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The Modernists

The Modernists
Author: Melissa Dewar
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© Melissa Dewar
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"The Modernists" podcast takes you inside a community of forward-thinkers shaping business and beyond. Each episode features standout members sharing real stories of leadership, entrepreneurship, creativity, and innovation.
From rising founders to seasoned executives, hear firsthand what it means to take action with intention. Expect honest, inspiring conversations—whether you're a pro or just starting out.
Join us to explore what drives The Modernists and gain insights to spark your own journey.
It’s a fresh take on success—straight from those living it, building it, and redefining it.
From rising founders to seasoned executives, hear firsthand what it means to take action with intention. Expect honest, inspiring conversations—whether you're a pro or just starting out.
Join us to explore what drives The Modernists and gain insights to spark your own journey.
It’s a fresh take on success—straight from those living it, building it, and redefining it.
32 Episodes
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Welcome to this episode of The Modernists. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual.
In this episode, we are joined by Omar Oualily, founder of Sahara Drinks, a brand redefining Mahia, Morocco’s iconic spirit. Sahara Drinks represents a unique fusion of Moroccan heritage and Scottish craftsmanship, bringing the essence of Morocco to a global audience in every bottle.
Omar’s journey began with a mission to reclaim the heritage of Mahia - steeped in centuries of culture - while modernising its narrative. After over three years of research and development, Sahara was born: a premium Mahia crafted with figs, apricots, almonds, honey, and a touch of aniseed, all sourced organically and distilled using sustainable practices.
In this episode, Omar shares the story behind Sahara Drinks. We dive into the brand’s dedication to sustainability, its innovative approach to preserving tradition, and the remarkable way it has married two worlds - Moroccan flavours and Scottish expertise.
Join us as Omar takes us through his journey of creating Sahara, the challenges of redefining a traditional spirit, and his vision for a sustainable future where culture and craftsmanship unite.
Omar's LinkedIn
Sahara Drinks Website
Welcome to this episode of The Modernists. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. In this episode, we welcome, and meet Antonia Brown. Antonia is the Founder of Tomorrow's Tribe, an innovative platform that's redefining sustainable fashion by uniting style-conscious consumers with forward-thinking, environmentally responsible brands.
Antonia launched Tomorrow's Tribe to simplify conscious consumerism in fashion. After completing her master's in Sustainability, she identified a need for a curated space connecting shoppers with sustainable brands.
Prior to this, Antonia worked in financial services, balancing her career with developing Tomorrow's Tribe. The platform partners with brands sharing her vision of transparency, community, and innovation.
Today, Tomorrow's Tribe carefully selects partners based on sustainability criteria, ensuring each purchase positively impacts the environment. Antonia's mission: make every wardrobe choice a step towards a better future, without compromising on style.
Join us as we explore Antonia's journey from finance to sustainable fashion, and her vision for the future of responsible style.
Antonia's LinkedIn
Tomorrow's Tribe
Welcome to this episode of The Modernists. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. In this episode, we
welcome, and meet Henry Kaestner. Henry Kaestner is a pioneer in the faith-driven entrepreneurship and investing space. As co-founder of the Faith Driven Entrepreneur and Faith Driven Investor initiatives, he has catalysed a movement to connect and empower believers in business.
Henry puts his faith into practice as co-founder and partner at Sovereign's Capital, a venture capital and private equity firm that invests in faith-driven entrepreneurs in Southeast Asia and the U.S. He previously co-founded and led Bandwidth and Republic Wireless, growing them from $0 to over $600 million in revenue. Beyond his business ventures, Henry is active in ministry boards and community organisations. He attends Venture Christian Church and serves as an elder in the Presbyterian Church of America. Married with three sons, Henry lives in Los Gatos, California and continues to advocate for bringing faith and business together.
Make sure to like, subscribe, and comment on The Modernist podcast for more bi-monthly episodes.
Henry’s Linkedln
Faith Driven Entrepreneur
Welcome to this episode of The Modernists. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. In this episode, we
welcome, and meet Alex Lazaridis. Alex is the Founder of Laz Partners, an executive search firm that specializes in placing portfolio managers and other front-office investment talent for some of the world’s leading hedge funds and investment management firms After founding his business in 2018 and working on his own for the first 3 years, he decided to begin expanding the business in 2021 and will be close to a headcount of ten by the end of 2023, with plans to continue expanding the business in 2024, due to a strong growth trajectory. Before moving into executive search, Alex worked in the city in macro research sales for nearly a decade covering hedge funds and decided to launch his executive search business after consistently hearing from his clients that there was a lack of strong recruiters with knowledge of the Rates & FX
markets. In his spare time, he enjoys reading books, studying financial markets, mentoring, and running.
