213 episodes

There is a lot of activity in the Australian startup ecosystem. Ideas, talent, and money are all flowing into this sector at an unprecedented rate.

This weekly podcast brings in-depth interviews with the best people making the biggest difference.

It's brought to you by Ian Gardiner and Phaedon Stough, technology entrepreneurs helping to grow the startup sector in Australia and New Zealand. Ian and Phaedon co-founded Innovation Bay with a clear mission to help technology entrepreneurs succeed.

Open the Pod Bay Doors Innovation Bay

    • Technology
    • 4.9 • 49 Ratings

There is a lot of activity in the Australian startup ecosystem. Ideas, talent, and money are all flowing into this sector at an unprecedented rate.

This weekly podcast brings in-depth interviews with the best people making the biggest difference.

It's brought to you by Ian Gardiner and Phaedon Stough, technology entrepreneurs helping to grow the startup sector in Australia and New Zealand. Ian and Phaedon co-founded Innovation Bay with a clear mission to help technology entrepreneurs succeed.

    E174 - Bernadette Olivier - CEO & Co-Founder - The Volte

    E174 - Bernadette Olivier - CEO & Co-Founder - The Volte

    Our guest this week is Bernadette Olivier, CEO & Co-Founder of The Volte - a groundbreaking peer-to-peer fashion rental marketplace that's redefining the way we experience fashion globally. From its humble beginnings to its dazzling rise, The Volte seamlessly connects borrowers and lenders, while promoting a sustainable, circular economy.

     

    Bernadette takes us through the evolution of The Volte, from its early days catering to fashionistas to its transformation into a platform embraced by mainstream consumers. She reflects on the complexities of remote work, the importance and challenges of strategic partnerships, and the challenges faced during the tumultuous times of COVID-19. The Volte not only weathered the COVID storm, but has since experienced remarkable growth in orders and active users. 

     

    She candidly reflects on the importance of trust, dedication, and alignment within a startup team, where she shares co-founder duties with four other women - Genevieve Hohnen, Kym Atkins and Jade Hirniak. From bootstrap beginnings to securing funding from Angels and VCs including eBay Ventures,The Volte defied the odds to become a trailblazer in the fashion rental industry.

     

    Bernadette shares the uniqueness of The Volte's model - which is focused on occasion-based rentals rather than traditional subscriptions - as well as insights into the company's distinctive unit economics. From leveraging strategic investments, harnessing the power of AI for personalised customer experiences, and visions of international expansion into Europe, Bernadette paints a compelling picture for The Volte's future.

     

    Quickfire Round 

    Book: 'Atonement' by Ian McEwan, 'Burn Book' by Kara Swisher

    Podcast: Hard Fork, The Business of Fashion 

    News Source: New York Times 

    Productivity App: ClickUp 

    CEO: Anthony Eisen (Afterpay) 

    Favourite App: Calm 

    TV Show:  'Vanderpump Rules' and 'The Morning Show'

    Movie: ‘Barbie’, ‘Oppenheimer’ 

    TED Talk Topic: Changing consumption habits - moving from disposable, one-off usage to reusing, safekeeping and passing onto the next owner. 
    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    • 47 min
    E173 - Olympia Yarger, CEO & Founder, Goterra

    E173 - Olympia Yarger, CEO & Founder, Goterra

    Proud Canberran and past North Carolina coleslaw wrestling competitor, Olympia Yarger is an incredibly resilient, dedicated, inspiring and super hands-on Founder & CEO of Goterra, a waste management technology company that uses autonomous robotic systems to process food waste using insects. The company enables a circular economy by creating agricultural commodities from the waste stream. 

     

    Goterra is paving the way for a circular economy by transforming waste into agricultural commodities, all while significantly reducing truck movement and processing costs. Learn about the remarkable environmental impact of Goterra's technology, which eliminates noxious gasses and slashes emissions by an impressive 97%.

     

    Having spoken to her on the podcast 3 years ago, it was our pleasure to touch base with Olympia again on her fascinating journey from sheep farmer to maggot farmer, the incredible growth Goterra has had over the past 3 years while being incredibly efficient with the capital they have raised (just $20M since 2019) all with a laser focus on Goterra's mission to redefine waste management for a more sustainable future. 

