Reinventing Traditional Industries with Innovation

Note: the following transcript was generated by AI and therefore may contain some errors and omissions.

Welcome back to the Forward Thinking Podcast, a special edition of the Coast and Commerce podcast recorded live at Forward Fest 2025. I’m the co-host of this podcast, Ben Amos from Innovate Media. And I’m Craig Josse, co-founder and chair of Forward Fest. So episode three, in this episode, we’re actually going to hear from, again, two incredible founders of businesses which are really disrupting traditional industries through their ideas and through the technologies that they’re bringing to the world.

Do you want to share a bit more about this first business we’re to hear from? We’re going to first hear about Chris. Chris is actually part of our Leap Forward program, which is supported by Queensland government. It’s a fantastic platform that he’s disrupting an incredible industry, the health and wellbeing. Let’s get into it and hear his story. Here we go. This is Chris from Stat. G’day and welcome back to the Forward Thinking Podcast, a special edition of the Coast and Commerce podcast recorded live right here at FordFest 2025.

I’m Ben Amos from Innovate Media and I’m joined today by Chris Risby from STAT. Chris, we’ve only just met, so I’m really interested to hear a little bit about your story. So what brings you to Ford Fest 2025? Obviously, it’s the innovation. It’s everything that’s happening in Sunshine Coast. But again, I’m just a boring pharmacist. So again, there’s not a lot super exciting about me, except the fact that we’re trying to fix the biggest problem in health care, which is financial sustainability. Yeah, so a lot happening in that space.

boring, but the biggest problem in healthcare, those things are kind of dichotomy there. So tell me, what is STAT? And that’s what it’s trying to do. So tell me a bit more. So think of STAT like a 24 seven digital medical conference. So it’s a place where organizations like pharma and medtech and health tech companies can engage with practitioners. And what our tech does is basically compliantly monetize the time they spend together to create new revenue streams for the practitioner for insights and market research.

but also a new funding source for the patients. So essentially helping offset the cost of providing that more advanced better care. And we do this all by providing three times the access and I guess a third of the cost to these organizations as opposed to a traditional conference. sending reps around to clinics and pharmacies and hospitals and I guess that’s where I have sort of cut my teeth on is unfortunately waving goodbye to every rep that’s kind of coming to see me because we can’t take time away from our patients to engage.

and as nice as those coffees and those dinners are, we can do a lot with that money that’s spent and really push that into healthcare to make it more sustainable and more affordable. Amazing. So what stage is Stat at now? Is it the startup stage or has it gone to market? Yeah, so we’re a startup stage. So we’re actually rolling out our early access program at the moment. So we’ve got practitioners across 20 different specialties at the moment and we’re dealing with pharma companies from the very top end.

all the way down to our innovative health tech organizations. And that’s the great thing about STAT is that it doesn’t matter if you’ve got, you know, Pfizer level budgets or whether you’re an innovative company, if a practitioner wants to engage with you on our platform, well then they can. And our goal is really to help speed innovation in that space and provide value across the whole board. So what role has platforms like Forward Fest or just the innovation system on the Sunshine Coast had in getting STAT off the ground?

I guess it started from almost the early sort of conceptual stage. So at that time River City Labs had moved up to the coast, Ocean City Labs, and one of the first people I met at one of those events and through Silicon Coast was CJ. And obviously the support that he’s provided and the people that he brings around him has probably been one of the most exciting things. And I’d be lying to say that it’s the purpose.

and the vision that he has for Silicon Coast and he has for Forward Fest, which is sort of really connected with me and even people like Dave Clare who we saw this morning. If you’re going to create something in business, if you’re going to do something, do it for the right reasons. And do it in a way that helps people. And I think that is really what shines through with Forward Fest is bringing people together that really want to drive a better future for everyone. So in the early stages of getting STAT off the ground, like what were some of the challenges that you’ve faced so far and

You know, have you been able to overcome some of those? We’ve only got a few minutes. Exactly. Where do you start? But I would say the biggest thing is coming from a practitioner role is really taking on that more business aspect. Again, we rarely ever think about caring for people as a business.

But unfortunately, without funding, I mean, you can’t really do your job. And over time, you know, these sort of funding things start to lead to burnout. It means you’ve got less staff, you’ve got less sort of help. So really focusing on what it means to provide a valuable service in healthcare, but also that it is a business that needs to be sustainable. And that’s what we’ve sort of been building with STAT. And I guess connecting with people in the innovation space, understanding how you get those funding sources into your business to begin with.

has been a big learning experience, especially when you talk about the investing sort of space, the venture capital space, all these worlds that I had no idea about, which now feel quite comfortable and confident and sort of running in these circles. But again, everybody doing the same thing, using what resources they have to make a better future. Yeah, and what’s been your experience on the ground so far in building your startup here on the Sunshine Coast? you’ve talked a little bit about

the ecosystem around Forward Fest, example. you know, so how would you describe the business entrepreneurial startup community here on the coast? I think it almost has that feel like something big is about to happen. I know they talk about, you know, 2032 with the Olympics, but there is that feel that Sunshine Coast is the place to be, whether it’s in the investment from government building the new, you know, central business district.

