Her Story

Gillian Franklin is recognised as one of Australia’€™s most innovative marketers with a passion and commitment to supporting women in business. She is Managing Director of her own company, The Heat Group Pty Ltd,€“ one of Australia’€™s leading personal care companies and is an accomplished Company Director.

During the 13 years that The Heat Group has been in operation, Gillian has grown the company from five employees working out of a coffee shop, to a robust, well-resourced company of around 140 employees, complete with its own warehouse and distribution facility, currently distributing some of the world’€™s leading cosmetic brands. The portfolio includes Max Factor and COVERGIRL (from Procter & Gamble), Bourjois, Essence, Jeanne Arthes fragrances and The Heat Group’€™s own brands Ulta3, Billie Goat Soap, and MUD Makeup Design.

Under Gillian’€™s leadership, sales of Max Factor and COVERGIRL have increased 86 per cent in Australia, in a market that has only grown by half that rate in the same period. Both Max Factor and COVERGIRL now rank in the top six brands in the Australian cosmetic market. Another noteworthy success is the Ulta3 brand, now the number 1 nail brand in Australia contributing to the Heat Group’€™s turnover of approximately $130 million retail sales.

Gillian has previously held Managing Director and General Management positions for some of Australia’€™s leading consumer companies, including Creative Brands (owners of Australis and Le Tan) and Revlon. Gillian was influential in shaping the lives of young women when she created and launched the Australis Self Made Girl workshops, designed to motivate and inspire young women to seek financial independence. Gillian continues to be passionate about supporting women and is a highly regarded and frequent speaker on women’€™s issues, often calling on The Heat Group database, a powerful and current research tool which regularly polls thousands of Australian women on key issues affecting their lives.

Gillian’€™s expertise and success was acknowledged when she was inducted into the Australian Business Women’€™s Hall of Fame in 1998 and when she won the Telstra Business Women’€™s Award Victoria in 1996. She was also awarded €œGlobal Entrepreneur of the Year (Australia)€ at the Business Women’€™s Leaders Summit in Washington DC, in October 2000. More recently, Gillian was acknowledged as a 2011 Nominee for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year.

In addition to running her own business, Gillian is on the Board of the Cosmetic, Toiletry and Fragrance Association of Australia (CTFA), ACCORD, the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix and MTC (Melbourne Theatre Company). She has formerly held Directorships on the Microsurgery Foundation, Neopec and CEDA.

She lives in Melbourne with her husband of 33 years and they have three daughters, all currently developing their own careers.

Strategies for Success

  1. Think Big! – The Heat Group was told that we could never take on the big boys. We pitched and won a major cosmetics contract over several larger distributors.
  2. Surround Yourself With the Best Mentors – Invite experts to sit on your board of directors, and ask others for advice in a less formal arrangement.
  3. Never Let Other People Define Who or What You Are – Don’t listen when they tell you it can’t be done – do it anyway and prove them wrong.
  4. Hire the Best People (Use Your Gut Instinct When Hiring) and Look After Them – Put your trust in employees and assess their performance on results.
  5. Recognise that Staff Members Have a Life Outside Work and Employees With Balanced Lives Will Contribute More.