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    How I made it

    How I Made It

    Inside the Rich List: How Australia’s top entrepreneurs built their fortunes and what they learnt along the way. What’s the difference between you and a Rich Lister? Listen and see.

    Hosted by

    Julie-anne Sprague

    Rich List editor

    Julie-anne Sprague

    Produced by

    Lap Phan

    Podcast Producer & Actor

    Lap Phan

    Listen now

    Latest Episode

    Sam Kroonenburg shares his story on the How I Made It podcast.

    The one thing this Rich Lister says every founder needs to remember

    Sam Kroonenburg built a company from his bedroom, with him and his brother Ryan both making about $500 million. But Sam, 40, is doing what he can to avoid the trappings of wealth.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    How exquisite timing and meditating shaped this Rich Lister’s fortune

    After deciding a career in law wasn’t for him, Kerry Harmanis turned to prospecting in WA. That decision led to the $3.1 billion sale of Jubilee Mines.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    June

    Cars, boats and houses won’t make you happy, says this Rich Lister

    Property developer Paul Blackburne landed on the Rich List with an estimated $536 million fortune. There’s a success trap entrepreneurs need to be mindful of, he says.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    June

    WiseTech co-founder Richard White.

    The Rich Lister who avoids risk at all costs

    Richard White wanted to be a rock ‘n’ roll star. He ended up developing software for companies in logistics and is now the 11th wealthiest person in Australia.

    • Julie-anne Sprague
    Steph Claire Smith went from ‘another coat hanger on the books’ to Young Rich Lister.

    A Young Rich Lister’s advice for founders wanting social media success

    How a back-of-the-napkin plan put fitness star Steph Claire Smith on the Young Rich List.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    May

    How a uni dropout went from Maccas to building a $100m company

    Mark Woodland was expanding his education start-up before realising he’d overlooked a critical component for its success and he had to fix it.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    This former Young Rich Lister just spent $700k to alter his genes

    Nick Bell’s first business failed, his next made him millions. The serial entrepreneur’s latest business venture involves helping people live longer.

    • Julie-anne Sprague
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    April

    The homeschooled billionaire who built a fortune before turning 40

    Shaun Bonett was the country’s richest person under 40 in 2007. Now a billionaire, he shares his story, including a humiliating $25 million mistake.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    December 2023

    Rich Lister Sam Kennard took over the self-storage business when he was just 24.

    How Sam Kennard built a $2.6b empire

    The influential business figure always had ambition to work and grow the family company. But he didn’t expect his dad to give him total control when he was just 24 years of age.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    How Cathie Reid went from typing class to a $550m fortune

    The Rich Lister originally wanted to be a typist. Instead, she became a pharmacist before she spotted a gap in the market and become an entrepreneur alongside husband Stuart Giles.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    November 2023

    How I Made It with Kevin Gosschalk

    Why this Young Rich Lister shuns Australian investors

    “When you find something you really enjoy, sleeping really just gets in the way,” says Kevin Gosschalk, the Young Rich Lister behind Arkose Labs.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    How Mark Carnegie thumb-sucked his way off the Rich List

    The entrepreneur and corporate adviser has had plenty of woulda, shoulda, coulda moments. One of them cost him about $100 million.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    October 2023

    This school drop-out became a property magnate. Here’s how he did it

    He was told he didn’t have the ‘capability’ to finish school. Now, Nigel Satterley has a $500 million empire that landed him on the Rich List.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    This Rich Lister added $1b to his wealth in less than two years

    Medical technology firm Pro Medicus has delivered blistering returns this year. Its success has propelled co-founder Sam Hupert into the $2 billion club.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    September 2023

    Being an introvert helped set up this Young Rich Lister to make $1b

    Alex Tomic didn’t find university challenging, so he quit. Now he’s worth $125 million and climbing, as the toothpaste-related company he formed with a childhood friend shines bright.

    • Julie-anne Sprague
    Carolyn Creswell’s secret weapon is vanilla.

    The checkout chick who created a $170m empire

    Carolyn Creswell’s company dominates the supermarket shelves. But it didn’t start that way. In the early days, she had to come up clever ways to get ahead.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    May 2023

    Gabrielle Manning rented out her home to help fund the creation of Manning Cartell.

    ‘Don’t care what other people think’: This founder’s key to success

    Gabrielle Manning was climbing the ladder of a corporate career in the fashion industry until, in her early 30s, she and two of her sisters quit their jobs to go it alone.

    • Julie-anne Sprague
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    Bec Jefferd (seated) and Ava Chandler.

    How Ultra Violette went from 3000 Insta followers to global brand

    Bec Jefferd and Ava Chandler-Matthews worked together at Mecca before realising no-one was marketing the ultimate anti-ageing product: daily sunscreen.

    • Julie-anne Sprague
    Priscilla Hajiantoni quit a corporate job at ANZ to create a product to fix her skin.

    This 29-year-old used her house deposit to create a start-up success

    Bangn Body’s Priscilla Hajiantoni suffered from skin breakouts. She’d tried everything and nothing seemed to work. So she set out to make her own skincare products.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    April 2023

    Jo Horgan

    Stay private and persevere: How Jo Horgan made Mecca a retail giant

    The retail cosmetics powerhouse lost money for its first four years and was on the verge of shutting down. Now it turns over more than $570 million.

    • Julie-anne Sprague
    Tania Austin operates with a small business mindset.

    How Tania Austin built one of Australia’s most successful retailers

    Tania Austin is the force behind women’s fashion group Decjuba, a business she bought in 2008 when there were just five stores. Now there’s 140 and counting.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

    March 2023

    She made $140m selling underwear, now she’s investing it back in women

    ModiBodi founder Kristy Chong urges female entrepreneurs to have a detailed plan for how to grow their businesses and to get their life partners on Trello.

    • Julie-anne Sprague

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    2. Open the search page by tapping on the magnifying glass button in the bottom right corner. This will open up the search box.
    3. Search the name of the podcast you want to find (e.g. The Sure Thing) and tap the search button on the keyboard. You will then be shown a grid of search results.
    4. Tap on the podcast you want from the search results and this will take you to the homepage with a list of available episodes.
    5. Choose an episode to play by tapping on it or subscribe to the podcast to have it appear in your library and automatically download the latest episodes.

    For more information refer to Apple support.

    HOW TO LISTEN (ANDROID DEVICE)

    1. Download and install the Google Podcasts app from the Google Play Store.
    2. Open the ‘Google Podcasts’ app and use the search box to search the name of the podcast you want to find (e.g. The Sure Thing).
    3. Tap on the podcast you want from the search results and this will take you to the homepage with a list of available episodes.
    4. Choose an episode to play by tapping on it or subscribe to the podcast to have it appear at the top of the app. A new section of the app will then notify you of new podcast episodes when you are subscribed.

    For more information refer to Google support.