#awinewith Kate Morgan
MEET Kate
Kate is the Co-Founder of Eggy.
Find Kate here:
Transcript
Danielle Lewis (00:08):
Oh my God. Kate, cheers to you. Welcome to Spark tv <laugh>.
Kate Morgan (00:14):
Thank you. Thank you for having me. I'm so excited to be, um, doing a podcast with, uh, a glass of uh, well, that's actually a watermelon margarita that I do have in my glass, but yeah, absolutely love this idea.
Danielle Lewis (00:26):
I mean, I was excited about my bubbles, but now I'm jealous 'cause I want watermelon Margarita <laugh>. Oh. Oh, that is so good. No, we are so excited to have you on the podcast. I mean, I obviously know your story from, um, spark and the events that we've done together. Yeah. But I'm so excited to share your story beyond that and with everyone because it is, um, so incredible. So why don't we start there? Let's tell everybody what the heck Eggy is. <laugh>. Oh.
Kate Morgan (00:57):
So Eggy Eggy came about because, um, my husband and I, um, had a problem that we had to solve. And the problem was life admin or the office work of life. We just had stuff everywhere. We had bills in our emails, we had party invites on the fridge, we had cards in our wallet, um, multiple cloud drives and calendars. And the, the kind of pivotal moment was when Kirk, my husband, forgot to pay the car red on, we got hit with a thousand dollars fine. And we just went, oh my God, what the absolute, why is it this way that like, all this stuff that we need to be doing every single day just to keep life ticking along, it is like so fragmented and, you know, it's in so many different places and it's just so old the way that it's done. And so we are like, right. Um, had to, had to do something about it. And we, we had zero technical experience when we first started, but, um, thought that there was, you know, potential in a solution. So the first thing that we did was to contact a very good mate of ours who, um, has built, scaled and exited a tech company. And, um, and said to him, we've got an idea for an app. And the first thing he said was, you guys have got no idea what you're in for <laugh>.
Danielle Lewis (02:08):
At least he was honest <laugh>. I
Kate Morgan (02:10):
Know, I know. We shoulda run then, but no <laugh>. But yeah, so that was kind of how it all started. We just had had a problem. We just went, couldn't find anything that solved it well enough. And so just went, oh, can't be that hard. Surely <laugh>
Danielle Lewis (02:24):
Sometimes a little ignorance is bliss. Oh,
Kate Morgan (02:27):
Totally naive. We were, and yeah, it's, um, it's definitely been a ride. So can't say that he, he didn't warn us.
Danielle Lewis (02:34):
Oh my God. I love that. So tell me then, okay, before we dive into Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>, then what's happened from, you know, getting hit with a thousand dollar fine and deciding to start a tech company? Yeah. What, what about life before that? So you said you both non-tech founders. Yeah. What, what did you both do? What is it?
Kate Morgan (02:51):
What are your backgrounds? We had completely different backgrounds. Um, so, well, Kirk and I actually met on Schoolies in 1996, as you do, you know, make all long-term relationships start there. Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. But, um, I, um, I was, uh, well, Kirk was playing professional rugby league for about 10 years. And in that time I hadn't really decided what I wanted to do when I grew up. So I was just, I was working a heap of different jobs. I did, um, I worked in a shoe store. I'd worked in, um, media, worked at Channel seven. I, um, worked for engineering consultants. I just did a heap of different jobs. And then when I was 24, realized that I loved food and I loved science. And so I went back to uni and, um, studied nutrition and dietetics. Cool. Um, yeah, so I became a dietician and I really loved the business side of things.
(03:35):
Like most dietician jobs are in hospitals and looking after, you know, sick people. But I wasn't really into that. So I was really lucky that I got a job in corporate nutrition. So we were basically consulting to multinational food companies about their nutrition strategy. So like, wow. McDonald's, Woolworths, master food, those kind of companies. Um, and I just, I loved the whole business side of things 'cause it was a, a private company that I was working for. And so just to, that really kind of gave me a good insight and really, yeah. Made it, made a, um, the science and the food side of things really kind of more interesting. And so I did that. Um, and then I, um, Kirk and I did a trip around the world. 'cause we didn't have kids back then and we could, um,
Danielle Lewis (04:17):
That freedom <laugh>, I know
Kate Morgan (04:20):
We did 25 countries in seven months and both put on at least, oh my God, 10, put on at least 10 kilos each. It was beautiful. Um, and then, um, so cool.
