Welcome to a friend of mine, a series of conversations with some incredible and inspiring women in business from regional and rural Australia.

I'm Kimberly Finesse, your host and the founder and editor of Oak magazine, and I cannot wait to introduce you to some amazing female entrepreneurs who will share with you their experience and knowledge of what it takes to start, grow and scale a successful business.

So let me introduce you to a friend of mine.

This is a special episode on the Agrifutures rural Women's award with a focus on resilience and perseverance in the face of initial setbacks.

Despite not succeeding in her first application, Kate Lammerson emphasises the importance of never giving up and the growth that comes from reapplying.

Kate is a co owner of Little Tuna, a company leading the charge in sustainability within Australias seafood industry.

Shes also this years Queensland Agrifutures Rural Womens Award winner in this episode, we dive into Kates journey from navigating the complexities of running a business that champions australian court tuner to her inspiring persistence in applying for the Agrifutures award not once, but three times.

Kates project for the award focuses on advocating for locally sourced, sustainable seafood and bringing australian tuna back to our supermarket shelves.

In our conversation, Kate reflects on the significance of reapplying for the award, emphasising the personal growth lessons and networks she gained along the way.

We discuss how each attempt contributes to professional development and how the agrifutures alumni fosters collaboration over competition.

Kate's story is a testament to resilience, highlighting how perseverance and a supportive network can propel women in business to new heights, regardless of the outcome.

Meet my friend Kate.

Hello Kate, welcome to the podcast.

Hi Kimberley, thanks for having me.

It's great to have you as a first time guest.

Now, this year you were named Queensland's Agrifutures Rural Woman of the year for your extensive work across the seafood industry.

Has that title sunk in yet?

And do you feel comfortable introducing yourself as an award winner?

It's sunk in.

I definitely, I feel really proud to have that title.

I've definitely embraced it and just the power that comes behind that title to be able to get my message out.

I love having that new platform and that new profile to get that message out.

Like, I love statistics, I love data and there's generally one in every finalist presentation.

You have one for your industry and like, I just tell anyone that will listen to me, but I think you could probably articulate it a lot better than I can.

Can you share with us just that key statistic surrounding the seafood industry and what we find on our shelves in supermarkets.

Yeah.

So in Australia, 72% of Australians enjoy eating tuna and they consume a whopping 336 million tins per year.

But none of that is australian.

It's very concerning and a lot of people don't realise.

That's why I love sharing the message and getting it out there, because, I mean, initially I didn't even know.

So I feel like when people come to the realization that I've shared that same moment of what?

So it's nice to see other people feel that way as well, that.

What do you mean?

There's no australian tuner?

And so what are you doing with your business to tackle that problem?

We manufacture in Cannes 100% australian, court owned and made tuna.

We work with our local fishing families and we can their albacore tuna on site with our team and we send that all around Australia from our online website.

And we also stock little tuna in over 170 stores across Australia.

It's incredible and what I will say.

So part of the award process is that as a state winner, you get a photo shoot and a video and they are the most incredible keepsakes and even just helps articulate who you are, what you do and why you do it.

I would say your photo this year would be my favourite.

The one that they used in the media all the time.

You standing holding that big tuner, it's gritty.

It's also something you don't normally see a female in what I would consider a male dominated industry.

Yeah, the seafood industry is heavily male dominated.

There's a lot of incredible women entering the industry now, but we're still the minority.

I'm really lucky to work with the women in seafood Australasia.

So wiser and within that, we support women across the industry in helping them to become leaders and advance their career potential and do incredible things like be represented on boards and have a voice.

So, yeah, the industry is very male dominated.

It is within our actual factory, we're actually female dominated.

And, yeah, we do pick up the fish.

I'll quite often pick up and choose the albacore fish that I want.

They're incredible fish.

So we treat them with a lot of respect.

And, yeah, that image, it's funny, that's actually taken in my office and we put down a sheet and I'm sitting on a chair and my husband, my husband's actually throwing water at me to get the visual effect of a fish jumping out of water.

And our staff are walking past like.

What are you guys doing now?

Let's get into what we're supposed to be talking about.

See, this is what happens.

I've never spoken to you on the podcast about your award journey.

We'll have to do that one day.

But today I really want to speak about the application process and what it means to come back and try again.

That's a life lesson for us all.

This is your third attempt at the agrifutures rural women's award.

Third time lucky.

Tell me a little bit about that process so you know what you've learned along those three years.

So in 2022, I applied for that round.

I submitted my application and didn't make it through to the interview round and I really felt like I didn't put my heart into the application and I knew it when I wrote it.

