co-founder Archives - Don't Stop Us Now

2021 – That’s a Wrap!

December 14, 2021December 14, 2021
by Claire

We’re really thrilled to share a very different type of episode, one that features some of the best advice and insights from six of our incredible guests this year. We recap some of the key themes that emerged from 2021 AND we explore how to set yourself up for 2022.

If you’re looking for some perspective at the end of another crazy year filled with all the highs, lows, cancellations, and uncertainties that come with living during a global pandemic then you’re welcome! 🙂

After listening to these amazing and inspiring guests you’ll:

Hear what we and others think is most important, really
Be inspired by the simple steps you can take to build a better world; and
Feel equipped and ready to constructively farewell 2021 and welcome 2022 with the right mindset and the right priorities for you going forward.

We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we’ve enjoyed revisiting our time with the amazing people who joined us this year.

Finally from both of us, we wish you and yours all the very best for a safe and joyous Festive Season and we look forward to sharing lots of adventures and insights with you in 2022.

Useful Links

Our full episode with Connie Mckeage

Connie on LinkedIn

Our full episode with Holly Ransom

Holly on LinkedIn

Our full episode with Adina Jacobs

Adina on LinkedIn

Our full episode with Tessa Clarke, Co-Founder of OLIO

Tessa on LinkedIn

Drawdown.org – great site if you want to educate yourself on climate change

Our full episode with Sarah Wilson

Sarah’s website

Our full episode with Dr J (Dr Jacinta Jimenez)

Jacinta on LinkedIn

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: 3 Founder Essentials

August 24, 2021August 24, 2021
by Claire

We’ve been thinking about the impact the global pandemic has had on peoples’ careers and one thing that’s been happening is many folk have been wondering whether it’s time for a career change and, in particular, whether they should start their own business.

So for today’s mini episode, we’ve chosen to share some brilliant advice for founders and potential founders from the successful British entrepreneur, Debbie Wosskow OBE.

Debbie is well known for building and selling her online home exchange business, Love Home Swap for £53 million.

Not only that, Debbie is now co-founder of another business called AllBright, an education and networking organisation designed to provide skills and connections to working women particularly in the UK but also internationally. We talked all about AllBright when we first spoke with Debbie on the show some years ago.

Having sold her own start-up and also being a start-up investor, Debbie knows first hand what it takes to build a business from scratch and, as you’ll hear, there are 3 key things she believes founders need.

Useful Links

Debbie’s full interview episode – Debbie Wosskow, OBE – What It Takes To Be A Successful Female Entrepreneur

AllBright Website

The AllBright Academy

TheAllBright on Twitter

Debbie on Linkedin

Debbie on Twitter

Book on Grit – by Angela Duckworth

Interview

Adina Jacobs – Win-Win Relationships

May 11, 2021June 1, 2021
by Claire

This week’s episode features one of the most unassuming and humble entrepreneurs we’ve met.

Adina Jacobs is the Co-Founder of an international technology accessories company called STM Goods that basically created a whole new category of product when it launched it 23 years ago. (Think really functional and yet not boring laptop backpacks and bags, ipad and tablet covers, chargers, and a whole host of other accessories.)

Adina’s success as a young entrepreneur is testament to the power of building win-win relationships; whether it’s with manufacturers or retail clients. It was thanks to great relationships with Apple resellers that led to her products landing coveted space in Apple’s own destination retail stores when they launched.

And not only does Adina work with Apple but STM are also key suppliers of Microsoft accessories as well, plus many other brands.

Adina is also Co-Founder of Mentor Walks in Australia, a not-for-profit expanding all around the country with its ‘walk and talk’ model. We had her Co-Founder, Bobbi Mahlab, on the show some months back.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How a creative use for a padded postal envelope 23 years ago was the genesis of a new product category, and an internationally successful business
How Adina thinks, and goes about, building win win relationships
How STM has succeeded getting things successfully manufactured in China and elsewhere in the past two decades; and
How to set yourself up for success with your Co-Founder.

So sit back, relax and enjoy this episode with the humble and high achieving Adina Jacobs.

Useful Links

Adina on LinkedIn

STM website

MentorWalks website

Future Proof Me Mini Episode

Future Proof Me – Founders’ Reality

May 4, 2021June 1, 2021
by Claire

This week we look at the realities of being a startup founder. Becoming an entrepreneur and a founder is increasingly popular, even with school students where a recent survey showed that 40% of them now want to be entrepreneurs when they complete their studies.

But it’s not all fame, fortune and delightful autonomy if you intend to build a business that will scale and survive. And we figured, who better to hear what being a founder is really like than one of Australia’s most successful female entrepreneurs, Cyan Ta’eed, the Co-Founder of the hugely successful digital marketplace, Envato (valued at over a billion dollars).

Cyan is also the founder of the ethical chocolate company Hey Tiger and go milkshake, an app for Instagram influencers.

In this episode she shares with us just how hard she and her co-founders worked to get Envato off the ground. It didn’t mean that they couldn’t choose where they’d work those long hours as you will hear in this fascinating insight into this Founders reality.

Enjoy this mini episode.

Useful Links

Cyan Ta’eed’s full interview

Cyan’s personal Instagram

Hey Tiger Instagram

Hey Tiger website – order your chocolate here (delivery to Australia, NZ & US for now)

Mia Perdomo – Latin America’s Warrior for Women

November 17, 2020November 17, 2020
by Claire

Brought to you by Microsoft’s The New Next

This week’s episode features Colombian founder, Mia Perdomo. She and her co-founder have built a business fighting for equality for women at work across Latin America.

Mia trained as a psychologist but always thought of herself as a feminist. In 2014, Mia attended a four month long leadership program at a US university, and had what she describes as a ‘life changing experience’. It was here that she realised she could be an entrepreneur and deliver social change.

She teamed up with fellow course participant, Peruvian, Andrea de la Piedra, and together they launched Aequales, a business focused on closing the gender gap in Latin America. They started by offering diversity consulting services to businesses in Peru and Colombia.

But when business wasn’t as good as they hoped, Mia and her co-founder were forced to get creative.

And they did!

In this episode you’ll learn:

How the idea they came up with totally changed the prospects for their business, without losing its mission
Why Mia is so passionate about being a ‘for-profit’ business with a social cause
How she and her co-founder have navigated building a profitable multi-country Latin American business and …
The astounding way some companies treat female job candidates

Without further ado enjoy this episode with the passionate and determined Mia Perdomo.

Useful Links