We are very excited to partner with the City of Brisbane to run our first in-person Brisbane Evolve program.
The program kicked off last week with a group of ten talented founders. We are looking forward to supporting them as they take their business to the next level.
Luna + Sun
Teshani McManus founded Luna and Sun whilst completing a Bachelor of Business Management and Bachelor of Science. Teshani gained knowledge in the fashion industry whilst working in retail, aware of the environmental impact of fashion, Teshani decided to start her own label.
Luna and Sun was founded in 2019 as an ethically Australian made, sustainable and cruelty-free fashion label. The fast fashion industry is also one of the world's biggest polluters and a huge contributor to climate change. It contributes to deforestation, releases toxic dyes and chemicals into our waterways, continues to promote overconsumption and discarding of hundreds of tonnes of clothes every minutes into landfill. There are also several animal rights issues within the fashion industry which is why Luna and Sun doesn't use any animal fibres or materials.
Honey's Plant Climbers
Hello, my name is Eliza. I have a huge love for plants which has developed over the years. My friends also refer to me as Poison Ivy (which I secretly love).
But I won't lie, the thought of even having to water, care for, or work out where to plant something used to make me get into a cold sweat.
This was until I met an amazing man Colin Trueman. Colin gave me the gift of education and confidence in the garden and for this I will always be grateful.
I launched Honeys Plant Climbers in 2020 with the vision to bring some bling and structure to your indoor plants.
Birds on Bikes
Birds on Bikes is a provider of flattering, fashionable and fun clothing and accessories for women who cycle, empowering them to feel strong and confident on and off the bike. The Australian bike apparel market is predisposed towards males with little selection or variety available to women not wanting tight fitting Lycra in dark colours. What existing female product that is available is mostly supplied in dark and unimaginative colours with little attention to feminine design, construction or shape. Retail outlets offer a limited female range.
Birds on Bikes is an e-commerce start-up company positioning itself to supply bicycle riding attire to a niche market of mature aged female bicycle riders in Australia and globally. Our Birds on Bikes Collections are specially designed to fit and flatter sizes 12 to 24. Our garments are Australian made and we try to source recycled fabrics. Founder, Barbara has a Diploma of Graphic Design and Advertising, founder of Spooner Graphics and a lover of bikes... When she finds the time.
She Wear
Stacey is the Founder and Managing Director of She Wear. She Wear designs, manufactures and retails safety, work and fashion footwear designed specifically to fit women correctly and comfortably. Launched to market in October 2013 with 2 styles in 3 colours, the range has now grown to incorporate 7 safety styles in 10 colours, 3 work footwear options (for the health, retail, hospitality and education industries), a range of fashion boots and socks for women. They also manufacture boots for kids and retail a full range of workwear and PPE for women. She Wear are an innovator and disruptor in a very traditional male focused industry where women's requirements and comfort aren't seen as a priority. What started as a boot strapped home based start up, has now developed into a Brisbane based, Australian company manufacturing, retailing and wholesaling globally.
Stacey was named 2017 Entrepreneur of the Year at the Australian Small Business Champion Awards and a 2018 Global Innovation Award for the Women to Watch in Business Disruption.
Bloom Impact Investing
Camille is the founder of Bloom Impact Investing, a fintech startup on a mission to make Climate Impact Investing easy - a new form of investing to combat climate change.
Bloom Impact Investing offers green investment portfolios to empower people to grow their wealth while making a positive impact on the planet.
But Bloom is not just an investment app, it's also a community of people using their money power for good, gathering every month to learn about impact investing and sustainable finance.
Linda Le
Motto Mochi Lab
My name is Linda Le. I am the current co-founder of the Botanical Lab teahouse in West End. I have founded this business with my brother Sam Trieu and sister Jasmine Trieu. We are pleased to offer different tea desserts and offer unique tea experiences to our business. We have learned and made many mistakes with Botanical lab which will help us gain that experience to our new business venture. I guess I’m the visual dreamer and with many years of hospitality experience and an avid tea lover.
Motto Mochi Lab is a new business with myself and my sister Jasmine Trieu as the co-founder and director. We were inspired from starting this business as we saw there was a demand in the market for more mochi desserts from our current store, Botanical Lab. We have come across many obstacles as well noticed high expenses in the past as the product is limited and not available in Australia like it is in Japan and America. We are working together with an experience food research and developer, Cecilia Ngo from Custom foods as our advisor.
Organisational Dynamics
We are a Brisbane-based Boutique Consulting firm who are a specialist provider of bespoke consulting services throughout Australia and New Zealand. We pride ourselves on employing and engaging only the best consultants in our field to ensure we deliver the maximum outcomes for our clients. Founder, Jessica brings over 18 years’ experience developing alignment, capability and culture within organisations and fashioning business partnerships and transformations. With a background in experiential facilitation and co-design, her specialities include leadership development and alignment, effective governance, collective impact, building organisational effectiveness and agility, inter-organisational collaboration and customer-centric innovation.
Stripped Supply
Stripped Supply is a subscription box for diabetics, automating the delivery of diabetes medication and supplies. Through accessibility, education and connection, we’re alleviating the mental burden of living with chronic illness and reshaping how young adults manage their diabetes.
Plain Speaking Health
Plain Speaking Health exists to help people achieve better health outcomes through education and supporting clinical services that challenge traditional models of healthcare. Plain Speaking Health’s ‘Rule Your Rhythm Program’ helps people with Atrial Fibrillation (a common heart condition) to better understand their healthcare, navigate the health system and take their own powerful personal action to live a better life with their A-Fib. It combines evidence-based information directly from Cardiac Electrophysiologists and other experts, interaction with experts and peers, and simple tools based in health behavioural change and health coaching models empower clients to navigate their health system and improve their life with A-Fib.
Bethan Perel is a healthcare executive, with a focus on Strategy, Marketing and Digital Technology Innovation. She is experienced in establishing new multidisciplinary health services and clinical technologies for a range of health conditions. She has led the design and development of online health education for patients and professionals, and has been involved in the management and operations of clinical research projects. She is a lecturer at the University of Queensland in healthcare business and technology.
Try@Home
Try@Home is an online retail payment gateway that allows eCommerce stores to offer customers a ‘try before you buy’ service. The online portal automates each part of the sale from shopping cart to payments, or returns. Founder, Bettina bought an online fashion brand 8 years ago and struggled to increase online sales for the first 3 years. Which led her to create Try@Home. This enabled her to reduce staffing costs, and automate everything. She wants other online brands to have the same success for their businesses.