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5 Things to Know About the Melbourne SEO Agency Founded by a Formerly Homeless Teenager in 2015

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StudioHawk

MELBOURNE — Few founder stories in Australian digital marketing carry the weight of Harry Sanders’, who built StudioHawk from a one-person operation run by a homeless teenager into what has become the country’s largest dedicated search engine optimization agency. As the company marks its tenth year of operation, here is a closer look at its origins, its growth and the man who built it.

1. Sanders founded the company at 17, while living under a bridge in Melbourne.

Sanders’ path into the search engine optimization industry began years earlier than most. He taught himself SEO at age 13 in order to help promote his father’s small business, developing a foundational understanding of how search algorithms worked well before he had any formal business training. By the time he turned 17, Sanders had launched StudioHawk — during a period when he was homeless and living under a bridge in Melbourne, according to SmartCompany, which profiled the company as part of its Smart50 awards coverage.

That period of hardship has remained a defining thread in how Sanders talks about the company’s origins. He has said the challenges he faced during that time shaped him and fueled his passion for the industry he would go on to help define in Australia. Rather than distancing the company from that history, Sanders has built it into the core of StudioHawk’s public identity, frequently referencing the experience in interviews, speaking engagements and the company’s own marketing materials.

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2. He remains an active advocate for youth homelessness.

Sanders has translated his personal history into ongoing philanthropic work. He serves as an ambassador for the Lighthouse Foundation, an Australian charity focused on supporting young people experiencing homelessness, and donates 100% of his speaking fees to the organization’s efforts to address the issue. The arrangement reflects a broader pattern in how Sanders has approached his public profile as StudioHawk has grown — using the platform the company has built to draw continued attention to an issue he experienced firsthand as a teenager.

3. StudioHawk has grown into Australia’s largest specialist SEO agency.

What began as a solo operation has expanded significantly over the past decade. Founded in 2015, StudioHawk now employs more than 120 SEO specialists across offices in Melbourne, Sydney, London and Atlanta, according to the company’s own profile on the review platform Clutch. The firm has built its growth strategy around specialization rather than diversification, structuring itself as a dedicated SEO and AI search agency rather than expanding into adjacent services like paid media or social media management — a deliberate positioning the company has said differentiates it from larger, full-service digital agencies.

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That growth has translated into measurable financial gains. According to SmartCompany’s Smart50 rankings, StudioHawk’s revenue climbed from $5.3 million in the 2020-21 financial year to $8.7 million in the most recent year reported, a growth rate of more than 29%, while the company added 26 new employees over a single 12-month period. The agency’s client roster has come to include major Australian brands such as Ryobi, Vodafone and Officeworks, a list Sanders has attributed to the company’s straightforward strategy of delivering measurable results rather than relying on flashy marketing promises.

4. The company has collected a string of major industry awards.

StudioHawk’s growth has been accompanied by significant recognition within the digital marketing industry. The agency has been named a four-time winner of “Best Large SEO Agency” at the APAC Search Awards, alongside additional honors including Semrush’s Agency of the Year and Optus’s Media Marketing and Advertising Business of the Year. In one notable instance, the company took home the grand prize at the Global Search Awards, a competition judged by a panel that has included the head of digital at Samsung, the deputy general manager at Nissan Motors, HubSpot’s chief marketing officer and Lego’s global search marketing lead.

Sanders himself has drawn individual recognition as well. He has been named to Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Asia list and won B&T’s Entrepreneur of the Year award, in addition to accumulating more than 40 industry honors over the course of his career. Those accolades have positioned Sanders as one of the more prominent public figures in Australia’s digital marketing sector, a status he has used to expand his influence beyond StudioHawk itself.

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5. Sanders holds industry leadership roles and has built additional ventures.

Beyond running StudioHawk day to day, Sanders sits on the board of the Australian Web Industry Association and holds status as a Google Partner Specialist, positioning him as an active voice in shaping broader industry standards rather than simply running his own agency. He has also branched into education, launching Hawk Academy, a training program the company says reaches thousands of students annually with instruction on SEO and AI search fundamentals.

Sanders has also diversified beyond the SEO industry entirely, co-founding a separate luggage brand called Kadi that emphasizes design and quality. The venture reflects a broader entrepreneurial pattern that has emerged as Sanders has moved from running a single-person operation to overseeing a multinational agency, using the platform and credibility built through StudioHawk to expand into adjacent business interests.

