Luz Restrepo
In 2010 at 45, Luz arrived in Australia seeking political asylum. With little English, no Australian connections and very little money, she reinvented herself as a leader and social entrepreneur.
In 2013, Luz established SisterWorks, a non-profit social enterprise supporting the social inclusion of thousands of migrant and refugee women. Her model attracted the attention of UN Women, who are now working with SisterWorks. As CEO, she evolved the organisation from functioning on a zero-income, volunteer basis to one thriving with a staff of 20 and a $1.4M annual turnover by May 2020.
In June 2020, in partnership with Corinne Kemp, they founded Migrant Women in Business Pty Ltd (MWiB). This Australia-wide social enterprise enables the sustainable growth of migrant women’s businesses. MWiB is currently working with more than 90 businesswomen with migrant and refugee backgrounds, offering them commercial opportunities through our Made by Many Hands platform and hands-on micro business expert support through Made by Many Minds.