What I love most about bringing these chats to you each week is that every person takes us on a journey I rarely expect.

This weeks Engaging gal Jodie Fox is the co-founder of a multi million dollar global enterprise Shoes of Prey a website where we can design our own shoes. She’s a lawyer-turned advertiser-turned entrepreneur.

What this chat reveals is that she also possesses the courage to be vulnerable. Even with all the beautiful shoes she can possibly wish for she’s happy to share that her life isn’t “perfect” all the time.

It just isn’t and that’s ok…

Martine Harte: So Jodie can you click your custom designed heels and fly back to Lismore where you grew up, did you imagine you would co-found company that was profitable within months, turning over millions in years and attracting 3 million in venture capital funds.

Jodie Fox: Gosh, absolutely not. I was lucky enough to be in a family that dreamt big, they come from very humble beginnings but my father in particular was always fostering dreams with me about what lay ahead in international business and what the world could mean for me.

Martine Harte: Tell us about Shoes of Prey?

Jodie Fox: Shoes of Prey is a website where women can custom design their own shoes. We started in 2009, it was born from an idea between (co-founders) Michael Fox, Mike Knapp and myself. I’ve always liked shoes but I began to love shoes when I could get exactly what I wanted and that came about when I was travelling through Asia and in the same way you can have someone tailor a shirt for you I found somebody I could commission shoe designs with.

I had this great shoe collection and my girlfriends asked where they were coming from. When I explained they asked me to commission some designs some for them as well.

The two boys were both at Google – Mike Knapp was a software engineer and Michael Fox in advertising sales – and they were both so excited about the possibility online retail held; they were passionately excited about it and just looking for one big novel idea.

Martine Harte: Your background in finance law means you were already ahead of the game when it came to approaching investors, how do you approach people for money?

Jodie Fox: Look it’s actually really tricky and Michael (co-founder Michael Fox) actually takes care of that side of our business. It’s actually different to the finance world that I’ve been involved in. I started out as an insolvency litigator so I kind of knew a bit about what not to do!

I think the thing with raising capital with Shoes of Prey was we actually won some awards very early on and we were profitable so that’s pretty attractive to an investor. I think as well for anyone who is thinking about raising money it’s really thinking about who your business is attractive to. If you’re looking for seed capital and somebody who has been down that road before then maybe an angel investor is right for you.

We have some really intelligent, well-connected angels in our syndicate. There are certainly some really good opportunities particularly in Sydney in Melbourne to access that kind of groups.

Martine Harte: How did you meet your business partners?

Jodie Fox: We went all went to law school in Brisbane, Mike Knapp did law and I.T Michael Fox did law and commerce and I did international business. I was actually at a different uni to the two boys but we all met one another and ended up being quite good friends.

Michael Fox and I were married, but we’re not anymore. It was a mutual decision and it’s lucky because we still work very closely! It still has its challenges, I certainly wouldn’t paint a picture that it was easy.. but I do feel like I’m working with my best friend and that’s pretty cool.

I’m an emotional soul and that presents its challenges. Even today has been quite a tough day but I can still come home and have that optimism.

MH: I’m so curious about that aspect of people’s nature, the ability to pick yourself up, is that part of genetic inheritance or is it self-taught?

JF: It’s so interesting, I think a lot of it does come from my family. My mum is of Sicilian back ground and we have a very tight-knit family with extraordinary support. I went home for my 30th birthday which I hate to say is nearly two years ago now.

I did that really daggy thing of stopping my whole family and saying, “Do you know what you guys? I love you!” I love them because I have to make some really hard decisions every day, I have to say things that really require strength and so does everybody else. I’m not under any illusion that my challenges are any more difficult than anybody else’s but the reason that I can pull through those days is even when I’m boiling with frustration at the end of the day I know I have people in my life who love and support me as much as I love and support them.

That fundamental truth gets me through the blackest of moments, I’ve dealt with anxiety and even depression as well. Even in those really black moments, it’s knowing they are there. That has really helped me to have an optimistic outlook on everything.

So I think my optimism comes from that beautiful family and friends support.

MH: This project has been a gift in that I am meeting so many amazing women who are honest and open and talk about their tough times? 

JF: Yeah and that’s really scary because everyone gets to the point of having a dark moment and feels they’ve failed when actually you are just having a normal hiccup like everyone else.

MH: Part of the human experience.

JF: It is and it doesn’t mean that it’s nice, it doesn’t mean you have to enjoy it but being able to put it into perspective and being able to normalise it means we can help people to continue on. WIth hope and strength and optimism, fundamental optimism is so important.

MH: What has been your biggest lesson?

JF: Probably my biggest lesson stems from this one thing that I think about quite a lot and that is just do every thing before you’re ready. With doing everything before your ready, it’s petrifying, you learn as you go and you are really opening yourself up to failure.

I do find these things challenging but I’m also really proud to say it’s never stopping me from rationalising my anxiety and taking the step forward and that’s the key thing.

I think that emotions shouldn’t be discarded. I think it needs to be faced, it needs to be confronted and you need to figure out what the message is from that you need to take away. It’s taken me a really long time to learn that and I guess if anyone is having that experience I don’t want to brush it under the rug and talk about the positive things because I guess this is where the real things happen.

You will cry, you will think, “my god why am I even doing this?” Everybody has those moments.

MH: You haven’t felt like throwing it all in?

JF: Of course I have!  Feeling like throwing it all in is an emotional thing. I would never actually throw it all in because I believe wholeheartedly in what I’m doing and I have a really strong belief about what we can do with this. Our journey has been positive so far but I think knowing where we believe we can go, we are only just at the beginning.

MH: Can you name the secret of the company’s success? 

JF: From a logical side it’s because we’re doing something that’s never been done before and I think that we’ve hit on something that solved a problem for a lot of women out there who never had the opportunity to wear what makes them feel good. We came from a place of passion and we still do, passion is not something we can build into a marketing plan.

HOOK UP WITH: Jodie Fox Shoes of Prey

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