Here is our list of local entrepreneurs to watch in 2019.

Taryn Williams

At age 15, Taryn Williams decided to learn to fly — on a twin prop Cessna out of Rockhampton airport in far north Queensland. The determination and fearlessness which put her in the pilot’s seat so young is no doubt what finds her now, just sixteen years later, the creator of two successful businesses, ambassador for some of the world’s most recognisable brands, standout influencer in a crowded market, and role model for girls and women in the business and tech industries.

Blonde, tanned, athletic — Williams has the natural beauty and style of the experienced model she is but her sleek, cropped hair, styled into an Elvis-esque quiff, and her disarmingly direct blue-eyed gaze, are distinctive. Girl-next-door friendly, one is nonetheless aware of a concentrated drive beneath the sunny greetings and dazzling smile.

It was that golden beauty that got her into modelling. Her Instagram feed shines with it — Taryn at glam parties, in exotic locations, with famous and glamorous pals.

But it was the drive that lies beneath that ultimately propelled her on to a different path, and which has brought her here to live in Sydney’s eastern suburbs where she now is in the process of moving from Bronte to Bellevue Hill.

Williams grew up in the Barossa Valley but it was her parents’ desire to show their two daughters the world beyond, as much as her father’s work as an environmental engineer, that moved them from rural South Australia to Fiji, Yeppoon in far north Queensland and then south to Canberra where Williams studied politics and international relations at ANU.

Sydney has been home for the last 11 years and she credits her gypsy upbringing and supportive parents for developing her adventurous spirit. “My parents have always been my biggest champions but I didn’t realise until much later how lucky I was to have such an interesting upbringing,” she said.

Modelling from age 15, Williams witnessed both the best and the worst of that notoriously fickle and brutal industry. “I got to work with amazingly talented people when I was modelling but I saw so many inefficiencies in the way things ran and injustices in the way creatives were treated,” she says.

This inspired her to create something she felt was lacking in the industry — a service which treated models with decency and respect, which fostered positive relationships between talent and clients, and which paid on time every time.

By 21 she had launched Wink Models and 11 years later, it is thriving with 650 models and offices in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

Ever alert to gaps in an increasingly digitised market, about five or so years ago Williams saw a whole new array of talent emerging who could be partnered with businesses to create the kind of “snackable”, quick-turnaround, authentic social media content that consumers increasingly demand from brands.

From reality TV stars to celebrity vets and Instagram influencers, this new breed of talent needed a new type of representation.

Enter theright.fit and Williams’ vision for an end-to-end on-boarding calendar management and payroll integration software aiming to streamline every aspect of business.

“It was bigger than Ben Hur,” says Williams when describing the process of starting a new business and building the game-changing app. She can laugh about it now, but the tears and pain of the start-up journey are still fresh in her mind.

“And it was incredibly expensive,” she says. After initially funding theright.fit with revenue from Wink Models, Williams went to the market to raise capital — an experience she describes as terrifying.

Nonetheless, she was able to attract seed funding from Airtree Ventures and with that, as well as the investor’s strategic support and network of contacts, put together her dream team.

The app itself was built to Williams’ exacting specifications by a company making software for fly in/fly out mining companies.

“It’s the same idea — they’re looking to book someone available on such and such a day, in a particular location who has, say, a forklift licence. Our clients have the same requirements — a time, location, the right budget, it’s just they’re looking for someone who has say, pierced ears, freckles and blonde hair.” It’s her ability to make this kind of connection — miners to models — that keeps Taryn Williams not just ahead of the game but creating the very rules of the game.

And that the software works not only means clients get a seamless customer experience, but that the talent has total control over their careers, fulfilling Williams’ vision of creatives empowered in their industry, not victims of it.

“I still get a shiver of delight when I see a campaign we’ve helped to build putting the right talent in touch with a business so they can create something powerful together.”

Williams is also in demand as a speaker on women in business and technology and is a brand ambassador for MaxFactor and La Prairie, among others. “I only say yes to things that’ll be beneficial to my business … a target audience we work with, or an opportunity to share our story,” she explains.

And what about down time? Williams looks momentarily startled at the idea but insists she’s getting better at finding balance after years of an unrelenting work schedule. Her home in the east is obviously central to that.

“I adore it. I can breathe easily and I love the beach.” Sundays are for the weekend papers, friends, reading (she is currently immersed in a biography of Bob Hawke) and exercise.

For the Courier’s photoshoot early last spring, she braved freezing waters, plunging into Bronte Beach fully clothed. “Oh boy, it was cold!” she laughs. But, whether it’s piloting a plane or disrupting an industry, throwing herself into something is the only way Taryn Williams knows how to operate.

Peter Scutt and Tony Charara, Mable

Like many good entrepreneurial ideas, Mable (previously known as Better Caring) stemmed from personal experience.

Peter Scutt, (pictured) from Tamarama, and Tony Charara, from Bronte, set up the service in 2014, after Scutt struggled to find the right in-home support for his ageing parents using traditional home care providers.

The company has become a frontrunner in the way in home care and support and health services are accessed in Australia by connecting those who are ageing or have a disability with independent support workers in their local area.

“My conclusion was that the industry didn’t work well for my parents or the care workers,” said Scutt.

“My parents wanted to choose who came into their home to support them and when they came. We thought surely, everyone wants this basic level of choice, but the industry couldn’t offer it, it made us realise that this industry was crying out for change.”

