It’s often said that there has never been a better time to be a young entrepreneur in Australia.

We have the economic stability, a soaring Australian dollar, access to technologies undreamt of only a decade ago, plus a growing army of baby-boomer mentors who would like nothing more than to see the next generation of Australian business builders succeed locally and beyond the borders of our small but increasingly outward-looking nation.

And, it seems, that young entrepreneurial Australians have also figured this out… en masse.

While the claim is made every year, Anthill’s 2011 30under30 proved to be our biggest, attracting hundreds of nominations and applications from entrepreneurs right across Australia.

For our judges, it also proved to be our toughest.

That’s why, this year, in addition to our top 30, we’ll be putting the spotlight on a small army of Honourable Mentions and young guns to keep an eye on.

And we intend to stretch out the ant-icipation.

Rather than release every winner in one massive hit, we’ve decided to stagger the names of this prestigious set, three to six per day, for the next… well… until we’re done.

We’ll be starting from youngest to oldest, while also turning our attention to those who didn’t make the top 30 but impressed our socks off nonetheless.

And if you didn’t make it into the top 30, don’t dismay.

As fellow entrepreneurs, we encourage you to simply extend your middle finger, point it purposefully at your computer monitor and exclaim loudly, “F*#k you, Anthill. What the hell do you know? You are wrong and I’m going to show you.”

And, then, we’ll see you next year.

The Top 30 Revealed! (kinda)

The Top 30 are listed by age.

NAME	BIRTH YEAR	STATE	GENDER	LATEST VENTURE
Brandon Cowan	1994	NSW	M	Crazy Dog Apps
Zoe Condliffe	1990	VIC	F	Mayibuye
Mick Spencer	1990	ACT	M	OnTheGo
Chanel Costabir	1987	VIC	F	The Lingerie Boutique
Cameron Rambert	1987	VIC	M	Geniaus
David Zanker	1987	SA	M	Off the Chain Marketing
Rowan Kunz	1987	NSW	M	Art of Smart Education
Jack Delosa	1987	NSW	M	The Entourage
Madeline Veenstra	1986	QLD	F	Wikifashion
Michael Woods	1986	VIC	M	Media Saints
Adam Pope	1986	VIC	M	Fabulous Catering
Nicole McIver	1985	QLD	F	Wholesale Baby
Joshua Kami	1985	VIC	M	Ready Steady Print
Peter Salakas	1985	NSW	M	The Party People
Phillip Kingston	1985	VIC	M	Kingston Development
Chantelle Baxter	1984	VIC	F	Do It in a Dress
Nicole Kersh	1984	NSW	F	4Cabling
Andrew Branson	1984	VIC	M	IF Telecom
Michael Cohen	1984	VIC	M	Executive Security Solutions (ESS)
Owen Kerr	1984	VIC	M	Pepperstone
Ben Johnston	1983	QLD	M	Josephmark.com.au.
Don McKenzie	1983	QLD	M	Stream Group
Dean Ramler	1982	VIC	M	Milan Direct
Jan Vydra	1982	VIC	M	Australian Fresh Leaf Herbs
Sergei Sergienko	1982	NSW	M	Edway Training
Ruslan Kogan	1982	VIC	M	Kogan, Milan Direct
Seb Eckersley-Maslin	1982	NSW	M	Blue Chilli
Laurence Escalante	1981	WA	M	Virtual Gaming Worlds
Ahmed Haider/Tia Saunders	1986 1988	NSW	M F	Zookal
Sheng Yeo Alex Sharp	1988 1991	NSW	M	Orion Virtualisation Solutions
Jonathon Green Elliot Green	1985 1986	VIC	M	ELJO

Why do some columns have two? Well, many an outstanding business has more than one ‘driver’ behind the wheel. This year’s competition saw a few such cases of young entrepreneurs on the same team. Rather than single out one talent, we felt a double profile — i.e. Dual Drivers — would be a more appropriate way to highlight their combined and singular entrepreneurial talents. (It also helped us squeeze more deserving entrepreneurs into the list!)

 

Honourable Mentions

They may have missed the Top 30 by a wink but we couldn’t let this posse of young, uber-achievers slip by without giving them the good ol’ Anthillian stamp of endorsement. Congratulations to this year’s runners up, our Honourable Mentions!

NAME	BIRTH YEAR	STATE	GENDER	LATEST VENTURE
Marita Cheng	1989	VIC	F	Robogals
James Spittal	1989	VIC	M	Merspi
Jamie Xuereb	1988	VIC	M	Mediapoint
Kavita Singh	1987	QLD	F	IG’ZIST
Sean Qian	1987	VIC	M	Crisp Entertainment
Carl Taylor	1986	NSW	M	Bold Solutions
Ehon Chan	1989	VIC	M	Soften the Fck Up
Marcus Lim	1985	NSW	M	Pick A Quote
Kate Stewart	1984	VIC	F	Bright Young Things
Ben Carroll	1984	NSW	M	Velflex
James Griffin	1984	NSW	M	SR7 Social Media Intelligence
Brent Quill	1984	VIC	M	Training for Work
Kym Huynh	1984	VIC	M	WeTeachMe
Steve McLeod	1984	VIC	M	Fire and Safety Australia
Lachlan Blackhall	1984	ACT	M	17Dynamics
Dave Cupples	1983	NSW	M	Apeshop
James Greig	1983	QLD	M	Bloomtools
Matt Leeburn	1983	VIC	M	Interaction Dynamics
Hugh Whalan	1983	ACT	M	Impact Energies
Michael Baker	1983	NSW	M	GNC LiveWell
Skye Blackburn	1983	NSW	F	Butterfly Skye’s Bug Shop
Leigh Williams	1982	VIC	M	eStore Logistics
Marcela Christy	1982	QLD	F	One Stylish Bride
Melissa Loughnan	1982	VIC	F	Utopian Slumps
Jordan Birchall	1982	QLD	M	Tuckeria Fresh Mexican
Chris Baxter	1981	NSW	M	Baxter IP
Onur Kece	1981	NSW	M	Found Organic Juices
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Anthill ‘Up-and-Comers’, 2011