Looking ahead, StudioHawk has positioned itself to compete in an SEO landscape increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence and AI-driven search summaries, rebranding portions of its service offering around what the company describes as “AI Search” alongside traditional organic optimization work. That shift mirrors broader changes across the digital marketing industry, as agencies nationwide adapt their strategies to account for how consumers increasingly discover information through AI-generated answers rather than traditional search engine results pages.

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For a company whose founder once had no permanent address, StudioHawk’s evolution into a firm with offices spanning four cities across two continents represents one of the more striking growth trajectories in Australian digital marketing — one that Sanders has continued to frame publicly not just as a business success story, but as evidence of what he has described as his belief that “most people overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can do in five.”

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Scan.com funding round raises $220m ahead of IPO talks

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Scan.com funding round raises $220m ahead of IPO talks

Scan.com, Britain’s largest private medical imaging company, has raised $220 million from investors including Aviva as it eyes a potential stock market flotation.

The London-based company will put the funds towards a bigger push into the American medical imaging market. The package is made up of a $90 million equity round led by Noteus Partners, the French investment company, with backing from investors including Aviva and Concord Health Partners, alongside debt facilities totalling $130 million provided by VerisFi Capital and Atempo Growth.

Scan.com already generates most of its revenue in the United States, where about 80 per cent of its workforce is based. The American medical imaging market is estimated to be worth more than $100 billion and is projected to grow to just over $121 billion by 2033, according to forecasts by Grand View Research, the American market research provider.

Charlie Bullock, co-founder and chief executive of Scan.com, said that while about 600 million medical imaging scans are run in the US each year, the country still has no national infrastructure network for imaging. “Labs got that decades ago with Quest Diagnostics and Labcorp. Imaging never did, and that is what we have built,” the 30-year-old said.

“We’re a fraction of 1 per cent in terms of [market] penetration,” he said. “Our ambition is to be the leading, biggest diagnostic imaging company in the US. We’re nowhere near there yet, but we feel like we’re on track.”

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Where to list

The fundraising comes as the company prepares to meet officials at the London Stock Exchange this week as it works towards a potential IPO, although Bullock said it had yet to decide on a listing venue. Despite its ambitions in the US, the company has no intention of moving its headquarters from the UK, he said.

There is growing concern that UK markets are not attractive enough to retain the highest quality British start-up companies, amid a long-running shortage of the scale-up capital needed to grow the country’s most promising firms. UK start-ups raised a record $17 billion in the first half of 2026, according to figures from Dealroom and HSBC Innovation Banking, yet only 16 per cent of large funding rounds involved domestic investors.

Last month a consortium of some of the UK’s largest pension providers agreed to explore the creation of a “UK Scale-up Fund” that would back the most promising British private companies and manage more than £1 billion, following calls for pension funds to back British scale-ups rather than leaving the returns to overseas investors.

Ant Barker, director of venture capital at Aviva Investors, said UK pension funds increasingly want greater access to high-growth, unlisted companies “that build tomorrow’s technologies and create social value”. Under the Mansion House Compact, nine of the UK’s largest pension providers committed to allocate 5 per cent of their default fund assets to unlisted equities by 2030.

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“[Scan.com is] one of the fastest-growing companies in our venture capital portfolio, and well placed to deliver long-term returns for UK savers and institutional investors, in line with our Mansion House Compact objectives,” Barker said.

Built to use spare capacity

Scan.com was founded in 2021 by Bullock, Oliver Knight and Joe Daniels, along with Jasper Nissim, an osteopath, and Khalid Latief, a consultant radiologist.

“[We] saw this problem in the UK around lack of access to diagnostic imaging, lack of price transparency and increased waiting times in the national healthcare service,” Bullock said. There was plenty of capacity sitting unused in imaging centres and hospitals around the UK, he said, but no way to access it.

The company provides a website for booking scans, managing referrals and sharing results, using spare capacity at private providers. Last year it generated $85 million in revenue.

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The business had already raised just over $57 million across two previous funding rounds. Aviva’s venture arm co-led the company’s earlier $12 million Series A round, and the insurer has backed it again in the latest raise.


Amy Ingham

Amy Ingham

Amy Ingham is a reporter at Business Matters, covering UK business news with a focus on breaking news, business policy, late payments and insolvency. She joined the magazine in 2026 after completing the NCTJ Diploma in Journalism at Harlow College’s journalism school. Her recent reporting includes British Steel’s nationalisation and its impact on SME suppliers, the decline in late payments by large firms, and Insolvency Service director disqualifications. Reach her at aingham@cbmeg.co.uk.

