Women have made serious inroads into residential property development. But commercial? That is a different game entirely. Larger assets, deeper pockets required, longer timelines, and a network of decision-makers that has, for decades, looked almost exclusively male. In Australia, you can count the women leading commercial development businesses on one hand and still have fingers left over.
Anne Michaels is one of them.
She didn't just enter this space. She bought a heritage bank on one of South Melbourne's most storied streets, assembled an almost entirely female project team, built a seven-level commercial development through a global pandemic, eleven interest rate rises and a work-from-home policy that threatened to make the entire asset irrelevant - and came out the other side with multiple industry awards and a building she intends to be heritage in its own right one day.
Anne is the founder and managing director of sheBuilt, a Melbourne-based commercial property development company she established in 2016 with a single, unapologetic intention: to give women the opportunity to lead, excel, and leave their mark in one of Australia’s most male-dominated industries. In this episode, Anne shares with Di the highs and lows of breaking new ground for women.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction to the Power of Women Podcast
07:19 Transition into the Male-Dominated Construction Sector
13:45 The Meaning Behind the Name She Built
17:30 Industry Response to Women-Led Projects
20:02 The Rarity of Women-Led Construction Businesses in Australia
29:35 Challenges During COVID-19 Pandemic
33:55 Lessons Learned and Personal Growth
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Who is Anne Michaels?
Anne Michaels is the founder and managing director of sheBuilt, a Melbourne-based commercial property development firm she established to put women at the front of an industry that had kept them hidden - a place where women can support one another creating projects of significance. With more than 25 years' experience across property development, investment and finance, she has built a career defined by transforming under-utilised sites into high-performing assets — with women leading every step of the way. Her most recent and most personal project, BVIA on BANK, has won multiple industry awards
Find Anne at:
Website https://www.shebuilt.com.au/
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-michaels-12a45476/
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/shebuilt.au/
Connect with Di & engage with Power Of Women:
LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/di-gillett-power-of-women/
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/power_of_women_podcast/
Contact https://powerofwomen.com.au/contact/
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Credits:
Audio Editing + Sound Design: Daryl Missen – https://vinilo.com.au/
Filming: Chocolate Studios: https://chocolatestudios.com.au
Executive Producer: George Donikian: https://www.donikianmedia.com.au/
Disclaimer: https://powerofwomen.com.au/podcast-disclaimer/
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