It really feels like they want to attract companies and people that want to change the world.

Again, we want to be one of those organizations. mean, we would love to have a massive headquarters that says STAT and, our platform is built to be compliant in every market, including the US. And I’d be lying to say if we weren’t planning to go there, I’m a Canadian first. I’d love to help our noisy neighbors. They need all the help they can get at the moment. So, yes, it’s one of those things where you can see that global…

feel and where you know that if you stick with these people they can really take you to that next level. amazing. STAT here at Forward Fest 2025, like what’s your, have you come to this event with a mission? Have you come to try and make some connections or what’s the goal here? Absolutely, absolutely. you know being here at Forward Fest it’s really just sharing what we’re doing.

really hoping to meet a lot of influential people in government. are working with a lot of the government primary health networks as well as the way that government health, I guess, sort of…

spending on health is done and really letting them know that there is a new channel. So we want to be that channel that instead of, you know, posting your ads on the Facebook or LinkedIn, we have a way that on our platform, if you want to connect with practitioners, connect with their patients, you’ll be able to do that in a way where that funding stays within health. So connecting with those types of people in government is probably the biggest one here. And obviously, I hope there is some practitioners that have been able to get away from their clinics or their pharmacies or the hospital today and maybe cruise down here. And it’d be great to connect with them too.

provide a little hope, let them know that there is a brighter future coming and we want to do it together with them. Excellent. Just as we wrap up here, you’re part of the Leap Forward Accelerator. Can you tell us a little bit about the program and what that’s meant for your business to be accepted into that program so far? Yeah, fantastic. It’s a situation where a lot of the stuff was delivered both online and in person. What’s happened over those last few weeks is really bringing around

I guess the strong insights from some of these community members. Well, like I said, I mentioned Dave, you know, being able to have a masterclass in business with him, something that again, I think was probably the highlight for me in this cohort, but also every week being able to connect with a mentor or connect with CJ and connect with investors and connect with their networks to sort of test ideas, how are we going to roll out for us? in that early sort of rollout period, you know, who are we going to target? How are we going to measure that? How are we going to create impact

from day one and it’s been reassuring, exciting, daunting all the same time but it’s been a super valuable experience. Well it’s a big mission Chris and you’ve got it all ahead of you which is awesome to hear. So thanks for joining me on the Forward Thinking podcast today. So Chris Risby from STAT guys, best place to follow you? Can we follow your journey LinkedIn? Where were you hanging out? you can follow me on LinkedIn but definitely go to our website www.stathealth.io. Just sign up.

keep updated and there’ll be some exciting stuff happening over the next six months I can tell you that. Amazing, excellent. So thanks for joining us for this episode of the Forward Thinking podcast recorded live here at Forward Fest 2025. Make sure to subscribe so you don’t miss another episode that we’ve recorded here or any other episodes of the Coast and Commerce podcast. We’ll see you in the next episode. Bye. How fantastic hearing Chris and what he’s doing right here in our local community and taking it to the world.

And we’re now going to be hearing about another industry, another sector, hospitality. And let’s get into that. So let’s hear from Tama from Dyna. Welcome back to another episode of the Forward Thinking Podcast, this special edition of the Coast and Commerce podcast recorded live at FordFest 2025. And the purpose of this podcast is to find interesting stories in the world of entrepreneurship and startup ecosystem.

much like the story that we’ve got here today. We’ve got Tama Jamieson from Dyna and we’ve only just met and I’ve just had a little bit of a conversation and I’m excited for you guys watching and listening that we can together find out more about what Dyna does. So let’s start there Tama. What got you into this? Like what was the seed of the idea that became the business you got today? So Dyna is a hospitality marketplace essentially. So what we’re trying to do is we’re trying to connect businesses and consumers in a seamless way. My background is hospitality.

I’ve been working in hospitality, was working in hospitality for about 12 years. Managed to sort of co-found a business on the Sunshine Coast to turn that into quite an iconic place. But that took a lot of work as well. We’re not really afraid of hard work. I think you need to embrace it if you want to succeed in anything. So we’ve been developing for seven months, but it was full go from the get go.

So what was the idea? What was the core challenge you’re trying to solve through Dyna? Yeah, guess Dyna came from two parts. It’s selfish on both sides. So for a business, it’s how do we connect easier with our consumers, our customers? I think the unfortunate thing with hospitality is there’s so many third parties you need to be a part of. There’s TripAdvisor, there’s Google, there’s Meta. There’s so many ways for people to have their opinion on your business and you can’t possibly monitor it all. Right.

