It is with great pleasure that we release this year’s Top 50 Small Business Leaders Report. Now in its seventh year, the Report garners more and more submissions from an ever more diverse range of sectors every year.
In the report, that you can download by clicking here, you will meet our judges – Alita Harvey-Rodriguez, Dr Daniel Prior, Ellie Degraeve, Jacinta Plazzer and Nicole Davidson – to whom I’d like to express my immense gratitude for the time and effort they put into sorting through the large volume of high-quality submissions we received this year, and for coming up with such an inspirational Top 50. We also revisit one of last year’s winners; Emily Bobis has taken her IoT-based traffic management solution from strength to strength since featuring in the 2022 Report, and it’s great to be able to showcase the exciting developments for the business in the last 12 months.
Innovation and a focus on sustainability – Lydy’s reusable coffee cup lids, ethical clothing & homeware retailer BLAEK Store and apiarist & environmental steward Bee All Natural and Organic, and rescuer of armers’ ‘imperfect produce’ Good & Fugly are prime examples – are common themes among this year’s Top 50. There is also a focus on making a better future for our children, through from an early age at the StarKids Salon & Spa to their schooldays in the form of teachers’ platform Cleverbean, and our ‘furry friends’ are well represented – Shy Tiger and Laila and Me are among a number of our Top 50 catering to their needs. I am also delighted to introduce you to our youngest ever winner – the founder of diversity and inclusion enterprise Glossy Boys is just 14!
Thank you to Business Co Group and Etika Australia for their generous sponsorship of this year’s Top 50 Report and launch event. Thanks also to my colleague Karl Aguilar for his diligent assistance in the compilation of the profiles of this year’s small-business leaders. Enjoy reading about this year’s winners’ remarkable achievements by clicking here and the challenges they have overcome to get to where they are now.
Australia’s 2023 Top 50 Small Business Leaders
Alice Needham, Wagalot Brands
Alina Hunter & Lucy Chambers, Cleverbean
Amber Boyers, Baiia
Andrew Herbert, remap.ai
Angelique Woodburn, The Midnight Gang
Angus Stevens, Start Beyond
Annette Densham, The Audacious Agency
April Booij, Fame Events Design
Bianca Tarrant, Our Cow
Brendan Sigvart, FundFindrs
Candice Kiss, Gather & Feast Café / Annie Lane Café
Cynthia Harris, Heart Talent
Danielle Johansen, Threadicated
Ellie McBride & Ella Worsley, The Enlighten Co
Emily Ciardiello, Foil Me
Florian Dieterle, Case & Pike Design
Gavin McCarthy, Wheelnutz Garage
Goro Gupta, Ethical Property Investments
Jacine Greenwood, Roccoco Botanicals
Jenn Donovan, Spend With Us
Karen Vickers, Auxilliam
Kristy Moore, Travel Moore
Kyah Seary, Happy Bum Co
Lauren Yehezkel, Lydy
Loredana Se Simone Rybka, San Elk
Louise Gilbert, The Intime Collective
Lucas Lane, Glossy Boys
Megan Patterson, Magical Megs
Melissa Deveraux, Laila and Me
Mike Erlin, AbilityMap
Mike Halligan, Scratch Pet Food
Molly Rogers Emma Clegg, JAM the label
Natasha Roebig, Bee All Natural and Organic
Nicole Rous, Shy Tiger
Nikki Ciancio, BLAEK Store
Nisha Ambwani, StarKids Salon & Spa
Radhika Mayani, Left-handesign
Raquel Manning, Blue Diamond Property Group
Rebekah Strachan, RBB Fitness Studio
Richard Tiurino, Good & Fugly
Robert Gaydon, Australian Fundraising Specialists
Rosanna Iacono, The Growth Ativists
Samantha Dybac, The PR Hub
Sarah Neill, Mys Tyler
Sarah Quinney & Dan O’Connell, Boardsox
Sarah Spence, Content Copywriting
Shannon Semenikow, Education and Migration Services Australia
Simon King, Carmel Distillery
Sonia Gibson, Accounting Heart
Vanessa Challacombe, Little Spurs & Co
You can click here to download the full report.