(04:30):
And then, um, after that I, um, we moved to the Gold Coast. This was 11 years ago. And the only person that I knew on the Gold Coast, um, who was a dietician, was a guy who worked at the university, started work at Griffith. Then I moved to Bond Uni, helped set up the dietetics program there. I had my arm twisted to be, um, to do my PhD, which I wasn't too keen on at the time. Um, but because I was lecturing and, and, um, doing some research, I kind of had to do it. So, Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>, that was an experience in itself, um, doing a PhD. Um, and, um, yeah, I, I say that I, I put it to good use now when I'm changing nap nappies, um, <laugh>. But it was actually a good process to go through. And so that was kind, I was actually finishing off my PhD when, um, when e the eggy moment kind of struck. Um, and, and Kirk, um, his background was that he w he played professional sport. Um, he, uh, did a degree in finance and economics 'cause he loves numbers. Um, did a bit of work in construction. So we kind of both had these, um, you know, multiple kind of careers and, and yeah. Different kind of experiences. And, um, I'd like to think that all of those things, even when I was working in the shoe store, that those things all contributed to what we are doing today. So
Danielle Lewis (05:44):
I think it's so true though. Like, I, I love that because as founders we are wearing every hat in the business. Right. You literally have to do anything. Yeah. So having a really varied background where you can actually learn on the fly and you've got a bunch of different generalist experiences Yeah. Actually bodes so well for being a founder.
Kate Morgan (06:05):
Oh, a hundred percent. And you don't realize until you're in the thick of it, do you like that you Yeah. You actually have to do all the things. There's, there's, you can't outsource, you know, when you're in the early days, you have to do it yourself. And it's good, I guess. Like, you do have to learn the ins and outs and you have to go through everything. Um, in saying that, we definitely outsource our tech. We have a, a brilliant tech team. 'cause Kirk and I cannot code at all. So, um, yeah. But it, it, um, I would like to think that, yeah, all of those kind of experiences have, um, brought us to, to give us some skills where we are today.
Danielle Lewis (06:39):
That's so good. Well, let's talk tech, um, because I feel like, uh, tech is a bit of a mystery for a lot of founders and, um, you know, it seems scary and a lot of us have these brilliant ideas that have a, require a technical solution, and we kind of stall a little bit 'cause we're like, eh, where do I even start? Yeah. How did you go about finding the right people? What was that process like? Did it cost a billion dollars? Like, talk to me, talk to me about
Kate Morgan (07:07):
That. Yeah. Um, so I guess like, we were really lucky, like I said, a very good friend of ours who, um, had some tech experience and had a tech company. So he was kind of the first port of call where we were able to go and just like start right there. Um, and he kind of introduced us to, um, someone who became our tech advisor, and, um, also someone who became our security advisor. So those kind of networks. Um, and we actually met, um, the guy who, um, kind of gave us that advice at the very start. We actually met him in a bottle shop in Bueno Aires when we were doing a trip around the world. So you just never know when Lightning's going to strike. Oh. And not that we, I love it. Not that we, yeah. Not that we knew at the time that we would, um, be calling on him to help us.
(07:53):
But I think the point is just like, you just never know who you speak to in your life and who you come across, who is going to, you know, be able to provide you with some valuable advice. But I would also say, um, like just the power of, um, putting your story out there for, for people to kind of become involved in the journey of what you're doing and, and just like building a community from that. And just like the people that then kind of become part of your community and, um, and you know, being able to contact them because they might know someone who knows someone. Um, and also just the power of being, um, kind of dropping your ego and just like reaching out for help. Like nine times out of 10 people are happy to help you. So I know for example, like I have done a cold reach out on LinkedIn to ask someone for advice around product.
(08:43):
And, um, they were unbelievable in pointing me in the right direction. Didn't know them from a bar site, but we always start with the problem whenever we're trying to get someone to connect with what we're doing to help us. And, and even, um, like today with the, the team that we have, like everyone has to connect with the problem that we're trying to solve and understand it. And, you know, if you can tap into that side of people, 'cause you know, everyone's a human at the end of the day, yes. If you can tap into that side of things, then you know, you should be able to get someone who can help you or point you in the right direction. Um, but it certainly has been a process trying to find, um, the, the dream team. And, and we've still, like, we've got, apart from what Kirk and myself who are full-time, we have, um, about five to, uh, five or so other full-timers.
(09:28):
And it's mostly the, the devs guys. We've got a head of product, um, full stack developers and a designer. Um, so yeah, we, um, but it has been a process getting to that stage. And I think when you're, when you're very green, like we were, and very naive, you kind of think that everyone or anyone can help you when in fact you really have to, um, you know, take your time to try and find the right people who can help you. And I know that, um, it is to your point too, about did it cost a billion dollars just about <laugh>, um, tech.
