The Dion Guagliardo Podcast

In this episode, I interview Adam Ferrier - Founder of Thinkerbell. Founded in 2017, Adam has helped scale Thinkerbell into one of Australia's most recognisable advertising agencies, working with iconic brands such as Vegemite, Menulog, and Jetstar. With his sharp insights and unique point of view, Adam is also a regular panellist on shows like The Project, Gruen, Sunrise, and ABC Radio. Thro...

In this episode, I interview Colleen Callander - former CEO of Sportsgirl and Sussan and Founder of Mentor Me Women. Over a 30-year career in Australian retail, Colleen led major fashion brands through periods of significant growth and transformation, including a decade-long turnaround at the labels where she served as CEO. Colleen discusses how she got her start in fashion at just 16, the leaders...

In this episode, I interview Steve Baxter - Co-Founder of TEN13 and Founder of Beaten Zone Venture Partners. Steve launched his first tech startup in 1994 and went on to sell his second, PIPE Networks for $373 million in 2009. He has become one of Australia’s leading investors in start-ups and tech.   Throughout the conversation, Steve talks about the process of scaling his first start-ups within...

In this episode, I interview Ben Thompson - Co-founder and CEO of Employment Hero. With a valuation of almost $2 billion, Ben has scaled the company to be one of the world’s leading HR, payroll, and recruitment software businesses. Employment Hero is used by over 400,000 businesses and 3 million employees globally. Throughout the episode, Ben highlights the ambition of Employment Hero to assist pe...

In this episode, I interview Amanda Rettig - Founder of Mimco and A-ESQUE. As a design leader in the fashion industry, Amanda grew Mimco into a fashion powerhouse and sold the accessories brand for $45 million in 2007. Now, she continues her creative success into luxury handbags and goods at A-ESQUE.  Amanda shares her approach to building a retail brand, and scaling her business and exit with Mim...

In this episode, I interview Angela Ferguson - Creative and Managing Director of Futurespace. As a business leader in workplace strategy and design for over 25 years, she has worked with global clients to transform their workplace environment through her innovative projects. Throughout the conversation, Angela highlights her ability to navigate the changing business landscape and implement her fut...

In this episode, I interview David McGrath – Chief Executive Officer of myPlates and TasPlates. With a distinguished career as a technology and media executive, David has driven business success through his expertise in product innovation and strategic leadership. Throughout the episode, David shares his experiences navigating the evolving business landscape across different media and technology s...

In this episode, I interview Alan Jones – Managing Partner of M8 Ventures. With a career that evolved through roles at Microsoft and Yahoo during the height of the dot-com boom, Alan has become one of the country’s most experienced and respected angel investors. Throughout the conversation, Alan shares how his early curiosity and self-taught tech skills shaped his journey from journalism to ventur...

In this episode, I interview Cassandra Kelly - Co-Founder of Pottinger — a multi-award-winning financial and strategic global advisory firm. In 2019, Cassandra was awarded an Order of Australia in recognition of her transformative contributions to business through executive roles and as an advocate for equity and inclusion. Throughout the episode, Cassandra, based in New York, shares insights on h...

In this episode, I interview David Fastuca - Co-Founder of Locomote and CEO & Co-Founder Growth Forum. Founded in 2012, David grew Locomote into $150 million sales pipeline in less than 18 months, culminating in over $30 million in exits. He now focuses his time scaling Growth Forum, a sales learning platform providing solutions for high-growth companies. Throughout the episode, David talks ab...

In this episode, I interview Tom Cawley - Executive Chair of MaxMine — an innovative technology company revolutionizing open-pit mining operations since its founding in 2015. Under Tom’s leadership, MaxMine has grown from a bootstrapped startup into an industry leader backed by private equity, all while maintaining a strong focus on values and reputation to successfully break into a competitive ma...

In this episode, I interview Jason T Smith. Jason was CEO of Back In Motion Health Group. Founded in 1999, Back In Motion grew into one of Australia’s largest physiotherapy networks, eventually becoming an ASX-listed company and setting a record for one of the sector’s biggest transactions. Throughout the episode, Jason shares how he built his business from humble beginnings in his garage, scaling...

