The Mucky Middle

Young Henry's Co-founder Oscar McMahon believes that everyone deserves to drink good beer and live in an even better world. Once a hard-touring rock'n'roller, Oscar now leverages Young Henry's maxim “Serve the People” as a rally cry for climate activism. In this episode of the Mucky Middle, Oscar shares how he balances the good, the beer, and the profit, as well as his journey from Hell City Glamours drummer, to the meteoric rise of Young Henrys, to partnering with UTS to make algae do the brewery's dirty work.

In episode 2, Entrepreneur Karan Anand shares his journey as managing director of the fintech company Hnry, focusing on its mission to simplify tax and financial management for self-employed individuals. From customer engagement to company growth, and work-life balance to stress management, Karan delves into the challenges of managing a growing company as it strives to balance purpose and profitability.

In this episode, Nick chats to Catherine Long, the CEO and co-founder of trace, a company focused on helping SMEs on their journey to becoming net-zero. We discuss her background and journey into entrepreneurship, finding the right business partner, scaling a business and navigating greenwashing.

In this conversation, Nick chats to Andy Wright, CEO of project management software, Streamtime. Andy shares his journey from aspiring journalist to a career in Marketing and Branding, and how his passion for mental health advocacy was sparked by his own experience with anxiety and depression. Andy chats about his involvement with Never Not Creative and Mentally-Healthy two organisations focused on mental health and suicide prevention, which revealed the prevalence of anxiety, depression, and stress in the creative marketing industry. The discussion delves into the importance of transitioning from hourly billing to value-based pricing, Streamtime's transformation into a company striving to create happier, healthier businesses, flexible work arrangements, and the significance of celebrating individuality in the workplace.

On this episode, Nick chats to Phil Benedictus, CEO & Founder of B-Corp, Benedictus Media, and Co-Founder of Net Zero Media, about his journey from an academic and linguist to a DJ and ultimately finding his niche in the media and marketing domain. Phil discusses the "Net Zero" project, an initiative designed to tackle carbon emissions within the advertising sector. Phil's B Corp certification of Benedictus Media reflects his dedication to social and environmental responsibility. The conversation delves into the intricate world of ethical challenges within advertising, particularly the influence on consumer behaviour concerning alcohol and food delivery services, offering valuable insights into the ethical and practical dilemmas encountered by entrepreneurs in the advertising and marketing industry.

In this episode of "The Mucky Middle," Michelle, the CEO and co-founder of Cauldron, discusses her unconventional journey from medicine to pioneering precision fermentation in the food industry. The episode delves into Cauldron's mission to transform food production through precision fermentation, emphasising affordable and large-scale products. Michelle shares insights into the nuances of precision fermentation, the creation of specialised factories for food tech startups, and the challenges of transitioning from a scientific background to a business mindset. The conversation touches on global visions for food supply, leadership in a fast-paced environment, and personal aspects of being a female STEM leader, providing an illuminating glimpse into the world of food tech entrepreneurship.

Nick talks with Sasha Titchkosky, CEO and Co-Founder of Koskela, a sustainable furniture manufacturer, exploring her career journey from aspiring doctor to co-founding a B Corp business. They discuss circular economy principles and design's role in creating eco-friendly products. Sasha also touches on work-life balance challenges and the positive aspects of the COVID-19 lockdown, and the future of work.

Nick chats with Margy Vary from The Conversation about the uphill battle against misinformation media organisations face and the need to make science appealing to foster critical thinking. The interview also traces Margy's career evolution from traditional advertising to purpose-driven initiatives in sustainability and journalism.

Nick chats with Katrine Fox, the Marketing Director of Fable Food Co., about the growth of the sustainable meat alternative brand. Katrine discusses the challenges of product launches, the importance of packaging and branding, and iterative marketing strategies. The conversation covers Fable's mission to end industrial animal agriculture and encourage sustainable growth practices in the food industry. 