Danielle Lewis (09:59):
Yeah,
Kate Morgan (10:00):
Tech is ridiculously expensive. That's been a big learning for us. And because there's so much demand in the industry right now, um, it sure is. But um, again, like if, if you can tap into the human side of people and try and, you know, help them understand the problem, and it's a huge problem that you're trying to solve, that's gonna help billions of other people one day, then, then that's, um, certainly helpful. Um, but yeah, like when, when you're first starting out, it is really hard to navigate through the noise to try and find the right people. But I guess doing those kinds of things, like tapping into the problem and, and also just not being afraid to ask people for help. And I would say too, that asking people who have been in your shoes or in a similar kind of position mm-Hmm. Because I know there's, there's plenty of, um, people out there who would be willing to take your money, um, if you're asking for help. But if you go to people, founders who have been there and done that, more than likely they'll put you in the right direction. And we've been non-technical founders when we first started. We've had heaps of people reach out to us and say, help. I dunno what to do. And like, we've, we've always been happy to talk to people and just say, well, um, maybe try this or think about this or, yeah. Go, come, come at it from this angle. So,
Danielle Lewis (11:10):
Uh, that's such incredible advice because I think sometimes, so founders are funny. It's kind of like we are the most generous set of people. Like, we are so willing to share our experiences. And I think too, because when you're a founder, you realize that, you know, it's so hard to execute. It's almost not the idea, it's the execution. So you give out as many ideas as you like, because you know, no one's gonna steal them because it's too hard. I
Kate Morgan (11:36):
Know. So
Danielle Lewis (11:37):
Founders are so generous, but also, um, early founders can be so reluctant to ask for help. Like, they just get in their little bubble, they don't wanna share their idea. It gets super lonely and you get in like this little isolated state, but it's like, if you just ask for help, like there will be somebody that like
Kate Morgan (11:53):
Yeah. Happy to share. I know, I know. It's, it's a massive thing to get over when you're first starting out. It's so true. Like, you, do you think that you've got this brilliant idea that no one has ever thought of and someone's gonna steal it. Um, and it's funny because in, in the time that we've been doing Eggy, we have had so many people say to us, oh, I've thought about building something like that myself. And we're like, well, why didn't you <laugh>
Danielle Lewis (12:14):
Yeah. Because it's bloody hard. It's bloody
Kate Morgan (12:17):
Hard. Exactly. Um, but yeah, it's, I mean, it's a good thing that there's obviously lots of people out there that, you know, have had the same thought, but you're so right. It's the execution and actually getting it done is a totally different thing. So, Mm-Hmm. Yeah.
Danielle Lewis (12:31):
And so then when we say, when we joke about tech costing a billion dollars <laugh> mm-Hmm. So did you go out and raise capital to make that happen?
Kate Morgan (12:40):
Yeah, we did. Um, we knew that we weren't going to be able to, um, make money from Eggy from the get go. We knew that we had to build a product first, get people to love the product, be using it every day and be, you know, it providing a lot of value to their life before they would pay for it. So, mm-Hmm. <affirmative>, we knew that we did have to raise funds, um, in the early days. And so, um, we've e effectively, um, done a few different things in terms of raising funds, but in the early days, there's probably a lot of founders do, um, bootstrap. So, um, I guess we put in as much of our own savings as we possibly could. Um, sold whatever we could. We also, um, just tapped into our own network of family and friends. Um, and really the, the first raise was done, um, by Kirk around a campfire, speaking to friends of his about what it was that we were doing.
(13:30):
And they're like, yep, I'm in, I'm in, I'm in. 'cause they could understand 'cause they all so cool all, um, parents themselves. And so yeah. So that was kind of like how the first raise. Um, I think the second we've kind of done bits and pieces do, you know, just scrapping to do whatever we can to, to keep things going. Um, another raise we did after we won a competition with Suncorp, got to spend three months with them. And so that was kind of another point of validation for people. And so we did another, um, fundraise then. Um, and we also did a crowdfunding raise. So this was a really important thing, um, for us in terms of our, our product and our community. So, um, obviously raising funds, um, is great, but we'd, we'd only had our MVP out in market for a couple of months, and so it was still pretty average.
(14:14):
Um, so putting it out there as part of a crowdfunding campaign, um, we just got slammed with feedback because for crowdfunding you have to do a big kind of marketing push. So there's lots of people kind of looking at you and what you're doing and downloading your app, even though it was still pretty early days. Um, and so like you just get so many feedback and feature requests and all of that kind of stuff. So that was actually really important. And I guess a bit of an, um, unexpected, um, benefit of doing crowdfunding and also just to help build our community. 'cause you, um, I think we ended up getting about 220, um, investors as part of the crowdfunding. Um, we got some really good strategic advisors who have come on as, as part of that round. Um, but yeah, just building a community because you end up having, you know, mom and dad type investors or everyday investors, um, who are like your ambassadors and, and even people that, you know, just come along for the ride in terms of seeing what you're doing on socials.
