Recently I had the pleasure of meeting fitness entrepreneur Kayla Itsines, but little did I know she was about to be named Australia’s richest and self-made 20-something woman.
At just 26 years of age, Kayla has around 10 million followers on Instagram and has built a fitness business empire by combining technology smarts, a love of fitness, the rise of social media and importantly making the most of timing.
In my 20’s (nearly 20 years ago) I was still mulling over what I was going to do with my life, and busy planning my next night out.
But today, the opportunities are there for the taking when it comes to starting a business thanks to the Internet and keeping on top of what’s trending.
Today Kalya is ranked joint 5th and 6th with her fiance Tobi Pearce in the 2018 Australian Financial Review Young Rich List.
The couple have a joint wealth of $486 million and are the richest self-made 20-somethings in Australia after enjoying enormous success with their fitness app Sweat.
Upon meeting Kayla briefly at last week’s Business Chicks conference in Brisbane I was struck by how personable she was, physically petite but strong – just check out all her videos! And very outgoing.
She spent time speaking to as many people at the event as she could during an organised photoshoot. This she didn’t actually have to do. But with so many fans, and so many people wanting to share their fitness experiences, she was gracious with her time.
Confidence and self belief are among the keys to business success. Without these traits, it’s difficult to pitch your idea to potential investors, propel yourself forward when times get tough and connect with others, such as customers or clients, so they join you on the journey.
Indeed even seeing her after the photoshoot, she was happy to walk and talk. Unlike many celebrities – which she very much is – who often have to rush off without so much as even making eye contact with fans.
Kayla is one of ten women featured in the 2018 Financial Review Young Rich List. It’s an improvement on last year’s list which had nine women.
Coming in at joint 8th and 9th place on the list is Cyan Ta’eed with husband Collis. The couple co-founded online graphic marketplace Envato, and share combined wealth of $428 million.
Canva founder Melanie Perkins is the third highest female Young Richer Lister at joint 17th and 18th, with shared wealth of $177 million.
Model Miranda Kerr is the fourth highest female and number 52 overall on the Young Rich list with $52 million wealth.
And another fitness star, Emily Skye the fifth top female with joint wealth of $36 million, placing her in joint 67 and 68 on the list.