I wanted to take control back for that. You know, I wanted the business owner to have control and I wanted reviews to be transparent. I wanted people to take ownership when they’re leaving it. Just so they understand like, you know, the impact they’re having on a review, good or bad. And then from a customer point of view, you know, I hate getting to like a Sunday afternoon and wondering where we’re going to go for dinner, you and you’re messaging your friends, where should we go? What’s nearby? What’s open? So we wanted to just break that, that ceiling and go, okay, let’s make it.

fully transparent. If people want to find a burger bar, they can find it just around the corner or whatever’s around the place. So Dyna, like at least in it’s you’re about to launch into a beta phase of the business. So what does that first stage look like from a consumer point of view? Like, is it a website they go to? Is it a platform that they can log into and become a member of? Yeah, so we, we really, really much. Sorry. It was boots on the ground, you know, going to businesses and saying, look, we understand the issues you’re going through.

and that you go through on a daily basis. So just resonate with the businesses because our customers are the businesses and then the customers are theirs are obviously the diners. So the whole thing was always a play on word of diner because we’re all diners. We all go out and at least once a month enjoy a meal out. And we wanted to celebrate hospitality again. So that’s why we created Dyna. And with our beta program, it has been very buggy.

But that’s what I’ve come to realise that there is issues that come up with it. You you your heart and soul into into something, you know, you don’t sleep at all. And then once it gets to the boat, beta program and things are playing up, then you think the world’s collapsing. But I’m come to realize it’s all part of it. So you mentioned before your hospitality background, you also mentioned before you record that there was no tech background there. There was you didn’t really have any understanding in this world. So

I think that’s pretty common with founders who have an idea that they might not have that technical background. So what did that journey look like for you? Did you have to connect or find a technical co-founder or, or how did you, how did you get that idea from an idea into, you know, a functioning somewhat thing? I guess, it always comes with doubt, right? Especially when you have no experience in an industry, you doubt yourself the whole build. Is this really what I should be doing? Because, you know, I’ve never done it before, but as you said, a lot of people sort of.

they come into tech outside of tech as well. I did a bit of Googling, know, app builders, coders, all this stuff. And I actually found a business in Melbourne called Appetizer. I saw a guy that I know had worked with them in the past, reached out to him and said, look, what was it like working with them? And from the get go, you know, the way they sort of just took me under their wing and said, this is the journey we’re going on. And I said that from, sorry, from day dot, don’t go easy on me.

You know, you don’t have to dumb it down for me. I want to learn. need to learn what it’s like to build a tech company essentially. Yeah. So one of those challenges is the technical side of things, which, know, you can obviously outsource and you can find good partners to do that. One of the other challenges, I think, which I want to dive into more with you is, getting that idea into the hands of users and into the market and, you know, beta testing it like you’re about to do. how have you approached that challenge from not having done it before? Yeah, I mean,

It’s a challenge in its own, I think just in hospitality because business owners are so busy running their business, payroll, ordering stock, and with the current climate of the cost blowing through the roof, it is a challenge for us knocking on the door and say, look, here’s a new piece of tech. They just go, why do we need this? But when you can sit down and have that conversation of like, I’ve been through these issues as well. I know what it’s like to actually run a business. This is why we’ve built this whole platform. As far as users, think that will come.

in time because it’s going to be a tool that is just so easy for you to find what you’re looking for no matter where you are. But first things first is getting businesses on board. Yeah. And so what have been some of the key learnings about that? You did mention that just coming from a place of, I’ve been there, I know this industry, I’ve been in your shoes. That’s probably a really good place to start. But have there been other key learnings that maybe you didn’t realise going into this? Yeah, I think there’s going to be more to come.

You know, you’ve got to pick your timing. Timing is everything in hospitality. You know, don’t go to a cafe at seven o’clock in the morning, try on the boredom because they’ve got 400 copies to get out. We will find our rhythm. You know, it’s a team of two and a recent two as well. So it was just, it was me. I’m the founder. I’m the CEO, I’m everything and have been from day dot. So, you know, there’s going to be hurdles that pop up at the moment. It’s really the onboarding of businesses.

When do we market? We sort of have to put that on the backbone as well, because there’s no point in marketing when you don’t have businesses on. So we, our plan is to work closely with, you know, visit Sunshine Coast and local governing bodies because they do, they do such a great job to bring people here. We want to be that tool that moves them around the coast, you know, not just the beaches, but over to the hinterland, you know, just so they can figure out and find everything we have to offer. Yeah. Awesome. So we’re here on the Sunshine Coast.

