November 10, 2024 • 10 mins
Raquel Todd is a proud Kariyarra and Banjima woman from Port Hedland, Western Australia. Her journey has been a dynamic one, marked by resilience and determination. After relocating to Perth for education, a gap year helped her discover her true passions. While she initially pursued law, she found her calling in teaching, though she eventually chose to leave university to follow her heart.
Raquel has worked in community advocacy and co-founded Sista Girl Sign and Print, a business that weathered the pandemic’s challenges before exiting. Now, as a co-founder of Blak Line Industries, dedicated to empowering Aboriginal women in traditionally male-dominated industries.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Podcast unite our voices. We respectfully acknowledge the Watch Up
New People as the traditional owners of the land in
which these was created. Hi. I'm Krystal Kinsella. I'm a
(00:28):
proud Jarwin and Brad Drew woman, a supply diversity expert
and published author. Welcome to Meet the Mob, a series
dedicated to showcasing black excellence in business. I get to
interview deadly first Nation business owners from around the country
and learn about their white Today I'm joined by Raquel
Todd from Black Line, who will share with us her wife,
why she got into business and why she does what
(00:49):
she does. So let's kick it off. Hey Riquel, Hi,
how are you? I'm really good and I'm really good,
So tell me all about you. Who are Here's where
we come from.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
Yeah, So, I'm a bunch of maya Gurriada woman from
the Pilbury region of Western Australia, born and raised on
Go Out of Country also known as port Headline, and
have been living on Watch Up Country for the better
part of my life now. And we have an office
actually just across the doubil yeregan there in South pert Oh.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
No, it's very exciting to be very good very good.
I haven't been to Port Headland, so that how far
away is that?
Speaker 2 (01:22):
Eighteen hundred kilometers? Yeah, it's about an hour fifty five
flight or two days drive. A lot of people can
probably do it in one now, but you know it's
pushing it.
Speaker 1 (01:34):
Oh, definitely, definitely. So look, tell me about your why,
like what's driving you to be in business and do
the things you do. Yeah, I wasn't too sure what
my why was.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
In particular, the last twelve months have really been a
little bit up in the air. I exited a business
that I really thought was going to be where I
was going to be for a little while, so my
wives changed. But it is to empower oboriginal women in
particular in male dominated industry, and I think from my
(02:06):
experience that I've been through, I want to motivate the
women to continue to break down those barriers in particular
in those industries and make sure that they continue to
do what I've been doing and taking the industry by storm.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
Definitely, So talk us through that. So, what are some
of the things that you do to kind of help
you realize that why?
Speaker 2 (02:26):
I think you've got to surround yourself with really good people.
I've got really good mentors around me. I have great friends,
and most importantly, I have family. And you can never
you can never do what you do without your family,
and heading back home and putting your feet into the
red dirt is always a good sign to keep you
(02:47):
grounded and keep you going. But yeah, I just wouldn't
be there without a really good support system.
Speaker 1 (02:54):
Definitely, country is really important and going home. But family
is just it's so critical too. Everything, absolutely, even when
they annoy right, I know I've got those. I've got
a four year old, trives me crazy, but yeah, yeah, yeah,
So tell me about Black Line. What's black Lie doing.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Black Line Industries is a majority owned Aboriginal business made
up of six different traditional owner groups. We are a
fully integrated signage and print management solutions business and we
have been running now just for twelve months. So we
had our one year anniversary last week. Oh congratulations, Yeah,
thank you. So that's exciting. And we look after anything
(03:35):
from road sign safety signage, mind sight signage, printing from
annual reports, pull up banners, sublimated polo shirts, caps, hats.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
You name it. If you want to print on it,
we can print on it. Fantastic, So there'd be obviously
heaps of work that goes along here along the West coast,
within the mining sets or all of that kind of thing. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Absolutely, We're lucky enough to hold a contract directly with
BHP for the supply.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
I have signage.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
We also have a replenishment agreement with ISS, and then
all of Saint George's Terrace, which is full of mining
and oil and gas lines. Were luckily enough to be
able to provide to them and some local governments with
sublimated polo shirts, water bottles, hats, scarves, you name it.
(04:25):
If someone wants something on there to represent their branding
or our culture, then we're the ones to provide that
solution for them.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
Do you have a graphic design background? Are you an
artist at all or no?
Speaker 2 (04:37):
I was very green to the industry. I was approached
by a previous business partner because I'd worked with them
at a different business and from there I kind of
was green straight into it all. So I didn't have
any creativeness about me. It's just crazy, because yeah, I
feel like it's like our culture. It comes naturally when
(04:59):
you surround yourself with people that are like minded. So
I work really closely with some exceptional graphic designers, some
aboriginal artists and then we create our team from there.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
So that's fantastic. Well, I mean that's a really great
demonstration that you know, like if you've got sort of
business now, you know, drawing on, as you said, your
own culture and family, that you know, you can put
all of that into business. Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
It's exciting and it's always evolving. You know, no artwork
is ever the same, no story is ever the same.
Everything that we do for a client is so customized
to what they're doing and what they want to represent,
but then we get to add our twists on their
thoughts and representation of what they think it looks like
as well. So it's exciting. I love it. And had
(05:47):
you asked me, you know, five years ago, would I
have a signagen print business.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Absolutely not, but you know here we are. Look, anything's
possible I think these days. But it's yeah. Look, I
mean I've done a bit of work with David Williams
who runs Glimber, and so it's been really interesting to
underst the creative process that goes into the storytelling component
when developing artworks for clients. So can imagine that's something
(06:13):
that's quite a journey with all the clients it gets
work with.
Speaker 2 (06:15):
Yeah, and I think you get to really start from
the beginning, like the process of just sitting down having
a yarn and then going all the way through to
whether they're putting that on a polo shirt or hanging
that artwork in one of their display officers or down
at PHP in their Level one reception. So when you
(06:36):
see that, you're kind of like, wow, we did that,
and that's incredible.
Speaker 1 (06:40):
And also just to pay.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
Knowledge to that artist and what they're able to do
and their creativity is exceptional. I mean I couldn't sit
there and do what they do, and I think it's amazing. Yeah,
I couldn't mix colors together to save my life. But
there are so many talented artists out there.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
Well, it's good that you're giving them a platform and
opening up the doors through your business and through your networks. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:07):
Absolutely, And also making sure that they know their worth
and their value and not to be taken advantage of.
You know a lot of them want some of that
work but not sure how to price that. And it's
making sure that they're fairly paid well for what they're doing.
Speaker 1 (07:24):
Yeah, Yeah, most definitely. Yeah, that's A common thread that
I hear quite often in this space is really protecting artists'
rights and royalties and making sure that they are taking
care of Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
Absolutely, And I'm all for looking after them and making
sure that they want to continue to work with me
as well, because you know, it works both ways. But
I love it. It keeps me busy, but I wouldn't have
it any other way, definitely.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
So one year in business, in this new venture, So
what does the future hold, Like, what's the legacy piece
for you?
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Yeah? I think I just want to be remembered for
my resilience and my strength that when you are, in
particular in male dominated industries, you're not having to just
worry about necessarily women dragging you down, but the men
as well. And I just want to make sure that
I'm remembered for being resilient and being strong and keeping
(08:21):
going and making sure that.
Speaker 1 (08:26):
They know that I've done it they can do it. Yeah,
being a great role model and someone to aspire to
bet Yeah, And I think.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
You're always evolving in your legacy as well, right, Like
You've got to keep evolving in that and making sure
that the legacy evolves with you, and you know your
path isn't always going to be the same, so we'll
see where it goes, and it's exciting.
Speaker 1 (08:51):
So where do we see black Line Industries in say
five years from now?
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Hopefully we'll have our own manufacturing facility. I would like
to see black Line have our own manufacturing facility. At
the moment, we use a lot of trade printers or
trade signage manufacturers, so I'd like us to see our
own manufacturing facility.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
From there. Who knows.
Speaker 2 (09:12):
Then at the moment, we also work underneath a shared
Services group, so the Indigenous Shared Services Group actually looks
after all our back end, so our HR, our admin,
our operations, anything legal and finance. So I guess we
would aim to also have our own employment directly with
(09:33):
black Line as we continue to grow. At the moment,
we've got a business development manager, so hopefully we just
grow the team and yeah, see where we go through it.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
More opportunities most definitely. So if you had a key
message for my audience, what would you like to say, Keep.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Going, don't give up, stay resilient, be strong, don't let
anyone tell you that you can't do it, because you
definitely can do it.
Speaker 1 (09:58):
Most definitely, you definitely can do it. As Raquel has
just said, so thanks so much, Thanks so much for
being here you see me today. I really appreciate it,
Thank you and look forward to meeting the rest of
the mob. So there you have it. I hope you've
enjoyed the latest episode of Meeting them All. Till next time.
(10:19):
Thanks for listening to today's episode. If you love it,
please share it on your socials. With your mob, let's
help amplify as many Indigenous businesses as possible and get
everyone supporting each other. Thank you.
Podcast unite our voices. We respectfully acknowledge the Watch Up
New People as the traditional owners of the land in
which these was created. Hi. I'm Krystal Kinsella. I'm a
(00:28):
proud Jarwin and Brad Drew woman, a supply diversity expert
and published author. Welcome to Meet the Mob, a series
dedicated to showcasing black excellence in business. I get to
interview deadly first Nation business owners from around the country
and learn about their white Today I'm joined by Raquel
Todd from Black Line, who will share with us her wife,
why she got into business and why she does what
(00:49):
she does. So let's kick it off. Hey Riquel, Hi,
how are you? I'm really good and I'm really good,
So tell me all about you. Who are Here's where
we come from.
Speaker 2 (00:57):
Yeah, So, I'm a bunch of maya Gurriada woman from
the Pilbury region of Western Australia, born and raised on
Go Out of Country also known as port Headline, and
have been living on Watch Up Country for the better
part of my life now. And we have an office
actually just across the doubil yeregan there in South pert Oh.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
No, it's very exciting to be very good very good.
I haven't been to Port Headland, so that how far
away is that?
Speaker 2 (01:22):
Eighteen hundred kilometers? Yeah, it's about an hour fifty five
flight or two days drive. A lot of people can
probably do it in one now, but you know it's
pushing it.
Speaker 1 (01:34):
Oh, definitely, definitely. So look, tell me about your why,
like what's driving you to be in business and do
the things you do. Yeah, I wasn't too sure what
my why was.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
In particular, the last twelve months have really been a
little bit up in the air. I exited a business
that I really thought was going to be where I
was going to be for a little while, so my
wives changed. But it is to empower oboriginal women in
particular in male dominated industry, and I think from my
(02:06):
experience that I've been through, I want to motivate the
women to continue to break down those barriers in particular
in those industries and make sure that they continue to
do what I've been doing and taking the industry by storm.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
Definitely, So talk us through that. So, what are some
of the things that you do to kind of help
you realize that why?
Speaker 2 (02:26):
I think you've got to surround yourself with really good people.
I've got really good mentors around me. I have great friends,
and most importantly, I have family. And you can never
you can never do what you do without your family,
and heading back home and putting your feet into the
red dirt is always a good sign to keep you
(02:47):
grounded and keep you going. But yeah, I just wouldn't
be there without a really good support system.
Speaker 1 (02:54):
Definitely, country is really important and going home. But family
is just it's so critical too. Everything, absolutely, even when
they annoy right, I know I've got those. I've got
a four year old, trives me crazy, but yeah, yeah, yeah,
So tell me about Black Line. What's black Lie doing.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
Black Line Industries is a majority owned Aboriginal business made
up of six different traditional owner groups. We are a
fully integrated signage and print management solutions business and we
have been running now just for twelve months. So we
had our one year anniversary last week. Oh congratulations, Yeah,
thank you. So that's exciting. And we look after anything
(03:35):
from road sign safety signage, mind sight signage, printing from
annual reports, pull up banners, sublimated polo shirts, caps, hats.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
You name it. If you want to print on it,
we can print on it. Fantastic, So there'd be obviously
heaps of work that goes along here along the West coast,
within the mining sets or all of that kind of thing. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Absolutely, We're lucky enough to hold a contract directly with
BHP for the supply.
Speaker 1 (04:03):
I have signage.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
We also have a replenishment agreement with ISS, and then
all of Saint George's Terrace, which is full of mining
and oil and gas lines. Were luckily enough to be
able to provide to them and some local governments with
sublimated polo shirts, water bottles, hats, scarves, you name it.
(04:25):
If someone wants something on there to represent their branding
or our culture, then we're the ones to provide that
solution for them.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
Do you have a graphic design background? Are you an
artist at all or no?
Speaker 2 (04:37):
I was very green to the industry. I was approached
by a previous business partner because I'd worked with them
at a different business and from there I kind of
was green straight into it all. So I didn't have
any creativeness about me. It's just crazy, because yeah, I
feel like it's like our culture. It comes naturally when
(04:59):
you surround yourself with people that are like minded. So
I work really closely with some exceptional graphic designers, some
aboriginal artists and then we create our team from there.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
So that's fantastic. Well, I mean that's a really great
demonstration that you know, like if you've got sort of
business now, you know, drawing on, as you said, your
own culture and family, that you know, you can put
all of that into business. Yeah, definitely.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
It's exciting and it's always evolving. You know, no artwork
is ever the same, no story is ever the same.
