Women-owned businesses are innovative, strong and leading the entrepreneurial charge in Australia – according to a 2020 Xero survey, two-thirds of new businesses created in Australia in the past decade were founded by women. This International Women’s Day, we’re proud to shine a light on five women-owned small businesses. We’ll be talking about their successes, struggles and why it’s important to support and shop women-owned businesses today and every day. #womenownedbusiness
Sophie & Stacey
The Happy Box, Melbourne
Expats Sophie and Stacey started their business Happy Box during Melbourne’s lockdown in 2020, “with people feeling the strain of COVID-19 we wanted to send small pick-me-up style gifts to our loved ones, here and back home in the UK. When we couldn’t find exactly what we were after we figured we couldn’t be the only ones and decided to start Happy Box.” Happy Box is all about spreading kindness and making people feel good. Their thoughtfully curated gift boxes are all about the personal touches and are making waves all over Australia.
What’s been one of your proudest accomplishments since you started your business? For us, the little wins feel like incredible accomplishments; we’re often asked who built our website and who runs our social pages, and there’s no better feeling than being able to say that we’ve done it all ourselves.
What’s a unique struggle you’ve overcome as a woman running a business? Balancing a business while also still having a 9-5 and running a home has been a struggle, but one we’ve enjoyed working our way through. There’s also been occasions where men haven’t taken us seriously – assuming that we couldn’t be the ones to have built our website, managed our own accounts or packed and fulfill orders.
Who inspires you? Our mums. Our kindness and gift-giving comes from them and to be successful doing just that would make them so proud.
“We’re both fortunate enough to be inspired each day we go to work. We want to inspire other women to live the life they dream of and to reach their full potential.”
Follow @thehappyboxau on Instagram
Brandi
Brandi Salmon Art, Nipaluna, Lutruwita / Hobart
Brandi of Brandi Salmon Art has had a passion for art for as long as she can remember and her experience as a proud Wiradjuri woman greatly influences her work. “The art that I sell and create aims to inspire and start important conversations around Aboriginal identity in modern day Australia.” Her Aunty Collection, a series of portraits that reimagines famous artworks like the Mona Lisa and Girl with Pearl Earring through an Aboriginal lens, asks us all to consider representation. “Studying my Bachelor of Creative Art I was often tasked with researching lots of artists and to put it simply I was disappointed at the lack of Blak representation, these pieces seek to rectify this and to give strength and visibility of Mob through art.”
What inspired you to start your business? As a proud Wiradjuri woman, my Aboriginality and Mob inspired me to start my business. Working in the legal area supporting Aboriginal women experiencing family violence for a few years also inspired me. I was inspired by their stories and strength – and they’ve inspired my art, subject matter and style.
Why is it important to support & shop women-owned businesses? So that women know that they have the support they deserve, they’re respected and so they’re able to grow their businesses. Some of my favourites include Gammin Threads, Haus of Dizzy, Alkina’s Creations, Kamara Morgan Art, Yarli Creative, KYKOE (just to name a few!).
What’s one of your proudest accomplishments since you started your business? Being a featured Artist on the frankie.com website recently. It was definitely a pinch-me moment as I used to save my pocket money as a kid to buy art magazines such as Frankie.
“Growing up, I didn’t see any other business owners that looked like me. I had to change my mindset to have confidence in myself and believe that my art was good enough.“
Follow @brandisalmon.artist on Instagram
Georgia
Ponder Designs Co, Sydney
Ponder Designs is on a mission to help the world embrace slower moments with their modern spin on the humble jigsaw puzzle. Founder Georgia was inspired to start Ponder after searching for ways to unwind that didn’t involve a screen, “I realised that in our tech-driven lifestyles we were forgetting how to meaningfully spend our downtime. I wanted to create something that gave people an alternative to mindlessly scrolling social media or watching Netflix”. Each puzzle is designed by an emerging female artist (you won’t see basic landscapes here – punchy colours and cool illustrations are hallmarks of the collection) and the modern designs are even paired with a carefully curated Spotify playlist to spark conversation.
