Ann Dettori has a fascinating story to share. After having four kids, she decided to get back into the workforce part-time, started a job with a book printing company as the bookkeeper, and ended up talking it over! Her business Post Prepress has only grown from strength to strength and she creates books for many of the big traditional publishers.
Then she started Independent Ink, a one-stop shop production company for self-published authors, and then co-founded Indie Experts, where they help authors from the idea through to the published book and beyond – understanding the overall goal of the author and helping them market the book once it is published. She offers some great insights into the publishing world and has, of course, also published her own book, The Entrepreneurs Guide to Self Publishing.
Ann is one of the nicest and most generous women you will meet and you will love her personal story of growing up in an Italian family in Queensland too!
Dana Hilmer is the co-founder of Camp Reinvention, a global company that provides transformational programs and community for women 50+ who are at a crossroads, want to get clear on what they want, make it happen and enjoy their life a hell of a lot more.
Kristy’s story is not your average one so hold on tight for this woman’s amazing journey. Kristy was born into one of the ‘rougher’ suburbs of Melbourne, to a father who was a career criminal, constantly in and out of jail, and a drug dealing mother. Kristy was super talented at running and was working with Debbie Flintoff-King towards the 2000 Olympics, when at the age of 15 she was told that she would never be able to run professionally again. This had been her goal and focus for so many years, so when it was taken away halfway through year 10, she dropped out of school and took to drugs and alcohol with her best friend. What was the point of going on if her dreams had been snatched away?
Then, after 18 months she suf=ddenly ‘came to’ and went back to school, funding her school years herself. She ended up at a selective school (for bright students) and finished year 12 determined to become a travel agent, which she now is.
Kristy’s story is filled with obstacles (eight miscarriages, cancer, Crohns Disease) but she continues to pick herself up and keep going. She is now Australia’s only certified Autism-friendly travel agent, she has won a host of awards (and is a finalist for many more) and she is such a positive woman, you wouldn’t believe what she has gone through to get here. You will LOVE Kristy!
Jodie Harrison is an extraordinary woman! Growing up in Australia, she headed off to America at a young age. She met her first husband Peter Carrette in Sydney who was a photographer and the two of them set up Icon Images. Prior to the paparazzi phenomenon, Jodie and Peter supplied stories and images to media globally. Jodie mentions that it was actually her and Peter who introduced Angelina Jolie to Cambodia, where she adopted her first child, Maddox. Jodie spent many, many years taking celebrities to third-world countries and highlighting situations around the world where people needed help.
After Peter died, Jodie started to work with brands to help them with PR and, marketing, and because she had such a fabulous network she was brilliant at it! These days she is a partner at The Shannon Company, an agency that works with purpose-driven brands to affect behavioural change and during the Pandemic she led COVID communications for the Victorian Government. These days she is working with Julian Assange’s team to raise awareness of his situation and hopefully get him out of jail. Freedom of speech is just one of the causes Jodie is passionate about. This is a fascinating insight into an amazing woman. You won’t want to miss it!
Emma is extraordinary. Coming from a family that thrived on innovation and entrepreneurship, she grew up helping her parents with their magazines, with the expectation that she would continue. But Emma wanted to go out on her own. In this interview, she takes us through the various incarnations of her career before the pandemic – which includes running a directory and an events company. While many people didn’t do much during the lockdowns, Emma isn’t one of those people! She and her husband, as foster parents themselves, realised there was a huge gap when it comes to preserving memories for foster children, many of whom can move around up to 20 times before they are 18.
The launch of CaringLife has gone incredibly well and they have now launched in the UK and the USA as well as Australia. Emma also launched Plezed.com which is a digital platform that is addressing the fact that from next year, no one will be able to use cookies on their websites, therefore they won’t get the same insights into their customers’ behaviour. Plezed will allow organisations to speak directly with their customers to ask them for their preferences. It is a game-changer! This woman is totally inspiring and you will love this episode!
Trenna Probert is amazing! After a career that culminated in her being Head of Strategy APAC for Macquarie Group, and the same role at Blue Chilli, Trenna struck out on her own. As an experienced entrepreneur, she has started multiple businesses, and her passion stems from a rich tapestry of personal experience. Her greatest passion currently is Super Fierce, a business Treena founded. Super Fierce is a social enterprise Fin Tech that was built to help close the $30 Trillion gender wealth gap. Superannuation, for younger Australian women, is their largest financial asset.
Trenna wants women to be able to fund the retirement that they deserve and The Super Fierce platform is one that enables women to do this, as well as saving them $3,000 – $4,500 that they would normally pay if they were to seek the help of a financial advisor. Trenna wants to make appropriate, affordable advice is accessible to every single woman in this country. She wants to empower women to age with dignity, self-confidence and have the ability to become financially resilient. Her life experience has taught Treena how vital it is for women to stand on their own two feet.