Everything that we do for a client is so customized
to what they're doing and what they want to represent,
but then we get to add our twists on their
thoughts and representation of what they think it looks like
as well. So it's exciting. I love it. And had
(05:47):
you asked me, you know, five years ago, would I
have a signagen print business.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Absolutely not, but you know here we are. Look, anything's
possible I think these days. But it's yeah. Look, I
mean I've done a bit of work with David Williams
who runs Glimber, and so it's been really interesting to
underst the creative process that goes into the storytelling component
when developing artworks for clients. So can imagine that's something
(06:13):
that's quite a journey with all the clients it gets
work with.
Speaker 2 (06:15):
Yeah, and I think you get to really start from
the beginning, like the process of just sitting down having
a yarn and then going all the way through to
whether they're putting that on a polo shirt or hanging
that artwork in one of their display officers or down
at PHP in their Level one reception. So when you
(06:36):
see that, you're kind of like, wow, we did that,
and that's incredible.
Speaker 1 (06:40):
And also just to pay.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
Knowledge to that artist and what they're able to do
and their creativity is exceptional. I mean I couldn't sit
there and do what they do, and I think it's amazing. Yeah,
I couldn't mix colors together to save my life. But
there are so many talented artists out there.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
Well, it's good that you're giving them a platform and
opening up the doors through your business and through your networks. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:07):
Absolutely, And also making sure that they know their worth
and their value and not to be taken advantage of.
You know a lot of them want some of that
work but not sure how to price that. And it's
making sure that they're fairly paid well for what they're doing.
Speaker 1 (07:24):
Yeah, Yeah, most definitely. Yeah, that's A common thread that
I hear quite often in this space is really protecting artists'
rights and royalties and making sure that they are taking
care of Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:35):
Absolutely, And I'm all for looking after them and making
sure that they want to continue to work with me
as well, because you know, it works both ways. But
I love it. It keeps me busy, but I wouldn't have
it any other way, definitely.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
So one year in business, in this new venture, So
what does the future hold, Like, what's the legacy piece
for you?
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Yeah? I think I just want to be remembered for
my resilience and my strength that when you are, in
particular in male dominated industries, you're not having to just
worry about necessarily women dragging you down, but the men
as well. And I just want to make sure that
I'm remembered for being resilient and being strong and keeping
(08:21):
going and making sure that.
Speaker 1 (08:26):
They know that I've done it they can do it. Yeah,
being a great role model and someone to aspire to
bet Yeah, And I think.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
You're always evolving in your legacy as well, right, Like
You've got to keep evolving in that and making sure
that the legacy evolves with you, and you know your
path isn't always going to be the same, so we'll
see where it goes, and it's exciting.
Speaker 1 (08:51):
So where do we see black Line Industries in say
five years from now?
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Hopefully we'll have our own manufacturing facility. I would like
to see black Line have our own manufacturing facility. At
the moment, we use a lot of trade printers or
trade signage manufacturers, so I'd like us to see our
own manufacturing facility.
Speaker 1 (09:11):
From there. Who knows.
Speaker 2 (09:12):
Then at the moment, we also work underneath a shared
Services group, so the Indigenous Shared Services Group actually looks
after all our back end, so our HR, our admin,
our operations, anything legal and finance. So I guess we
would aim to also have our own employment directly with
(09:33):
black Line as we continue to grow. At the moment,
we've got a business development manager, so hopefully we just
grow the team and yeah, see where we go through it.
Speaker 1 (09:42):
More opportunities most definitely. So if you had a key
message for my audience, what would you like to say, Keep.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Going, don't give up, stay resilient, be strong, don't let
anyone tell you that you can't do it, because you
definitely can do it.
Speaker 1 (09:58):
Most definitely, you definitely can do it. As Raquel has
just said, so thanks so much, Thanks so much for
being here you see me today. I really appreciate it,
Thank you and look forward to meeting the rest of
the mob. So there you have it. I hope you've
enjoyed the latest episode of Meeting them All. Till next time.
(10:19):
Thanks for listening to today's episode. If you love it,
please share it on your socials. With your mob, let's
help amplify as many Indigenous businesses as possible and get
everyone supporting each other. Thank you.
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