get ahead of the competition is to stay away from trends and instead pursue your own passion. Be a leader in your field and have credibility behind everything you do.”
Anna Shepherd (NSW), Regal Home Health:
Anna Shepherd’s mother established Regal Home Health in the 1960s. Following in her steps, Anna took over as CEO in 2000, ushering the business into a period of even greater growth and success. “As I reflect on 32 years of service to the community, my greatest key learning has been to surround yourself with people who are aligned to your vision, people who have the skill set to do the job and you can trust that they can deliver as agreed. Once you are in this place, the potential of what you can achieve together is limitless,” says Anna.
Christine Taylor (QLD), Aussie Pooch Mobile:
At the age of 16, Christine Taylor transformed her passion for dog care into a dog clipping and grooming service operating from her backyard. Twenty years later, Aussie Pooch Mobile has over 200 franchises around the world. Having achieved success in Australia, Christine brought the brand to the UK, Malaysia, NZ, New Caledonia and the USA. Christine found the best formula for success was working towards small goals to achieve the big picture results she always envisioned. “Do something today to make tomorrow better. It doesn’t need to be a big thing or something that will make a huge change. It’s the small things that contribute to the big picture and help you move forward,” says Christine
Jude Turner (QLD), Spicers Retreats:
Inspired by her personal travel experience and professional experience at Topdeck in London and Flight Centre, Jude Turner created Spicers Retreats. The portfolio has grown to 9 luxury accommodation retreats, 7 award-winning restaurants, 4 day spas, 3 cattle-breeding operations, an outdoor adventure park, a 60 hectare koala habitat and over 5000 hectares of nature refuges, preserving natural environments for future generations to enjoy.
Sue Hollis (NSW), TravelEdge:
In 2000, Sue chose to leave the security of the corporate world to start TravelEdge, a corporate travel management company. In the past sixteen years, the business has grown exponentially, with four separate companies under the TravelEdge Group brand and over 120 employers. Sue’s advice for other entrepreneurs is: “scale up to rather than into your business. Although it might be challenging financially, put in the people, the structure, and the framework you need to enable your business to grow before you actually need it – rather than put it in when you can afford it.”
Anneke Van Den Broek (NSW), Rufus & Coco:
Following a corporate career in senior marketing and management roles, Anneke made a change and started her own pet brand in 2008. Frustrated by the lack of natural alternatives for pets with conditions such as arthritis and a lack of good looking pet products, Anneke used her business background to create a solution. Anneke shares her advice to other entrepreneurs, “I have personally found that a key element of succeeding in business is to build personal belief by constantly taking steps in to the unknown and being resilient to the inevitable setbacks.”
Leona Edmiston (WA), Leona Edmiston:
With 30 years of her effortless style, glamour and sophistication gracing the catwalks, workplace, red carpets and landmarks of the world, Leona’s signature style continues to impress. Leona’s business savvy and strategic management has resulted in her empire growing to include the category extensions ‘Leona Edmiston Ruby’ a diffusion collection, ‘Little Leona’ for girls, eyewear, jewellery, footwear, handbags, sleepwear, hosiery, a range of homewares designed for Myer and most recently swimwear. Leona’s brand encompasses 30 stores – online, 11 signature boutiques, 6 Leona Edmiston Vintage Boutiques and 12 Myer Concession stores.
Stephanie Alexander (VIC), Stephanie Alexander:
Stephanie’s reputation as one of Australia’s greatest food educators has been earned through 30 years as an owner-chef in several restaurants and as the author of 14 influential books. Everything Stephanie has achieved and worked towards has been driven by her desire to break down people’s anxieties about cooking, to emphasise the beauty of produce fresh from the garden, and to demonstrate the pleasures of sharing around a table so that more of us will choose to live a more joyful and healthier life. Stephanie’s advice to other entrepreneurs is: “do as you would be done by. Your behaviour will set the tone for your business. Kindness and understanding are important. Be friends with your team but retain enough distance so that you feel comfortable challenging them if necessary.”