Her Story

Kym Clark’s career took a sartorial turn in 2013, when she saw the dire need for high-visibility workwear for women. While working as an accountant on a remote Queensland coal mine, Kym was motivated to make a change in the industry when she saw her pregnant manager wearing a makeshift unisex Hi-Vis shirt with a singlet to compensate for the lack of maternity clothing for construction, mining, and transportation workers.

As Kym set about filling this glaring gap in the market, she realised that the problem was not just a lack of high-visibility clothing, but extended into inequality. In a bid to create change, she began She’s Empowered, a Hi-Vis workwear company and a brand that has workplace gender equality as its primary agenda.

“Women haven’t been largely represented in the mining and construction sectors, and as the industry evolves, things have been overlooked. That was when the whole equality message entered my mind, and I knew that the brand was about equality. It wasn’t about high vis – high vis was a way to start.”

For Kym, She’s Empowered developed out of the needs of women all around the country who struggle to feel confident in their clothing at work. It was this dream of making a difference that made her invest in hours of research in an attempt to turn her vision into reality.

Today, her hard work and determination to seek equality for women has led to the tremendous success of her business. She’s Empowered has been a pioneer in women’s work wear and offers a range of clothing suited to women in traditionally male-dominated industries such as transport, construction and mining. She’s Empowered is already selling in 116 stores across Australia, as well as online.

Kym has received various awards and accolades throughout the years. She was presented with the Australian Mining Woman of the Year award in 2014, and was named in the Top 50 Australian Female Entrepreneurs Under 40 list by Startup Daily in Australia for the years 2014 and 2015.

Through her dedication to greater workplace gender equality, She’s Empowered has emerged as a movement that uses products coupled with social media to increase women’s confidence and their sense of community.

Strategies for Success

• Mentors – Learn from people with ‘been there done that’ experience.
• Own your choices –  Take responsibility for your decisions and actions.
• Articulate your goals – Get specific with timeframes and forecasts.
• Passion is paramount but it isn’t everything –  Hard work, honesty, authenticity and tenacity are essential.
• Know your numbers and understand the story they’re telling you. Numbers don’t lie.