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Target launches Beauty Studio with 90 brands as retailer targets growth

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Target launches Beauty Studio with 90 brands as retailer targets growth

Target is expanding its push into higher-end beauty with a new specialty-style concept that the retailer says is part of its broader effort to return to growth.

The Minneapolis-based retailer said Target Beauty Studio will launch Sept. 10 in more than 600 stores nationwide and on Target.com, bringing together more than 1,600 products from 90 prestige, emerging and international brands. More than two-thirds of the brands will be new to Target.

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The rollout represents a notable expansion of Target’s beauty assortment while adding features more commonly associated with specialty beauty retailers, including dedicated beauty advisers, product testing, rotating product showcases and personalized recommendations.

target shopping carts

Target Beauty Studio will launch Sept. 10 in more than 600 stores. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Target said the new concept is one example of the investments it is making in merchandise and the in-store shopping experience as part of its plans to return to growth. The company operates more than 2,000 U.S. stores.

WALMART AGREES TO PAY $50M SETTLEMENT OVER ALLEGATIONS ITS PHARMACIES FILLED ILLEGAL OPIOID PRESCRIPTIONS

“When guests shop for beauty, they want to pick up their standbys while also exploring what’s new and trending, and Target Beauty Studio is designed with that mix in mind,” Amanda Nusz, Target’s senior vice president of merchandising, essentials and beauty, said in a statement. “It’s an inspiring destination to discover what’s new, now and next in beauty — and a powerful example of how our merchandising authority comes to life through an elevated guest experience.”

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TGT TARGET CORP. 163.18 -2.75 -1.66%

The assortment will span skincare, makeup, haircare, fragrance, bath and body products, nail care and sun care. Brands joining Target include Sunday Riley and First Aid Beauty in skincare, Briogeo and Nioxin in haircare and several Korean beauty brands, including Amuse, Kaja and Rom&nd.

The announcement comes after the retailer concluded its shop-in-shop partnership with Ulta Beauty. The partnership rolled out in August 2021 and ended this month.

Shoppers push carts in a Target store

The assortment will span skincare, makeup, haircare, fragrance, bath and body products, nail care and sun care. (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Target is also adding products from international brands, including Mexican beauty company SARELLY and French nail care brand Manucurist, while offering premium fragrances, styling products, sun care and self-tanning products.

Stores with Target Beauty Studio will feature a central display that rotates several times a year to highlight brands, collaborations and seasonal products. The retailer will also offer a dedicated assortment of miniature products designed to give shoppers a lower-cost way to try new items.

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target shoppers in Chicago

Target is also adding products from international brands. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The company is tying the concept to its Target Circle loyalty program through exclusive offers and experiences. Target said the first 100 guests at most stores during a Sept. 26 promotional event will receive a Target Circle bonus that can be used to shop Beauty Studio in stores and online.

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Target said Beauty Studio will continue to evolve with new brands and products, while its existing beauty assortment will remain alongside the new concept.

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Depleted US oil stash loses potency as Iran war grinds on

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Depleted US oil stash loses potency as Iran war grinds on

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Northwest Naturals pet food recalled over salmonella, listeria risk

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Albright's Raw Pet Food voluntarily recalls dog food over salmonella risk

Northwest Naturals is recalling nearly 2,000 pounds of raw cat and dog food after federal testing found salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes contamination in two chicken products distributed nationwide.

The Portland, Oregon-based company is voluntarily recalling 53 cases, or 1,272 pounds, of Northwest Naturals Frozen Chicken Recipe and 19 cases, or 684 pounds, of Northwest Naturals Frozen Raw Diet for Dogs Chicken Recipe, according to a company announcement posted Friday by the Food and Drug Administration.

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The recall covers a total of 1,956 pounds of product.

The 2-pound Frozen Chicken Recipe, which is marketed as cat food and a protein topper for dogs, tested positive for salmonella. The 6-pound Frozen Raw Diet for Dogs Chicken Recipe tested positive for both salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes, according to the announcement.

NEARLY 25K POUNDS OF FROZEN BUFFALO CHICKEN RECALLED OVER INSPECTION LAPSE

A dog eating.

The recall covers a total of 1,956 pounds of product. (Getty Images)

The contamination was identified after product samples were collected and tested by the FDA. No illnesses had been reported in connection with the recall as of Aug. 28, the company said.

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The affected 2-pound Frozen Chicken Recipe bears lot number B-5, a best-by date of Jan. 26, 2028, and UPC 087316384956. The affected 6-pound Frozen Raw Diet for Dogs Chicken Recipe bears lot number B-19, a best-by date of Jan. 25, 2028, and UPC 087316380392. The recalled products were distributed to retail stores nationwide.

