Top 20 Famous Young Australian Entrepreneurs
It’s 2024 and a New Year. So, we thought it was time to update our list of the top 20 famous young Australian entrepreneurs.
Hopefully, this article will spur you on your journey into the entrepreneurial world.
Or at least give you a detailed insight into some of the giants behind Australia’s entrepreneurship.
Nick Molnar, AfterPay
Founder of the company: Afterpay
Company Established – 2015
Sector: Fintech
Worldwide, Fintech is a field that has innovation in its DNA, and it’s no different in Australia.
For example, Nick Molnar’s startup Afterpay (one of the top tech startups in Australia) is the leading player in Australia’s Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) business.
Squarepay recently acquired the company for $39 billion, a US-based company backed by Twitter’s founder Jack Dorsey (Source: AFR)
Among those who have vouched for the company is Kim Kardashian. But, of course, in our celebrity-obsessed culture, that counts for a lot!
To further validate Afterpay’s potential, Chinese tech giant Tencent bought a 5 percent stake in Afterpay for $251 million. (Source: Reuters)
Melanie Perkins, Canva
Company Established – 2013
Perkins is a famous Australian female entrepreneur, who is the founder of the world famous company – Canva.
Perkins pursued her passion for simplifying graphic design and founded two companies to capitalize on the business opportunities she spotted: Fusion Books and Canva.
At 35 years old, Canva founder Melanie Perkins faced rejection from 100 venture capitalists.
However, as reported by Fortune, her design startup, now valued at $26 billion, is poised to challenge industry giants like Microsoft and Google.
Perkins’ achievements include induction into the 30 Under 30 Hall of Fame in 2022 and recognition on Forbes’ Billionaires list in 2023. (Source: Fortune, Forbes)
Cliff Obrecht, Canva
Co-Founder of the company: Canva
Company Established – 2013
Canva’s co-founder Cliff Obrecht has seen the company grow from humble beginnings in a room in Perkin’s mum’s house to a multinational company.
The company is that rarest of things – a profitable startup.
While Perkins and Obrecht have been business partners for more than a decade, they recently tied the knot in their relationship.
They are considered as being offbeat couples with hobbies, including kitesurfing.
As of May 2023, The Australian Financial Review assessed his and Perkins’ joint net worth as A$13.18 billion on the 2023 Rich List (Source: Wikipedia)
Canva has offices in Australia, the Philippines, and the U.S. with marquee customers such as American Airlines and McKinsey.
Mike Cannon-Brookes, Atlassian
Founder of the company: Atlassian
Company Established – 2002
If becoming a tech billionaire before the age of 40 is used as the yardstick of success, then Mike Cannon-Brookes has been successful.
It has been quite a journey from when he was a student at the University of New South Wales. Then, he got together with his friend to start a company to earn 40,000 Australian dollars per annum without working for anyone.
It worked and how!
Atlassian founders Scott Farquhar and Mike Cannon-Brookes started the New Year a collective $16 billion more prosperous, as the IT stock boom burned the fortunes of the country’s top tech entrepreneurs. (Source: afr.com)
Scott Farquhar, Atlassian
Co-Founder of the company: Atlassian
Company Established – 2002
Scott Farquhar is the co-founder of Atlassian. Both he and co-founder Cannon-Brookes are worth about 20 billion Australian dollars or 13.7 USD.
He was ranked seventh on the Financial Review 2023 Rich List with a net worth of AUD$18.16 billion. (Source: Financial Review, Wikipedia)
However, Scott Farquhar comes from decidedly working-class roots, unlike his business partner.
Atlassian operates in a volatile marketplace, but it seems well prepared to cope with the challenges ahead. The complexity of technology is unpredictable. The development of self-driving cars is a case in point. (Source: The New York Times.)
Ruslan Kogan, kogan.com
Founder of the company: kogan.com
Company Established – 2006
Ecommerce has enabled many restless and innovative entrepreneurs to put their energy to good use. In Australia, Ruslan Kogan is a name that jumps out.
He is one of the leading innovators who made the online marketplace concept work.
This, despite fierce competition from industry heavyweights such as Amazon.
His kogan.com was begun in his parents’ garage in Melbourne in 2006 when Kogan was 23 years old.
Within seven years, he had become the wealthiest Australian under the age of 30.
He has courted some controversies along the way, but his achievements probably outweigh the smattering of missteps.
Kayla Itsines, Sweat App
Founder of the company: Sweat App
Company Established – 2015
Estimated wealth – $486 million as of 2019
Sector: Fitness
Food, fitness, and even ‘wellness’ are business niches that are open to endless creativity and possibilities.
Entrepreneurs always try new things or do old things in new ways, like opening a gym franchise chain or a yoga centre.
