Join Hannah and Carmel as they sit down with Jess Ruhfus, the powerhouse founder behind Collabosaurus and No.2, to dive deep into the world of brand collaborations and why they're the secret weapon every founder needs.

Jess takes us through her journey from burnt-out PR publicist to building Australia's leading brand collaboration platform, sharing the lightbulb moment that sparked Collabosaurus and how a Tinder-inspired swipe mechanic changed everything.

We talk about why partnerships are 25 times less expensive than digital advertising, how collaborating just 5.5 times a year can increase revenue by 17%, and the strategic framework behind collaborations that actually drive sales, not just fluffy brand awareness.

Jess gets refreshingly real about the brutal reality of raising capital as a young female founder, why she almost closed Collabosaurus in 2018, and how being backed into a corner financially forced her to innovate in ways investment never could have.

Plus, she reveals how her side hustle No.2 (the post-flush perfume drops taking bathrooms by storm) achieved in year one the monthly revenue it took Collabosaurus three and a half years to reach, and what that taught her about building smarter, not just faster.

From competing brand collabs to the pitch portal that changed her business, partnerships with Microsoft versus small businesses, and why bootstrapping might actually be your superpower, this episode is packed with actionable insights for every founder ready to grow through collaboration.

Key Topics: Brand collaboration strategies, marketplace business models, raising capital as a female founder, bootstrapping vs investment, product-market fit, partnership ROI, building multiple businesses, and why your idea of success will evolve.

We chat with the incredible Kelly Slessor, tech founder and CEO of Shop You and ecommerce consultant about all things digital, what it's like in the tech industry and the challenges and hurdles she has had to overcome which has led her to where she is today, coaching some of the businesses in the world.