Alex’s Linkedln
Laz Partners
Welcome to this episode of The Modernists. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. In this episode, we welcome, and meet Louise Webster. Louise Webster is a seasoned communications professional and Founder with a passion for empowering parents. In 2003 she established Rare Communications, a leading agency specialising in the kids and family sectors, as well as licensing and start-up businesses. She grew it into a five-person strong agency representing some of the most well-known brands in the industry, and later sold it to Mischief PR.
Louise Webster has made a name for herself as an advocate for the talents and skills of parents. In March 2012, she founded Beyondtheschoolrun.com, a Global platform designed to help parents unlock their potential for the benefit of both their own well-being and that of society. Under Louise's leadership, Beyondtheschoolrun has grown into a thriving community of parents, attracting media attention and recognition from influential sources. The enterprise has received two invitations to No.10 Downing Street and was listed as one of the "Top 58 British Tech Startups for 2014" by UK Business Insider.
In 2014, Louise was named "Britain's Top Real Role Model.” Her efforts have helped raise awareness of the importance of supporting parents in their professional pursuits while also fulfilling their responsibilities at home. Her expertise and insights have also led to her being referred to as "a true change maker" by Global Invest Her. In addition to her work with Beyondtheschoolrun, Louise is the Author of the book "A New Way for Mothers," which was published in the USA. Louise most recently integrated her work into one group Wearebeyond.global.
Louise's Business: https://www.wearebeyond.global
Louise's Linkedln: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louwebster/
Welcome to this episode of The Modernists. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. In this episode, we welcome, and meet Liliana Parodi-Huml. Born amidst Peru's political turmoil, Liliana’s life embodies resilience. Fleeing at age 15 due to her mother's human rights work unveiling government atrocities, she rebuilt their life as refugees in Sweden. Now in New York with her family, her story underscores that success is shaped by personal journey, not external norms. Advocating against comparison-driven self-doubt, she emphasizes internal control over external circumstances. Liliana’s decision to forgo dance for business due to societal pressure now fuels her message: intertwine passions creatively. Her narrative champions individuality, urging others to define triumph authentically and embrace life's challenges as transformative opportunities.
Make sure to like, comment, and subscribe to The Modernist podcast.
Liliana’s Linkedln
Welcome to this episode of The Modernists. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. In this episode, we welcome, and meet Stephen Parkins. Stephen Parkins boasts nearly 20 years of dedicated expertise in steering businesses through VUCA forces (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity) for optimal growth. A corporate innovation leader, his paramount focus lies in cultivating vibrant innovation cultures and devising robust growth strategies for global corporations. Stephen's journey unfolds across diverse sectors. From 2003 to 2014, he thrived in financial and energy markets, excelling as a derivatives trader. Transitioning to entrepreneurship, he founded and led two start-ups from 2014 to 2018, showcasing his innovation prowess.
Since 2018, Stephen has spearheaded corporate innovation, guiding multinational corporations to adapt and excel. Having lived and worked across multiple European countries, including the UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, and the Netherlands, his global perspective is enriched by multilingualism.
With an enduring legacy of propelling innovation and growth, Stephen Parkins remains at the forefront of shaping businesses across industries and borders.
Stephen’s Linkedln
Stephen’s Website
Welcome to this episode of The Modernist. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. In this episode, we welcome, and meet Eileen Willett. Born in Vancouver to Japanese parents, Eileen trained in fashion between Paris and San Francisco before settling in London to work at Nicole Farhi, where she helped grow the menswear brand.
She launched the multi-award-winning brand, Cucumber Clothing with her Co-founder Nancy Zeffman in 2017, making ‘luxurious clothing for everyday’, using ultra-soft technical fabrics. She was shortlisted for the 2020 Asian Woman of Achievement Awards. Eileen is Founder of the East Asian Girl Gang, a regular speaker on female entrepreneurship, slow fashion and diversity, particularly through an East Asian lens, in the workplace. She co-hosted i:Entrepreneur’s Wednesday Live, a series of interviews with diverse entrepreneurs and is an Allbright and FRA mentor.