Mable’s safeguarded marketplace was born in 2014, giving people more autonomy over their care and support. They could decide the services they want and what they pay. Since launching into the $33 billion aged care and disability support sectors, Mable now has over 60,000 users and has connected 7,800 workers with clients — in the eastern suburbs alone it has access to 520 independent support workers.

The company has grown over 9000 per cent with funding from Ellerston Capital, won the ‘Company to Watch’ Award and was a finalist as growth company of the year at the Australian Growth Company of the Year Awards which is co-sponsored by Hamilton Locke, Macquarie Capital, Deloitte and NAB.

Mabel is not, as they say, the founders’ first rodeo.

Before establishing Mable, Scutt had founded or invested in start-up and early stage companies in Australia, the US and Europe and with Charara is co founding director of Tissue Repair, a biopharmaceutical company.

Tissue Repair is conducting a clinical trial in the US for a topical gel created by chemist Mark Deacon Shaw and carries the promise of significantly accelerating healing for chronic wounds.

Paul Fischmann

He has run a portfolio of some 25 boutique hotels across the country and in Bali, Paris and Fiji, but entpreneur Paul Fischmann itches to do more in the eastern suburbs where he was born and raised.

“I would really love to do something somewhere along the New South Head Rd stretch between Rose Bay and Edgecliff,” said Mr Fischmann, the 43-year old chief executive of 8Hotels, a business he founded back in 2004 and now employs over 350 people. “Something small, high end and with a cool bar.

“I think there’s a big demand in the area for the visiting friends and relatives market.”

Founding 8Hotels on The Altamont and Kirketon Hotels in Darlinghurst and the Pensione Hotel in the city, Fischmann concentrated his attentions further afield before making a foray east again when he opened his 35-room boutique hotel, Little Albion Guest House in Surry Hills in June last year — only for it to be sold to a Syrian billionaire in December.

The hotel, built in 1910 as a school convent was beautifully transformed into a five-star hotel via a heritage build by designer Connie Alessi.

Guests arriving at Little Albion will find themselves meandering down a Surry Hills laneway cursing Google Maps until the moment they arrive at its doorstep.

Fischmann could easily have created the main entry on the better trafficked Albion St but where’s the experience in that?

It’s only after opening the nondescript gate that guests find themselves in a delightful hedge lined garden leading into a space which pulses with funky yet laid back inner city vibes.

Days after opening, it announced a world first listing on Airbnb, offering customers the chance to hire the entire guest house from $15,000 — as well as individual rooms.

“With Little Albion we sought to redefine the modern hotel by catering to the needs of today’s luxury travellers,” says the Moriah College educated father of two who lives in Bellevue Hill with his partner, 8Hotels creative director Claire Sarfati and their young children.

It was the kind of out-of-the-box move that has defined Fischmann’s ambitious but adaptable approach to business since he began his career managing backpacker hostels and boarding houses. As he told CEO magazine in 2016, “I sort of fell into the hotel business when I was 20 years old.

“I had no experience, and really no education beyond high school.”

As owner of another property in Surry Hills, this time on Elizabeth Street a stone’s throw from Central Station, Fischmann has lodged plans for a $3,630,000 development.

The site already has DA approval for — aptly — a boarding house, which held already been secured by the previous owners.

Fischmann’s decision to concentrate his focus again on the inner city and the eastern suburbs is partly driven by his desire to stay close to home for the sake of his young family.

However, just like in Coelho’s The Alchemist there’s a definite element of travelling around the world only to find the greatest treasure was right where you first started.

Ones to watch

Vera Yan & Katia Santilli, Nimble Activewear

Best friends merge fashion and finance backgrounds to create Bondi-based activewear. With a devoted strong social conscience, expect more ethical and sustainable messages in 2019.

Aled Barry, Bondi Meal Prep

Former Jr Mr Australia going from strength to strength delivering nutritional powerhouse meals with local produce and premium cuts.

Richard Matthewman and Richard Kavanagh, Piiq

Woollahra inventor (Matthewman) and hair styling supremo (Kavanagh) bring us a new salon must have: digital mirror which provides an interactive consult. Adopted by L’Oreal with plans to expand globally.

Belinda Everingham, Bondi Wash

Harvard alumnus and former corporate executive makes botanicals-based cleaning products. Company launched in 2013 and growing with flagship stores on Gould St Bondi and Oxford St Paddington. she has become a beacon for aspiring start ups.

Jason Wilby and Jonathan Buck, Huddle Insurance

Eastern suburbs locals designed an AI powered start-up, backed by Seven West Media and AirTree Ventures. They pair have raised millions to grow their insurance fraud-busting product.

Christie Whitehill, Tech Ready Women Academy

Whitehill, of Darling Point, is devoted to empowering women in business and spearheads women’s tech education and network platform.

Adam Rakowski, Mojo Downunder

Bondi tradie turned businessman creates undies for active blokes using cutting edge materials for confidence and comfort. Innovating since his 2003 launch, his latest collaboration is with Mambo.

Dr Kate Adams, Thankly

Popular and innovative Bondi vet. Launched an app in 2016 based on old-fashioned thank you letters. Director for ASX listed company, Cannpal Animal Therapeutic.

Jessica Sepel, JS Health

Vaucluse-based nutritionist turned wellness coach with a vitamin range, 200+ Instagram followers and a strictly no-diets approach.