About Me
In a few Lines
At 34 I started out from a small living room, built a multi-million-dollar company from scratch, and at 49 I sold it and retired.
I am here to share with you, how I did that.
About Me
the short version
G’day! š Thanks for stopping by.
Some days, I amaze myself, and other days I put my keys in the fridge; and that right there makes me human. Knowing that I am only human has also made me humble.
Ambition together with humility is what I believe in most part makes an effective and successful business leader.
You may be surprised to know that I am not always a Cranky Boss!
I was however just like you a business owner and I know just how challenging that can be. I am here to share with you exactly what worked for me in the hope that I may save you some sanity, some money, and some crankiness!
I know what works in business but more importantly I know what doesnāt work.
I don’t pretend to have all the answers, but I understand that part of being successful is to seek those answers from the right people.
About Me
the long version
My Journey to where I am todayā¦
First things first!
I was born and raised in Melbourne, Australia and have spent most of my life here, but I have also lived overseas, mainly in Europe and Dubai. I have established a few successful businesses overseas, with the leading and most successful in my home country, Australia.
In terms of Education ā a year 12 certificate, the super power of a second language, and a college diploma in travel & hospitality. Some short course certificates, but nothing fancy.
The rest I learnt along the way in business and life. Lucky for me, I am more of a proactive person rather than a reactive one. I prefer foresight over hindsight.
Thatās not to say I didnāt make mistakes. I did, and big ones! But these were also my most significant learning curves. There have been a lot of OMFG moments over the years!
My father was a hard-working & successful businessman who didn’t give handouts very easily. Not because he wasn’t generous, but because he wanted to teach me the ‘value of the dollar’. At 12, I would tag along with him on school holidays when he would let me. I wanted to learn, to work, to earn money. He thought I was too young but took me anyway and instead of cash, bought me a hot chocolate for my hard work. I didn’t care. I loved working with him and learning.
At 15, he had me working alongside his business every day after school. I can guarantee you there was no favouritism or special privileges! He prepared me for what the real working world would look like.
By 21, I had almost worked every job under the sun to gain experience. From factories to restaurants to cafes & take away shops, you name it, I did it.
Experience was everything to me. Money was secondary. Because I knew that if I achieved the first, the second would automatically follow.
At 26, I started a small profitable side business in graphic design. I remember not having access to my own computer back then. I would often work overtime without pay, producing high-end graphic work for the company I was then working for, to learn and gain the experience I so desperately wanted. Yes, the company got the job for free, but I gained the experience and knowledge I was after. I was a far cry from a quiet quitter.
By 29 I had saved enough money to start travelling. I wanted to gain experience meeting different cultures, working with people of all ages and nationalities and build on that multicultural and diverse environment the world offers. I believed it would be an asset in life.
I wanted to conquer the world!
At 32, I had joined the then new and innovative eCommerce platform of eBay (geez, that reminds me how old I am!) and was hustling another profitable little business alongside my full-time job.
At 34, back in Melbourne, I went “all in” on my new business. I was ready. My own life’s twists & turns prepared me for this very moment. I knew I had the capabilities; I knew my strengths and weaknesses, and I grasped all the tools I had picked up along the way and knew that I just had to give this a go. I moved from being a solopreneur to an entrepreneur.
I was running a multi-million-dollar business in just a few years.
About The Company
I was one of two directors of a company that started small. The other one, by her admission, was lazy. Also, by her admission was a massive asset š – and in the words of Bill Gates:
” I choose a lazy person to do a hard job. Because a lazy person will find an easy way to do it”.
Bingo, right there!
There are pros and cons of starting a business with a partner. I can definitely say in my case, the pros far outweighed the cons.
I remember having a meeting with Google execs on the living room floor ā everything else was decked out with product that was selling like hotcakes and paperwork that needed to be sorted. We hired friends to help out with the chaos, friends of friends, and more friends who bought in even more friends! That was about 15 people in and out of my living room working graveyard shifts! š„“
That was back in 2006. The following year I slowly got that living room back!
The business moved its operation to a one garage storage facility close by. In a few weeks, it needed another garage and then another one. Soon enough, in 2008 it took the whole upper level and converted it into a warehouse and office space.
By 2014 it outgrew the facility again, and with great due diligence, as directors we decided it was time to begin manufacturing what we had been selling for the last eight years. We bought industrial machinery, hired a skilled team, rented a bigger facility created a killer business plan and didnāt look back.
A year later in 2015 we bought the production facility property.
In 2018 we received a nomination for āAustralian Business of the Year: Excellence in Manufacturing.ā
In 2021 we sold a healthy and profitable multi-million-dollar company.
I am 49 and have now retired.
Now, Let’s get this party started!
Here is a quick way to navigate through my site:
About Me
You are Here!
Why Cranky Boss
A few lines of how we got to Cranky Boss!
Home
Reset and hit the home button to start navigating from the home page.
The 5 Basic Step Guide
The foundation of a successful business. All your critical information, unpacked and made simple.
Going Online
The importance of taking your business online – Tips & guidelines on how to do it.
Blog
This area will contain new articles, news and all the fun stuff we get to talk about.
Pearls of Wisdom
A compilation of my favourite quotes, or sayings and where you are welcome to send me your favourites.
Travelling for FREE
A guide on how to travel business & first class (or even economy) for FREE
Contact
The place you go, to drop me an email.
I would love to hear from you, for any questions or feedback; or even if you just want to let me know youāre feeling cranky. Iāve been there.
š
Recognition Factors:
š Nominee Australian Business Awards
šFeatured in The Age
šŗFeatured on A Current Affair
šŗFeatured on the Morning Show
Trusted in Business by major corporate deals such as:
Monash University – Dancing with the Stars – āBeautifulā ā The Carol King Musical “Hamilton” – The Musical – “Harry Potter” – The Musical.