Our six finalists show us what’s at the heart of the entrepreneur

Entrepreneurs play a critical role in growing our economy and reimagining our future. As EY Entrepreneur of the Year Australia celebrates 21 years and 1600 finalists so far, we are delighted to showcase this year’s six finalists. Each is an inspiration for business people and entrepreneurs worldwide.

The finalists were chosen by an independent judging panel, based on six global judging criteria. Drawn from around the country, they reflect the Australian business community and its diversity.

As we followed their journey, we observed the parallels in their approaches as well as the unique differences between them, as we explored our 2021 program theme, ‘The Heart of the Entrepreneur’. 

Meet our finalists

David (Davie) Fogarty

Central Region National Finalist, CEO and Director, The Davie Group

Davie started out baking biscuits to sell at school and tried some 10 businesses before he found his groove with the Davie Group in 2018. Now an eCommerce sensation, Davie says his early failures were crucial steppingstones to success. The group has already launched more than 10 brands – including weighted blankets and calming dog beds – the result of testing 100s of products each month. 

Sales of The Oodie, a wearable blanket that became a hit during lockdowns, have expanded internationally, with Davie’s vision for the South Australian-based group to become a global household name in eCommerce. Data and predictive analytics drive decisions and rapid iteration as Davie and his team use their own tech stack to analyse trends and hypothesise products which they swiftly test, validate and launch. 

Anson Zhang and Jeff Yu

Eastern Region National Finalist, Co-founders and co-CEOs, Discover Energy and One Stop Warehouse

Anson and Jeff founded One Stop Warehouse (OSW) in 2013 to accelerate Australia’s renewable energy transition. First, they made it easier for customers to access solar and battery products. Then in 2018, they launched Discover Energy (DE), taking on the big energy retailers and opening the energy market to homeowners who could trade the energy generated by their own solar and battery systems at optimum prices.

DE’s Virtual Power Plant (VPP) system is compatible with 75% of Australia’s solar inverter and battery systems, a model designed to scale up to other countries. This entrepreneurial pair is creating a culture where people know they are working on something that will truly make the world a better place.

Izhar Basha

Eastern Region National Finalist, Founder and CEO, EHPlabs

At the age of 26, Izhar Basha’s diagnosis of ulcerative colitis became the catalyst for a life change. He left his career as a corporate lawyer in 2011 and, following an interest in sports nutrition and fitness products, opened a small retail store in Sydney. Finding the quality of existing supplements lacking, he set about creating his own brand.

After a trip to Utah in the USA where he investigated the area’s burgeoning fitness nutrition industry, Izhar established EHPlabs and launched his flagship product OxyShred onto the market in Australia. In February 2013 he launched in the US. OxyShred has since sold more than 5 million units, now supplying to 2500 retail outlets worldwide and selling through his e-commerce store.

EHPlabs conducts studies with leading universities to research the efficacy of its products, developed at its Utah lab. Izhar’s driving belief is that when people improve their health, they contribute more to society.

Dr Sean Parsons

Northern Region National Finalist, CEO and Managing Director, Ellume

During the 2009 swine flu pandemic, Dr Sean Parsons was working in the emergency department of a Queensland hospital. There he recognised the troublesome gap in diagnosing highly infectious diseases and founded Ellume in 2010. His mission is to develop rapid self-diagnosis tests for infectious diseases to help reduce the burden on the health system and deliver better clinical outcomes.

Ellume’s COVID-19 home test was the first of its kind to receive FDA emergency approval and Ellume received a A$325 million US government contract to ramp up test production. The company has already been awarded nine patents and is well on the way to being a global leader in healthtech.

Linda Brown

Southern Region National Finalist, CEO and President, Torrens University Australia 

The leader of Australia’s only private for-profit and B Corp-certified university, Linda Brown hails from a tiny Scottish town and was the first in her family to go to university. Today Torrens is Australia’s fastest-growing university, with campuses in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, the Blue Mountains, Auckland, and China.

Linda’s personal motto is “culture is king” and she has been instilling a start-up entrepreneurial spirit across Torrens since she joined in 2014. The university now has more than 20,000 students from more than 188 countries. In November 2020, Strategic Education Inc (SEI) bought the university and its satellite companies for A$900 million, making Linda CEO of SEI ANZ.

Doug Fitch

Western Region National Finalist, Co-founder and Global CEO, Agworld

Perth-born Doug Fitch set up Agworld with two co-founders to address the serious challenges faced by large-scale growers. He would go on to pioneer data-driven farm management, developing next-generation technology to make decisions easier for farmers, improving production efficiencies and sustainability, and bridging knowledge gaps between generations.

Now a global business, the uptake of Agworld’s software products has continued to grow, despite past funding issues and competition from Silicon Valley.

Steadfastly grower-centric, the business actively supports farming communities in their technology adoption. Doug’s purpose-led approach and investment in people and culture have underpinned Agworld’s continued success. The business was sold in 2021 for A$100 million.