PRESS RELEASE: Woman Tech Founder Named as Finalist in National Awards

Donna Fisher, Founder of tech startup SheSaw, has been named a finalist for the 2021 AusMumpreneur Awards in the NSW/ACT Digital Innovation and One to Watch categories.

The AusMumpreneur Awards presented by The Women’s Business School celebrate and recognize Australian Mums in business achieving outstanding success in areas such as business excellence, product development, customer service and digital innovation. The awards are designed to recognize the growing number of women who successfully balance motherhood and business in a way that suits their life and family.

Donna, from the NSW Northern Beaches, has a passion for amplifying women’s stories and increasing their visibility. In 2020, she pivoted her women-focused travel business, SheSaw, into a platform that combines Augmented Reality public art, digital tourism and NFT gaming to increase the visibility of women through innovative storytelling.

SheSaw’s world-first app helps you take self-guided walks to discover virtual AR statues dedicated to local women from all walks of life, celebrate women’s achievements and sharing their inspirational stories. “It’s been called feminist Pokémon, and I’m OK with that! I want to see people play for gender equality, not just fight for it.”

Donna was inspired to start SheSaw by something she couldn’t see. “When I visited places, I couldn’t find women’s stories – ‘herstory’ was literally missing. I’m a writer and historian, so I know the power of telling and suppressing stories. I knew that if I could make these women visible, I could make a real social and economic impact. In February 2020, our women tour guides were about to take their first groups to discover these hidden stories, then Covid hit. But I was determined to find another way to put women on the map.

I noticed the lack of statues dedicated to women and how the existing ones didn’t really tell us her story. So when I worked out we’d need an additional 24,000 statues, at a cost of $6 billion for us to have as many statues of women as men, I knew there had to be a more engaging and affordable way to put women’s stories on the map.”

Donna is delighted to be named as a finalist and is proud of her achievements, particularly bootstrapping and launching the ground-breaking SheSaw app in less than 6 months, when only 3% of VC investment makes its way to women-led startups.
“SheSaw is truly innovative. Using AR gaming to increase women’s visibility is a world-first. SheSaw has the potential to make a real difference, and we’ve already got clients who can see this too. We ran a successful pilot in March thanks to the City of Sydney, and we’ve partnered with Gillie and Marc Art to host their first virtual statue, which is supporting the #femalefaces4publicplaces campaign in Brisbane.”

SheSaw ‘s platform also lets people dedicate virtual statues to the mums, sisters, friends or colleagues who have impacted their lives. “These women see that they deserve recognition too,” says Donna, “and that alone makes the hard work of creating SheSaw worth it.”
There are many benefits to balancing business and motherhood as Donna explains, “I used to be in a job that took so much time and energy from me. Now, I can choose my own hours, work on something I am passionate about, and my girls get to see that if they choose motherhood, that isn’t the final chapter in their story. They can still follow their passions.”

It can be challenging to be a successful businesswoman whilst raising a family. Donna gives this advice to others thinking about starting their own enterprise. ”Get a cheer squad! Running a business and having children is stressful and isolating, particularly in the early days when you are doing everything yourself. Find a group of women in business who will help you through the tough times and celebrate your wins.”

And Donna also encourages women in business to share their stories. “You may not realise it, but you are already someone’s role model – they’re just waiting to be inspired by your journey.”

Read more at www.ausmumpreneur.com. The winners of the 2021 AusMumpreneur Awards will be announced at an online event in September.

For more information on the AusMumpreneur Awards, visit: www.ausmumpreneur.com or contact [email protected]

For an interview with Donna, contact 0402 698 864 [email protected]
• Website link https://www.shesaw.com
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