business woman Archives - Don't Stop Us Now

Marching to Her Own Beat – Dot Bustelo

December 8, 2022December 23, 2022
by Claire

Our guest on the show today pivoted away from a long standing career in the music industry to found a venture focused on the visual arts.

Dot Bustello is founder and CEO of a business called Loupe, which streams and sells art from around the world and in doing so helps make all those black TV screens in our daily lives way more interesting and appealing.

Not only that, Loupe is ranked number one lifestyle app in 73 countries on Apple TV.

Dot founded Loupe seven years ago after spending nearly ten years at Apple as well as being a music producer.

Never one to believe in having a conventional career, in this episode you’ll hear Dot explain:

How she came up with the idea for Loupe and why she couldn’t believe it hadn’t already been done
The key thing she learnt after nearly a decade working at Apple
Why she thinks NFTs (non fungible tokens) are so revolutionary
Dot’s firm belief that we all have more control over what we do in our careers than most people think; and
The number 1 habit Dot relies on to stay focussed and centred.

Enjoy this fascinating conversation with the uniquely creative and entrepreneurial Dot Bustelo.

Useful Links

Loupe website – stream for free and buy art here

Loupe Insta

Dot on LinkedIn

Interview

It’s Not About Me – Joanna Flint

March 30, 2022March 30, 2022
by Claire

We’re back from Covid (hooray!) and so even more excited about this week’s inspiring guest!

Joanna Flint is Chief Commercial Officer for the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group where she’s responsible for its global marketing, sales, revenue management, brand and distribution functions. She is also a member of the company’s Board.

Joanna joined the luxury brand last year after more than twelve years with Google in Asia where, amongst other roles, she was Managing Director of Google Singapore. Based in Singapore with her family, after 20 years living in Asia, Joanna is also a member of YPO and a mentor to early stage start-ups.

If you’re contemplating your career or thinking about changing roles then you have come to the right place because Joanna has some of the most thoughtful musings on this topic we’ve heard.

In this episode you’ll learn:

The incredible story of why Joanna nearly didn’t apply for the top job at Google in Singapore and what happened to make her change her mind
The opportunities she feels she wasted because she wasn’t super clear about what she wanted next in her career
Exactly how Joanna got that clarity on what her next role needed to look like
And how she manages the challenges of leading a truly global team without working 24/7.

We know you’ll love the amazing insights and advice shared in this conversation, so enjoy this episode with the insightful and passionate Joanna Flint.

A quick P.S. from us that we are giving our mini episodes a little break for a while, so we’ll be back in two weeks time with our next conversation with an amazing, pioneering female leader. Hint – she’s ‘uber’ cool.

Links

Joanna on LinkedIn

Mandarinoriental.com

Interview

Stefanie Nissen – Style & Hope Shine Through

November 30, 2021November 30, 2021
by Claire

Happy December everyone!

The end of the year can mean travel planning for a lot of people, and business trips and holidays are the bread and butter for the fashion entrepreneur and founder on the show this week, Stefanie Nissen.

California-based Stefanie founded her business ‘Trvl Porter’ with the idea that you would arrive at your destination to find a hand-picked travel wardrobe waiting for you at your hotel. When you’re heading home, you can buy the pieces you love, or return them all simply by leaving them with your hotel.

The business was starting to take off when Covid effectively put Stefanie’s business into hibernation. All the more frustrating as not only had the business been really starting to get traction, it had also enjoyed some great coverage in the NY Times as well.

In this episode you’ll hear where Stefanie is at today in figuring out the future for Trvl Porter as well as:

How she started her career in fashion design
The advice her designer employer gave her that made her really change direction
How losing her luggage inspired the idea for a brand new business
And, Stefanie shares how a significant trauma actually led her to have the courage to start her new venture

This episode shares stories that are both moving and hopeful. So if you’re after some inspiration, hope and courage in your life, don’t miss this one with the resilient and courageous Stefanie Nissen…

Useful Links

Stefanie on LinkedIn (Stefanie’s new married name is Barkman)

Stefanie on Instagram

TrvlPorter website

Future Proof Me Mini Episode

Future Proof Me – Crowdfunding Success

November 23, 2021November 24, 2021
by Claire

This week’s mini episode is all about crowdfunding and in particular equity crowdfunding.

Equity crowdfunding is where retail investors can buy a share in a young company which is seeking funding without having to list on the stock exchange or take on formal VC capital.