Many applications in this year’s batch genuinely knocked our socks off — for the sheer ingenuity of the business behind the entrepreneur or the entrepreneurs themselves. However, some of their ventures were still nascent, or the entrepreneur was making significant progress but hadn’t quite yet ‘hit the big time’ relative to his or her age bracket.

We’re calling this set our Anthill ‘Up-and-Comers’. While they genuinely impressed us this year (enough to make us want to share their achievements), we suspect their best is yet to come. (Yes, folks. You tapped our Anthill antennae and we’ll be watching your progress with interest.) Congratilations to this year’s Up-and-Comers!

NAME	BIRTH YEAR	STATE	GENDER	LATEST VENTURE
David Eden	1993	VIC	M	Quodel
Eric Chau	1988	NSW	M	Echaudesign
Nikias Leigh	1988	VIC	M	Boutique Bride
Owen McCrink	1988	VIC	M	ReGadget
Marianne Sea	1987	NSW	F	Young Republic
Erick Armando	1987	VIC	M	DealsGuide
Mike Boyd	1987	QLD	M	Cupstart
Ryan Wardell	1987	NSW	M	Project PowerUp
Monique Jeremiah	1986	QLD	F	Exceptional Group
David O’Donoghue	1986	SA	M	ODD Games
Renee Wade	1985	VIC	F	The Feminine Woman
Alistair McKendrick	1985	VIC	M	Exhibit Furniture
Ben Hall	1985	QLD	M	Love Law
Mathew Beeche	1985	NSW	M	Shoe String Launch
Flic Manning	1984	VIC	F	Evixa dance studios
Peter Bradd	1984	NSW	M	Scribble Pics
Finn Kelly	1984	VIC	M	Wealth Enhancers
Owen Bowling	1984	QLD	M	CrankIt
Ei Sabai Nyo	1983	NSW	F	Online Shopping USA
Josh Rimmington	1983	QLD	M	BuyAShed.com
Brodie McCulloch	1983	WA	M	Social innovation in Western Australia
Chad Yesilova	1983	VIC	M	Innovative Beverage Co.
Michael Mironowicz	1983	NSW	M	The Storehouse
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How were these young guns picked?

The 30under30 awards begins with nominations, followed by a process of self-application. Why? Because we believe that one of the most important traits any entrepreneur should have is the ability to win friends and influence people. The self-application process gave our judges a direct line to the personality of each applicant entrepreneur.

Commercial success is not everything…

The 30under30 program rewards traits beyond pure successful venture creation. While some applicants wowed us with their, sometimes instant, commercial successes, others demonstrated their ability to learn from the school of ‘hard-knocks’, embrace unexpected opportunities, harness the skills of others and build buzz beyond their sometimes meagre budgets. All these factors, were considered ‘in the mix’.

Benchmarking success by age…

We’re often asked, ‘How do you measure the achievements and entrepreneurial traits of a 19 year-old against those of a 29 year-old?’ The simple answer? We don’t. Rather, during the judging process, the successes, the skills, the attributes of each applicant are measured against other entrepreneurs their age. So, if you’re a 28 year-old entrepreneur wondering why someone else made the cut while you didn’t, perhaps stop comparing yourself to the 18 year-old and look to your age bracket. As the older you get, the higher the bar.

“Why didn’t I get a spot!?”

The entrepreneurial stereotype is rarely a wall-flower. In other words, each year, we receive a number of enquiries (polite and otherwise) from applicants who didn’t make the list seeking feedback. These enquiries usually begin with, “How can Ellie Entrepreneur be on the list when I am not? I’ve achieved so much more!”

If this sounds like you, please read the section above (again) and then check the age. Often, your ‘Ellie Entrepreneur’ will be far younger than you. You have been judged against your age bracket.

If this doesn’t apply (or ‘assuage your consternation’), perhaps revisit your application. Have you endured multiple hardships and obstacles? This is another factor that our judges consider. Few people find success the first time around, and we accord special attention to those who have been knocked down and found the resilience to get back up.

Lastly, did your application embody the brash tone of self-entitlement that your desire for feedback has also elicited? We love tall-poppies and we love ‘unreasonable’ people. You make progress happen. But we also appreciate that successful entrepreneurs know how to ‘win friends and influence people’. A bullish personality without balance will not succeed in the longer term.

Still not satisfied?

Finally, let us just say, we too have entered Anthill into awards and seen companies that we have thought less deserving take home the coveted gong.  And we know the amount of time and effort that you put into your application.

For that, we sincerely thank you.

We appreciate your passion and we hope that you don’t let our views make you feel discouraged. Great entrepreneurs don’t get put off by hurdles or rejections.

As fellow entrepreneurs, we encourage you to simply extend your middle finger, point it purposefully at your computer monitor and exclaim loudly, “F*#k you, Anthill. What the hell do you know? You are wrong and I’m going to show you.”

And, then, we’ll see you next year.