In Episode 14 of this season’s Digital and Dirt Podcast, Ian welcomes Nicola Gunby, Co-Founder and CMO of community-focused app, CLIQ, to discuss her mission to combat loneliness through authentic connections and her experiences navigating the investment landscape as a female founder of a beauty-tech startup.
In this episode Nicola discusses:
How she found inspiration and confidence to explore business ideas during a three-year transformative travel experience, initially planned for three-months, that shaped her independence and entrepreneurial mindset.
How challenges as a freelance makeup artist in Australia prompted the creation of her first business, AMB Beauty, a platform that addressed gaps in securing bookings and managing work for beauty professionals that was ultimately partially acquired by Revolution Beauty.
The importance of creating authentic, engaging communities and how her first startup succeeded by providing a sense of belonging and support for beauty professionals, transcending the transactional nature of traditional platforms.
Her current venture, CLIQ, and its focus on solving loneliness by facilitating meaningful connections, addressing the limitations of traditional social media platforms, and building online-to-offline communities based on shared interests.
The fundraising challenges faced by female founders and her mission to increase female representation in entrepreneurship and investment.
To learn more about Nicola and CLIQ, listen to the full episode on popular podcast platforms, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts.