Young Greek-Australian entrepreneurs are motivated to shape the future

If these young Greek-Australian movers, shakers and entrepreneurs are anything to go by, the future of the country is in very capable hands.

These young people have visions that reach beyond profits and instead hope they can inspire others to either make change in their own lives and create change in the world around them.

Neos Kosmos spoke to some of the many switched on successors of first and second generation Greek-Australians.

READ MORE: Greek Parliament tables amendment to facilitate entrance of foreign entrepreneurs to Greece

Ali Kitinas – CEO of Freedom Scrub

Ali Kitinas founded Freedom Scrub at only 14 years old. Freedom Scrub produces ethically sourced body scrubs made from recycled coffee grounds and a portion of proceeds go toward helping impoverished and war-stricken children from Rwanda to Kolkata the HOPE Foundation.

What motivates you?
There’s a couple of things. I have a background in performing, which is how I got into business in the first place because I was really motivated by the idea that I could financially support myself and be able to do what I love. Obviously acting and music are the not most financially sustainable career paths, so I wanted to still be able to do the things the I love but also have some backing behind me and be able to work for myself and be flexible in that sense.

Also running a social enterprise, giving back is something that’s really important to me and has been from a very young age… I’ve always been really driven to make the world a better place and so to be able to do that through business…it’s just really amazing to get to do what I love and help other people in doing so.

What kind of legacy do you want to leave behind?

I want to show young people that anything is possible if they put their mind to it. No matter your age, sexuality or race, your gender, whatever social obstacles might be in your way, you can make anything happen if you put your mind to it and you’re passionate about it.

And to add to that, if you can be giving and impacting the world whilst doing it. I think my generation and the generation coming after me are the people that will change the world, we just need to know that we can. So for me I want to let my peer and those younger than me know they can do so.

What would you like to achieve between now and the end of 2021?

For me 2021 is a year of personal growth, because I finished high school just before COVID started so my 2020 was quite a rough year of trying to find my feet as an adult and get to know myself outside of school. To me this year is definitely about getting back in touch with who I am and what drives me and what I’m passionate about so that I’m in an even better place to grow as a business owner and as myself and to be in a better place to improve other lives as well.

What is the best advice you’ve ever been given?

Don’t ever let the opinions of other people stop you from following your dreams.

I had a really difficult time in my school and there were a lot times where I thought it would be easier to just be a normal kid, because it would maybe mean that my social situation would be better. My mum and my dad who I’m very close to always reminded me high school’s not forever so let yourself be the person you want to be and so the things that you love because when you leave high school you won’t regret doing that, but you will regret stopping and letting people’s opinions get in the way of your dreams.

What has been the most surprising thing you’ve learnt during your time putting together the business?

It’s been very surprising to see people’s attitudes towards people that have their own businesses. I saw an Elon Musk quote a little while ago that said “Instead of throwing people baby showers, we should throw them business showers for when they start their own business.”

It’s very interesting that not many people are super supportive at first when you start your business. It’s a bit of a lonely game at first and you have to develop and network with people that support you and work in the same industry as you and finding entrepreneurial people I suppose because it definitely is super crazy when you’re running your own business, especially at a young age. Finding the right people to be in your corner is really important.

What is the greatest challenge you’ve overcome?

It’s definitely been people underestimating because of my age. There’s one experience that I remember where I was at a networking event with my mum and we there separately but together. Someone had asked my mum if she couldn’t find a babysitter for the night and my mum said ‘why don’t you go and have a conversation with my daughter and then you can ask me that question again if you feel the need to’.

It just shows I was underestimated by so many people and it’s very difficult walking into a room of business owners, who are often men who are lot older than me, or even women who were a lot older than me and the judgement that would come from that because of my age and then they actually heard me speak or had a conversation with me and realised that I do know what I’m talking about. Just because we’re young we’re equipped with a lot of knowledge now so we actually can have a seat at the table.

Aside from money, what is the most important thing a business needs to succeed?

I think it needs passion, if you don’t love what you’re doing and you don’t care about it and it doesn’t align with your purpose in life then it’s just like working at a job you don’t enjoy. It has to be something that drives you and you wake up every day wanting to do because you know running a business is not easy.

Success doesn’t have to be monetary either, that’s definitely something I’ve learnt. There have been so many incredible successes that were purely experiences because of the work I put in and I’m very grateful for those.

George Peppou – Founder and CEO of Vow

George Peppou’s Vow creates real meat alternatives from cells, cutting out the breeding and killing of animals. His team consists of innovative engineers and scientists, along with food-loving professionals who work together to improve the quality of food, looking forward to the health of people, animals and the planet.

What motivates you?

I am driven my a desire to create and build technology that positively shapes the food system for as many people as possible. Being surrounded by nearly 30 of the most incredibly talented and passionate people that all want to make the world better is the most inspiring and exciting thing I could imagine doing.

What kind of legacy do you want to leave behind?

New types of foods that are enjoyed by billions that are also sustainable and feel ‘real’.

What would you like to achieve between now and the end of 2021?

To become a more effective, open, effective and kind leader of Vow.

What is the best advice you’ve ever been given?

No zero days. Each day do anything, no matter how small, which moves you toward your goals. Momentum builds momentum.

What has been the most surprising thing you’ve learnt during your time putting the business together?

Just how hard much more difficult leading and managing people is. The transition from an individual ‘doer’ to a manager and leader remains my biggest challenge and most rewarding part of my role.

What is the greatest challenge you’ve overcome?

I tried to deal with a fear of heights by going mountaineering. It was one of the most terrifying and exhausting experiences of my life. It was just me and a guide climbing across ice and rock in the French Alps. Truly remarkable and very humbling. I am still afraid of heights.

Aside from money, what is the most important thing a business needs to be successful?

A compelling story. Long before something is real you need a story which unifies people and compels them to make impossible things real.

Mary Konstantopoulos – Founder of Ladies who League

Mary Konstantopoulos has turned her lifelong passion for sports into a media empire that empowers women of all ages to use their voices to change the way sport is discussed in Australia and help share the stories of amazing athletes and the positive contributions they are making across society. Her message of ‘you can’t be what you can’t see’ is the driving force to make sure female athletes are made more visible in the media, thus encouraging girls to get out and give it a go and creating a world where sports, regardless of gender, will be equally appreciated.

What motivates you?

I am a lawyer by day and I do all this sport work in my spare time and it sort of came about from being a big fan of sport growing up, particularly rugby league. When I started doing my advocacy work, it was very focused on getting more women involved in conversations about rugby league and promoting the women I can see in the sport, which were at that time just women in the media and administrators.

I didn’t know women could play rugby league at that point and when I realised Australia had a women’s rugby league team, I realised if me, as a passionate fan didn’t know who they were, then there would be others in the same boat. So that’s when it really started to shift to talk about women in rugby league and then more broadly, women in sport and trying to change the game for those women who were for so long, and still are struggling with work, family a full-time career and their commitments to their sports.

What kind of legacy do you want to leave behind?

To be honest if I can have supported one woman in sport, or shared one story and lifted one other woman in sport then that’s something that I’m really proud to have done. I share a lot of different stories about a lot of different sportswomen and for some of these athletes, they don’t get written about very much so it’s a wonderful opportunity to share those stories.

Additionally I’d to inspire other women and let them know that if they’ve got a passion for something or want talk about something, they should be comfortable to share those views and move into a world of sport where women have the same opportunities as their male counterparts.

What would you like to achieve between now and the end of 2021?

I used to be a Bikram Yoga person, I used to do it all the time and then it sort of fell away and I filled my weekends with other things and stopped doing it. This year I’m back to Bikram Yoga and I’ve committed to going at least twice a week for the rest of the year and I’m on track!

What is the best advice you’ve ever been given?

there’s a particular quote from a woman called Brene Brown that I love and it’s “If you’re not in the arena getting your butt kicked, then I’m not interested in your opinion.” That’s one that was appropriated from a Theodore Roosevelt quote about the man in the arena.

For me, when you are a person with a big voice and strong views and are fighting to change the world, there are a lot of detractors out there and it keeps me focused on what my purpose is and makes sure that I’m listening to the people that matter and the opinions of the people that matter.

What has been the most surprising thing you’ve learnt during your time putting the organisation together?

I’m going to take it right back to the beginning and say learning that women actually competed at an elite level in so many sports that I loved and being surprised at myself that as a kid I never asked ‘Do women play rugby league? Do women play cricket?’

Learning that women did play those sports has fundamentally changed the trajectory of my life and I honestly couldn’t be more grateful.

What is the greatest challenge you’ve overcome?

We spoke about detractors before and I think as individuals we all have really powerful voices but we need to learn how powerful those voices are and not be afraid to use them, so that’s certainly something I’ve learnt over the years.

If I think about my writing in the earlier stages and how I used to use my voice, it was pretty small and afraid and probably a little bit timid but over time I’ve really embraced my purpose, learnt what’s important to me and now I’m not really afraid to use my voice at all.

Aside from money, what is the most important thing a business needs to be successful?

Just support. It doesn’t have to be financial, I mean people reading stories and sharing information, sharing the post on social media and then just putting bums on seats watching women’s sport because that’s really the biggest thing an individual can do to show their interest in something. Turn your television on and put your bum on a seat and by doing that you are actually doing something to change the world.

Rhea Gotsis – Founder of The Traxi

Rhea Gotsis started up delivery service Traxi in the thick of the COVID-19 pandemic, determined to not let the lockdowns tear her spirit down. In doing so, she brought on 34 unemployed youth to join her team. Ms Gotsis hopes that she put more small and local businesses on the map as her business develops.

What motivates you?

I think my Greek heritage motivates me in a lot of the ways I’m going in life. It doesn’t really apply too much to the Traxi world, I think that was more about flexibility and becoming my own boss and so forth. I was never one to have a boss.