We’re here at Forward Fest 2025 as well, which is all about celebrating that entrepreneurship, that innovation ecosystem here on the coast. So how have you found that, you know, as you’ve moved, I guess, from hospitality into, you know, now you’re kind of forced to be in that innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem, right? So how have you found that as you’ve moved into that world here on the Sunshine Coast and, and how has that supported the growth of Dyna so far? I think,

You know, before coming into this, I didn’t realise how many people had startups or they’re entering into startups or just doing their own thing. it’s, um, it’s an amazing feat to just see all these different businesses here. You know, you could go to a, you know, a hospitality convention, everyone’s doing the same thing, but to see everyone doing something different is just, it’s so reassuring that, you know, there is innovators in every industry that want to make a change. Um, and then just hearing their stories and like common issues that people go through, you know, a lot of people feel like they’re alone in the journey.

But you know, the support comes and events like Ford Fest, that’s where the support is really. Yeah, 100%. And this is your first Ford Fest here in 2025. So have you made some connections here today that potentially will support Dyna moving forward? I think the biggest thing for us being here is communicating with people that aren’t in hospitality. You know, they’re people that are going to be our customers. So to actually explain what we’re doing and for them to go, hey,

that would actually fit into my life because we want it to be something that just fits into people’s lives. We don’t want to force people to do it. And it’s best to get feedback for us that we feel of people outside of hospitality. So just having a conversation of what Dyna is and, and, it’s, it’s usability. It’s massive. Isn’t it? Like particularly just even as a founder, finding those words to talk about what you do in a way that resonates and lands with, with the audience that you’re trying to reach can be one of the biggest, I guess, you know, unlocks that if you can nail that.

Cause I think that’s one of the biggest things that many startup businesses struggle with because they’re still finding their feet, still working out who are we, what are we? How do we talk about what we do? And we’ve done so much behind closed doors as well. So you get to this point and you’re like, what is dining? Like, it’s a thousand things in my head. but for the, for the customer, it’s essentially one thing. You know, it’s fine. The cafe around the corner, but because we’ve gone from day dot to where we are now, it’s still trying to get, you know, that one sentence down. What is it?

It’s many things. love it. Look, I know that there’s many people who, you know, will be following this episode and will be thinking about their own idea or, you maybe their own idea they haven’t taken action on that they probably should take some action on. So what would you say to that person listening who maybe has an idea and, you know, wants to try doing something with it? You know, so speaking to yourself only 12 months ago, effectively, because it’s a less than 12 months journey so far for you. So, and that’s the thing, it’s, you know, this is a three year journey.

The tour of the years was just in my head and just, you know, thinking about it, doubting it, thinking about it, doubting it. gets to the day and you’re like, yeah, stuff it. Let’s just do it. You know, let’s just dive in because I know in 40 years time, 50 years time, I’ll be laying there going, I wish I did it. And I actually, I actually got that information from my dad. He’s like, if you don’t do it, you’re going to regret not doing it. So just look out there, there is tools and there’s guidance that could help you through it. You’ve just got to, you know, take that step forward and actually go, okay, we’re going to, we’re going to attempt to do this. And if you, if you don’t get all the way.

down to the finished product, that’s fine. At least now you’ve got some momentum of wanting to do it or do something. I love that and surround yourself with people to support you and lift you up and guide you on that journey like you get here at Forward Fest. Awesome. Tama from Dyna, where’s the best place for people to connect with you? Maybe be part of your early user testing if that’s what you’re looking for. So shout out your website, media. So social media is mine is Tama Jamieson on LinkedIn. All our socials is the Dyna app.

The Dyna app.com is our website and yeah. And Dyna is D-Y-N-A. gotta make sure we get that right. So The Dyna app. D-Y-N-A.com. Yep. Okay got that right. Alright and for you guys watching and listening to this episode of the podcast, connect with with Tama Jameson and follow along or support him in any way that you can because that’s what we do here on the Sunshine Coast. And of course

watch another episode of the forward thinking podcast so that you can continue getting inspired by some of these cool stories happening here on the Sunshine Coast in the world of entrepreneurship and startup ecosystem. And I don’t know, I lost my words there, but that’ll do. We won’t edit this out. All right, we’ll see you in the next episode. Bye for now. That was fantastic. We just heard two incredible stories and discussing two sectors that are traditional. They’re actually embedded into our community.

hope that’s inspired you to think about an opportunity using innovation to disrupt a sector. Yeah, absolutely. And there’s plenty more episodes of the Forward Thinking podcast to come. So make sure you hit subscribe on the podcast player you’re listening to this on or on YouTube so you don’t miss any more episodes of this special season. We’ve got another incredible four or five episodes to go, depending on what number this one is. We’ll see you in the next episode. Keep moving forward.