Northwest Naturals Chicken Recipe raw frozen cat food and dog protein topper packaging

Northwest Naturals Chicken Recipe raw frozen pet food is among the products recalled over possible salmonella contamination. (Northwest Naturals / FDA)

Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes can sicken animals that eat contaminated products and can also pose a risk to people who handle the food or come into contact with contaminated surfaces, according to the recall notice.

Pets infected with either bacteria may experience lethargy, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, vomiting, decreased appetite, and abdominal pain. Infected animals can also carry the bacteria and potentially spread them to people or other animals.

Northwest Naturals Raw Diet for Dogs Chicken Recipe frozen pet food packaging

Northwest Naturals Raw Diet for Dogs Chicken Recipe is being recalled after testing found salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes. (Northwest Naturals/FDA)

Consumers who purchased the affected products are being advised to stop feeding them to their pets and return the unused portion to the place of purchase for a full refund.

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Northwest Naturals also advised consumers handling raw pet food to wash their hands thoroughly and clean and sanitize bowls, utensils, surfaces and storage areas that come into contact with the products.

FOX Business reached out to Northwest Naturals for additional comment.

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Nvidia Stock Teases Buy Zone After Beat-And-Raise Report

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Nvidia Stock Teases Buy Zone After Beat-And-Raise Report

Following a beat-and-raise earnings report for its fiscal second quarter last week, artificial intelligence behemoth Nvidia (NVDA) continues to tease a fresh breakout. And as it holds support above its 10-week moving average, Nvidia stock has also secured a spot on the Investor’s Business Daily Leaderboard and the Stock Spotlight screen. More than a dozen Wall Street analysts raised their…

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FDIC defeats $1.71 billion claim over Silicon Valley Bank collapse, US judge rules

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FDIC defeats $1.71 billion claim over Silicon Valley Bank collapse, US judge rules

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Want NSE shares before the IPO? Here’s how the unlisted market works

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Want NSE shares before the IPO? Here’s how the unlisted market works
The much-awaited initial public offering (IPO) of the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) could be closer to launch, leaving investors with two routes to gain exposure to the exchange: buy its shares in the pre-IPO, unlisted market or wait for the public issue.

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey on August 27 said the market regulator was close to clearing the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) filed by NSE, the world’s largest derivatives exchange by trading volume.

NSE filed its draft prospectus in June for an IPO that will comprise entirely of an offer for sale (OFS), allowing existing shareholders to pare their stakes. The exchange had initially expected SEBI clearance for its DRHP by early August. The timeline was subsequently pushed back by around three weeks following changes to the roster of selling shareholders, with SBI Capital Markets being added.

At the top end of the marketed valuation of Rs 5.26 lakh crore ($55 billion), NSE would rank sixth among global exchange operators by market capitalisation, narrowly behind London Stock Exchange Group Plc and ahead of Nasdaq Inc, according to Bloomberg.

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NSE unlisted share price


NSE’s unlisted shares are currently changing hands at around Rs 1,970, according to data from Unlisted Arena. The shares were quoted at around Rs 2,010 when NSE filed its DRHP.
Over the past year, the unlisted stock has traded in a range of around Rs 1,800-2,150, well below its June 2025 peak of Rs 2,590.The shares had slipped to around Rs 1,950 on July 28-29 before recovering to current levels.

ALSO READ: NSE IPO coming soon: Should investors buy unlisted shares now or wait for the mega issue?

With NSE’s IPO expected in the second half of September, investors are now assessing whether to enter the stock through the unlisted market or wait for the public offering and its eventual listing.

How to buy NSE unlisted shares

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NSE shares currently trade in the unlisted, over-the-counter market, where investors can acquire equity in companies ahead of their listing on recognised stock exchanges.

Unlike a listed stock, NSE’s unlisted shares do not have a continuous exchange-based price discovery mechanism or a live market price. Trades are negotiated privately between buyers and sellers, with the final transaction price depending on the prevailing quote and available liquidity.

Investors looking to acquire NSE shares can approach SEBI-registered investment banks, brokers or specialised unlisted-share dealers. These intermediaries facilitate transactions by matching investors seeking to buy pre-IPO shares with existing shareholders looking to sell.

Investors can also purchase shares directly from existing shareholders, including promoters, founders, angel investors and employees holding vested ESOPs. Such transactions are generally negotiated over the counter and may involve sizeable minimum ticket sizes.

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Pre-IPO platforms also aggregate such opportunities and facilitate the KYC, price discovery and share-transfer process.