     

    On the topic of mental health, Olympia has been working from home more frequently to limit distractions and, after a tough year personally in 2023, has made a commitment to ride her horse at least 5 times a week. As part of Innovation Bay’s Summit community, Olympia has had some of her most meaningful experiences at Summit events. Though it can be difficult to get to the events amongst the day to day commitments of running the business, each time she’s gone she mentions it refills the bucket and gains perspective from other founders doing the same thing.  

     

    Olympia and Ian also spend some time unravelling the State of Australian Startup Funding report, particularly around the pressing issues of gender inequality and diversity in the ecosystem that the report reveals. Olmypia says, “It’s disgusting and we should be ashamed.” She calls out that as an industry we shouldn’t be using any female founder as an example because the number of female founders receiving funding is still far too low and this needs to change. With deeptech, an even more polarising sector of the industry, Olympia adds: “The sheer limited number of women “making it” are an anomaly, not an attribute and we’ve got to change something.”

     

    Quickfire Round: 

    Book: Women Who Run With the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés

    Podcast: Agtech So What 

    News Source: Al-Jazeera

    Productivity Tool: Notion 

    CEO: Tom Loeffler or Keaton Okkonen 

    App: Instagram 

    TV Show: Yellowstone, Vikings 

    TEDTalk Topic: What building climate tech means 

     

    Connect with Olympia Yarger and visit https://goterra.au/ 
    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    • 1 hr
    E172 - Tom Amos, CEO & Co-Founder - Sidekicker

    E172 - Tom Amos, CEO & Co-Founder - Sidekicker

    Our guest for episode 172 is Tom Amos, CEO and Co-Founder of Sidekicker - a platform that matches thousands of businesses to pre-qualified temporary staff. 

     

    During this chat, Tom reflects on Sidekicker's journey from the genesis of the idea as sparked by 'The 4-Hour Workweek', through to the milestone of turning over a million dollars in a month. Tom's journey is not just about business but also about building a culture where caring for each other is at the core. 

     

    Sidekicker has been backed with $40million in funding, the initial amount of $100,000 primarily from Seek Investments. They have not only disrupted the market but have also become a vital player in the space. Sidekicker work with around 2,000 customers per year, ranging from small catering companies to large organisations like Australia Post. 

     

    From the nuts and bolts of Sidekicker to the broader landscape of business and innovation, Tom offers valuable insights into: 


    the future of work
    the role of AI - sharing how Sidekicker innovatively uses AI for data automation, matching engines, and award compliance
    the potential challenges the economy may face in the next 24 months

     

    Quickfire Round: 

    Book: 'The Year of the Locust'

    Podcast: 'No Laying Up', 'Acquired' 

    News Source: Twitter

    Productivity Tool: ChatGPT

    Favorite CEO: Elon Musk

    App: Uber

    TV shows: ‘Slow Horses’, ‘Boys Swallows Universe’

    TEDTalk Topic: Golf OR How to kick a standard career away and begin a startup without technical experience
    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    • 53 min
    E171 - James Bowe - Co-Founder - OwnHome

    E171 - James Bowe - Co-Founder - OwnHome

    Our guest this week is James Bowe, the Co-Founder of OwnHome alongside Tim Harley. With shelter as a fundamental human need, OwnHome aims to transform access to homeownership in Australia, allowing aspirational homeowners to enter the property market without a 20% deposit, helping them get there for just 2% upfront. 

     

    With enviable and impressive resumes and backgrounds across consulting and consumer tech with the likes of Bain & Company, Morgan Stanley, UBS, Macquarie, Wise Ltd, and Herbert Smith Freehills between them, James and Tim were driven to start OwnHome after reflecting on some of the biggest challenges they personally face (financial security being at the top of the pile) and how they want to spend the brief period of time they have left on this planet. 

     

    After participating in Commonwealth Bank’s accelerator program from overseas, working their day jobs during UK day time and the accelerator program from 10pm - 4am, they finished in the top spot for the accelerator and received $150,000 funding. Now armed with little to no excuses to jump into OwnHome full time, the pair returned to Australia, and raised their seed round while in hotel quarantine in Sydney. Own Home has since received backing from Entrez, Global Founders Capital, Square Peg, and Commonwealth Bank's X15 Ventures and recently raised $31 million in their series A round. 

     

    OwnHome combines technology and human services for a seamless experience. Through OwnHome, aspiring homeowners can wave goodbye to renting forever and forgo intergenerational support as the only avenue to owning a home. Their offer allows those with just 2% deposit on the home value access to a licensed buyer’s agent, split loan structures, choice of home loan and comprehensive support through the process. Over the past two and a half years, they have received well over 20,000 applications and supported 50 families in becoming homeowners. Across the next 12 months, OwnHome aspired to support $500 million of property purchases in the next 12 months. 

     

    Quickfire Round 

    Book: Amp It Up!, Frank Slootman & Black Belt, Joseph HealyPodcast: All-In Newsource: The Economist, Twitter App: Twitter Productivity Tool: Siri CEO: Jeff BezosTV Show: SuccessionTEDTalk Topic: Solving the challenges of housing affordability in Australia  
    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    • 1 hr 6 min
    E170 - Belonging: The Superpower of Our Species

    E170 - Belonging: The Superpower of Our Species

    Human beings have an innate need to belong to a group or tribe. Large parts of our brain are dedicated to engaging and interacting with others. Belonging triggers the release of chemicals in our brain that promote trust, empathy, and social bonding. Building belonging is essential in a fractured world and requires understanding and addressing our default setting.

    During this very special episode recorded during the Innovation Bay panel at SXSW Sydney's inaugural event in October 2023, an all star panel featuring Phil Morle (Main Sequence Ventures), Jenny Li (Scarlare Partners), Joel Connelly (Blackbird), and Skye Riggs (Ripple Opportunities) join moderator and guest Open The Pod Bay Doors host, Cameron Webb (Innovation Bay) to share insights on how to build belonging at speed and scale. They share strategies for welcoming new members and creating meaningful connections that keep people engaged over the long term.

    This episode is proudly brought to you by propodcast.com.au 
    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    • 52 min
    E169 - Dan Sturrock, Investment Director, ARENA

    E169 - Dan Sturrock, Investment Director, ARENA

    Our guest this week is Dan Sturrock, Investment Director at Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA). With a decade of experience at ARENA, Dan has witnessed the organisation's remarkable evolution and growth. As an ARENA board observer representative, he provides invaluable insights into the exciting work of propelling startups towards solving colossal challenges - companies like Sundrive and RayGen, who are making huge strides in the solar energy sector.

     

    ARENA's mandate is to accelerate decarbonisation with a focus on renewable energy. By providing grant funding for groundbreaking projects in renewable energy, energy storage, and electric vehicles, they are taking the battle against climate change to a whole new level. The monumental task of decarbonisation requires an all-encompassing approach across various sectors, and both the government and corporate giants are stepping up to the plate. ARENA's core focus is reducing risks and igniting innovation in renewable energy generation.

     

    The fourth installment of the Innovation Bay & ARENA Renewables Startup Showcase for 2023 happens next week on Wednesday 1 November at Melbourne’s Cargo Hall. This event brings together 100+ of the country's leading angel investor, VC, PE and CVC community. Get ready to be blown away by four of the most remarkable founder pitches from the renewables, cleantech, and climatetech sectors. It's not just an event; it's a spark for networking and an education in the latest developments in the renewable startup universe. This year's stars include Renewable Metals, Hysata, Sicona, and Novalith. 

     

    Tickets are limited and available now https://innovationbay.com/event/arena-november/ 

     

    Quickfire Round: 


    Book: Love Stories, Trent Dalton
    Podcast: Positive Climate
    News Source: New York Times 
    Productivity Tool: turning off notifications and avoiding distractions
    Favourite CEO: Allan Moss, Nick Moore
    Favourite App: Spotify 
    TV Show: Alone Australia
    TEDTalk Topic: Alternative approaches to creativity in children and challenging some of the accepted paradigms around education

     

    Connect with Dan Sturrock via LinkedIn or email.
    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    • 40 min

Customer Reviews

4.9 out of 5
49 Ratings

49 Ratings

john cowling ,

Open the Pod Bay Doors

Great podcast
Listen to everyone

3johnnys ,

It works, insightful and patient two way discussion

This podcast works, insightful and patient two way discussion about start ups in Australia and elsewhere, start ups on their own and at risk of being oxymoronic, start ups in larger corporate entities

A.ndy72 ,

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Extremely useful resource for founders. I find each guest offers something very valuable to the table.

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