This is where Kayla Itsines shines; her fitness app stands out among thousands of competitors.
Itsines began with a “Bikini Body Guide” fitness ebook in 2014.
Home exercise is another niche that saw interest soar in the course of lockdowns and restrictions.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, she launched her Zero-Equipment Program on ‘Sweat with Kayla’ in August 2020.
Within three months, more than a million had completed the workout.
Although Itsines’ net worth did not meet the A$472 million cut-off for the Financial Review 2020 Rich List, her Sweat App is still undeniably one of the top workout apps. (Source: Wikipedia)
Kayla has built a multi-million dollar business with her Sweat app and has become a multi-millionaire herself.
James Gilmour, Gilmour Space Technologies
Founder of the company: Gilmour Space Technologies
Company Established – 2013
Space has become the new frontier where billionaires and others are exploring new opportunities.
Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson have both recently completed high-profile flights to the edge of space.
James Gilmour is another name associated with the fledgling industry.
Gilmour has always had a primal fascination with space and grew up wanting to be an astronaut.
Now he is a member of an elite club of individuals at the leading edge of the privatized space industry.
Unlike these billionaires who made their money in other business ventures and then decided to enter the space business, James Gilmour has always been in the space industry.
Janine Allis, Boost Juice
Founder of the company: Boost Juice
Company Established – 2000
In Australia, you are more likely to spot a Boost juice bar than a kangaroo.
Janine Allis started selling juice from her home in the year 2000.
Twenty years later, she has built an empire of 550 Boost juice franchise stores worldwide.
Boost Juice Janine Allis is now ranked 24th on the list of 30 wealthiest self-made women in Australia after her net worth hit $66 million. (Source: smh.com.au)
She is also the part-owner of Retail Zoo, the parent company of Boost Juice, Salsa’s Fresh Mex Grill, and Cibo Espresso.
Janine Allis has authored The Accidental Entrepreneur – The Juicy Bits, which signifies the importance of resilience to achieve success.
Maxine Horne, Vita group
Founder of the company: Vita group
Company Established – 1995
Sector: Retail
If accolades and awards are a measure of success, then Maxine Horne is at the top of her game.
Awards against her name include – 2006 QBR Businesswoman of the Year, 2014 EY Entrepreneur of the Year (northern region), and Courier Mail Business Person of the Year in 2019.
Horne’s Vita Group employs more than 1700 people and records more than 30% growth in its yearly revenue.
Being the CEO of a $600 million annual revenue business is undoubtedly something aspiring female entrepreneurs can find inspiring!
She came from the U.K. to settle in Australia.
Her entrepreneurial journey began with a single retail store on the Gold Coast – and now she oversees 123 locations all across the Australian continent.
Sam Prince, Zambrero
Founder of the Restaurant: Zambrero
Company Established: 2005
Sector: Restaurant
A medical doctor by profession but an innovator by passion, Sam Prince is an inspiration for many.
Known for founding the Mexican franchise chain, Zambrero, Sam Prince is a Scottish-born Australian medical doctor and restauranteur of Sri-Lankan descent.
His restaurant business started in Canberra in 2005 and has now spread to 220 locations worldwide, making Prince a billionaire.
Prince was nominated “Australian of the Year” for ACT in 2012 for his restaurant-supported philanthropy efforts. (Source: Wikipedia)
As a selfless humanitarian, Dr. Prince uses his restaurant’s profits to fund programs educating remote communities and local health services on the prevention and diagnosis of crusted scabies – a disease affecting 70% of Aboriginal children.
(Sources: Forbes, AFR, Prince Group)
Ed Craven, Stake.com
Co-founder of the Company: Stake.com
Company Established: 2017
Co-founder of an online casino and multiple online games linked with it, Ed Craven is a young Australian billionaire. Stake.com is a global company with offices in many countries.
The roots of Stake.com came from another company, Easygo, that was established in 2016 by Ed Craven and Bijan Tehrani.
Ed Craven came into the media spotlight when he bought an $80 million home in Toorak, Melbourne.
(Sources: Wikipedia, The Guardian, SMH)
Jack Zhang, Airwallex
Co-founder of the Company: Airwallex
Company Established: 2015
Sector: Fintech
Born in China, Jack Zhang co-founded a real-time payment platform that has revolutionized businesses’ financial operations.
His company, Airwallex, became a unicorn startup after it received over US$1 billion in funding. It allows businesses to operate internationally without the challenges of the current global system.
Surprisingly enough, it is one of the only three unicorns in Australia. (Source: unimelb)
And to top it off, owing to its rapidly expanding business, it is considered one of the fastest-growing unicorns in the country.
The idea of the app came from their struggles with the financial system of running a coffee shop.