The end of the line after studying a masters of international relations was to end up in an Australian embassy role in Athens…My sales job was complementing my uni schedule at the time, it was not something I was completely passionate about, but given its flexibility it was just another step closer to me forming the type of career I wanted because it wasn’t an office, 9-5 job every day.

It was being out on the road and meeting other people and slowly slowly it helped me form this career I wanted and I needed to ensure that it would change up every day, be customer facing as opposed to being in the same scenery and having someone over my shoulder all of the time.

What kind of legacy do you want to leave behind?

I definitely want to be remembered for something in the sphere of helping others. At the moment, I think it’s unintentional in a way but dominoes have dropped for me where I’m, creating platforms to support smaller businesses from home as opposed to stores.

The legacy I want to leave behind is always support small businesses and giving voices to the people in the back.

What would you like to achieve between now and the end of 2021?

I’ve been reflecting quite a bit, personally I feel like it had been a bit stagnant and needed a bit more…By the end of 2021 I definitely want our app to be one of the most used platforms for supporting small business across Australia.

What is the best advice you’ve ever been given?

It doesn’t matter how long it takes you to get there, so long as you do…However impatient you are, don’t give up on it and make sure that goal is still at the end of that line, because once you achieve it it’ll bring out a happiness.

What has been the most surprising thing you’ve learnt during your time putting the business together?

the fact it worked at all, that’s the most surprising element. I did not start this with the image of where I am now and I’m sure that’s common for many entrepreneurs but similar to a speech I had done at a women’s day, Crown Casino came knocking on my door and that’s probably the most surprising thing that’s happened within Traxi.

What is the greatest challenge you’ve overcome?

Given it’s only been a year, I’m still overcoming this challenge, but that would be celebrating the small wins and just taking a step back and realising the achievement.

When you’re in this hamster wheel, you’re building a business and a new problem arises, you’re fixing it. Little things will happen, like in January I got paired with Park Hyatt for high teas but it didn’t phase me, which probably sounds horribly stuck up, but it’s not like that at all.

My dad told me ‘this is such a good thing too’ but I told him ‘yeah, but I still have this to do and more to do’. Mum would always tell me then ‘step back, you’ve built something from nothing and it’s working’ and it’s so hard when you’re in it, you’re blinded by the business’ daily tasks. The hardest thing is taking a step back and looking at how far you’ve come and giving yourself that appreciation and respect.

Aside from money, what is the most important thing a business needs to be successful?

An amazing team! I’m all about people, meeting new people, I’m friends with all the contracted drivers that drive for me. Nine times out of ten they’ve said ‘you’ve really helped my mental health during lockdown, you didn’t only give me a reason to leave the house, so are so easy to get along with’.

I’m understanding and young as well, I could turn around a be a horrible person but I won’t because it’s never successful that way. Making sure your team’s foundation is happy and strong is so important.

Sotiri Tsompanoudis – Founder and director of Bio Spirulina AU

After Sotiri Tsompanoudis went to his family doctor as a youngster due to his mother’s worry that he wasn’t getting enough nutrients from his lack o food intake, he was introduced to spirulina. After years of feeling the benefits himself, Mr Tsompanoudis wanted to bring the benefits of this great Greek product to Australia after finding that the products here were not up to his standards.

What motivates you?

Learning new things and challenging myself to improve.

What kept me motivated was that I knew that I had a good product and I was working between the two countries that I come from and live and I could introduce the people of Australia to a product from Greece that was comparable to some of the best products in the world.

What kind of legacy do you want to leave behind?

My goals for a legacy is not to make a lot of money. What I want to be remembered as is someone who helped people when they first arrived here.

Someone that came from Greece at the age of 18 and gave Australia an opportunity because Australia has given me so many opportunities.

What would you like to achieve between now and the end of 2021?

I’m looking to establish a new business in the sports industry with a couple of friends. We have seen an opportunity and we are now doing a business case and looking through the feasibility of it.

What is the best advice you’ve ever been given?

If you really believe in something you should keep doing it, no matter how tough times will get, just keep going. That was from a good friend of mine when I was first starting. He had already started his own business and he gave me that piece of advice and it’s popped in my head many times…I strictly believe that even though it might sound a bit cliché.

What has been the most surprising thing you’ve learnt during your time putting the business together?

Whatever you do you need to put your mind to it, give 100 percent effort. Without hard work there are no rewards.

I’m really grateful that I got to start this business and learn all the other things that come with it.

Also there are a million ideas but somehow you need to differentiate yourself in the market. Be someone with a unique value proposition.

What is the greatest challenge you’ve overcome?

Starting up a business from scratch I had to learn everything from registering a business, understanding tax and import laws, new ways of sales through social media.

Aside from money, what is the most important thing a business needs to be successful?

Money is definitely not up there on my list. Of course you need to make money in order to survive but the most important thing is to do something you actually enjoy, to be in a network of people that you love working with.

Desire. The desire to succeed and to continue to grind especially when things are not going well.