Coming from the heart or showing how much passion I have for the industry.

So when I came back to reapply in 2023, I did find the reapplying quite an easy, because I knew I wanted to give this more of a go.

And also, I hadn't had that public profile, so really nobody had even known I'd applied.

But I knew myself.

I hadn't given it everything anyway.

So in 2023, I went through to interview round and was a state finalist.

It was an incredible experience to go down to Brisbane and do the face to face judging and the whole becoming part of the alumni.

Amazing.

I walked away from 2023.

While I didn't win the state category, I felt like I had one.

I felt like I'd join the Royal Women's award alumni and I'd done good and I'd get my message out there.

But it was actually the significant amount of support that I'd received from my industry, my peers and my family to give it another go in 2024.

And I looked back on the year between the 23 and the 24 year, and I realized that professionally and personally, I'd grown so much and my passion for what I do was so much stronger and the whole experience is so supportive and so positive and, I mean, I wouldn't pass on an opportunity to hang out with those agrifutures team and the alumni again.

So I went ahead and gave it another go.

It's a good point you make there.

I think I try to find any way I can be involved as well, hence the state chair.

It's like once you know your year's sort of over with the award, it's like, well, how else can I be involved?

Because the women are just so inspiring, supportive, they're cheerleaders, they believe in capacity building and they just want the best for you.

And it's so nice to surround yourself with those type of people.

You spoke about just that personal growth, how did that come about, Kate?

Did you work on that intentionally or were there some programs you did?

Is there something that helped you?

So in the twelve months, I actually did the national seafood Industry Leadership program and from this I gained a lot of confidence about who I am and why I'm doing it.

So I felt like I really understood my why a lot better.

But I also learned the power of reflection.

So even though I didn't take away a win, I took away so much from the whole experience.

And the benefit of doing it was definitely worth doing it again.

And having that opportunity to do it again, really, the opportunity is there now.

It may not be there next year.

So I strongly believe that we've got to take advantage of these opportunities while they are there, because the outcome can be somewhat incredible or we can end up having an extremely amazing network and a lot of personal growth anyway.

So to me, I've always found that the outcome, it's always a positive one and it's worth doing so.

Your awards experience, by applying again, again and again, is that really reflective of who you are as a person?

Like you'd give something another crack if it doesn't work the first time, I.

Would consider myself very resilient.

I run a business that is 100% australian.

So every day we're dealing with challenges about price hikes or production delays or failed initiatives.

We always choose to see these as opportunities to reflect and learn and come back stronger.

There's not a lot of time to dwell, so we've got to have a look at these as lessons and how can we use this to do better next time?

I mean, that's why I believe women in business are some of the most resilient, innovative and driven people because they're juggling multiple roles while still pushing boundaries.

Incredible women.

So to go back and reapply, yeah, it's definitely.

It's something that's in me from a business perspective.

I also.

I wouldn't say I'm a hugely confident person, so I've worked on that in the last two years to really boost my confidence.

And what I've found is that especially working with women in seafood, they see that I've become a leader in the industry and I've managed to get onto some of the boards.

So I have a leadership voice within the industry and their response to me was, I want to do that too.

And the feeling of showing women that if I can do it, they can do it too, is exactly what I'm about.

I want women to see that it is possible and they can do these things as well.

You won Queensland, so you won the state for 2024.

Our winners at the national level, though, were Tanya and Grace.

How did you feel that night?

Did it feel like you'd still won?

Absolutely.

We are such an incredible group of finalists, national finalists.

We were there genuinely supporting each other and cheering for one another, and we still do.

I never felt like the state finalists were my competition.

They're more my allies or my friends.

And we would help each other, even with our pitches.

We'd give each other advice, support each other, that we can do it.

And I know whoever was standing up on that stage at the end of the night, we were all thrilled and excited.

And it's been really exciting to hear Tanya and Grace's journey now as winners and all the exciting things that they're doing, they've been sharing with us.

We all still chat on the group chat probably daily.

And I.

It's more about the people that you meet and that connection that.

Yeah, Tanya and Grace won our year, but I think we all feel like winners anyway.

And the people that we've met along the way has made that such a positive and amazing experience.

Nikki said something similar in that if we speak about currency, your network's probably the most valued.

You can't put aside that that money is not going to accelerate any project that you do.

Incredible.

But really it does come down to that network, doesn't it?

Yeah, it does.

Nikki has some great sayings.

I love them.

One of the ones that I've stolen from her is complimenters over competitors.

I love that.

And I feel like that is exactly what agrifutures rural women's award is about.

