Entrepreneurial Spirit
Ashley Hanger (Class of 2011 and past Old Collegian Award Winner) was recently named The University of Queensland Ventures Entrepreneur of the Year for her start-up ‘Stripped Supply’, receiving a $5,000 cash prize and entry into The CEO School Program by BDO Australia, a 12-month financial education and business growth program. Ashley became passionate about diabetes awareness and management when she met her partner Tristan, who has been living with Type 1 Diabetes for the past 28 years.
Ashley saw how frustrating, overwhelming and exhausting diabetes is and the endless to-do list that comes with it. Tristan would forget to order his medical supplies from time to time, and when chatting to other diabetics, she realised this was a common problem – between managing their diabetes and simply trying to enjoy their life, they are at risk of running out of these life-saving supplies completely. Ashley wanted to bring diabetic management to the 21st century, this is when Stripped Supply was born.
Stripped Supply is a subscription box for diabetics, automating the delivery of medical supplies. Through accessibility, education and connection, they’re alleviating part of the mental burden of living with chronic illness and reshaping how young adults manage their diabetes.
Ashley says “Stripped Supply will always be dedicated to the millions of Australians who are battling an invisible illness, day in and day out. Whether that’s diabetes or another chronic illness, their unwavering determination and resilience to live life without limits drives me forward each day”.
Ashley wanted to bring this idea to life and applied for the iLab 3-month business accelerator program run by The University of Queensland, where startup founders are educated by mentors, learning about business, marketing, legal and raising capital to start and scale businesses. The program only takes 12 teams, and Ashley was lucky enough to be part of the 2021 cohort.
Stripped Supply has taken on its first 10 Foundation Members to trial Stripped Supply in June this year. “We’re hoping to open up Stripped Supply to our 300-person waitlist by the end of 2021 and scale up nationwide in 2022. Once we’ve conquered Australia, we’ve got our eyes on the US and UK markets, where access to diabetes medications is a real problem. It’s our vision to make diabetes management as simple as humanly possible, and it’s our mission that no diabetic will run out of supplies ever again” Ashley says.
Within St John’s new Global Learning Institute, the Entrepreneurial Enterprise aims to foster a culture of collaboration and entrepreneurial spirit by providing students with real-world product development experiences through the likes of Old Collegians in the start-up field.
Together with Stripped Supply Ashley has fundraised over $10,000 for Diabetes Australia through her blog “The Diabetic’s Girlfriend”. Ashley has hosted Charity BBQs and Boot Camps, along with designing her own Funky Socks with all money raised being donated to the Diabetes Australia Research Program, to find a cure for Type 1 Diabetes.
The accolades continue with Ashley named Diabetic Living Magazine’s Diabetes Hero in their May issue, sharing her story of how she became so passionate about diabetes awareness.
Follow Ashley’s journey of diabetic awareness on Instagram, @strippedsupply or @thediabeticsgirlfriend
