High Agency Women

Lisa Nguyen on Building Astrid, Selling to Chemist Warehouse, and Redefining Resilience

In this episode of High Agency Women, Tash sits down with Astrid founder Lisa Nguyen following the sale of her medicinal cannabis business to Chemist Warehouse - a landmark moment for Australian female founders, and one of the most significant exits in a frontier category still shaped by stigma and misunderstanding. Lisa shares what it took to build Astrid from the ground up, the realities of scaling a business in a highly regulated and often misunderstood industry, and why Chemist Warehouse felt like the right home for the next chapter of the company. In a deeply honest conversation, Lisa also opens up about the emotional terrain behind the headlines: ambition, resilience, grief, growth, the acquisition process — and the beautiful news that after multiple failed rounds of IVF, she and her husband Hansen are now 12 weeks pregnant with twins (!!).  This is a convo about building something brave (because we need that right now), backing yourself in an emerging category, and the very human story behind one of Australia’s most exciting founder journeys. We know we say this about every episode, but it's a must listen! Sponsored by Blackbird.

Clutch Part II: In conversation with Annabel and Lucy Hay

Welcome back to High Agency Women, and this is a very exciting episode because it's the first time we've had repeat guests! Yep, the Clutch co-founders Annabel and Lucy Hay are back in the studio for Yeah, But How? to take us through how exactly Annabel spearheaded Clutch's $2 million pre-seed capital raise and deal close process with Australian VC firm Blackbird (one of the biggest rounds for a fast-moving consumer goods company globally, no biggie), how Lucy managed the specialist to generalist transition moving from working daily as a copywriter in ad agencies in collaborative environments to "doing it all" (albeit with her sister) as a business co-owner, and an exploration of the rise of "dupe culture" in the online retail world. The Hay sisters have put four years of thought and intention into creating and patenting the Clutch product (a sweat-resistant and water soluble glue that holds your clothes in place – hellllo strapless dresses staying up all night), the unique Clutch brand, and their audience. So you can imagine their shock when they started seeing a wave of copycats cropped up online selling ... well, not Clutch. Once the high of the Shark Tank pitch and capital raise wears off, the beautiful, sometimes messy reality of building sets in. And in this episode, the Hay sisters generously share how they've learned to navigate the random hazards that come with startup territory. "Clutch looks lovely and shiny on the outside, and people will say: 'you guys are doing the coolest stuff!', and I'm like yes, it does look cool. But day to day - it can be crazy," Lucy says. "But then I'm like... is anyone more powerful than the two of us? A problem comes up, and we always figure it out." Strap in. This is a good one. Sponsored by Blackbird.

The founder balancing act: Ambition, boundaries, and burnout

New year, new goals - but how do you sustain them without burning out?! In this episode of High Agency Women (our first for the year!) host Natasha Gillezeau sits down with psychologist Rashida Dungarwalla and founders Phoebe Saintilan-Stocks and Alicia Vrajlal for an honest conversation about ambition, boundaries, and wellbeing in the startup world.  From vision boards and New Year’s resolutions to the pressure to always say yes, the trio unpack how being a founder can blur the line between work and identity - and why learning to step back is essential for long-term success.  Rashida (also the founder of everyone's favourite Flow State Space [https://www.flowstatespace.com/rashida]) shares why having interests outside of work and “switching hats” is critical for balance, while Phoebe reflects on people-pleasing, setting firmer boundaries and how rest has made her more creative. Alicia also opens up about the expectations that come with visibility, chronic health challenges and the hidden cost of overcommitment (that often founders know all too well!).  Together, they explore a shared truth: doing everything isn’t sustainable - and boundaries aren’t a failure, but a leadership skill.  Our High Agency Women series is proudly sponsored by Blackbird.

Letting go and levelling up: Lauren Meisner on the realities of scaling a media company

When Centennial World founder Lauren Meisner saw traditional media dismissing internet culture and the creator economy, she didn’t just tweet about it – she quit her job, put in $5K of her own money, and launched a world-first Gen Z–focused internet culture brand… three months later. In this Yeah, But How mini-series episode of High Agency Women, host Natasha Gillezeau sits down with Lauren to unpack the very un-glam and real side of building a new media company from scratch: bootstrapping vs taking on a bank loan, surviving the chaos of COVID, ad budgets, navigating a co-founder exit, and evolving from a classic “.com” publisher into a personality-led podcast network. Lauren is brutally honest about what it actually takes to grow as a founder – especially when your strengths (for her, editorial instincts) can become a hiding place from the parts of the business you’re less confident in. She shares how she’s learning to confront those weak spots head on, why 2026 will be her “year of no scaling”, and the mindset shift that came with deciding Centennial World needed to be bigger than just her face and voice. You’ll hear Lauren and Tash dive into: * How Lauren spotted (and moved fast on) a global gap in the market for serious coverage of internet culture * What really happened behind the scenes of bootstrapping Centennial World, from the first MAC Cosmetics deal to taking a bank loan in 2024 * Navigating a co-founder breakup while staying friends – and keeping the business alive * Why she killed off Meta and deprioritised the website, and went all-in on podcasting * Building a personality-led media brand that sits across both media and influencer budgets * Learning to trust your instincts in business when you don’t feel like a “numbers” person * The power of shamelessly asking for help (including the story of emailing Anna Wintour – and getting a reply) If you’re a creatively-driven founder, aspiring media entrepreneur, or just ~chronically online~ and curious about what it takes to turn that obsession into a business, we can guarantee that conversation will hit home (and follow Centennial World while you're at it!!). Sponsored by Blackbird.

The Leap Dilemma: How Founders Know When to Go All In

Welcome back to High Agency Women - and today, we’re diving into another Yeah, But How? episode, this time exploring what we’re calling the leap dilemma. We’re joined by two powerhouse founders who know exactly what it means to take the plunge: Camille Goldstone-Henry, Founder and CEO of Xylo Systems, [https://www.xylo.systems/] and Grace Toombs, Founder of June Health [https://www.heyjune.com.au/]. Together, they unpack the question every aspiring entrepreneur faces - how do you know when it’s the right time to take the leap and work on your startup full-time? What makes this conversation so compelling is that both Camille and Grace come from non-traditional business backgrounds. Camille began her career as a conservation scientist, while Grace was deep in the academic world of medicine before pivoting to build her own company. They’re both proud First Nations women, Startmate alumni, and leaders driven by purpose and impact. For Camille, that mission is protecting global biodiversity through tech innovation. For Grace, it’s redesigning women’s healthcare - restoring dignity, access, and agency from first period to final bleed. Camille has been recognised as a Women’s Weekly Women of the Future award-winner for her cloud-based platform connecting conservation projects worldwide, while Grace has been celebrated in Marie Claire as Changemaker of the Month for her bold reimagining of healthcare systems (just casually).  It’s a rich, honest, and inspiring conversation about risk, timing, identity, and what it really means to back yourself - even when the path isn’t obvious. With pleasure, here’s Camille Goldstone-Henry and Grace Toombs.  This episode was sponsored by Blackbird [https://www.blackbird.vc/].