There'd be some women who have applied for the award previously and love to encourage people to try again.

It is like that first draft, but there would be some that would be holding back because it is a public forum.

It could bring up feelings of embarrassment or concern about how others perceive you.

Were they feelings that you ever had?

Like, did you ever feel embarrassed or worried about how people would view your decision if you didn't make it any further than, say, the phone interview?

Yeah.

Yeah, I definitely.

I feel like it's a very natural feeling to have and I feel like women feel this so much more than men do with their confidence.

So it is natural to feel that way, I think trying to acknowledge.

Okay, I feel like this, but what have I got to lose?

Like I could be part of this incredible alumni.

This could be a national stage for me to get my message out and really focus on what the positives are for reapplying.

The agrifutures rural Women's award is known for being such a safe and supportive environment.

Everybody there wants to see you succeed.

They're not wanting to see you fail.

They want to see you be the best that you can and succeed in what you're doing.

So I'm so glad and grateful and proud of myself for reapplying.

I definitely encourage everyone to reapply.

I've already reached out to all the Queensland finalists that they better get their applications in.

And whether it's the first or second time or third time for me, I feel like it's part of my story and I'm really proud of that resilience that I did show.

And I'm really comfortable and proud to share that.

That is my story.

Because other women then see, oh, it's okay to reapply.

And if you speak to the alumni, you actually find there is a lot of women in the alumni that are the same.

They didn't get through on their first or second round, but they kept going and they really understood their why and their passion and it was worth it in the end.

And I suppose, as you said, regardless of where you end up, you are able to walk away with this little piece of work where, as you said, those questions really ask you to think about who you are, what you do and why you do it, the impact that you're having on your community.

And also, I think that project, you know, you have to pitch a project and even to look at the budget, I think to be able to take away that project then and go, you know what?

This might have some real legs.

Regardless of where this ends up, I want to pursue it.

So I know that for myself, having done some business awards, it's heartbreaking when you don't make it all the way through.

And there's definitely those, I think that narrative of failure that goes through and you sit in that for a moment, but then you look back on that application and you think, well, actually, look how well I can now articulate this part or that project there.

I could actually really give that a crack.

Or I know someone that could help me get that off the ground.

For me.

I applied for the alumni.

It's exactly what I wanted.

I wanted to be around these incredible women that I'd heard so much positive talk about.

And I'm so glad that, yeah, we're in the alumni together now.

Yes, we are.

That's definitely.

I agree.

The alumni is.

It feels like the prize anyway.

It does.

It does.

So, to wrap us up, what's your plans for the next twelve months?

Well, part of my project was to have australian court tuner on our supermarket shelves.

Just because I didn't take out a win.

That's still my project and still my passion.

And I have been working hard to have that happen.

I am pretty proud to say we are about to present a proposal to one of the mainstream supermarkets.

So we are making progress.

But along this journey of trying to get the attention of the supermarket shelves, we've gained 30 extra stockists around the country.

So even every step of it has been so rewarding and so worth it.

So, yeah, the next twelve months, I'll be trying to get on as many shelves as possible.

We are bringing out a new tinned range so it is more affordable as well.

And that way more Australians will be able to consume australian tuna.

I can't wait to see you on supermarket shelves.

Like, I can't wait.

So well done on everything you do.

It's so inspiring to be around you.

And as I said, just to see those photos in the media, to learn more about the seafood industry as well, and to be part of the alumni together.

So thank you.

Thanks so much, Kimberly.

Listening back to this episode, one of the standout lessons from Kate's journey is that resilience, the ability to try again even after setbacks, is such a vital trait in business.

Whether it's reapplying for an award or navigating the challenges of running a business, it's clear that every no or roadblock presents an opportunity to reassess, learn and come back stronger.

Kate also mentioned the strength of the rural women's Award alumni, a community of women who support, uplift and encourage each other in business.

This is incredible.

Incredibly important.

Having a network of people who understand your journey, who can offer advice or simply cheer you on, makes all the difference.

Finally, Kate's story reminds us that success isn't just about the final destination.

Whether that's winning an award or getting a product on supermarket shelves.

It's about everything you learn along the way.

Each step, each attempt, and each connection contributes to your growth, both personally and professionally.

Now, before you take off with all.

That inspiration and knowledge, we'd love for you to leave a review on our podcast so that we can continue to amplify women's voices in the media.

And if you have any questions or you'd like to celebrate a win, you can always connect with us on Facebook and Instagram.

Oak Magazineau, I'm so glad we've met and that now you know a friend of mine.