Show Links:
Cucumber Clothing
Eileen's Linkedln
Welcome to this episode of The Modernists. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. In this episode, we welcome, and meet David Semmens. David Semmens, is Chief Investment Officer at Cadro and an External Investment Committee Member at Wealthify, where he was previously CIO. He holds additional investment committee/ advisory roles and is a lecturer at Heriot-Watt University.
We discuss with David his career path from Cambridge University to the world of investment which took him around various European cities, and ultimately to Edinburgh where he decided to settle. We speak about various topical issues from inflation, ESG, and the housing crisis.
David’s Linkedln
Book Recommendations from the show:
The Psychology of Money
The Rebus Books
Welcome to this episode of The Modernists. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual through sharing the stories of inspiring founders and people of our community. In this episode, we welcome and meet Elodie Levasseur, who is a Neuroscience and Wellbeing Coach, speaker and podcast host.
In this episode, we discuss with Elodie her journey in terms of reinventing her career from leading a marketing team to now founding her own business called, The Shine Bright Academy. We talk about all things relating to career, leadership, and mindfulness.
Books recommendation:
The Infinite Game - Simon Sinek
Kyle Cease's book: I Hope I Screw This Up
Connect with Elodie:
info@theshinebrightacademy.com
https://www.theshinebrightacademy.com/
https://www.instagram.com/elodie_neuro_coach/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/elodielevasseur/
Welcome to this episode of The Modernist. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual.
In this episode, we welcome, and meet Christina Anyiamuka. She is Head of Commercial Partnerships at Chloédigital, the leading growth strategy & business development partner for creators building businesses to scale. Christina has helped drive revenue and leveraged partnership opportunities for the past three years. Although she has a full-time job, she is still growing her own business Christinaathome, and managing a property portfolio valued over seven figures. She is passionate about having a growth mindset to achieve financial success in her career and personal life.
In this episode, we discuss with Christina her career journey which started in biotechnology but eventually led her to a successful career in sales and managing teams. She also shares her experience building a property portfolio as a side hustle and how she her life turned upside down when her sister unexpected passed away. This caused her to take on a matriarch role in the family and become the guardian of her sister's children. This experience led her to do a lot of internal work and learn about herself, the world, and the importance of a growth mindset.
Chloe Digital Website: https://chloedigital.com
We are super excited to welcome Christina, do not forget to like to subscribe and review The Modernist podcast so we can grow and expand our community.
Let’s get started!
Welcome to this episode of The Modernist. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. In this episode, we welcome and meet Raluca Racasan an interior designer with a wellness approach and the founder of her brand, I Love This Place. She helps clients use their homes as a medium to create wellbeing, and curate spaces where they can live mindfully.
In this episode, we discuss with Raluca her mental health journey, and how she used the design of her space to inspire her in this difficult time. We also talk about the importance of environmental psychology and how the design of our home can impact us.
Raluca’s Website: https://www.ilovethisplacedesigns.com
Make sure to like, comment, and subscribe to The Modernist podcast for bi-monthly inspiring episodes, released every second Thursday!
Welcome to this episode of The Modernist. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. In this episode, we welcome, and meet Cristina Ilao who is a wedding & branding photographer. She is the director of her own brand called, Cristina Ilao Photography.
In this week’s episode of The Modernist, we sit down with Cristina to learn about her inspirational career change. We explore how she built up the bravery to leave accounting and pursue her love of photography full-time by starting her own branding and wedding photography studio, Cristina Ilao Photography.
Cristina shares what propelled her to take the leap, how she dealt with the uncertainties and difficulties of switching paths, and her best advice for anyone looking to make major changes in their professional life. Her story will empower you to chase your dreams and take control of your career and future. Join us for an honest conversation about challenging comfort zones, the power of purpose, and the rewards of pursuing your passion. Cristina's journey will give you the motivation you need to create the life you want.
Cristina’s Website: https://cristinailao.com
Hey, guys welcome to this episode of The Modernist. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. Today, we have the pleasure of introducing you to Siobhan Mears, the visionary mastermind behind the Mears Collective—a beacon of business support through strategic expertise, efficient systems, streamlined processes, and impactful implementation.
In this episode, we delve deep into Siobhan's remarkable concept that underpins her own thriving business. Discover the essential elements that pave the way for a successful Business Strategy as Siobhan shares her invaluable insights and wisdom. Brace yourselves for a conversation that will unlock the secrets to running a flourishing business, providing you with practical tips and guidance.