Capital raising can be such a time consuming occupation for a Founder yet if you have the right offer for equity crowdfunding, then this can be a great way to proceed.

One of our guests has proven to be a master at successfully completing two extremely impressive equity crowdfunding campaigns. We’re talking about Brianne West, the New Zealander serial entrepreneur and founder of global sustainable cosmetics company, Ethique.

Brianne has a bold and pioneering mission, to rid the world of single-use plastics. She started Ethique to replace all those plastic-bottled products we use in our bathrooms, from shampoos to moisturisers, with solid bars of concentrated product.

Brianne crowdfunded twice to grow her business: once in 2015 when she raised NZ$200,000 in 10 days; and again in 2017 when she raised an extraordinary $500,000 in just over an hour!

Ethique continues to grow, has taken on other types of investment and is now found in more than 20 countries. It’s become a B Corp as well.

In this mini episode you’ll hear Brianne explaining why she felt crowdfunding was best for her and then shares her views on what it takes to be successful if you’re wondering if crowdfunding is for you.

Enjoy this mini episode.

Useful Links

Brianne’s full interview

Ethique Website

Brianne on Instagram

Equitise – Crowdfunding platform

How To Episode

How To Be A Great People Person

June 9, 2021
by Claire

This week’s episode is all about becoming a great ‘people person’. It’s something we believe is probably the most important trait of a great leader.

Of course, it’s not always easy to do, particularly these days when many of us are working from home at least some part of each week.

Thanks to Covid, we’re all losing a bit of ‘muscle tone’ when it comes to building and maintaining healthy working relationships with our colleagues, direct reports and networks.

But fear not as we have just the info you need to hear to reinvigorate your working life!

In this episode you’ll hear:

How one CEO was advised not to think she was running a company and instead to think of it as managing a group of individuals;
Great advice on the key ingredients for strong working relationships even when everyone is working remotely;
What mistake younger women make in particular when it comes to interactions at work;
And the one special ingredient you need to build enduring relationships in ways that are otherwise impossible.

So rediscover the ‘people person’ you want to be, and enjoy this episode!

Useful Links

Link to Jennifer Aaker and Naomi Bagdonas Interview

Link to Connie Mckeage Interview

The Trust Equation by Charles Green

Interview

Mouna Aouri – Supporting Female Entrepreneurs to Realise their…

April 13, 2021June 1, 2021
by Claire

Can you believe it? Almost three years ago we started this podcast and now we’re excited to be releasing this, our 100th episode!

A particular thank you to you if you’ve taken the time to review, subscribe or recommend our show as it really makes all our work that much more worthwhile. And we always love to hear from you, whether it’s guest or show ideas, or any feedback. Just email us here.

This week’s 100th episode features a woman who has a pretty incredible story. Her name is Mouna Aouri and she’s a Tunisian who started out as a bridge engineer, including working for 7 years in Japan. (And Japan is NOT an easy place for women to work!)

After running a successful business in her home country of Tunisia, Mouna now works in Singapore with Beacon Fund which is investing in female entrepreneurs in South East Asia. Not only that, she launched and runs her own online community supporting women entrepreneurs called ‘Woomentum’.

In this episode you’ll learn:

Why Mouna left Tunisia to build bridges in Japan
How her successful business and life was turned upside down by the Arab Spring uprising
How, after losing her identity as a new Mum in a new country, she picked herself up and turned her experience into a business supporting other women; and
The common mistakes female entrepreneurs make and how to overcome them.

Mouna is very open and vulnerable about the difficult time she encountered trying to reinvent herself and her career in a new country and as a new Mum, and her story of how she bounced back is really inspiring.

So why not grab yourself a yummy slice of ‘100th episode cake’ 😂 and enjoy this episode!

Useful Links

Woomentum – community Mouna founded to support female entrepreneurs

Beacon Fund – funding female entrepreneurs in Asia Pacific

Link to the Woomentum Research Mouna mentioned – The Path to Success: How Women-owned Business Transform in the Era of Digitalization

Interview

Lesley Eccles – When Founding Another Global Startup was…

March 2, 2021March 2, 2021
by Claire

Have you ever felt totally blindsided or cheated?

That’s exactly what happened to our guest this week who spent more than ten years building a startup into a huge success, only to find the company sold by the other investors without receiving a cent. Just two years later the business was valued at over 11 billion dollars!