The supplies from China had to undergo a frustrating process of cross-border payment complications.
(Sources: LinkedIn, MilkenInstitute, Wikipedia)
Tim Gurner, GURNER Group
Founder of the Company: Gurner Group
Company Established: 2013
Sector: Property Development
Priding itself on a curated and focused approach to every project, the Gurner group is a property development business created by Australian millionaire Tim Gurner in 2013.
Carrying the last name of Tim, Gurner is not his first venture.
In his blooming youth, Tim got a loan of $140,000 from NAB to buy a gym and start his first business. Meanwhile, he spent a lot of time training to acquire his training accreditation.
Earlier, he co-founded a successful property development business, Urban Inc.
During his involvement in Urban Inc, Tim took on many development sites, dozens of apartments, and several townhouses for development under his supervision.
Robert Chamberlain, Huno Group
Founder of the Company: Huno Group
Company Established: 2003
Estimated wealth: $741 million
Sector: Fintech, Travel
What started as a web platform for travel agents to facilitate them in their business and provide a space for fair competition, Huno Group has evolved into a leading travel site and a brand name.
Robert Chamberlain founded the business in 2003 as a marketplace for airfares and travel products.
In four years, the site had occupied a Hitwise top 10 travel position in the country.
Robert Chamberlain also features on the list of top 10 wealthiest Australians aged 40 and under.
(Sources: Hugo Group, Personal Website, LinkedIn)
Owen Kerr, Pepperstone
Co-founder of the Company: Pepperstone
Company Established: 2008
Sector: Financial Services
Another bright star of the financial services industry, Owen Kerr, is a founder of a solution connecting multiple currencies and trade exchanges.
It may sound surprising, but Pepperstone’s solution has been termed a “disruptor” in the economy and was able to secure clients from over 70 countries worldwide.
(Sources: Monash, LinkedIn, FinanceFeed, Wikipedia)
Max Li, Airwallex
Co-founder of the Company: Airwallex
Company Established: 2015
Sector: Fintech
Another one of the Airwallex co-founders (there are a total of 5 co-founders!), Max Li has made it to the AFR’s Young Rich list at number 14, with an estimated wealth of $453 million.
Max Li has been a key founding member of Airwallex.
Li Max was Jack Zhang’s university fellow, who both started a cafe in 2014.
The pair were frustrated with the exorbitant fees associated with international transactions, which prompted them to create a platform for such transactions.
(Source: AFR, Youtube Interview, Wikipedia)
Stephen Dash, Credible Labs
Founder of the Company: Credible Labs
Company Established: 2012
Sector: Fintech
In the world of innovation and tech automation, the financial sector has a lot to offer.
Since money is at the core of not only our businesses but almost all of our daily pursuits, finding innovative solutions with modern AI and tech solutions is likely to be the focus of entrepreneurs for the foreseeable future.
His company, Credible Labs, provides a platform for consumers to compare various loan options and also refinance their loans, mortgages, and other financial services from lenders.
The idea to launch his company struck from his sheer disbelief at the burden of debt that American students had to bear to undergo higher studies. Being from Australia, Dash wasn’t familiar with this issue.
After founding the company in 2012, he has seen it prosper by great margins ever since.
Mitchell Harper, BigCommerce
Co-founder of the Company: BigCommerce
Company Established: 2009
Sector: e-Commerce
Mitchel Harper grew up in the era of floppy disks and 486 computers, starting his coding journey at age 12.
His childhood journey sounds more like that of tech giants from the USA – Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, etc.
Harper had already tried eight startups by the time he founded his multimillion-dollar company, BigCommerce.
In 2009, he co-founded BigCommerce in Sydney – a SaaS company – offering services to retailers.
BigCommerce helps businesses set up and manage online and mobile stores by providing software solutions.
It covers all the aspects of online business model operations, including payments and currency conversions.
The company has spread to more than 120 countries and serves 60,000 online stores.
(Sources: AlexandarJarvis, Wikipedia, Foundr)
Paul Stovell, Octopus Deploy
Co-founder of the Company: Octopus Deploy
Company Established: 2012
Sector: Deployment Software
The aspiring young tech millionaires of Australia are in no short supply. The next tech entrepreneur on the list is also a self-taught software developer.
Paul Stovell is an Australian tech entrepreneur who built Octopus Deploy in 2011.
Octopus Deploy is a software development solution that allows companies to deploy their software across multiple platforms – cloud-based platforms, Amazon stores, VM Ware, etc. – including releases and subsequent iterations.
Paul’s Octopus Deploy has been operating at a profit for the best part of a decade.
The company has turned down a $100,000 acquisition bid and has never made a pitch to investors. (Source: SmartCompany)