Prepare to be inspired and equipped with the knowledge to elevate your own business ventures to unprecedented heights. This episode of The Modernists is your gateway to unleashing your true potential within your entrepreneurial journey. Together, we will unravel the key ingredients that pave the way for success, empowering you to create a thriving, and impactful business.
Please make sure to like, subscribe, and share The Modernist Podcast.
Siobhan’s Website: https://themearscollective.com
Welcome to this episode of The Modernists. A podcast dedicated to empowering
your modern individual. Today, we are honoured to introduce you to a true force
of inspiration: Kirti Daryanani, the visionary behind Kirtana168. With
unyielding determination, she has dedicated herself to the noble cause of
bridging cultural gaps and amplifying the voices of individuals and
organizations alike.
Drawing from her diverse background, as a yoga teacher, extensive
travels, and engagements with esteemed organizations such as Morgan Stanley,
Google, Bloomberg, and The Hague University, she also talks about relational
authenticity and the importance of embracing our differences. As the author of
"befriendurmind", Kirti wants to support who struggle with
mindfulness, and are seeking an approachable method to face their discomforts.
We can’t wait to delve into the depths of Kirti's wisdom in this
episode. Together, we shall explore her methods for nurturing the next
generation of trailblazing professionals, guiding them towards mastering the
profound art of communication.
Kirti’s Website: https://www.kirtana168.com
Welcome to this episode of The Modernists. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. Today, we have the absolute honour of introducing you to the visionary powerhouse, Jules Anderson—the brilliant mind behind Feel Glorious, a haven where tired, stressed, and overwhelmed professionals find solace. Get ready to witness the journey to reclaim our health, rediscover our energy, and reignite our unshakable confidence.
In this episode, we delve deep into Jules incredible story, tracing her path from a science background to the remarkable founding of her business. We explore the intricate ways in which stress, sleep deprivation, and changing hormones affect the lives of women. Brace yourselves for an enlightening discussion that will leave you feeling informed, uplifted, and profoundly inspired to prioritize your own well-being.
Please make sure to like, subscribe, and share The Modernist Podcast.
Jules Anderson Website: https://feelglorious.com
Welcome to this episode of The Modernist. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual through sharing the stories of inspiring founders and people of our community. In this episode, we welcome and meet Rebecca Hanley, the founder of ‘The Curious Marketer’ who is passionate about helping small businesses leverage the power of storytelling.
In this episode, we discuss with Rebecca her journey of starting her own business and how she took a big career pivot. We then talk about the importance of rest and taking a break from our careers. Rebecca unpacks how this impacted her and in fact propelled her in her career. She then tells us a bit more about her business model.
Hey, guys welcome to this episode of The Modernist. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual. In this episode, we welcome and meet Laura Moore the founder of the Mind Money Soul podcast and a money mindset coach.
In this episode, we discuss with Laura the concept behind her own brand and mindset towards managing our money as millennials. We hope to leave you feeling financial confident, able to build your own wealth and make your own rules by the end of the episode.
Welcome to this episode of The Modernist. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual through sharing the stories of inspiring founders and people of our community. In this episode, we welcome and meet Ewan Kirk who graduated from the University of Cambridge with a degree in Mathematics. He is the founder and CEO of Cantab Capital Partners, a quantitative hedge fund based in Cambridge, England. He is known for his expertise in applying mathematical models to financial markets, and his firm has gained recognition for its strong performance in the industry. Prior to starting Cantab, he worked at Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan. He has also served as a member of the Advisory Board for the University of Cambridge Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics.
In this episode, we discuss with Ewan his journey from a mathematician to an entrepreneur in the world of finance. We also discuss his journey with Cantab Partners and his leadership mindset. I met Ewan during his talk at my college in Cambridge when he came to speak at our entrepreneur’s society. So, it is a great honour to have him on the podcast!
Hey, guys welcome to this episode of The Modernist. A podcast dedicated to empowering your modern individual through sharing the stories of inspiring founders and people of our community. In this episode, we welcome and meet Poppy Duffree, the founder of the Organised Interiors, a luxury home moving and unpacking service.
In this episode, we discuss with Poppy the concept behind her own brand and thoughts on good leadership. We hope this episode will leave you feeling inspired and empower you to be your own leader in the world.