By Kelly Kayne
It’s not just business as usual in the office of She Will Shine. Nestled on the first floor of the Dream Factory with huge windows overlooking the ports, Danielle Price has created a beautiful and inspiring co-working space just for women.
It starts with a village
“She Will Shine is a village for female business owners and is all about connection, support and education. We provide online support, webinars, networking events and other services that bring women who work by themselves together”, says Price.
A graphic designer by trade, Danielle faced the dilemma of many women who want to have children, but realise the working world is not designed for mothers. Starting her own business from home promised more flexibility and led to the discovery of many women in the same circumstances.
“I didn’t advertise but I found I was working with a lot of female business owners, and friends talked to friends, so I started an online directory but realised people still contacted me, so I decided to run an event.”
A natural networker, this led to Danielle becoming the pollinator in a women’s business ecosystem. Membership provides online support and promotional benefits with easy access to resources, whilst the co-working option breaks the isolation that can often come from working at home.
“Women quite often get used to working on their own and don’t realise they need support. It’s a matter of informing them on what they have access to and how they can benefit”.
Women helping women
With the growth of the gig economy, co-working has created supportive working environments with both personal and professional benefits. But why just women?
“It’s very honest and safe and we address the unique challenges that working women might face. There is no competition, no exclusivity, it’s all about helping each other. This is not a social media feed, it’s real life. Our network becomes the group of professional friends that you can confide in about your bad day at work but also celebrate your wins. It’s not networking in the traditional sense – in fact I tell people at our networking nights not to hand out business cards unless asked, because then it becomes about developing relationships, and referrals happen from personal connection.”
Becoming a member
She Will Shine is not about the hustle but rather helping women achieve their goals. Webinars, workshops and masterclasses are offered regularly on topics such as accountability, tax, content marketing, branding and PR. So what are the top three business tips from Danielle?
“Number one is love what you do. Starting a business is hard, it takes time and dedication, so make sure you really love it because it’s going to take up lots of your time. Number two is build a support network around you. This is so important for setting boundaries and but also to keep you on track. The last tip is to have a big picture. I work for six months at a time but then allow for a pivot so you can change and respond to the market because the people who say they will buy from you may not be the ones who actually reach into their pockets.”
She Will Shine is located at 90 Maribyrnong Street, Footscray VIC 3011. All enquiries or events are listed at shewillshine.com.au
