RedBalloon founder Naomi Simson will be offering up some business wisdom on Shark Tank. Source: Channel 10
SHE’S one of five fiery “sharks” set to appear on Ten’s upcoming Shark Tank, but Naomi Simson has her very own tried and tested business mantra.
The RedBalloon founder, widely considered one of Australia’s biggest tech success stories, says she was told from a young age, “a man is not a plan”.
And it’s a phrase that’s stuck with her.
“It probably came from my mother when I was a young girl.
“My mother worked on the first Australian computer in the 1960s at Monash University in the maths department,” she told news.com.au.
“I had really strong female role models. I absolutely always thought it was a possibility to create a business as a woman, I was taught that you’ve got to invest in your own education and your own future.”
The mother-of-two founded what is now Australia’s No. 1 experience gift site in 2001 from the front room of her home with just $25,000, a second-hand computer and some help from a neighbour. Unsurprisingly, Simson’s other favoured motto is: “Make your own millions, don’t marry it.”
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Naomi Simson is one of five business leaders who will appear on Ten’s Shark Tank. Source: Channel 10
“I had a corporate career before I started my journey as an entrepreneur.
“I worked for some very big companies, I’m a career girl. Even when it came to being a mum, I wasn’t going to give up my career,” she said, adding that the initial plan was to find a more flexible way of doing fulfilling work while spending time with her two children.
But Simson wades into new waters with her next big challenge.
She joins join fellow “sharks” Janine Allis (Boost Juice Bars), Andrew Banks (Talent2), Steve Baxter (entrepreneur and investor) and John McGrath (McGrath Estate Agents) on Shark Tank, which sees everyday Aussies pitch their inventions and ideas to the panel.
The crazy, the practical, the inspiring, and the simply hilarious — it all gets a look-in.
Simson insists there’s no planned ‘good cop, bad cop’ routine, because they “have no idea what’s coming” until the budding inventors enter the room. “The only thing we can rely on is our business experience and our instincts.
We’re not actors, we’re business people!”
So can we expect some on screen blow ups?
Absolutely.
“All of us had our bad days,” Simson admitted, “and some days you’d be so surprised by how the other sharks reacted.”
Simson while filming a segment on the set of Ten’s Shark Tank. Source: Channel 10
Each of the “sharks” have their own area of expertise, and Simson says the best advice that she’ll be offering up on the show is the positive thinking that led her to success.
“If it’s meant to be it’s up to me. It doesn’t mean that I have to do everything but I am accountable, which means I can’t blame people.
“You’ve just got to take responsibility for that, otherwise you can find yourself in a very dark place.”
Simson explained one of the reasons she agreed to sign on for the gig was to be a role model for Aussie women.
“I knew there would be a lot of women coming before us, and I believe, in terms of all of the things that are on TV and so forth, this has a real ability to really contribute and I’m really excited for it.”
Hosted by Studio 10s Sarah Harris, Shark Tank launches Sunday February, 8.
Steve Baxter, Janine Allis, Sarah Harris, Andrew Banks, Naomi Simson and John McGrath. Source: Channel 10
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