What’s a unique struggle you’ve overcome as a woman running a business? The sense that I’m not good enough to run my own business by myself. Unfortunately, women suffer more from the confidence gap where we feel like we’re not as qualified as our male counterparts or may not do as good of a job.
If you could give a new business owner any advice, what would it be? Surround yourself with people who make you feel empowered and give you the sense that you can do what you want to do. Running your own business is really challenging, it’s a mental game and you need to have people that you can call on from time to time who will get you back on track and motivate you, not fill you with doubt.
What does International Women’s Day mean to you? Of course, it’s a day to celebrate all the amazing women in the world. But for me, it’s also a reminder to assess where we’re at. There’s still a significant amount of inequality in the world and I think we need to remain laser-focused and action-oriented to reach a state of gender parity.
“I truly admire women who have set off on their own and started their own businesses against all odds. Women are just as entrepreneurial and capable as men and it’s important that we support them.“
Follow @ponderdesignsco on Instagram
Tash
Cookies by Tash, Sydney
Specialising in artfully crafted bespoke cookies and cookie cakes, business owner and baker Tash found inspiration for her business in the unlikeliest of places – “One year around Christmas time, my son asked if we could make Christmas cookies together. We did and I then went on to post our creations to my personal Instagram account. Overnight, I had numerous people ask me if they could purchase some for their Christmas functions, and so Cookies By Tash was born.” With a 25k-strong follower count and slew of celeb clients, Tash prides herself on her attention to detail which shows in her jaw-dropping creations.
Why is it important to support & shop women-owned businesses? We need to reverse the stereotype that women can’t and don’t support other women. If we act as a sisterhood and shop and support women-owned businesses, we’re investing in women’s economic empowerment, and therefore we all win in the end.
Who inspires you? My beautiful family inspires me daily as well as all the talented cookiers out there. In the cookie industry, I’m constantly inspired by these women and love to show them my support – @sweetlyimpressed, @picnartsugar, @sweetsticksau, @miss_biscuit_
What’s one of your proudest accomplishments since you started your business? Being asked to create cookies for THE Jennifer Hawkins!
“The juggle of being a wife and mum to three beautiful little boys, plus trying to run a business can be a struggle. Some days are really hard, but I’ve just learned to keep putting one foot in front of the other.“
Follow @cookiesbytash on Instagram
Sandra
The Untypical, Sydney
The Untypical is an online boutique that aims to elevate the gift giving experience with thoughtfully curated and personalised gift boxes. For business owner Sandra, the leap into the gifting space was a no-brainer, “I’ve always found joy in finding the perfect gift and have an unmatched passion for gift giving – it’s my love language!”. And her love shows. In Sandra’s Untypical boxes are an incredible range of beauty, wellness, and lifestyle products from Australian owned businesses – another part of the gift-giving experience she is passionate about – “The Untypical supports so many incredible brands. By purchasing our gift boxes, you’re also supporting local small businesses.”
What’s one of your proudest accomplishments since you started your business? The business growth within three months of launching surprises me every single day. It still amazes me that so many people purchase gift boxes from my business and provide such positive feedback about their experience. I get excited every single time I receive an order and I don’t think that feeling will ever go away!
What’s a unique struggle you’ve overcome as a woman running a business? When I started out, I definitely had to remind myself of my “why” and not let self-doubt and fear get the best of me when I felt overwhelmed. As women, I feel as though we set really high expectations of ourselves and we can get lost in what our family, friends and society expect of us. Taking the time each day to own, appreciate and acknowledge all my accomplishments, both big and small, really helped me overcome the internal doubt.
If you could give a new business owner any advice, what would it be? Take the risk and try something different. Learn from your mistakes. Be creative and innovative because your uniqueness is what will make you shine.
“Supporting women-owned businesses is a huge investment in a strong, empowered, and vibrant community that contributes to the economy and so much more.“
Follow @_theuntypical on Instagram
