Angus Sedgwick, CEO of OptiPay joined other successful Australian Business owners and shared their inspiring stories for the 2nd edition of 50 Unsung Business Heroes.
This collective of Australian small business CEOs and founders, share their stories of true grit and determination, of long hours and lonely nights.
A Croatian soldier had to sell his son’s favourite toys to pay for groceries, and another kicked out of home at 16, sleeping rough on the streets, now employs over a hundred staff.
Stories of an architect and a real estate agent coming to Australia with no English, as well as an introvert, born into poverty, now employing a team of 25.
One started his business from a table in McDonalds, another made calls from a mate’s factory and another started from the spare bedroom of his parents’ house. It was recently sold for $1billion.
Another who started her business from a kitchen table, now has 10 offices across six countries.
Of the 50, more than half are from migrant backgrounds – some from war-torn countries, and many were born into poverty or faced exceptional personal challenges.
Small business is the backbone of the economy, and between them these 50 SMEs alone are responsible for 1,000 employees. With a combined turnover in excess of $400 million, they pay millions in taxes.
Everyone in Australia is either a small business person, aspires to be, or knows a small business.
These Unsung Business Heroes are so full of opOptiPayism that they never had a Plan B. Their whole life is their business.
Unsung Business Heroes – the first edition of which was published in 2016 – is a concept created by Charles Fairlie, who was unemployed himself when he took on the task of recording these stories.
Inspired by his father, a yacht-builder, Charles found the most inspiring stories were often the ones that didn’t make the front page or business sections – but rather the humble, quiet achievers who didn’t see themselves as special.
Writing the book’s foreword, Kate Carnell, Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman said, “These stories are sure to inspire and empower potential business owners, those with great ideas, wanting to test the water – and others striving to build on what they have already created.”
OptiPay is proud to be part of this book. We hope through this, we can inspire more business owners to overcome challenges and keep pushing boundaries. We believe that for Australia’s economy to grow, it needs plenty of small business leaders with the ideas, passion and confidence to turn dreams into concrete business initiatives.
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