(15:05):
And, and so yeah, our, our, and we're actually in a, in a funding raise at the moment, um, to try and, uh, raise for the next 18 to 24 months. Um, so yeah, back at it again. And, um, and this time, yeah, trying to tap more into the, the VCs high net worth, um, individuals and, and, um, yeah, looking at a few other options. So yeah, that's, that's been a, a big eye opener to the whole fundraising process. Um, Kirk, because he loves numbers and that side of things, he mostly manages that, but I'm still very much involved in terms of like, the decisions and who, who we wanna, you know, bring on board. Because as I'm sure you know Danny, like you, you don't wanna just get anyone involved in your company. It has to be a, a good fit for both sides. So. Yeah.
Danielle Lewis (15:50):
Yeah, absolutely. So you don't sleep. That's what I'm hearing here, <laugh>.
Kate Morgan (15:54):
Oh my gosh, not much.
Danielle Lewis (15:56):
And also have a family. Holy
Kate Morgan (15:58):
<laugh>. Yeah. We've got a 6-year-old, a 3-year-old, and a 1-year-old. And the 1-year-old is just being a massive pain at the moment. He is like, oh, no. Um, anyway, there's, um, there's always coffee, isn't there?
Danielle Lewis (16:10):
<laugh>? That's right. Coffee and wine. That's the balance. I, I follow watermelon
Kate Morgan (16:13):
Margaritas. You watermelon
Danielle Lewis (16:15):
Margaritas. I love it so much. And while we're on the topic of amazing drinks, like look at your backdrop. Oh my God. I know,
Kate Morgan (16:22):
I know. So
Danielle Lewis (16:23):
I'm literally looking at this going, this is the most amazing backdrop we've had on Spark TV
Kate Morgan (16:28):
To date. <laugh>. I know. Well, it was either, it was either we have a, a tiny little office in, uh, the building that's in front of me here, and I thought, I can either sit in this stuffy little office or I can come outside. And I thought, do you know what I am? I am on. Like, I'm running on empty at the moment and I wanna, I'm really looking forward to having this chat and this drink with Danny. I'm gonna like, feel like I'm on holidays, <laugh>.
Danielle Lewis (16:50):
Well, I'm glad it feels like you're on holidays having a chat.
Kate Morgan (16:54):
I know. Just feel like a brief moment. Anyway, <laugh>.
Danielle Lewis (16:57):
Well, I mean, that's a really interesting thought, right? So, um, I find that this is like one of the biggest struggles being a founder is like, it is just constant, right? It's just go, go, go. You are never not thinking about your business. Like, it doesn't matter if Yeah. One of the kids is like having a, a mental breakdown. Yeah. Still somewhere in your mind you're like, oh shit,
Kate Morgan (17:18):
That thing's new.
Danielle Lewis (17:19):
Like how do you, how do you find from a personal aspect, like balancing all of this or not balancing all of this or just retaining some level of sanity in your life?
Kate Morgan (17:30):
Yeah. Um, it's a really good question. And I don't, I don't think that I necessarily have all of the answers. I guess I just try and do what works for me and, and it's very much like kind of being in, in survival mode, um, and just doing what you have to do and just, just keep showing up and put one foot in front of the other, isn't it? Um, I think that, I guess also in the, the position that we're in with gie, like we, we've put everything on the line to make this business a success. Mm-Hmm. And so we kind of feel like that we don't have a plan B, we don't have, um, the luxury of going, oh, we're just gonna, you know, put tools down for a little while and, you know, go on a, um, on a big holiday or, you know, we, we, we just have to keep showing up and, and keep putting in.