Step-by-step process to buy NSE unlisted shares

Choose an intermediary or platform: Register with a specialised unlisted-share platform or dealer offering NSE shares.

Complete KYC: Submit documents including PAN, Aadhaar, bank account details and the Client Master Report (CMR/CML) issued by your depository participant. The CMR contains details such as your demat account, DP ID, Client ID and linked bank account.

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Check the quote and lot size: Unlike an exchange-traded stock, there is no central order book or exchange-determined price for NSE’s unlisted shares. Buyers and sellers negotiate the transaction price and quantity, with intermediaries facilitating the trade.

Place the order and make payment: Once the price and quantity are agreed upon, the buyer transfers funds through the payment channel specified by the platform, including UPI, NEFT, RTGS or a designated escrow account.

Complete the transfer documentation: Depending on the transaction, documentation may include the share purchase agreement (SPA), delivery instruction slip (DIS), proof of payment and transfer deed (SH-4).

Receive the shares in the demat account: Once the transaction is verified and the seller confirms the transfer, the shares are moved through an off-market transfer and credited to the buyer’s demat account through the depository system. The shares may typically be credited within 24 to 48 business hours, according to the details provided.

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The two depositories, CDSL and NSDL, oversee the electronic transfer of shares. Proper documentation is critical to establishing the transfer of title, as unlisted transactions do not pass through the standard order-matching and settlement mechanism of a stock exchange.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)

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Warsh Rolls The Dice With Rhetoric

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Warsh Rolls The Dice With Rhetoric

This article was written by

Lawrence Fuller has been managing portfolios for individual investors for 30 years, starting his career at Merrill Lynch in 1993 and working in the same capacity with several other Wall Street firms before realizing his long-term goal of complete independence when he founded Fuller Asset Management. He also manages the Focused Growth portfolio on the new fintech platform called Dub, which is the first copy-trading platform approved by securities regulators in the US, allowing retail investors to copy the portfolio and ongoing trades of the manager they choose automatically. You can also find him on Substack and lawrencefuller.substack.com.He is the leader of the investing group The Portfolio Architect, which focuses on an overall economic and market outlook that complements an all-weather investment strategy designed to produce consistent risk-adjusted market returns. Features include: Portfolio construction guidance, access to an “All-Weather” model portfolio and a dividend and options income portfolio, a daily brief summarizing current events, a week ahead newsletter, technical and fundamental reports, trade alerts, and 24/7 chat. Learn More.

Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have no stock, option or similar derivative position in any of the companies mentioned, and no plans to initiate any such positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Lawrence Fuller is the Principal of Fuller Asset Management (FAM), a state registered investment adviser. He is also the manager of the Focused Growth portfolio on the copy-trading platform Dubapp.com. Information presented is for educational purposes only intended for a broad audience. The information does not intend to make an offer or solicitation for the sale of purchase of any specific securities, investments, or investment strategies. Investments involve risk and are not guaranteed. FAM has reasonable belief that this marketing does not include any false or material misleading statements or omissions of facts regarding services, investment, or client experience. FAM has reasonable belief that the content as a whole will not cause an untrue or misleading implication regarding the adviser’s services, investments, or client experiences. Past performance of specific investment advice should not be relied upon without knowledge of certain circumstances or market events, nature and timing of investments and relevant constraints of the investment. FAM has presented information in a fair and balanced manner. FAM is not giving tax, legal, or accounting advice.
Mr. Fuller may discuss and display charts, graphs, formulas, and stock picks which are not intended to be used by themselves to determine which securities to buy or sell, or when to buy or sell them. Such charts and graphs offer limited information and should not be used on their own to make investment decisions. Consultation with a licensed financial professional is strongly suggested. The opinions expressed herein are those of the firm and are subject to change without notice. The opinions referenced are as of the date of publication and are subject to change due to changes in market or economic conditions and may not necessarily come to pass.

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Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.

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Cantor Fitzgerald reiterates Fiserv stock rating on model update

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Cantor Fitzgerald reiterates Fiserv stock rating on model update

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Meta Stock: Facebook Parent On Track To Overtake Google Ad Lead

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Meta Stock: Facebook Parent On Track To Overtake Google Ad Lead

Meta Platforms (META) is on track to surpass Google Search as the largest digital advertising platform by year-end, according to projections by Bernstein. Analysts with the firm say the Facebook parent is clearly getting a boost from its AI investments — even if those gains haven’t helped Meta stock this year. Google, Meta and Amazon (AMZN) are the “big three”…

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