Source: Northern Territory Police and Fire Services
Kate Freeman, Canberra Women in Business (CWB) Businesswoman of the Year Award 2022.
Kate Freeman has been in business for the last 12 years, taking the title of the Canberra Women in Business (CWB) Businesswoman of the Year Award in 2022.
With nominations now open for the 2023 Synergy Group, Canberra Women in Business Awards, Kate wants to encourage women to back themselves with a balance of creativity and sensibility.
Kate received the title of 2022 Businesswoman of the Year Award for her work building Canberra’s largest nutrition and dietetics practice, The Healthy Eating Clinic.
“Starting, running and growing a business is striking that balance between creativity and good sense,” she said
“Explore your great ideas with structure around your product or service, it’s marketability, profitability and a very good understanding of your target audience.
“Don’t be afraid to step out on your ideas either,” she said.
“The number of times I’ve done something and thought, ‘why didn’t I do this sooner!’ Do the research, back yourself and go for it,” she said.
In her time in business, she’s said she’s very proud of the team and culture she’s built in her practice over the years.
“It’s one of the things I’m proudest about in the business. My staff say it’s one of the best places they’ve worked. I’ve really worked to create a culture where my staff feel safe to be themselves and that we all operate from a principle of kindness,” she said.
After 12 years in business, Kate said she’s learnt a lot of lessons. Some the hard way too.
“You never know what’s going to happen when you’re in business,” she laughed.
“You have to be prepared for anything! And I realised early on, that you have to be very good at doing a lot of things as a small business owner.
“I’ve worked hard to develop my financial skills over the years,” she said. “It wasn’t something that came naturally to me, but when I could pay my own staff, but couldn’t afford to pay myself, I realised I really needed to sort things out! If I wanted my business to grow…and I wanted to eat,” she laughed.
Kate said the financial element of her business has always been her biggest challenge to manage.
“Even when the business is thriving and we’re doing great financially, it’s always been something I’ve found hard to contain stress and worry around. It’s a work in progress. I’m not sure if I’ll ever get it quite right, but improving my financial literacy skills in running a business has certainly made things easier.”
Kate said by far, the most rewarding thing about running her own business, was the creativity and ability to be innovative and bring her ideas to life.
“That’s what I’m doing now with the development of my mobile app. Ayla Health brings together all my work in the practice over the years into a seamless experience for our customers. It’s nutrition education linked to practical action so that you can learn how to eat healthily and build habits that last a lifetime.
“From micro-learning modules to help educate people across various topics, to a meal planner to stay organised, you’ll be given the tools to build the healthy eating pattern that’s right for you. The nutrition strategies if you’ve got endometriosis or gastroenteritis and impaired digestion is different, and the app will have the right strategies for you to tackle any issue and link you to a qualified nutrition professional for further help and support.”
Kate says she expects to launch the app either at the end of this year or early next year.
The ACT Government is proud to be supporting the 2023 Synergy Group Canberra Women in Business Awards this year, and sponsoring the ACT Businesswoman of the Year Award. The ACT Government Small Business Strategy 2023-2026 aims to encourage more women like Kate start their own business.
Visit the CWB website to find out more and nominate.
Nominations close Friday 29 September 2023.
Find out what support and information there is available to help you start, run and grow your business at the ACT Business website act.gov.au/business
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