(18:13):
And, um, and it, it is, it's so frustrating at times because you're right, like things will happen. Like, um, and especially this like winter and the flu season that hit like, uh, and it was actually while we were in Start mate, which was an unbelievable experience, but like, the kids were just constantly sick. And obviously they share it with you and make you sick, but you can't, you can't just like put the tools down and walk away. You just have to, you know, do what you can, um, work, you know, late hours and up early and just trying to get work done when you can, because you're right, you just have to keep making progress, don't you? You just have to keep chipping away, chipping away. And it's probably one of the biggest pieces of feedback that we've had actually from, from people. And it's funny, like people will see your stuff on socials and they'll be like, you guys are killing it. You're doing so well. And it's like, no, it doesn't really feel like that. Like,
Danielle Lewis (19:01):
Oh
Kate Morgan (19:01):
God, there's a lot of days where it doesn't feel like that. Um, Mm-Hmm, <affirmative>. Yeah, I guess you, you just have to keep showing up, don't you? And just keep, um, keep progressing. And it is frustrating because nothing will go as fast as you want it to. Like, it's just, you just wanna do it, have everything done yesterday, but, you know, there, there's, um, that's impossible. But I guess, yeah, you, on a personal level, um, I guess also having our, our backgrounds, like, um, Kirk and I have a bit of, um, uh, like health and fitness kind of background, I guess. And we do always try our best. I'm not saying that we're good at it and not regular, but just try and do a little bit of exercise every now and then. And for me, it's, it's a lot about mental health. Like if I can just get out of the house in the morning and go for a 15 minute run, or if I can just, you know, take time out to go for a walk or something just to, you know, reset, rebalance, clear the head and just, um, yeah. And I guess we're very lucky too that we have family around us to help out when there's emergencies or looking after the kids and that kind of thing. So yeah. It's um, it's just one big juggle though, isn't it? <laugh>.
Danielle Lewis (20:10):
I mean, and look, I, I actually, I just love the honesty because I do get a little bit frustrated sometimes when you hear that, well, you've gotta get up at 5:00 AM and you've gotta be journaling and you've gotta be meditating. I'm like, oh my God. Well, I'm obviously a complete failure <laugh>, because I don't think that's reality.
Kate Morgan (20:27):
No, I don't. Uh, I, you know, it makes me laugh when I see some of those articles that get around, like, um, a day in the life of I see what it's like a day in the life of Hailey Bieber or like, what does, I don't know, some, what does Jeff Bezos do in a day? And I'm like, um, that's great. And I'm, you know, wish them all the very best. But I don't think that they've got, you know, three kids to deal with. I don't think they're on Centrelink. Um, I don't think that they <laugh>
Danielle Lewis (20:54):
Totally. If I was a billionaire, I might exercise every day too. <laugh>.
Kate Morgan (20:59):
I know. And it's, yeah. I guess that's why it's so important to have groups like, like Spark and what you've created too, just to, to have other founders around you. Just to have that kind of therapy where you just like, you have a debrief, you have a vent, and you just go, oh, far out. It feels so good to know that you are not the only one, you're not alone here. Everyone is just doing their best and, and struggling. And, um, and if you do get the occasional win, it's like so good and it keeps you powering on, but like most days are, are hard and, and not pretty, but yeah.
Danielle Lewis (21:33):
Yeah. It's, it's so true. I love that. And it is the, you know, you set it in the, um, you know, how do you do the balance? And, but it is, it's just showing up, you know? Yeah. And it is the just constant struggle of showing up and it's like, it's almost just like the formula for success is showing up enough days in a row, <laugh> like that. And, you know, you'll feel like shit every day, but at some point you get the win and it keeps you going. Yeah.
Kate Morgan (21:58):
Get the win
Danielle Lewis (21:59):
Keeps you going. Yeah. My God, that's so true. So I wanna talk to you about community as well, because you mentioned that, um, with the crowdfunding, uh, element, but also being a mobile app, having customers community's gotta be quite high on the agenda. How have you gone about actually creating a community and getting them excited about what you're doing?
Kate Morgan (22:23):
Yeah, so, um, when we first started, our advisors told us, um, you guys need to just, you know, open yourselves up, um, be very authentic and just show people inside into, into what you're actually doing and bring them along for the journey. And so, and we weren't even on social media before we started Eggy. So we, we did certainly kind of have to drop our guard and, and get over ourselves and just go, okay, we're gonna have to put ourselves out there. So we would just start doing videos and just telling people what we're doing and where we were at. Um, before we got our MVP out, um, we, uh, set up our iPhone blue, tacked it on a stool on the, on the kitchen table and just hit record and just told people what we were doing. And we had one of the kids chalkboard and we'd written on it, like what our goal was with our, with releasing our MVP. And the goal was to get a hundred people to sign up in 28 days. And we just, we did this video and just said like, this is what we're doing, please help us out, <laugh>. And we ended up getting 109 people sign up in the first 24 hours. Oh, that is
Danielle Lewis (23:26):
So good.
Kate Morgan (23:27):
And, and I like, I don't think we really understood at the time, but like, that was, that was kind of the early days of our community starting, right? Like just, you know, bringing people along for the ride. And, and we've, we know, we've got people in our community who don't even use Iggy, but they just enjoy like the, the stupid videos that we do or just, you know, hearing our updates and seeing how we're, um, and I guess it was probably like cl uh, getting closer to, so we kicked off a hard launch Regie at the start of this year. Um, and I guess it was around that time that we, we got some advice around like, you actually need to have a go to community strategy. Like, what are you actually going to do to try and like, 'cause we kind of done it organically and, and a bit haphazardly before then, but, um, it was doing things like even, um, creating a Facebook group, which we call Eggy Legends.
(24:12):
And that's just about anyone who's an Eggy user, or they don't even have to be, I guess. But it's about just sharing tips and, and ways that you can use Egg in and what you are using Eggy for. And because life admin is so many different things to so many different people Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. And we've tried to build again in a way that it's really flexible and like that it's so easy to get things into gy. Like you can be reading an email, um, and just screenshot and send it straight into gie. You can have a, a photo or something that you wanna take a picture of or scan and get it straight into gie. You can push an email if you've got a bill attached to an email, you can push it into gie. So, um, and I guess even like sharing tips around how Eggy works, um, as well as those examples, like, people have used Eggy in ways that we have ever had never even thought of before.
(24:56):
So that was, that was part of our community strategy too, was just setting up that group, a place for people to share, um, ideas with each other and, um, and help make, uh, life admin a little bit easier. So yeah, I guess that's, that's kind of, um, been part of the community too. But yeah, I, I do think that there's a lot of value in just, um, put putting your journey out on social media and just, and, you know, bringing people along for the ride and, and letting them know where you're at. Um, and you know, even actually it was that, um, that event that I spoke at, um, for Spark, um, someone came up to me and she was talking to me and she said, oh, I've been following you guys for so long. Um, love what you're doing and love all your updates and stuff.
(25:35):
And I didn't even know this person, but like, you know, there's obviously people out there who are, um, and she, sorry she hasn't engaged. 'cause we always like, um, see who engages with our stuff. We love, you know, love all of the, the Eggy fans, but like, this person had never engaged with anything. And so it was just really nice that, you know, there were people out there who are, um, you know, keeping up to date and seeing what's happening with Eggy and enjoy being part of the journey and, and we don't even know about it. So.
Danielle Lewis (26:00):
Yeah. Uh, and it's so true, right? Like, it's really interesting 'cause you do, when you have say a Facebook group or a Slack channel or whatever, you see names, like, you see the consistent names that engage or share tips or kind of contribute to the community. Yeah. But you are so, right. There are so many spectators. Yeah. There are so many people like watching who get so much value and you as a founder, you're like, Hmm, should I even bother? No one gives a shit about what I'm talking about <laugh>. There's so many people looking and they're going and that's so amazing. And they just, but they just don't tell you <laugh>.
Kate Morgan (26:34):
Oh, I know. And I do it myself. I know there are people that I follow on social media and I never engage with their stuff, but I love it <laugh> and it makes me think maybe I should engage just to, you know, let them know how I'm, I'm, I'm loving you stuff. Keep going. Yeah. <laugh>,
Danielle Lewis (26:48):
It's so, it's so true. Like it's, I I think about myself as the same, like I am a more lot more of a consumer of information than Yeah. Engager. Yes.
Kate Morgan (26:57):
Same
Danielle Lewis (26:58):
Obviously I put out stuff for the business all the time, but as a consumer, like a personal person, yeah. Um, I don't tend to comment on things or whatever. Yeah. But I do. I'm like, I still wanna hear the stuff. I still want all the Yeah. I still want you to change my life <laugh>.
Kate Morgan (27:13):
Uh, yeah. No, that's
Danielle Lewis (27:15):
So good. No, and it's, so, it's really interesting because I think that, you know, the community can't be overstated enough. Mm. You know, I, and I think it's in all like, levels of your journey running a business. So I love that it was, you know, a, you kind of went, I love that you said you blue tacked the iPhone to the store. Oh yeah. Use the
Kate Morgan (27:37):
Totally meh
Danielle Lewis (27:39):
<laugh> <laugh>. But I think that that's part of the process, right? Like, I think people appreciate actually seeing the human, like they don't really, we're all a bit over the perfectly manicured Oh yeah. Unattainable. That the Hayley Vivas of the world, you know, where we're going, oh great. I haven't had a shower in two days. How am So, so I love that, like, being honest with your community Yeah. I think helps you be so much more relatable to the people that you're trying to, you know, take on that journey as well.
Kate Morgan (28:10):
Yeah. And we're actually, we're just starting to do, uh, a bit more of a push in that space too, um, Danny, because we've kind, uh, you know, as you know, like when you're wearing all the hats and you're trying to do so many different things and you're spread so thin. Mm-Hmm. Um, and for us, like, I guess in the initial stages it was about we needed to build a product and then like we needed to show that we could acquire users. We needed to show that we could, you know, retain users and get people that, you know, love the product. And we just recently released the, the premium version. And so there are people out there paying for eggy, which is like unbelievable for us. I know <laugh> good.
Danielle Lewis (28:43):
Um,
Kate Morgan (28:44):
But also, yeah. Um, just, just having, um, I've lost my train of thought. Now. The, the, um, the, um, watermelon margarita must be kicking in <laugh>,
Danielle Lewis (28:54):
The community building, you're just starting to get more of the
Kate Morgan (28:57):
That's right. Yes. More into <laugh>. So like, I, I manage all of our socials and like, I, I just post whenever I get time and whenever I, like, there's something really, um, good that I wanna post about and I try, I'm so bad, I try and do it as regularly as possible, but some nights I'm just like, you know, up at midnight working, just going, oh, I'm dying. I'm so tired. And I just go, I'll do that post tomorrow. But we've actually just recently, um, gotten some someone on board that's helping us to, to do more of the more, um, just like behind the scenes kind of raw, authentic, everyday parent fails or everyday like business fails or whatever. Like just really trying to show, um, 'cause there's so much content, oh my gosh, there's much content. Like we could spend our entire day just posting stuff about the, the fails that we have <laugh> or, you know, just keeping people updated with what it is that we're doing.
(29:50):
So yeah, we're really excited to be, um, Kirk. Kirk, my husband thinks that he is gonna go viral on TikTok with one of his, you know, parent fails. Um, but yeah, we're, we're actually starting to do a bit more of that and really just starting to focus more on, on trying to build that community and, and, um, and yeah, get a bit more into the growth side of things. So pretty excited about that. 'cause it's, it's just one of those things that we, um, you know, we, we know that like, and that's like we, Kirk and I, we really wanna do more of that, like, you know, work on the business rather than in the business kind of thing. We, you know, 'cause Kirk's still doing payroll and hr, he's our HR department. Um, <laugh>. No, I'm still
Danielle Lewis (30:28):
<laugh>.
Kate Morgan (30:29):
I know, I know. And, um, yeah, I know I always make a joke that I'll gonna, I'm gonna complain to hr, but it's in so <laugh>
Danielle Lewis (30:38):
<laugh>.
Kate Morgan (30:39):
Um, but like, and I, I manage every single customer support request that comes in. And, and that has been, all of those things have been unbelievable for helping us to, you know, understand our community, our users and what we're doing. But also like, we just wanna get out there and start like really bringing the heat and really just, you know, yes. Engaging with people and just, you know, trying to, to build the community more. That's what we really wanna do. So excited to be yeah. Getting more into our, our tiktoks and our reels, that's for sure. <laugh>
Danielle Lewis (31:04):
Well, I will be following along <laugh>. So I've gotta ask actually, since you mentioned, um, that, how do you find working with your husband as a business partner and co-founder? Oh my
Kate Morgan (31:15):
Gosh. It, you know, before we started, if someone had said that we would be working together in business spending like 23 and a half hours of the day together, I would've said no deal. <laugh> not happening. Um, and I thought that for sure we would've had a divorce by now. Um, plus throwing, you know, the pressure cooker of three young kids, that's always fun. Mm-Hmm. Um, but I, I honestly, um, it's funny how it's worked out. Like we, we, we didn't come into this and go, you know, thinking that we wanted to build a tech company or, um, you know, do what we've done with the business. We, we kind of just happened. And, and it's also just happened that we've kind of naturally found our strengths and what we're good at. So I always, in its simplest form, I say that Kirk's numbers are nine words.
(31:59):
So he loves all the finance side of things and, um, and all the operational side of things and, and I'm more, um, and so he looks after all the, yeah, ops and, um, like I said, HR funding, um, all of the, uh, uh, has all of our financial models, which are just an absolute like mystery to me, <laugh>. Um, but then I, I look after I have having my research background, I look after all the research, all the marketing, all the comms, um, we both kind of manage, um, community. We both kind of, um, still help out with products. Like we are, we are eggy users at the end of the day. And yes, and I guess we have our big long term vision of, of where we wanna take it, that it's going to be like your life admin hub and you'll have all of your service providers connected into Eggy. So all the work's being done for you, not you doing all the work. Um, but yeah, we kind of like, um, wear all of the, those hats, but it's, it's just worked out well. I think that he's good at stuff that I'm not good at and vice versa. Um, and yeah, so I guess we compliment each other in that way. In saying that there are times that I have absolutely wanted to scratch his eyes out like I never have before. <laugh>
Danielle Lewis (33:09):
<laugh>.
Kate Morgan (33:09):
And I'm sure he would say exactly the same thing about me, um, because it's so, it is like, startup is intense in itself and having kids is intense in itself, but like throw that all together and still trying to, you know, like this person that you're, that you're doing all this stuff with. Um, but I think that yeah, we are, we're just lucky that we're, we're, we're just all always been on the same wavelength and, um, but also like important to take time out when you know that things are starting to go south and, and you know that you just need time away. Um, it's really important just to do that, just to unplug from each other. <laugh> just, you know, go away if it's for the day or the night or the weekend or whatever and just, you know, go, go back and find yourself and remember you know, who you are. 'cause that is still so very important to, to getting through those long days.
Danielle Lewis (34:00):
Yeah. And it's so interesting, isn't it? I think people forget when you're in a relationship and a business relationship, you do actually have to remember it's actually very difficult because both of those are so intense. You do have to remember to look after you, like as a human and kind of go, who am I outside of the relationship outside of the business? Don't forget to fill that cup a little bit. Otherwise it's hard to show up for the other two.
Kate Morgan (34:25):
That's right. It's absolutely right. Yeah.
Danielle Lewis (34:28):
So last question for you, question to leave our Spark community. Um, a lot of people dialing in are super early in their stage Mm-Hmm. <affirmative> of business and, you know, some of them wake up in the morning and wonder why that they actually got into this. So any words of wisdom for people who might be struggling to keep going and keeping on showing up? Yeah. Um, anything that's helped you through the hard days?
Kate Morgan (34:57):
Yeah, absolutely. Well, apart from coffee and alcohol, that helped day helped me through the hard days <laugh>, um, to, to, to be honest, like it's, it's, it's just never losing sight of the problem that you're trying to solve. Mm-Hmm. Um, I know that it probably sounds very simple, but it's, it really is true. Like we, we, we don't know, you know, what eggy is going to look like in, in five years time, really, like, because we are very much led by, um, our, our users in our community. But, um, and, and all of those hard days, like, um, I guess it comes back to that because we have put everything on the line that we just have to keep showing up. But for anyone who's starting, I would just say just never lose sight of the, the problem that you are trying to solve because it, it is what brings people together.
(35:45):
And I guess the, the framework that we have when we, when we think about what we're doing with Eggy is we, it's, it's problem people and product. So we start with the problem and the problem brings people in. So whether it be your community, your users, your team, your investors, anyone, they, it's because they relate to the problem and they, they know the problem themselves. So problem first people and then like your, your product will come later on down the line. I think, I think a lot of people, and, and I've probably been guilty of this too, you, you do have a tendency when you're first starting out to jump straight into product and kind of like go, I want, I want this solution, or I want it to be this way and it has to do this thing. And, and that's, that's a risk in itself because, you know, you, if you're doing that, um, without listening to what people are asking for and listening to their problems and their needs, then, you know, you, you could build something that no one's going to use and you've just, you know, blown a whole heap of cash on it.
(36:37):
So, um, yeah, just that problem. And, and we know too, the early days when we first started, we did a lot of research and, and when you're first starting out, um, it doesn't have to cost you anything to go and do research in terms of just talking people who are here in your market and just asking them about, tell me about like, how you currently manage this and tell me like, what are the pain points for you and, and, um, how, how could it possibly be better? So, um, those, those things in the early days are so very important. And, and we, we know too that we, we had people breaking down in tears when we would do some of those interviews, um, just because of how that mental load, that life admin creates and yeah. And so it's, it's those kind of moments too that really just keep you going because again, it's just the problem and, and people relating to the problem. So yeah, that would be my one thing is just to never lose sight of the problem that you're trying to solve.
Danielle Lewis (37:28):
You are absolutely incredible. Kate, cheers to
Kate Morgan (37:32):
Yous. Cheers. I'm out <laugh>. Thank
Danielle Lewis (37:33):
Oh, me too. I'm like, I'm on my last sip. I saved my last sip. <laugh> <laugh>. So good. No, but thank you so much for sharing your wisdom and honesty with the Spark community. You are brilliant.
Kate Morgan (37:47):
No worries. Thank you so much for having me. And can I just say thank you for, um, bringing together your community and everything that you've done with Spark because, um, I, I'm still on the Slack channel and I can still see all of the people that engage and everyone that, you know, helping each other out and posting their USPS and all of that kind of thing. So thank you for creating that community for, for everyone. It's brilliant.
Danielle Lewis (38:08):
Thank you. I appreciate that <laugh>.
Kate Morgan (38:11):
No worries.