There’s no doubt that serial Scottish entrepreneur Lesley Eccles has ridden the startup rollercoaster on a grand scale. What we find so incredible and inspiring is how she’s bounced back from the devastating loss of her and her co-founders’ first business hit, FanDuel, to focus on starting a business all over again.

Lesley says she felt she had no alternative but to start from scratch again – but this time she’s brought her knowledge of running and scaling a technology business to build the number one relationship and self care app, Relish.

As Lesley shares her fascinating journey you’ll learn how:

Lesley, her husband and their 3 other co-founders weren’t sure if their start up would be successful until they were 7 years in
How their team, headquartered in Scotland, managed to become successful in the US market of fantasy sports building a team of 500 employees with 6million users
What lessons Lesley learnt as a result of the gut-wrenching sale of FanDuel
And why Relish is all about making the world a happier place.

Lesley’s story and lessons really are remarkable so don’t miss this episode with the resilient and gutsy Lesley Eccles.

Useful Links

Relish in the Apple App Store

Relish website

Lesley Eccles on LinkedIn

Future Proof Me Mini Episode

Future Proof Me – Calling Out Bias

October 27, 2020October 27, 2020
by Claire

Brought to you by Microsoft’s The New Next

How do you go with sensitive conversations? They’re not easy are they?

This week’s mini episode shares how NASA executive Trudy Kortes has learnt over time to call out gender bias when she experiences it.

If you’ve not heard one of these bite-sized episodes before, the idea is to focus on the most valuable insights, gems of advice and ideas from our incredible guests . . . all focusing on the theme of future proofing ourselves and our careers.

Trudy’s advice includes some great principles for all difficult conversations, so make your next difficult conversation a little easier with this bite-sized nugget of wisdom and experience.

Useful Links

Trudy’s orig episode: A Career in Space and Real Life Moonshots

Debbie Millman – Brave Heart, Big Life

September 8, 2020
by Claire

We have such a treat for you this week with the truly multi-talented and globally respected Debbie Millman.

Debbie is a designer, author, educator, artist, brand expert and host of one of the world’s longest running and highly respected podcasts, Design Matters.

Named one of the most creative people in business by Fast Company and one of the most influential designers working today by Graphic Design USA, Debbie has also written six books, her artwork has been exhibited in numerous galleries, and she co-founded the world’s first Masters in Branding.

She’s also one of the most authentic and thoughtful people we’ve met.

From difficult and traumatic beginnings, Debbie has gone on to have a stellar career.

She was President of Sterling Brands for 20 years and grew the company from 15 people to 150 before selling the business. She’s created many many iconic household brands that you see in stores today, including for Haagen-Dazs, Burger King, 7Up, and Star Wars merchandise.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How the worst day of Debbie’s life ended up being probably the most important day of her life,
Why she feels branding is one of the most significant disciplines in our culture and lives today,
Her advice about developing self esteem; and
What’s she’s learnt from over 500 podcast interviews with some incredible guests.

Enjoy this episode with the insightful and inspiring Debbie Millman

Useful Links

https://www.debbiemillman.com/

Debbie’s TED talk – How Symbols and Brands Shape our Humanity

Society 6 Debbie Millman – various designs by Debbie that you can buy

How to Build Your Personal Brand – A Course with Debbie Millman

The Art of the Story – Creating Visual Narratives

Debbie’s reading list

Futurists Debbie mentions:

Faith Popcorn

William Gordon’s books

Photography credit: John Madere Photography

Interview

Maria MacNamara – On Reinvention

August 25, 2020August 25, 2020
by Claire

Our guest on the show this week is someone who’s a textbook case in career reinvention.

Maria MacNamara completely reinvented her career after two and a half decades working in professional services. After finally getting sick of what she describes as misogyny and bad behaviour, Maria knew she had to call it quits and leave professional services for something completely different.

Now, that’s not to say professional services today has the same issues Maria experienced, and Maria is the complete diplomat on this topic, but suffice to say she needed a change and knew she wanted to do something completely different.

And so she did! Maria worked in politics and government in completely different roles including digital transformation for a number of years and immersed herself in the startup world. Today Maria’s role is CEO of Advance which is all about connecting global Australians with one another and to Australia, in order to create economic and cultural opportunities, collaborations, investments and innovations.

In this episode you’ll learn: