June 11, 2025 • 40 mins
In Episode 83 of Scoreboard, Chris Titley speaks with Jade Bartholomeusz—Queensland hockey player and founder of 1% Activewear—about the drive to improve, the frustration of injury, and finding identity beyond results.
Jade reflects on her journey through elite pathways, the toll of long-term rehab, and how injury shifted her perspective on performance and progress.
She shares the importance of rest, self-awareness, and why consistency—not perfection—is now her measure of success.
Off the field, Jade built 1% Activewear as a way to inspire small daily wins. She talks about balancing recovery with business, building a brand with purpose, and helping others perform in whatever arena they choose.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:01):
Hi, it's Chris Tipley and on today's episode of School Board
I'm joined by Jade Bartholomew is in person here on a beautiful
Brisbane day. Yes, it is quite a beautiful
day. Today I woke up.
Nice sky, but is it chilly This.It was a bit chilly, my jumper.
Yeah, it is. It's getting towards the
shortest day of the year. I think it's the 20th of June or
21st, the darkest. And yes, yes, I I forget those
(00:23):
days. Welcome anyway to your first in
person podcast ever. Yes, thank you so much for
having me. It's such an honour to be a
guest on here. Thank.
You. Thank you.
Now, Jay Bartholomew's people may or may not know that you're
a hockey player. Do you want to talk about your
journey in hockey thus far? Yeah, so I've been fortunate to
(00:44):
have played a few national championships.
I made my first Queensland team when I was in under fifteens,
but I actually didn't get to go away because of COVID.
So yeah, didn't get to go away, go away because of COVID.
And then I played my first nationals when I was 16 at under
eighteens. I played the following year as
well and then played the past two Under 21 national
(01:07):
championships. Right.
And the love of hockey. Where did that come about from?
Well, my mum was a good hockey player so she played for the
Scorches for many years, an underage Australian team, so she
got us into it. I think the love just came from
just like really just loving being competitive and like
(01:28):
loving the challenge. And I also loved that it was a
team sport. And I think, yeah, individual
sports, at times you can get in your own head of it, but like a
team sport, you really like the pressure feels like it's
dispersed between the whole teaminstead of it, like it's just on
you. So like, I remember doing 400
metres and being like so nervousbefore I was about to do these
(01:51):
four hundreds in high school. But then when I'd go to a hockey
game, if it was a grand final, you know, you'd still be
nervous, but you felt like it was like you're all there
together. You're all there together and
the pressure was eased a little bit because you had all these
different responsibilities and roles.
I suppose that that it wasn't just on you.
It was a bit like, I suppose the18th or 21st birthday party.
Everyone's all eyes are on you, on everything.
(02:12):
It's a little bit a little bit overwhelming, I suppose.
Now, when you first picked up a or played hockey, when was that?
So I first started hooking to hockey programmes in Perth when
I was around 5 or 6, but when wemoved to Brisbane when I was 8
was when I played my first actual game.
So that was an undenied. So played for Saint Andrews.
Any listeners you want to join aclub, shout it to Saint Andrews,
(02:34):
come and join us. So yeah.
Awesome. And, and the attraction, I mean,
you, you talked about the team side of things, but the, the,
the hockey, the game, what, whatmakes it so attractive for you
to play? I mean, when I was younger I I
just was sort of into it and I just liked it.
I thought it was fun, but I think now like having
experienced more, I'm, I very much just want to be in that
(02:56):
high performance environment, striving to, you know, be at the
top level. So that's what the draw for it
is now me just really wanting totry to get to the the highest
level I can. And yeah, just I love the game.
I I feel very free when I play and some of my favourite moments
have been on the hockey field. And in regards to what makes a
(03:19):
good hockey player, what do you reckon?
I think definitely athleticism, speed and I think a striker,
that's my position in the circle.
Just hunger and like wanting to like score and yeah, speed and
strength and yeah, some good skills in there as well.
And when you were when you were younger and you were playing
(03:40):
hockey, did you aspire? Did you watch hockey on the the
TV? Did you watch at the Olympics?
Was there some people that you're going, wow, I love to
like play like them. Oh.
Definitely like when I was younger, I remember the 2014, I
think COM games, but Donna Blythe scored like the winning
shootout. And I just remember like from
that moment going, oh wow, like that would be amazing to be on
(04:00):
that stage. And she was always like, that
was one of my first idols. But more recently, Rosie Malone,
I've I always watched her like growing up and found her very
inspiring and played a few A grade games against her.
So I'd always try and get a photo with her after the game
because I'd be like, Oh my gosh,I'm playing against her.
So yeah, she's definitely an idol for me as well.
(04:23):
And then the balancing of your hockey with what you're doing in
in life now. Do you want to talk about what
you're doing as well? Yeah.
So I was very fortunate in high school, I did this young
entrepreneurs programme and it started a little passion project
for me. So 1% activewear.
So I'm the founder of an activewear brand, but but also
(04:45):
movement for improvement. So we want to help everyone
achieve their big goals by breaking it down to small 1%
chunks. So that's a passion project for
me. And from the young innovators, I
came third and so $1000 towards starting that business.
And then that sort of helped me get a scholarship with QT, which
(05:08):
helped me like financially, you know, start the business.
So that's been going since we launched in December last year.
So going for a little while, we had our pre sale in September,
but that's sort of my, one of mypassions outside of hockey that
I've been trying to focus with my yeah, my.
Energy on congratulations. What what?
What was the driver or what do you see in activewear that you
(05:30):
don't see now? Well, I think for me it was, it
was more not just active wear, it was wanting that like blend
between continuous improvement and active wear.
So like it wasn't just about providing high quality active
wear, it was about helping people realise that like these
(05:52):
big dreams aren't as like big asthey are in your head if you
just break them down. So it was, it was actually I
stumbled across the statistic that 80% of people don't set
goals. And so that's sort of what
started it. So I was passionate about an
active lifestyle, wanting to help people and continuous
improvement. So it was just like a blend of
my passions and then just focused on trying to get well.
(06:16):
Some music going on there. Some music.
Queen yes, sorry, back to back to 1% activewear, right.
So the the the the idea to get better every day, which is the
sort of 1% every day or week, isthat right?
So it's like the continuous improvement theory, 18 minutes
per day over a 365 day period makes from the top 95% of the
(06:37):
world in that specific discipline.
So it was really about like how small incremental progress can
accumulate. So that was where it came from.
From that perspective. I'm just, I love goal setting
like in my sport, I do it in my like my academics, I would do it
in school. So it was just a natural sort of
progression for me to want to link not just activewear to a
(06:59):
goal track tracking platform. So, you know, the original idea
was to link it to an app, but atthe moment we just have a free
goal progress tracker that everyone can get access to, not
just upon purchasing from us. But yeah, anyone can get access
to it. So are.
You when you set your goals, have you always been a goal
setter? And when do you remember setting
(07:19):
your first goal well? Like I think yeah, maybe Year 5,
definitely year 6. I definitely set goals.
I think every Christmas I would like the day before, not
Christmas, sorry, the day beforeNew Year's, I would write down
and I would like, I would sit down and I'd write like all my
headings, my academic goals, my like touch goals, my hockey
(07:39):
goals, my goals for like well being.
And like I would like really methodically like plot out like,
OK, what's my big goal And like how am I going to get there?
And I'd have like little check boxes.
So it's something I've always done.
I think mom and dad sort of, I don't know, taught us a little
bit. But yeah, it's just something
I've always like, loved to do, have a little plan for the year.
(08:01):
What? About lists, are you a list
maker? Do you love lists?
I would say I'm a list. Maker, I think I used to be more
like writing in a notebook, but now I'm very much just on my
notes like I write. Oh.
Yes, I do what I. Need to do today.
Yeah, use the reminders app. So yeah, does the.
To Do List, come back to your goals.
Like, do you actually connect the connect them sometimes going
actually, if I did this today, that's probably on track to the
(08:22):
big hairy audacious goal. Yeah, well, often it will
because it'll be like, I don't know, like I'm gonna do my rehab
exercises today or I'm gonna do my like 10 minutes of hockey.
So often, like that's just like,I don't really think about it,
like going back to my big goal. But it's probably subconsciously
like, that's why I'm doing it. And that's so you.
Mentioned rehab exercises. We haven't talked about this.
(08:43):
In amongst all the goal setting of a big hairy audacious goal is
to potentially do something but then come out of left field.
There's a little thing called injury.
Yes, well, So what? Happened well.
So playing at the 21's nationalsthis year, unfortunately I got
into a collision, came off the field, thought everything was
(09:04):
OK, went back on the field and ruptured my ACL.
So this was in the second game as well.
It was pretty heartbreaking. I sort of knew I'd done it but
then got a little bit of a falsesense of security cause the the
physios were like, Oh no, we think it's OK.
And I was like OK, that could begood.
But I heard the tear and pop andI definitely did do it.
(09:27):
Heard it and felt it at the sametime, yes.
Oh, that's shocking. And then from there going like
the actual raw motion of like this is an injury that could be
6 to 12 months probably. Yeah, so I mean, initially I was
like, Oh my God, I just did my ACL.
That was my first thought. And so I like, I panicked a bit
and I was like, Oh my gosh. And then I was just like, OK,
(09:49):
and, you know, get off the field.
And then I was waiting for like the physio sort of like their
evaluation. And yeah, like they were
thinking it was all right. And I was like, OK, like it
could be OK. But in the back of my mind I was
like, OK, like, you know, it'll be a long road to get back.
But I was, I was like, not goingto think anything yet until it's
confirmed. And then when it was confirmed
(10:11):
was when all was, when all the emotion hit me and I was like,
OK, like, this will be a long journey.
But you know, everything happensfor a reason.
You know, you can have your like, bits of sadness and
moments where you, like, feel a bit flat.
But, you know, after I had that initial, like, OK, like, this is
going to be a big challenge. I just tried to like, look
forward, look at the positives. I can get out of it, you know,
(10:33):
like get stronger in my upper body and just, yeah, tried to
like focus on like a process andgetting back.
So yeah. And we tried to organise this
podcast in in mid May, I think it was.
And he sent me a little text going Oh my goodness, I've just
I'm so sorry. I've had surgery, I've done my
ACL. I was like, oh, no.
And so welcome. So everything happens for a
reason. You're here now and you're
(10:54):
walking OK. I noticed before the stairs are
stairs are pretty well. So how long has it been since
since the injury and surgery has.
Been 20-6 days, so it's four weeks since surgery on Thursday
and we're at Tuesday now. Yep.
And what have they given you in terms of like the time, the
programme, in terms of potentially coming back to
competitive sport? Well, I mean, for a lot of the
(11:18):
things I've seen is like sort of8 to 12 months, like 9 to 12
months. So I'm hoping to get back on
like the 8 to nine months sort of trajectory, like like my big
goal is to play nationals next year.
So I think that's doable. Hopefully I can be back for
trials in February, but we will see and.
(11:38):
When you had that goal, you're doing the goals and all of a
sudden that this thing happens and you kind of have to cross
out one of the the goals potentially of playing or
whatever it might be. But then you can reset your
goals and saying like, I've got 12 months, this is the next
short term goal. Do you do that?
You kind of go, yeah. So and how do?
You feel with with changing yourgoals, I mean.
It was somewhat of a positive for like marketing the 1%
(12:01):
activewear and the fact that I hadn't really focused on the
movement for improvement side ofthings and our progress tracker
much. I'd sort of just put a lot of
photos of like our activewear and what it looked like.
So it's been good to be able to show like our philosophy sort of
in practise. So I've been like doing daily
vlogs on our 1% activewear showing like, OK, this is where
I'm at week 1. Like I'm going to show you how
(12:22):
I'm going to get back on the field using our goal progress
tracker. Like I'm at progress goal 4 at
the moment. So my next progress goal is to
be able to walk into uni and like catch the bus because it's
like sort of AK in so need to like be confident walking.
But I hit my first progress goalof like reducing swelling in the
first week. And then the second week was
(12:43):
trying to walk and like being cleared to walk.
And then the third one was driving.
So I can drive now And now the 4th 1's like trying to like walk
into uni. So that's sort of how I'm like
approaching it and just trying to like, you know, go one step
at a time and show people like, look, I'm doing it like you can
do it too, just like, yeah. That's interesting that you're
combining your your work as welland like being living it, I
(13:05):
suppose and and coming you're you're slightly younger than I
am, but the of the Instagram E TikTok generation of of sharing
stories and and content, which is so critical in sport and
sports athletes journeys nowadays.
Not 10-15 years ago. How have you found about, you
know, building a brand around you and then now obviously
sharing pretty much not everything but a lot of things
(13:28):
in your life publicly I. Think like sharing things
publicly hasn't been too bad in that I'm like a bit of an open
book, I think. But what I've found hard is I've
tried to say like, I'm going to show you the ups and downs of
the journey. So like showing that vulnerable
vulnerability, vulnerability vulnerable side to the injury is
(13:50):
probably the harder part just because I'm not someone who
likes to like show negative emotions.
I'm a very positive person. I try and just be like an
encouraging person to everyone. And so I don't really like to
show myself being sad or like negative.
But I've sort of learned that like I kind of have to because
that's what I said I do. I'd show you the ups and downs
of the journey. So I don't really like like
that. Like I hate showing people I
(14:11):
cry. But I think it's important to
show like, it's not all like, daisies and rainbows.
Daisies and rainbows. Do you have these moments where
you're like, oh, I should put that on TikTok?
And you're like, now I'll just keep that to myself.
Well, I am I did like, but my parents I'm like my mum and dad
are like look like. I think it's important for you
to show this side. Like you, you look very much
(14:32):
like you're just like all happy and like, it's great.
And like for the most part, likeI'm a happy person and like, I'm
trying to like find the positives.
But there's definitely moments where I'm like, OK, this is like
a big challenge to get back on the field and like, it's going
to be a lot of work. So yeah, like it is a challenge.
But yeah, with the right supportnetwork, I think you can sort
of. Yeah, and I'm just touching on
(14:54):
that with the support network. Do the people follow your hockey
progress? Well, they don't.
They're just like Jay, They don't care what you do on the
field and off the field and the results.
And you're like, oh, she's the, you know, go for a chat, have a
have a call and you're like, oh,I had a bad game.
They're like, oh, whatever, who cares?
You know? Yeah.
Like, I don't really know. Like I think I feel like my
identity is very much intertwined with the brand
(15:17):
because it's a lot of my values.So I think maybe some of our
followers would like think of mejust the person.
But I do try and like show a little bit that I'm an athlete
because I think it builds a little bit of credibility with
the activewear brand. Like I train in activewear
everyday. Like I'm training in at a high
level. Like there's hopefully a little
(15:39):
bit more credibility built in the fact that like in our
quality, but I'm not really sure.
Like, I'd love to like, see, like what my audience, I think
they can do better. And yeah, like how they sort of
view the brand and me and hockeyand yeah, yeah.
Just touching on feedback, when you got feedback earlier on as a
(16:00):
hockey player and some of it negative, how did you cope with
that? Were you sort of an absorber?
Were you sort of a naturally going no, no, no, no, no, no,
that's wrong. I'm I'm better than that.
OK. How did you react with negative
feedback and or criticism of your performance on the field?
I'm always someone who wants to do better and improve and learn.
So I mean, I have always been like, OK, like, Yep, I'll take
(16:24):
that on board. Like, what would you like me to
do? So I welcome constructive
criticism and feedback. I think the only time I've maybe
found it hard is when the way itsaid has been like very like
negative. But for the most part, like I,
I, I love feedback. I think I always wanna be a
better person, be a better version of myself, be a better
hockey player. So yeah, I'm like, not opposed
(16:46):
to it at all. Like, I welcome it.
And when it comes to the 1% activewear, where do you wanna
see the business grow in the next, say, 12 months, maybe
while you're still recovering and doing a bit of, you know,
rehabilitation? With 12 months I would love us
to break even. That'd be incredible.
And potentially summer collection.
So thinking about designing somenew training shorts, running
(17:09):
shorts and releasing maybe some sports bras.
But like, the big goal is to forit to be my full time job.
So hopefully that can happen. But I mean, my mindset is like
the worst that can happen is that I learn a lot about
business. Yeah.
And where are you? Where are you?
Like, how are you coming up withthe designs?
Is it all you? You got some team, some friends
and family giving you some feedback and whatnot?
(17:30):
Well, it's all me at the moment,but I definitely would say I
rely on like my family and to myfriends to be like, hey, like do
you think like this looks OK Andlike, yeah, we do do some like
testing before as well. So like I I test out all the
stuff and get my like family to test it out as well.
Yeah, no, I've interviewed JasonCadie before the basketball who
now works for step one, the underwear company and they seem
(17:51):
to be like going down the athlete path of, of, of
particular athletes wearing their underwear, etcetera.
How are you going to go with thethe sort of athlete endorsement
influencer, brand influencer? Have you given some free packs
out to people yet or free clothing to say, hey, you mind
stepping that on Insta? Yeah.
So it's like, it's such an interesting like point you make
there because it's like, which where do you target?
(18:13):
Like do you target sort of like retired athletes who have like
been very successful? Do you target emerging athletes?
So I have given some to Jacinta Beecha, the Commonwealth Games
bronze medalist. She did a great post for me.
So I am thinking about that, butI just really need to make sure
I sort of pick the right people.So I think influencer marketing,
(18:37):
well, like, it can work. I don't know.
Sometimes I feel like it comes across more as like, it's just
an ad, whereas I want, like, if I gift a set to come across as,
like, very genuine. So I'm still figuring out, like,
who the best people would be to,like, gift those sets to.
Yeah. So what you want is you want
organic. I suppose, you know, non
prompted love of your brand. So people go, I've got it.
(18:59):
And then they go, oh, I'll snap them and tag them in because I
just like wearing it and the product's good, right?
Yeah. So that's what like I've tried
to like showcase on our social media, some of our positive sort
of like customer like reviews that from people who like say
they're really liking the brand,some of my favourite leggings.
So just to like build that credibility and show people.
(19:20):
But I understand like it's a newbrand.
It's hard to build that trust with people who don't know who
you are. So I'm trying to like show my
values and like trying to align that with the brand and show
like I wouldn't put out something that isn't high
quality because like my values are that I need to be a high
quality person. So I'm trying to showcase the
(19:41):
quality of the brand also through my actions as well.
But you know, it's a learning experience.
I'm definitely learning a lot inlike, marketing and like social
media. So, yeah, yeah.
And and you talked about your values a couple of times and how
you wanna intertwine that into all of you into your brand.
Can you go through your values and what you where they've come
from and I suppose and how? How you want to sort of
(20:03):
translate that to people going, hey, I'll, I'll buy something
from 1% activewear. Well.
I think the main thing I want toshow is like just continuous
improvement. Like I've said that a few times,
but like, it's in the name. In the name, Yeah.
But yeah, that's like one of themy main values.
I always want to be a better person, be a better hockey
player, like in all of my endeavours, like trying to just
(20:25):
improve and you know that. And I think that's why I want to
show that side of myself on the brand page because I think, you
know, practise what you preach. Like if I don't want to be a
better person, if I don't want to like, you know, try to
improve to achieve my goals, Like why would anyone listen to
me when I'm like talking about it on the brand and like talking
(20:46):
about that, that's the brand's values.
So, you know, I think it's just important to like, like actions
speak louder than words. When it comes to improvement and
sort of measuring improvement, there's information overload in
this world. You've got you can scroll for
forever on your phone, you can watch as many Netflix series as
you want because they're addictive and listen to
(21:06):
podcasts, etcetera. How do you kind of disseminate
information firstly, and then secondly measure your
improvement I. Think everyone has their own way
of like oh setting and go tracking.
I think mines like a bit methodical like it's probably
pretty normal just like the smart goals.
I sort of set my SMART goals as my big outcome goal, which is.
The one you're up to #3 going for number 4 right now on your
(21:28):
recovery, yeah. So my outcome goal is like the
big end goal. So my outcome goal at the moment
is to get back on the field for under 20 ones next year and
play. And then my progress goals are
how I'm going to get that. So that's how I do my goal
setting. Like everyone's sort of
different, but I guess that's what the templates for.
Like if anyone's struggling on like how do I start, it's like,
well, you've got like a free template that can show you how
(21:49):
to do it, explains what an outcome goal is, what a progress
goal is, you know, the continuous improvement theory.
So that's how I do it. But you know, it might not be
the perfect way, but it can helppeople who don't really know
like where they want to start and.
What about the the information do you go to social media, et
cetera, to, to follow people forleadership tips on retailing,
(22:09):
tips on Omni channel marketing? Do you go to or you know, do you
watch documentaries or listen topodcasts, et cetera?
For me, I definitely try and just go through the Business
Network that I am fortunate to have at the moment.
So like QT entrepreneurship, like I'll go to one of my
mentors like Wayne Gerard or Marcia, sorry, sorry, sorry,
(22:32):
Marcia. I'll just go to my mentors who
have like, been there, done that, you know, serial
entrepreneurs and just like, askthem questions.
Some of my dad's Business Network, I've, you know, reached
out to some of his mates who have businesses as well.
They probably get a bit annoyed now.
They don't. They're so lovely.
Yeah. But yeah, like, I just try and
reach out to like, anyone who's been there, done that, has more
(22:54):
experience than me and just ask them, like, how did you do it?
Like, what do you recommend? I I find I absorb a lot of
information through, you know, interaction.
So yeah, I try and listen to their advice and just try and
implement it that way. So when?
It comes to to retailing and fashion.
Is there some brand or person that you just kind of aspire to
that you love, that you purchasethrough your life and you're
(23:16):
like, wow, that that was a very,they're quite successful.
Oh, like that's an interesting question.
I haven't really thought about that.
I mean in terms of like fashion.Yeah, like one, yeah, maybe you
go like, for instance, my wife loves Gorman, right?
And, and she's like, oh, wow. And I look at that.
I'm like, what made her like Gorman?
Why? You know, how they've set up,
(23:37):
what the quality of the products.
Like there's other ones like, you know, dinosaur designs, for
instance. And you're like, why?
Why are they so successful? And I'm, I'm curious, do you do
that as well? Yeah.
Well, I think when you think of brands like that, I guess a
brand that I like is like Kukai,like it's not really in the
activewear industry. But what I like about it is that
it's very high quality. And you can tell that the
(23:58):
fabrics are like really incredible.
And I think, you know, when you look at it and you go, well,
why, like these young girls spending like, you know, $250 on
like a skirt here. And it's because they've really
like, it's expensive because of the quality.
And I think that's sort of a lesson I've tried to take and go
like people are prepared to praya little bit of a higher price
(24:19):
point if the quality is there. So our stuff's all made in
Europe, handcrafted with Italianfabric.
So I've gone like, you know what, I will go put our selling
price at a little bit higher than like I would have like, you
know, like to originally, if I know that, you know, it's
actually worth it because of thequality.
So I think that's like a lesson I've taken from them.
(24:39):
Like I know the girls my age. It's like a store that everyone,
like, loves. So I guess, yeah, their
craftsmanship is something that.Yeah.
So the quality of the product and paying for quality.
And I think you've seen some examples recently like Frank
Green, you've seen examples likeYeti.
You've even seen examples like this in the live phone called
Apple. Like they don't they don't
discount. Oh.
They don't, right? And so the people pay for for
(25:01):
quality and, and like the Yeti products, for instance, is
another one. There's been, there's a number
of different examples of paying for quality versus maybe another
successful business, Javianas where they, they bust every so
often and you go and buy a new pair because, I don't know, it's
just cool and maybe the branding, etcetera.
So there's a really fascinating like 30 bucks.
So I'll just get another one, right?
Yeah. Whereas Frank Green, if, if you
(25:23):
know, your kid loses a water bottle, Frank Green, you're
like, no, that's it, you're done.
I'm not buying another one. They're $79.99 or something,
right? I think they are 80 bucks or
something expensive. Yeah, yeah.
Or or or Yeti or something, or something along those lines.
So in terms of your thinking around the business, how are you
thinking about physical stores as well?
Is that something which is in the back of your mind or not
always in the? Back of my mind I think before I
(25:45):
did a physical store I would tryto get it into some like
outletters like trying to like have my stock in other stores or
in other like just the. Old Meyer kind of model.
The David Jones, Sort of. Model like I think that's how
like some other brands I think like Lila Active like over in
Perth, I think that's how they sort of started to grow.
And then I think they have like know if they have a store, but
(26:08):
they definitely have a big online presence.
So I think like from seeing someother brands and like how
they've grown, like I think thatis important just to get that
visibility and brand awareness. So, yeah, I would definitely be
interested in the future, but I think if I can just nail like
the online E commerce sort of side of things, which is a lot
of work and a lot of figuring out things, yeah, I think that
(26:30):
would be a good starting point. Right.
OK. So you've just got an on, you've
got a website at the moment where you can buy that through.
Yep. And you've got your socials in
and around that. Yeah.
And in terms of the data that you get from it, the people, the
people bought from multiple different cities and how have we
worked about delivery and thingslike that?
So. I mean, everything in Brisbane I
just try and hand deliver because you know, it cuts
(26:50):
expenses down and it's like a little bit more.
Personal. That's awesome, So.
I try to do that and then we've had a few from Sydney and then I
think like one or two in Melbourne, so mostly Brisbane.
So mostly like community that like sort of our friends or
friends of friends who have likepurchased from us.
But I think the statistic that Ifocus on is like we've had like
(27:15):
a quite a good amount of repeat customers.
So we've like had people buy initially and then buy again.
And that's what sort of helps mego, OK, well, like I know that
like once people like try this and once people like get their
hands on it, they do like it andthey come back.
And I think that's a really important metric for me.
And so that's like, OK, well, how do I get those if we don't
(27:36):
know who I am, don't know me andhow do I get them in to try it?
Because I think once they try it, I think I can hopefully
retain them as a customer. So that's a metric I sort of
look at and it's, but it's just figuring out how do you get them
in when they don't know you and build that trust.
Yeah, like you could be a well, they saw a billboard in a
desert. Like it's fairly hard to kind of
(27:57):
attract you. Like, hi, we're here like, well,
there's no one around like you're attracting.
And so then you need to work outyour demographic and obviously
you've got all, all that and howyou how you do it.
But then, you know, holding on to those customers and getting
them repeat customers and the behavioural patterns around time
of year and presents, etcetera. What do you want your ultimate
feedback from your product? If you if you said right,
(28:18):
Nirvana is everyone loves my product.
What would be about your productthat you think that people will
come back to you and say I just can't wait for the next thing or
I want to buy it again? I think quality and fabric, I
think that those are the things that I've had like the most
compliments on people say. I just love the quality.
Like the fabric is so comfortable.
(28:38):
And I think that's something I was, I was really like while I
was finding my manufacturer, I was like looking at some of the
top performing leggings and going like, why are they top
performing? Like what are the qualities?
What are the properties? So I think just listening to
that Target consumer and going, what do you like about like, why
do you buy them? And a lot of the reasoning that
(29:00):
I sort of deducted from that waslike, people just want like
comfy leggings to wear that makethem feel good about themselves.
And so we tried to like add in features, so like a reinforced
waistband so that when you like,you know, doing audios or
something like it doesn't roll down.
So it makes you like feel like you're sucked in nice and tight
and like, feel like you're sculpted well.
Like we tried to have fabric that was like fully squat proof
(29:21):
and like nice and comfy, but also nice and breathable.
So like really like actually going deep into what do people
like about, you know, these other brands that are doing
really well and selling a lot ofthose products.
And I think that's what I tried to sort of emulate, but make a
bit better, like something for me that was just a bit annoying.
And I'm not sure if it was annoying for others as I hate
like when fabric pills. So I was like, I can't have
(29:43):
fabric that pills. It just annoys me.
It doesn't look good. So that was something that I was
very like, we need fabric that does not pill.
And we did get it. Yeah, it's interesting that like
what I you know what this is from you, what I want and what I
would love and then design it like it's a fascinating thing
that you're going. I wonder if people have the same
(30:03):
problem as me or I wonder if there's the same thinking.
And I I reckon over time, as you, you know, continue to
build, people go actually that'sthat is something that I'd never
thought about or, or designing your own product around just you
and going. I like this, but what happens if
you do this and the creativity around that and how did you go
with the manufacturer, I supposegoing can you do this or make
(30:24):
this feel better, etcetera, likedescribing it in your brain?
Yeah. I guess well, like I mean,
patents for leggings are like pretty like similar, but I was
just, I focused on the features because it's like, you know,
leggings are leggings, like, youknow, a lot of people use them
as different qualities, different price points, but I
just focus on what features people like.
So something like a good story, like I wasn't initially going to
do 2 pockets either side, but then I did some polls and I was
(30:47):
like, oh wow, like 83% of peoplewant pockets so I should
probably do pockets. And then I was like, OK, well I
actually haven't really worn pockets before.
I'm leggings. So like I bought a pair to test
out and I was like, OK, this is so much easier.
Like I can see why people want it.
And then yeah, like I just was like, we need pockets in our in
our leggings, so. And then and then you say to
people, hey, we've got pockets. They go, hey, that's what you
(31:08):
wanted. Yeah.
And. Then so they sort of said that
like this was in the developmentstage as well.
So I was like figuring out what features like good, what people
like. So I did like quite a few polls
and things. So I'd like to sort of do that
more when we're thinking of like, you know, releasing our
sort of new stuff and like see like what people want, I guess.
But yeah, that was just like listening to people and like
(31:30):
what they want, but also making sure it's true to like, you
know, the quality you want as well.
I'm. Going to give you a hypothetical
here, being on the being on the hockey field playing nationals
for Queensland versus being in 1% active wear.
What do you love the most? Oh, that's like a hard one.
Well, I mean, I can do both. I can wear my 1% activewear
(31:52):
biker shorts after my uniform. So he.
Nailed it. So you don't have an answer?
Oh no, you do have an answer. Yeah, both.
Yeah, both. But eventually you might have to
make a decision. Yeah, that's true.
I think I haven't got that far yet.
Hasn't been an issue yet. You're still young enough to go
helter skelter at both and have a have a crack at whatever,
wherever it lands you, etcetera.Now we ask our guests about a
(32:15):
few things. One is the school board moment,
which is a moment which is like a Kodak moment.
You remember the Kodak moment? You probably don't.
It was an ad many, many years ago.
Yeah. I don't know you even know what
Kodak is, do you? Do you know the?
Film cameras, the. Film camera, yeah, we used to
have cameras and take photos before these little things yeah.
And used to go to a store to getthe film developed they've.
Made comeback. Actually, a lot of people like
(32:36):
their film cameras. There you go, a comeback.
Wow, I feel old now. And so it's a moment in your
life you're like, this is very vivid and very memorable.
And from that moment on, things changed a little bit.
So my scoreboard moment was my first nationals, I was 16 and I
was playing in the under 18 second team for Queensland, so
2. Years up you're playing.
(32:56):
Two years up, I. Was turning 17, so it was like,
yeah, I had another year left and that was the first year I
had second and first teams. So we got into the tournament
and we ended up being in the final and in that final we were
playing the Queensland first team and we ended up winning.
So that was an incredible momentbecause in order it was like
(33:18):
very special because it was my first nationals like first gold
medal. But it was also special because
it showed like it's so importantto have a team that really
believe as a team that you can do it.
Like no matter if you're an underdog, it doesn't mean you
can't win. If you like play well as a team
and you believe as a team that you can do it, like you can get
that. And I think that was like a
testament to the fact that, you know, our team really, like,
(33:40):
believed we could do it. And it was like, just so fun,
like such a positive, like, environment on the field.
And I think that's something I try and take into the rest of my
hockey career, just like, be that positive person, like, try
and like get that belief in the team.
Like, So yeah, like that was just an incredible moment.
That's awesome. And the belief about like just
already saying like you're the number two team against the
(34:02):
number one team. And when you know, I've got kids
that play sports, they're oh, we're playing the top team, you
know, on the table, et cetera. And even in in watching sport
now people like, oh, they're playing the Melbourne Storm or
whatever it might be. The belief of going no, no, it
doesn't matter who we're playing.
We can like the the table doesn't matter.
It's today matters. Yeah, right.
And and having that belief as a team, that's an awesome school
board moment. The other one is about sport, of
(34:24):
course, was doing a scoreboard is your all time favourite
sporting moment. It can include yourself and or
it can not include yourself or include both.
So your all time favourite sporting moment?
This. Is very vivid in my mind still.
I think I was like around 8. It was 2012 Olympics.
I got up early, put the TV on and it was Sally Pearson in her
(34:44):
100 metre hurdles. And yeah, I watched her win that
Olympic gold medal and I couldn't believe it.
I was so excited for her. Like, it was such an inspiring
moment for me. I think afterwards I wrote like,
I printed out an in colour photoand like, wrote inspiring on it.
And I, yeah, years later, I saw her and I just was like, wow, I
think I burst into tears becauseI was just so inspired by her
(35:06):
and, like, seeing her win that moment, like, just cemented my
already dreams of wanting to be a professional athlete.
So hopefully I can get there oneday and, you know, achieve what
she did. That would be an absolute dream.
But, you know, if I can just pursue that dream that that that
means a lot. Yeah.
Absolutely you should get it to sign it.
I don't know if she's listening out there.
We'll get her to listen. How about that And you can send
(35:27):
it to I'm sure if if we can, we can someone knows someone that
knows someone that knows her to get her to have you still got
it? I think I still have it, but
like it's like it was like a piece of paper.
So I think it might be like a bit maybe?
You could print it out now and the same thing I think I still.
Have it. I'd have to like have a
Olympics. Bring out so many inspiring
moments. We've had some so so many great
all time favourite sporting moments.
The Olympics and, and 2012 was, was was amazing in London.
(35:49):
And as we've gone back to 2000 anumber of times as well with
Kathy Freeman at the moment, youcould watch that 100 times.
And, and from the analyst in me and commentator in me that the
call from Bruce Macavoney was just one of the best ever as
well in terms of letting it pan out, but also just the way that
he handled that particular event.
It gives you goosebumps. So you can watch it 1000 times
and not get sick of it. A. 1000 times and just get
(36:11):
goosebumps. Yeah, no, indeed.
Now we the scoreboard scramble, which is another little thing
I've just thrown in and it's quite a popular segment
actually. So if there's any sponsors out
there that want to sponsor the scoreboard scramble, it's
spelling the word backwards. Now we, we had Michael Kasparus
on yesterday and now I don't know if I pronounced his last
(36:32):
name correctly just then, but hehad to spell his last name
backwards. And normally it would be quite
easy if your name is Smith potentially.
But Bartholomews, I'm going to get you to spell the word.
I'm going to try my Bartholomews.
And you've got 20 seconds. There's no pressure at all.
Your time starts now. So ZS UEM OLO H T Rab.
(37:15):
Nailed it. You did.
And I don't know whether it's 20seconds.
I gave you a little extra time because you're going so well.
That's good. And you're in train of thought.
So the answer is ZSUEMOLOHTRAB. Well done.
Oh, yeah. Congratulations.
So yeah, it's interesting because you put you on the spot
(37:36):
about your own last name and youhave to spell it backwards.
There you go. Normally I do like a sporting
events etcetera, but I've thought with Casper Rich and
Bartholomew's how good here? Awesome.
Now one final question. And now you're 19.
Take you back, let's say take you back seven years and you've
got a 12 year old girl that wants to be like Sally Pearson
(37:57):
and watching her in the Olympicsand there's moments out there
and you go, I want to be that person, I want to drive forward.
Going back in the last seven years of your life and also into
the future, what advice do you give to your 12 year old self in
2025? Everything happens for a reason.
Your journey is your journey. So you know, don't, if you don't
(38:17):
make your team at 12 doesn't mean you won't ever make a team.
And like you know, your journey is different, like everyone's
journey is different. And just trust the process and
go through life with optimism and just enjoy the challenge.
And there'll be setbacks like injuries of.
Course. Yeah, there's and.
(38:38):
There'll be people that you likerejection of a team or you don't
get picked or someone's bullyingyou at school about you're no
good at this or you're no good at that.
What do you say to that? I mean, you'll get through it,
lean on your support network. There'll be tough times, but you
know, just go back to your resilience and perseverance that
you've built and if you really want to do something, you would
(38:59):
do it. And you're having fun.
Yes, of course. Yeah, you.
Enjoy the business, you enjoy the hockey, you enjoy the UNI.
Everything's, everything's fun. And it's not, you know, it's not
fun all the time. Of course, yeah.
But keeping a smile on your face, Jade Buffalo is thank you
for coming on school board. You've had a lot of energy today
and it's been great to have thattranscribing through the podcast
(39:21):
and congratulations getting through your first ever thank
you very much live podcast and Iwish you all the best.
With 1% Active way now, how do listeners go out there and find
it? Our website one with the number
percent activewear.com and our Instagram and Tiktok which is
the same 1% one. Percent activewear, they can
(39:41):
follow your story through your ACL recovery as well, which
you're doing and, and and whatnot.
And I wish you all the best withyour recovery and getting back
onto that goal of playing the Nationals in 2026.
Looking forward to following your progress and looking
forward to sharing your stories through Scoreboard as well.
Thank. You so much.
It's been such an honour to be on the school board podcast.
Such incredible stories you're sharing and amazing.
(40:01):
Work. So thank you so much for having
me.
Hi, it's Chris Tipley and on today's episode of School Board
I'm joined by Jade Bartholomew is in person here on a beautiful
Brisbane day. Yes, it is quite a beautiful
day. Today I woke up.
Nice sky, but is it chilly This.It was a bit chilly, my jumper.
Yeah, it is. It's getting towards the
shortest day of the year. I think it's the 20th of June or
21st, the darkest. And yes, yes, I I forget those
(00:23):
days. Welcome anyway to your first in
person podcast ever. Yes, thank you so much for
having me. It's such an honour to be a
guest on here. Thank.
You. Thank you.
Now, Jay Bartholomew's people may or may not know that you're
a hockey player. Do you want to talk about your
journey in hockey thus far? Yeah, so I've been fortunate to
(00:44):
have played a few national championships.
I made my first Queensland team when I was in under fifteens,
but I actually didn't get to go away because of COVID.
So yeah, didn't get to go away, go away because of COVID.
And then I played my first nationals when I was 16 at under
eighteens. I played the following year as
well and then played the past two Under 21 national
(01:07):
championships. Right.
And the love of hockey. Where did that come about from?
Well, my mum was a good hockey player so she played for the
Scorches for many years, an underage Australian team, so she
got us into it. I think the love just came from
just like really just loving being competitive and like
(01:28):
loving the challenge. And I also loved that it was a
team sport. And I think, yeah, individual
sports, at times you can get in your own head of it, but like a
team sport, you really like the pressure feels like it's
dispersed between the whole teaminstead of it, like it's just on
you. So like, I remember doing 400
metres and being like so nervousbefore I was about to do these
(01:51):
four hundreds in high school. But then when I'd go to a hockey
game, if it was a grand final, you know, you'd still be
nervous, but you felt like it was like you're all there
together. You're all there together and
the pressure was eased a little bit because you had all these
different responsibilities and roles.
I suppose that that it wasn't just on you.
It was a bit like, I suppose the18th or 21st birthday party.
Everyone's all eyes are on you, on everything.
(02:12):
It's a little bit a little bit overwhelming, I suppose.
Now, when you first picked up a or played hockey, when was that?
So I first started hooking to hockey programmes in Perth when
I was around 5 or 6, but when wemoved to Brisbane when I was 8
was when I played my first actual game.
So that was an undenied. So played for Saint Andrews.
Any listeners you want to join aclub, shout it to Saint Andrews,
(02:34):
come and join us. So yeah.
Awesome. And, and the attraction, I mean,
you, you talked about the team side of things, but the, the,
the hockey, the game, what, whatmakes it so attractive for you
to play? I mean, when I was younger I I
just was sort of into it and I just liked it.
I thought it was fun, but I think now like having
experienced more, I'm, I very much just want to be in that
(02:56):
high performance environment, striving to, you know, be at the
top level. So that's what the draw for it
is now me just really wanting totry to get to the the highest
level I can. And yeah, just I love the game.
I I feel very free when I play and some of my favourite moments
have been on the hockey field. And in regards to what makes a
(03:19):
good hockey player, what do you reckon?
I think definitely athleticism, speed and I think a striker,
that's my position in the circle.
Just hunger and like wanting to like score and yeah, speed and
strength and yeah, some good skills in there as well.
And when you were when you were younger and you were playing
(03:40):
hockey, did you aspire? Did you watch hockey on the the
TV? Did you watch at the Olympics?
Was there some people that you're going, wow, I love to
like play like them. Oh.
Definitely like when I was younger, I remember the 2014, I
think COM games, but Donna Blythe scored like the winning
shootout. And I just remember like from
that moment going, oh wow, like that would be amazing to be on
(04:00):
that stage. And she was always like, that
was one of my first idols. But more recently, Rosie Malone,
I've I always watched her like growing up and found her very
inspiring and played a few A grade games against her.
So I'd always try and get a photo with her after the game
because I'd be like, Oh my gosh,I'm playing against her.
So yeah, she's definitely an idol for me as well.
(04:23):
And then the balancing of your hockey with what you're doing in
in life now. Do you want to talk about what
you're doing as well? Yeah.
So I was very fortunate in high school, I did this young
entrepreneurs programme and it started a little passion project
for me. So 1% activewear.
So I'm the founder of an activewear brand, but but also
(04:45):
movement for improvement. So we want to help everyone
achieve their big goals by breaking it down to small 1%
chunks. So that's a passion project for
me. And from the young innovators, I
came third and so $1000 towards starting that business.
And then that sort of helped me get a scholarship with QT, which
(05:08):
helped me like financially, you know, start the business.
So that's been going since we launched in December last year.
So going for a little while, we had our pre sale in September,
but that's sort of my, one of mypassions outside of hockey that
I've been trying to focus with my yeah, my.
Energy on congratulations. What what?
What was the driver or what do you see in activewear that you
(05:30):
don't see now? Well, I think for me it was, it
was more not just active wear, it was wanting that like blend
between continuous improvement and active wear.
So like it wasn't just about providing high quality active
wear, it was about helping people realise that like these
(05:52):
big dreams aren't as like big asthey are in your head if you
just break them down. So it was, it was actually I
stumbled across the statistic that 80% of people don't set
goals. And so that's sort of what
started it. So I was passionate about an
active lifestyle, wanting to help people and continuous
improvement. So it was just like a blend of
my passions and then just focused on trying to get well.
(06:16):
Some music going on there. Some music.
Queen yes, sorry, back to back to 1% activewear, right.
So the the the the idea to get better every day, which is the
sort of 1% every day or week, isthat right?
So it's like the continuous improvement theory, 18 minutes
per day over a 365 day period makes from the top 95% of the
(06:37):
world in that specific discipline.
So it was really about like how small incremental progress can
accumulate. So that was where it came from.
From that perspective. I'm just, I love goal setting
like in my sport, I do it in my like my academics, I would do it
in school. So it was just a natural sort of
progression for me to want to link not just activewear to a
(06:59):
goal track tracking platform. So, you know, the original idea
was to link it to an app, but atthe moment we just have a free
goal progress tracker that everyone can get access to, not
just upon purchasing from us. But yeah, anyone can get access
to it. So are.
You when you set your goals, have you always been a goal
setter? And when do you remember setting
(07:19):
your first goal well? Like I think yeah, maybe Year 5,
definitely year 6. I definitely set goals.
I think every Christmas I would like the day before, not
Christmas, sorry, the day beforeNew Year's, I would write down
and I would like, I would sit down and I'd write like all my
headings, my academic goals, my like touch goals, my hockey
(07:39):
goals, my goals for like well being.
And like I would like really methodically like plot out like,
OK, what's my big goal And like how am I going to get there?
And I'd have like little check boxes.
So it's something I've always done.
I think mom and dad sort of, I don't know, taught us a little
bit. But yeah, it's just something
I've always like, loved to do, have a little plan for the year.
(08:01):
What? About lists, are you a list
maker? Do you love lists?
I would say I'm a list. Maker, I think I used to be more
like writing in a notebook, but now I'm very much just on my
notes like I write. Oh.
Yes, I do what I. Need to do today.
Yeah, use the reminders app. So yeah, does the.
To Do List, come back to your goals.
Like, do you actually connect the connect them sometimes going
actually, if I did this today, that's probably on track to the
(08:22):
big hairy audacious goal. Yeah, well, often it will
because it'll be like, I don't know, like I'm gonna do my rehab
exercises today or I'm gonna do my like 10 minutes of hockey.
So often, like that's just like,I don't really think about it,
like going back to my big goal. But it's probably subconsciously
like, that's why I'm doing it. And that's so you.
Mentioned rehab exercises. We haven't talked about this.
(08:43):
In amongst all the goal setting of a big hairy audacious goal is
to potentially do something but then come out of left field.
There's a little thing called injury.
Yes, well, So what? Happened well.
So playing at the 21's nationalsthis year, unfortunately I got
into a collision, came off the field, thought everything was
(09:04):
OK, went back on the field and ruptured my ACL.
So this was in the second game as well.
It was pretty heartbreaking. I sort of knew I'd done it but
then got a little bit of a falsesense of security cause the the
physios were like, Oh no, we think it's OK.
And I was like OK, that could begood.
But I heard the tear and pop andI definitely did do it.
(09:27):
Heard it and felt it at the sametime, yes.
Oh, that's shocking. And then from there going like
the actual raw motion of like this is an injury that could be
6 to 12 months probably. Yeah, so I mean, initially I was
like, Oh my God, I just did my ACL.
That was my first thought. And so I like, I panicked a bit
and I was like, Oh my gosh. And then I was just like, OK,
(09:49):
and, you know, get off the field.
And then I was waiting for like the physio sort of like their
evaluation. And yeah, like they were
thinking it was all right. And I was like, OK, like it
could be OK. But in the back of my mind I was
like, OK, like, you know, it'll be a long road to get back.
But I was, I was like, not goingto think anything yet until it's
confirmed. And then when it was confirmed
(10:11):
was when all was, when all the emotion hit me and I was like,
OK, like, this will be a long journey.
But you know, everything happensfor a reason.
You know, you can have your like, bits of sadness and
moments where you, like, feel a bit flat.
But, you know, after I had that initial, like, OK, like, this is
going to be a big challenge. I just tried to like, look
forward, look at the positives. I can get out of it, you know,
(10:33):
like get stronger in my upper body and just, yeah, tried to
like focus on like a process andgetting back.
So yeah. And we tried to organise this
podcast in in mid May, I think it was.
And he sent me a little text going Oh my goodness, I've just
I'm so sorry. I've had surgery, I've done my
ACL. I was like, oh, no.
And so welcome. So everything happens for a
reason. You're here now and you're
(10:54):
walking OK. I noticed before the stairs are
stairs are pretty well. So how long has it been since
since the injury and surgery has.
Been 20-6 days, so it's four weeks since surgery on Thursday
and we're at Tuesday now. Yep.
And what have they given you in terms of like the time, the
programme, in terms of potentially coming back to
competitive sport? Well, I mean, for a lot of the
(11:18):
things I've seen is like sort of8 to 12 months, like 9 to 12
months. So I'm hoping to get back on
like the 8 to nine months sort of trajectory, like like my big
goal is to play nationals next year.
So I think that's doable. Hopefully I can be back for
trials in February, but we will see and.
(11:38):
When you had that goal, you're doing the goals and all of a
sudden that this thing happens and you kind of have to cross
out one of the the goals potentially of playing or
whatever it might be. But then you can reset your
goals and saying like, I've got 12 months, this is the next
short term goal. Do you do that?
You kind of go, yeah. So and how do?
You feel with with changing yourgoals, I mean.
It was somewhat of a positive for like marketing the 1%
(12:01):
activewear and the fact that I hadn't really focused on the
movement for improvement side ofthings and our progress tracker
much. I'd sort of just put a lot of
photos of like our activewear and what it looked like.
So it's been good to be able to show like our philosophy sort of
in practise. So I've been like doing daily
vlogs on our 1% activewear showing like, OK, this is where
I'm at week 1. Like I'm going to show you how
(12:22):
I'm going to get back on the field using our goal progress
tracker. Like I'm at progress goal 4 at
the moment. So my next progress goal is to
be able to walk into uni and like catch the bus because it's
like sort of AK in so need to like be confident walking.
But I hit my first progress goalof like reducing swelling in the
first week. And then the second week was
(12:43):
trying to walk and like being cleared to walk.
And then the third one was driving.
So I can drive now And now the 4th 1's like trying to like walk
into uni. So that's sort of how I'm like
approaching it and just trying to like, you know, go one step
at a time and show people like, look, I'm doing it like you can
do it too, just like, yeah. That's interesting that you're
combining your your work as welland like being living it, I
(13:05):
suppose and and coming you're you're slightly younger than I
am, but the of the Instagram E TikTok generation of of sharing
stories and and content, which is so critical in sport and
sports athletes journeys nowadays.
Not 10-15 years ago. How have you found about, you
know, building a brand around you and then now obviously
sharing pretty much not everything but a lot of things
(13:28):
in your life publicly I. Think like sharing things
publicly hasn't been too bad in that I'm like a bit of an open
book, I think. But what I've found hard is I've
tried to say like, I'm going to show you the ups and downs of
the journey. So like showing that vulnerable
vulnerability, vulnerability vulnerable side to the injury is
(13:50):
probably the harder part just because I'm not someone who
likes to like show negative emotions.
I'm a very positive person. I try and just be like an
encouraging person to everyone. And so I don't really like to
show myself being sad or like negative.
But I've sort of learned that like I kind of have to because
that's what I said I do. I'd show you the ups and downs
of the journey. So I don't really like like
that. Like I hate showing people I
(14:11):
cry. But I think it's important to
show like, it's not all like, daisies and rainbows.
Daisies and rainbows. Do you have these moments where
you're like, oh, I should put that on TikTok?
And you're like, now I'll just keep that to myself.
Well, I am I did like, but my parents I'm like my mum and dad
are like look like. I think it's important for you
to show this side. Like you, you look very much
(14:32):
like you're just like all happy and like, it's great.
And like for the most part, likeI'm a happy person and like, I'm
trying to like find the positives.
But there's definitely moments where I'm like, OK, this is like
a big challenge to get back on the field and like, it's going
to be a lot of work. So yeah, like it is a challenge.
But yeah, with the right supportnetwork, I think you can sort
of. Yeah, and I'm just touching on
(14:54):
that with the support network. Do the people follow your hockey
progress? Well, they don't.
They're just like Jay, They don't care what you do on the
field and off the field and the results.
And you're like, oh, she's the, you know, go for a chat, have a
have a call and you're like, oh,I had a bad game.
They're like, oh, whatever, who cares?
You know? Yeah.
Like, I don't really know. Like I think I feel like my
identity is very much intertwined with the brand
(15:17):
because it's a lot of my values.So I think maybe some of our
followers would like think of mejust the person.
But I do try and like show a little bit that I'm an athlete
because I think it builds a little bit of credibility with
the activewear brand. Like I train in activewear
everyday. Like I'm training in at a high
level. Like there's hopefully a little
(15:39):
bit more credibility built in the fact that like in our
quality, but I'm not really sure.
Like, I'd love to like, see, like what my audience, I think
they can do better. And yeah, like how they sort of
view the brand and me and hockeyand yeah, yeah.
Just touching on feedback, when you got feedback earlier on as a
(16:00):
hockey player and some of it negative, how did you cope with
that? Were you sort of an absorber?
Were you sort of a naturally going no, no, no, no, no, no,
that's wrong. I'm I'm better than that.
OK. How did you react with negative
feedback and or criticism of your performance on the field?
I'm always someone who wants to do better and improve and learn.
So I mean, I have always been like, OK, like, Yep, I'll take
(16:24):
that on board. Like, what would you like me to
do? So I welcome constructive
criticism and feedback. I think the only time I've maybe
found it hard is when the way itsaid has been like very like
negative. But for the most part, like I,
I, I love feedback. I think I always wanna be a
better person, be a better version of myself, be a better
hockey player. So yeah, I'm like, not opposed
(16:46):
to it at all. Like, I welcome it.
And when it comes to the 1% activewear, where do you wanna
see the business grow in the next, say, 12 months, maybe
while you're still recovering and doing a bit of, you know,
rehabilitation? With 12 months I would love us
to break even. That'd be incredible.
And potentially summer collection.
So thinking about designing somenew training shorts, running
(17:09):
shorts and releasing maybe some sports bras.
But like, the big goal is to forit to be my full time job.
So hopefully that can happen. But I mean, my mindset is like
the worst that can happen is that I learn a lot about
business. Yeah.
And where are you? Where are you?
Like, how are you coming up withthe designs?
Is it all you? You got some team, some friends
and family giving you some feedback and whatnot?
(17:30):
Well, it's all me at the moment,but I definitely would say I
rely on like my family and to myfriends to be like, hey, like do
you think like this looks OK Andlike, yeah, we do do some like
testing before as well. So like I I test out all the
stuff and get my like family to test it out as well.
Yeah, no, I've interviewed JasonCadie before the basketball who
now works for step one, the underwear company and they seem
(17:51):
to be like going down the athlete path of, of, of
particular athletes wearing their underwear, etcetera.
How are you going to go with thethe sort of athlete endorsement
influencer, brand influencer? Have you given some free packs
out to people yet or free clothing to say, hey, you mind
stepping that on Insta? Yeah.
So it's like, it's such an interesting like point you make
there because it's like, which where do you target?
(18:13):
Like do you target sort of like retired athletes who have like
been very successful? Do you target emerging athletes?
So I have given some to Jacinta Beecha, the Commonwealth Games
bronze medalist. She did a great post for me.
So I am thinking about that, butI just really need to make sure
I sort of pick the right people.So I think influencer marketing,
(18:37):
well, like, it can work. I don't know.
Sometimes I feel like it comes across more as like, it's just
an ad, whereas I want, like, if I gift a set to come across as,
like, very genuine. So I'm still figuring out, like,
who the best people would be to,like, gift those sets to.
Yeah. So what you want is you want
organic. I suppose, you know, non
prompted love of your brand. So people go, I've got it.
(18:59):
And then they go, oh, I'll snap them and tag them in because I
just like wearing it and the product's good, right?
Yeah. So that's what like I've tried
to like showcase on our social media, some of our positive sort
of like customer like reviews that from people who like say
they're really liking the brand,some of my favourite leggings.
So just to like build that credibility and show people.
(19:20):
But I understand like it's a newbrand.
It's hard to build that trust with people who don't know who
you are. So I'm trying to like show my
values and like trying to align that with the brand and show
like I wouldn't put out something that isn't high
quality because like my values are that I need to be a high
quality person. So I'm trying to showcase the
(19:41):
quality of the brand also through my actions as well.
But you know, it's a learning experience.
I'm definitely learning a lot inlike, marketing and like social
media. So, yeah, yeah.
And and you talked about your values a couple of times and how
you wanna intertwine that into all of you into your brand.
Can you go through your values and what you where they've come
from and I suppose and how? How you want to sort of
(20:03):
translate that to people going, hey, I'll, I'll buy something
from 1% activewear. Well.
I think the main thing I want toshow is like just continuous
improvement. Like I've said that a few times,
but like, it's in the name. In the name, Yeah.
But yeah, that's like one of themy main values.
I always want to be a better person, be a better hockey
player, like in all of my endeavours, like trying to just
(20:25):
improve and you know that. And I think that's why I want to
show that side of myself on the brand page because I think, you
know, practise what you preach. Like if I don't want to be a
better person, if I don't want to like, you know, try to
improve to achieve my goals, Like why would anyone listen to
me when I'm like talking about it on the brand and like talking
(20:46):
about that, that's the brand's values.
So, you know, I think it's just important to like, like actions
speak louder than words. When it comes to improvement and
sort of measuring improvement, there's information overload in
this world. You've got you can scroll for
forever on your phone, you can watch as many Netflix series as
you want because they're addictive and listen to
(21:06):
podcasts, etcetera. How do you kind of disseminate
information firstly, and then secondly measure your
improvement I. Think everyone has their own way
of like oh setting and go tracking.
I think mines like a bit methodical like it's probably
pretty normal just like the smart goals.
I sort of set my SMART goals as my big outcome goal, which is.
The one you're up to #3 going for number 4 right now on your
(21:28):
recovery, yeah. So my outcome goal is like the
big end goal. So my outcome goal at the moment
is to get back on the field for under 20 ones next year and
play. And then my progress goals are
how I'm going to get that. So that's how I do my goal
setting. Like everyone's sort of
different, but I guess that's what the templates for.
Like if anyone's struggling on like how do I start, it's like,
well, you've got like a free template that can show you how
(21:49):
to do it, explains what an outcome goal is, what a progress
goal is, you know, the continuous improvement theory.
So that's how I do it. But you know, it might not be
the perfect way, but it can helppeople who don't really know
like where they want to start and.
What about the the information do you go to social media, et
cetera, to, to follow people forleadership tips on retailing,
(22:09):
tips on Omni channel marketing? Do you go to or you know, do you
watch documentaries or listen topodcasts, et cetera?
For me, I definitely try and just go through the Business
Network that I am fortunate to have at the moment.
So like QT entrepreneurship, like I'll go to one of my
mentors like Wayne Gerard or Marcia, sorry, sorry, sorry,
(22:32):
Marcia. I'll just go to my mentors who
have like, been there, done that, you know, serial
entrepreneurs and just like, askthem questions.
Some of my dad's Business Network, I've, you know, reached
out to some of his mates who have businesses as well.
They probably get a bit annoyed now.
They don't. They're so lovely.
Yeah. But yeah, like, I just try and
reach out to like, anyone who's been there, done that, has more
(22:54):
experience than me and just ask them, like, how did you do it?
Like, what do you recommend? I I find I absorb a lot of
information through, you know, interaction.
So yeah, I try and listen to their advice and just try and
implement it that way. So when?
It comes to to retailing and fashion.
Is there some brand or person that you just kind of aspire to
that you love, that you purchasethrough your life and you're
(23:16):
like, wow, that that was a very,they're quite successful.
Oh, like that's an interesting question.
I haven't really thought about that.
I mean in terms of like fashion.Yeah, like one, yeah, maybe you
go like, for instance, my wife loves Gorman, right?
And, and she's like, oh, wow. And I look at that.
I'm like, what made her like Gorman?
Why? You know, how they've set up,
(23:37):
what the quality of the products.
Like there's other ones like, you know, dinosaur designs, for
instance. And you're like, why?
Why are they so successful? And I'm, I'm curious, do you do
that as well? Yeah.
Well, I think when you think of brands like that, I guess a
brand that I like is like Kukai,like it's not really in the
activewear industry. But what I like about it is that
it's very high quality. And you can tell that the
(23:58):
fabrics are like really incredible.
And I think, you know, when you look at it and you go, well,
why, like these young girls spending like, you know, $250 on
like a skirt here. And it's because they've really
like, it's expensive because of the quality.
And I think that's sort of a lesson I've tried to take and go
like people are prepared to praya little bit of a higher price
(24:19):
point if the quality is there. So our stuff's all made in
Europe, handcrafted with Italianfabric.
So I've gone like, you know what, I will go put our selling
price at a little bit higher than like I would have like, you
know, like to originally, if I know that, you know, it's
actually worth it because of thequality.
So I think that's like a lesson I've taken from them.
(24:39):
Like I know the girls my age. It's like a store that everyone,
like, loves. So I guess, yeah, their
craftsmanship is something that.Yeah.
So the quality of the product and paying for quality.
And I think you've seen some examples recently like Frank
Green, you've seen examples likeYeti.
You've even seen examples like this in the live phone called
Apple. Like they don't they don't
discount. Oh.
They don't, right? And so the people pay for for
(25:01):
quality and, and like the Yeti products, for instance, is
another one. There's been, there's a number
of different examples of paying for quality versus maybe another
successful business, Javianas where they, they bust every so
often and you go and buy a new pair because, I don't know, it's
just cool and maybe the branding, etcetera.
So there's a really fascinating like 30 bucks.
So I'll just get another one, right?
Yeah. Whereas Frank Green, if, if you
(25:23):
know, your kid loses a water bottle, Frank Green, you're
like, no, that's it, you're done.
I'm not buying another one. They're $79.99 or something,
right? I think they are 80 bucks or
something expensive. Yeah, yeah.
Or or or Yeti or something, or something along those lines.
So in terms of your thinking around the business, how are you
thinking about physical stores as well?
Is that something which is in the back of your mind or not
always in the? Back of my mind I think before I
(25:45):
did a physical store I would tryto get it into some like
outletters like trying to like have my stock in other stores or
in other like just the. Old Meyer kind of model.
The David Jones, Sort of. Model like I think that's how
like some other brands I think like Lila Active like over in
Perth, I think that's how they sort of started to grow.
And then I think they have like know if they have a store, but
(26:08):
they definitely have a big online presence.
So I think like from seeing someother brands and like how
they've grown, like I think thatis important just to get that
visibility and brand awareness. So, yeah, I would definitely be
interested in the future, but I think if I can just nail like
the online E commerce sort of side of things, which is a lot
of work and a lot of figuring out things, yeah, I think that
(26:30):
would be a good starting point. Right.
OK. So you've just got an on, you've
got a website at the moment where you can buy that through.
Yep. And you've got your socials in
and around that. Yeah.
And in terms of the data that you get from it, the people, the
people bought from multiple different cities and how have we
worked about delivery and thingslike that?
So. I mean, everything in Brisbane I
just try and hand deliver because you know, it cuts
(26:50):
expenses down and it's like a little bit more.
Personal. That's awesome, So.
I try to do that and then we've had a few from Sydney and then I
think like one or two in Melbourne, so mostly Brisbane.
So mostly like community that like sort of our friends or
friends of friends who have likepurchased from us.
But I think the statistic that Ifocus on is like we've had like
(27:15):
a quite a good amount of repeat customers.
So we've like had people buy initially and then buy again.
And that's what sort of helps mego, OK, well, like I know that
like once people like try this and once people like get their
hands on it, they do like it andthey come back.
And I think that's a really important metric for me.
And so that's like, OK, well, how do I get those if we don't
(27:36):
know who I am, don't know me andhow do I get them in to try it?
Because I think once they try it, I think I can hopefully
retain them as a customer. So that's a metric I sort of
look at and it's, but it's just figuring out how do you get them
in when they don't know you and build that trust.
Yeah, like you could be a well, they saw a billboard in a
desert. Like it's fairly hard to kind of
(27:57):
attract you. Like, hi, we're here like, well,
there's no one around like you're attracting.
And so then you need to work outyour demographic and obviously
you've got all, all that and howyou how you do it.
But then, you know, holding on to those customers and getting
them repeat customers and the behavioural patterns around time
of year and presents, etcetera. What do you want your ultimate
feedback from your product? If you if you said right,
(28:18):
Nirvana is everyone loves my product.
What would be about your productthat you think that people will
come back to you and say I just can't wait for the next thing or
I want to buy it again? I think quality and fabric, I
think that those are the things that I've had like the most
compliments on people say. I just love the quality.
Like the fabric is so comfortable.
(28:38):
And I think that's something I was, I was really like while I
was finding my manufacturer, I was like looking at some of the
top performing leggings and going like, why are they top
performing? Like what are the qualities?
What are the properties? So I think just listening to
that Target consumer and going, what do you like about like, why
do you buy them? And a lot of the reasoning that
(29:00):
I sort of deducted from that waslike, people just want like
comfy leggings to wear that makethem feel good about themselves.
And so we tried to like add in features, so like a reinforced
waistband so that when you like,you know, doing audios or
something like it doesn't roll down.
So it makes you like feel like you're sucked in nice and tight
and like, feel like you're sculpted well.
Like we tried to have fabric that was like fully squat proof
(29:21):
and like nice and comfy, but also nice and breathable.
So like really like actually going deep into what do people
like about, you know, these other brands that are doing
really well and selling a lot ofthose products.
And I think that's what I tried to sort of emulate, but make a
bit better, like something for me that was just a bit annoying.
And I'm not sure if it was annoying for others as I hate
like when fabric pills. So I was like, I can't have
(29:43):
fabric that pills. It just annoys me.
It doesn't look good. So that was something that I was
very like, we need fabric that does not pill.
And we did get it. Yeah, it's interesting that like
what I you know what this is from you, what I want and what I
would love and then design it like it's a fascinating thing
that you're going. I wonder if people have the same
(30:03):
problem as me or I wonder if there's the same thinking.
And I I reckon over time, as you, you know, continue to
build, people go actually that'sthat is something that I'd never
thought about or, or designing your own product around just you
and going. I like this, but what happens if
you do this and the creativity around that and how did you go
with the manufacturer, I supposegoing can you do this or make
(30:24):
this feel better, etcetera, likedescribing it in your brain?
Yeah. I guess well, like I mean,
patents for leggings are like pretty like similar, but I was
just, I focused on the features because it's like, you know,
leggings are leggings, like, youknow, a lot of people use them
as different qualities, different price points, but I
just focus on what features people like.
So something like a good story, like I wasn't initially going to
do 2 pockets either side, but then I did some polls and I was
(30:47):
like, oh wow, like 83% of peoplewant pockets so I should
probably do pockets. And then I was like, OK, well I
actually haven't really worn pockets before.
I'm leggings. So like I bought a pair to test
out and I was like, OK, this is so much easier.
Like I can see why people want it.
And then yeah, like I just was like, we need pockets in our in
our leggings, so. And then and then you say to
people, hey, we've got pockets. They go, hey, that's what you
(31:08):
wanted. Yeah.
And. Then so they sort of said that
like this was in the developmentstage as well.
So I was like figuring out what features like good, what people
like. So I did like quite a few polls
and things. So I'd like to sort of do that
more when we're thinking of like, you know, releasing our
sort of new stuff and like see like what people want, I guess.
But yeah, that was just like listening to people and like
(31:30):
what they want, but also making sure it's true to like, you
know, the quality you want as well.
I'm. Going to give you a hypothetical
here, being on the being on the hockey field playing nationals
for Queensland versus being in 1% active wear.
What do you love the most? Oh, that's like a hard one.
Well, I mean, I can do both. I can wear my 1% activewear
(31:52):
biker shorts after my uniform. So he.
Nailed it. So you don't have an answer?
Oh no, you do have an answer. Yeah, both.
Yeah, both. But eventually you might have to
make a decision. Yeah, that's true.
I think I haven't got that far yet.
Hasn't been an issue yet. You're still young enough to go
helter skelter at both and have a have a crack at whatever,
wherever it lands you, etcetera.Now we ask our guests about a
(32:15):
few things. One is the school board moment,
which is a moment which is like a Kodak moment.
You remember the Kodak moment? You probably don't.
It was an ad many, many years ago.
Yeah. I don't know you even know what
Kodak is, do you? Do you know the?
Film cameras, the. Film camera, yeah, we used to
have cameras and take photos before these little things yeah.
And used to go to a store to getthe film developed they've.
Made comeback. Actually, a lot of people like
(32:36):
their film cameras. There you go, a comeback.
Wow, I feel old now. And so it's a moment in your
life you're like, this is very vivid and very memorable.
And from that moment on, things changed a little bit.
So my scoreboard moment was my first nationals, I was 16 and I
was playing in the under 18 second team for Queensland, so
2. Years up you're playing.
(32:56):
Two years up, I. Was turning 17, so it was like,
yeah, I had another year left and that was the first year I
had second and first teams. So we got into the tournament
and we ended up being in the final and in that final we were
playing the Queensland first team and we ended up winning.
So that was an incredible momentbecause in order it was like
(33:18):
very special because it was my first nationals like first gold
medal. But it was also special because
it showed like it's so importantto have a team that really
believe as a team that you can do it.
Like no matter if you're an underdog, it doesn't mean you
can't win. If you like play well as a team
and you believe as a team that you can do it, like you can get
that. And I think that was like a
testament to the fact that, you know, our team really, like,
(33:40):
believed we could do it. And it was like, just so fun,
like such a positive, like, environment on the field.
And I think that's something I try and take into the rest of my
hockey career, just like, be that positive person, like, try
and like get that belief in the team.
Like, So yeah, like that was just an incredible moment.
That's awesome. And the belief about like just
already saying like you're the number two team against the
(34:02):
number one team. And when you know, I've got kids
that play sports, they're oh, we're playing the top team, you
know, on the table, et cetera. And even in in watching sport
now people like, oh, they're playing the Melbourne Storm or
whatever it might be. The belief of going no, no, it
doesn't matter who we're playing.
We can like the the table doesn't matter.
It's today matters. Yeah, right.
And and having that belief as a team, that's an awesome school
board moment. The other one is about sport, of
(34:24):
course, was doing a scoreboard is your all time favourite
sporting moment. It can include yourself and or
it can not include yourself or include both.
So your all time favourite sporting moment?
This. Is very vivid in my mind still.
I think I was like around 8. It was 2012 Olympics.
I got up early, put the TV on and it was Sally Pearson in her
(34:44):
100 metre hurdles. And yeah, I watched her win that
Olympic gold medal and I couldn't believe it.
I was so excited for her. Like, it was such an inspiring
moment for me. I think afterwards I wrote like,
I printed out an in colour photoand like, wrote inspiring on it.
And I, yeah, years later, I saw her and I just was like, wow, I
think I burst into tears becauseI was just so inspired by her
(35:06):
and, like, seeing her win that moment, like, just cemented my
already dreams of wanting to be a professional athlete.
So hopefully I can get there oneday and, you know, achieve what
she did. That would be an absolute dream.
But, you know, if I can just pursue that dream that that that
means a lot. Yeah.
Absolutely you should get it to sign it.
I don't know if she's listening out there.
We'll get her to listen. How about that And you can send
(35:27):
it to I'm sure if if we can, we can someone knows someone that
knows someone that knows her to get her to have you still got
it? I think I still have it, but
like it's like it was like a piece of paper.
So I think it might be like a bit maybe?
You could print it out now and the same thing I think I still.
Have it. I'd have to like have a
Olympics. Bring out so many inspiring
moments. We've had some so so many great
all time favourite sporting moments.
The Olympics and, and 2012 was, was was amazing in London.
(35:49):
And as we've gone back to 2000 anumber of times as well with
Kathy Freeman at the moment, youcould watch that 100 times.
And, and from the analyst in me and commentator in me that the
call from Bruce Macavoney was just one of the best ever as
well in terms of letting it pan out, but also just the way that
he handled that particular event.
It gives you goosebumps. So you can watch it 1000 times
and not get sick of it. A. 1000 times and just get
(36:11):
goosebumps. Yeah, no, indeed.
Now we the scoreboard scramble, which is another little thing
I've just thrown in and it's quite a popular segment
actually. So if there's any sponsors out
there that want to sponsor the scoreboard scramble, it's
spelling the word backwards. Now we, we had Michael Kasparus
on yesterday and now I don't know if I pronounced his last
(36:32):
name correctly just then, but hehad to spell his last name
backwards. And normally it would be quite
easy if your name is Smith potentially.
But Bartholomews, I'm going to get you to spell the word.
I'm going to try my Bartholomews.
And you've got 20 seconds. There's no pressure at all.
Your time starts now. So ZS UEM OLO H T Rab.
(37:15):
Nailed it. You did.
And I don't know whether it's 20seconds.
I gave you a little extra time because you're going so well.
That's good. And you're in train of thought.
So the answer is ZSUEMOLOHTRAB. Well done.
Oh, yeah. Congratulations.
So yeah, it's interesting because you put you on the spot
(37:36):
about your own last name and youhave to spell it backwards.
There you go. Normally I do like a sporting
events etcetera, but I've thought with Casper Rich and
Bartholomew's how good here? Awesome.
Now one final question. And now you're 19.
Take you back, let's say take you back seven years and you've
got a 12 year old girl that wants to be like Sally Pearson
(37:57):
and watching her in the Olympicsand there's moments out there
and you go, I want to be that person, I want to drive forward.
Going back in the last seven years of your life and also into
the future, what advice do you give to your 12 year old self in
2025? Everything happens for a reason.
Your journey is your journey. So you know, don't, if you don't
(38:17):
make your team at 12 doesn't mean you won't ever make a team.
And like you know, your journey is different, like everyone's
journey is different. And just trust the process and
go through life with optimism and just enjoy the challenge.
And there'll be setbacks like injuries of.
Course. Yeah, there's and.
(38:38):
There'll be people that you likerejection of a team or you don't
get picked or someone's bullyingyou at school about you're no
good at this or you're no good at that.
What do you say to that? I mean, you'll get through it,
lean on your support network. There'll be tough times, but you
know, just go back to your resilience and perseverance that
you've built and if you really want to do something, you would
(38:59):
do it. And you're having fun.
Yes, of course. Yeah, you.
Enjoy the business, you enjoy the hockey, you enjoy the UNI.
Everything's, everything's fun. And it's not, you know, it's not
fun all the time. Of course, yeah.
But keeping a smile on your face, Jade Buffalo is thank you
for coming on school board. You've had a lot of energy today
and it's been great to have thattranscribing through the podcast
(39:21):
and congratulations getting through your first ever thank
you very much live podcast and Iwish you all the best.
With 1% Active way now, how do listeners go out there and find
it? Our website one with the number
percent activewear.com and our Instagram and Tiktok which is
the same 1% one. Percent activewear, they can
(39:41):
follow your story through your ACL recovery as well, which
you're doing and, and and whatnot.
And I wish you all the best withyour recovery and getting back
onto that goal of playing the Nationals in 2026.
Looking forward to following your progress and looking
forward to sharing your stories through Scoreboard as well.
Thank. You so much.
It's been such an honour to be on the school board podcast.
Such incredible stories you're sharing and amazing.
(40:01):
Work. So thank you so much for having
me.
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