In this episode, I interview Andrea and Ian Gardiner. Andrea is the founder of Jelix Ventures, an early-stage venture capital manager dedicated to supporting startups across Australia and New Zealand. Ian is the co-founder of Innovation Bay, Australia’s leading and longest running startup community. Together, Andrea and Ian have become major pillars in the startup scene, investing in over 45 compa...

In this episode, I sit down with Steve Grace, Founder and CEO of The Nudge Group. Since launching in 2019, The Nudge Group has redefined the role of recruitment agencies, helping startups scale by connecting them with top talent and a trusted ecosystem for growth. Steve shares his journey as a natural entrepreneur, including how he built and sold two successful businesses before founding The Nudge...

In this episode, I interview Greg Taylor - Founder of Step One Underwear. Founded in 2017, Step One has become one of Australia’s most popular underwear brands, growing to become an ASX-listed company, with a market capitalisation of around $250 million and operates internationally. Throughout the episode, Greg talks about his early days in rowing and how competing for Australia taught him the tea...

In this episode, I interview Paul House - CEO of Imdex, an ASX-listed mining-tech company with a market capitalisation of $1.2 billion. Paul has helped the company grow to now employ over 800 staff globally and earn $445 million in annual revenue. Throughout the episode, Paul emphasises the importance of staying innovative and the power of seeking inspiration from different industries to identify...

In this episode, I interview Matt Jones, co-founder of Four Pillars - one of Australia’s most popular gin companies. Since founding in 2013, Matt and his co-founders have seen Four Pillars be named the worlds best gin producer three times, expand overseas and be acquired by drinks giant Lion for a reported $100 million. Throughout the episode, Matt emphasises the importance of brand, storytelling...

In this episode, I interview Phillip Di Bella - founder of Di Bella Coffee and more recently, the Coffee Commune. Founded in 2002, Phillip grew Di Bella coffee into one of Australia’s largest coffee roaster and supplier before eventually selling the business in 2014 for $47 million. Throughout the episode, Phillip talks about the importance of entrepreneurship and creativity especially when you ha...

In this episode, I interview Adam Schwab, co-founder of Luxury Escapes. Luxury Escapes is an online travel booking platform aimed at providing great travel packages at fair prices. Founded in 2013, Adam has grown the company to earn hundreds of millions in revenue, employ over 500 staff, and expand internationally. Throughout the episode, Adam talks about his long history as an entrepreneur and ho...

In this episode, I interview James Clarke, founder of Bolster Group. Founded in 2015, James has grown Bolster from a small team to now a multi-agency business, that employs 50 staff and helps orchestrate some of Australia’s biggest live events. Throughout the episode, James emphasises how taking on risk is the most important step in achieving scale and growing Bolster to where it is today. James a...

In this episode, I interview Leigh Jasper - co-founder of Aconex and Firmable. Aconex provided collaboration software technology for the construction, mining and oil sector. Over 18 years, Leigh grew the business to employ over 1000 people, list on the ASX before being acquired by Oracle for $1.6 billion in 2018. Today, Leigh is working on his latest company, Firmable, which is a platform that hel...

In this episode, I interview Frank Caruso, founder of Caruso’s Natural Health. Caruso’s Natural Health is one of Australia’s largest vitamin and supplements companies. Founded in 1982, Frank has grown the company to now earn tens of millions in annual revenue and have a catalogue of over 100 products. Throughout the episode, Frank talks about how he become fascinated with learning all about natura...

In this episode, I interview Christian Beck - Founder of Leap Legal Software. Founded in 1992, Christian has grown Leap to be the largest legal software company in Australia, bringing in over $1 billion in annual revenue and now operate internationally. Christian talks about his experiences as a founder and why he prefers to grow utilising debt instead of raising equity and the freedom that provid...

In this episode, I interview Nick Greenhalgh, co-founder of PetO. PetO is one of Australia’s leading pet supply stores selling goods such as food, toys and equipment. Starting in 2006, Nick, alongside his brother, has grown the business to own 58 stores, around 1000 staff, and earn $200 million in annual revnue. Throughout the episode, Nick talks about the importance of bold decision making and wh...

In this episode, I interview Taryn Williams - founder of Wink Models. Taryn talks about why she started the business as a 21 year old and why she was so determined to disrupt the fashion industry at such a young age. Today, Wink Models has become one of Australia’s leading agencies with over 600 models signed nation-wide. Taryns lastest project is #Gifted a shopify plugin enabling the worlds bigge...