In Episode 10 of The Mucky Middle, Nick speaks with Brooke Roberts, Co-CEO and Co-founder of Sharesies — a New Zealand startup working to create financial empowerment for everyone. Brooke shares her thoughts on the B Corp movement and why every business should be a social enterprise, what it's like sharing the CEO role with two other founders, and how she (and Nick) both find the energy to run businesses in parallel with family lives.

In Episode 11, Nick speaks with Lucy Piper from WorkForClimate. Lucy's journey is far from typical. From making films and travelling the world, to empowering everyday employees to chart a path to decarbonisation from within their organisations, Lucy is dedicated to helping businesses make meaningful change.

Paul Oosting is a growth marketer, strategic campaigner and community builder, and is currently Chief Growth Officer at environmental finance platform, Acacia. Before that, Paul Oosting was CEO at social change platform GetUp, where he built up a member base of a million people that believe in the power of people to bring about widespread change.

Phil is a Partner at Main Sequence a venture capital firm founded by Australia's national science agency – CSIRO. There he invests in deep tech founders who are building unimaginable new companies with a strong connection to research. There he has invested in Cauldron, Eden Brew, Samsara Eco, Uluu, v2food, Nourish Ingredients, EVERY Company, RapidAIM, Coviu and Q-CTRL. Before this he was the founder of Australia's first incubator and venture studio, Pollenizer, where Phil played an instrumental role in developing the startup ecosystem across Asia Pacific and advised some of the world's biggest organisations on practical ways to deliver new growth and the cultural change that is required to get there.

In Episode 14, Nick chats to Leigh Barnes, Chief Customer Officer at Intrepid — an Australian B Corp that focuses on sustainable travel and authentic experiences for all. He and Nick talk about how climate change is a crucial factor in travel and tourism, how experiences are more valuable than things, and how the loneliness epidemic is shaping destinations around the world.

After accidently falling into a marketing career, Jonathan Williams soon found himself working for tech giants PayPal, Google and Hubspot — eventually leading him to a new life in Australia. After Covid completely disrupted the travel industry, Jonathan was approached by Polestar to take the premium EV brand to the next level.

After initially setting his sights on a career in law, Michael found himself immersed in the world of finance and technology—which unexpectedly led to co-founding Uluu. Partnering with co-founder Julia, Michael leverages his background to spearhead the creation of biodegradable seaweed-based plastics that aim to revolutionise sustainability in the industry.

From starting and selling a cleaning business in his teens, Kane followed his entrepreneurial nous into the finance sector with a unique perspective gained from his time as a paramedic. This experience revealed the results of a broken system and inspired him to tackle the challenge of transforming the finance world. His mission? To create Financial Equality For Humanity. In this episode, Kane speaks about co-founding and building Maslow, his answer to financial inequality.

Saxon Wright, the visionary entrepreneur behind Pablo & Rusty's coffee and Huskee reusable cups, believes business can be a powerful force for environmental change. Once drawn to the outdoors and influenced by his sister's conservation work, Saxon now channels his scientific background and business acumen into creating circular solutions for our single-use crisis. In this episode of the Mucky Middle, Saxon shares his journey from experimenting with coffee roasting science to transforming discarded coffee husks into beautiful, functional cups. Learn how his latest venture, "Borrow by Husky," aims to revolutionize reusable cup adoption through a scalable borrowing system that could eliminate billions of single-use cups annually. Saxon reveals his methodology for maintaining creative energy through intentional reflection time, his philosophy of "only do what only you can do," and how he balances long-term environmental dreams with practical business realities.

Andy Miller isn't just brewing beer—he's brewing a cultural shift. As co-founder and CEO of Heaps Normal, he's helping Australians drink less without making them feel like outcasts for saying no to booze. In this episode of The Mucky Middle, Andy talks about starting the business with mates during lockdown, crafting a brand that made non-alcoholic beer feel “heaps normal,” and why moving fast and trusting your gut sometimes beats market research. He also opens up about the hard stuff: navigating the messy middle of scaling a purpose-led brand, balancing parenthood with business, and why he's now choosing hikes with the kids over late-night strategy docs. Plus: mindful drinking, California expansion, new product lines, and what he'd tell his younger self (spoiler: just start).