Tanya Notaras, a green and gutsy entrepreneur
PASSION! Conviction! Tenacity! Without these traits few entrepreneurs could endure the challenges, setbacks and twists on the road to commercial success.
When you’re a female moving into the male-dominated world of environmental science, you can add guts to the mix.
Tanya Notaras, founder of analytical testing laboratory Envirolab Services, says: “A (male) competitor told me ‘you’ve got the biggest balls in the industry’. That’s a big compliment because it’s a huge challenge to go ahead and start your own lab. You’re taking on some large corporations.”
Notaras, 42, started her “lab” in 2005 after buying a small, inefficient, antiquated and loss-making laboratory from a retiring business owner.
Backed by her drive, enthusiasm and a strongly emerging environmental services industry, Envirolab has had exponential growth.
From essentially a cold start, and in just 3 1/2 years, Notaras has built a highly profitable, efficient scientific laboratory, expanding output from 250 samples tested in a month to 6000. From a team of four she now has 36 on board.
Envirolab tests soil and water and building material for contamination levels from such substances as lead, pesticides and asbestos. Its main customers are environmental engineers who need authoritative data to determine if any site needs a clean-up.
Most of the work is related to property development, both building and infrastructure related. For example, sites of former petrol stations that may have had leaks need to be tested.
At a time when businesses of all shapes and sizes are battening down the hatches, Notaras is busy planning her next expansive move. She says this is a good time for such planning: “It’s been a period of immense growth over the past 3 1/2 years. You didn’t have time to plan. The environmental sector is a growth industry. It’s a buzz word. It’s a good industry and we expect to see growth reappear next year.”
Entrepreneurs are known for their optimism.
Notaras’s, however, was born of its fair share of hardship.
“My family were very hard-working migrants. My mother was very encouraging. My father was an alcoholic. It’s been a driver for my determination, to become independent of all of that. To be successful,” she says.
She says her passion for science was inspired by her older brother: “As a young girl I used to help him with his science experiments. He was so brilliant. It seemed like a natural progression for me to continue on that path and get a degree in applied science.”
Notaras say her experience in large multinational corporations as a female industrial chemist was “informing”.
“It was a male-dominated environment — hardly any facilities for females. I went on the front foot. I took to wearing pink overalls when all others were in standard whites. I was the first female surveyor (assessing chemical quantities on ships) in Australia,” she says.
She refers to herself as a “late bloomer” in entrepreneurship, largely shaped by frustration.
“It wasn’t until I was 38 that I got the urge. I had managed a business unit and even though we were making great profits I couldn’t reward my staff.
“I was frustrated because I saw ways to improve the business and I was getting knocked back by my manager. I was a manager of a business, but I wasn’t allowed to manage. I knew I could bring my energy to any business,” she says.
Not surprisingly, Notaras applied scientific method to her decision-making, spending 10 months planning her entry into business, initially researching the market, calculating capital expenditure and cash-flow needs and then having extensive discussions with key customers to determine whether her idea was viable.
She says she also “systematically” analysed her strengths and weaknesses, identifying that she was “great” with people and very “outcome-focused”.
To go the start-up route was not an option.
“To set up a lab and to get revenue flowing takes huge capital and time (to secure accreditation),” she says.
“And there were some very big labs. You can’t sell your services unless you’re accredited and that can take 12 months.”
She says she found the “right” opportunity.
“It was an antiquated lab with poor processes. Perfect! I knew I could turn it around. It was the quickest entry point.”
She says the capacity to be so outcome-focused has helped her navigate other hurdles.
Her first encounter with her bank manager could have been disarming.
“He said after I showed him my projections, ‘that’s a bullish forecast’.” I didn’t even know what bullish meant. I had produced a set of projections with profit figures. But for me they were figures I had already achieved when I was managing for the multinationals.”
She got the funds and, ultimately, achieved the “turnaround” she predicted while also, in her words, attaining market leadership (in NSW).
The ever resourceful Notaras says this “quieter” period has presented an opportunity to focus on business building.
“We’re using this time to focus on increasing the range of services we’re offering. We’re investing in up-skilling existing staff.”
Science and entrepreneurship can be odd bedfellows. Science requires a forensic approach to exact and accurate data; entrepreneurship always involves guesstimates and requires a strong dose of intuition, vision and leadership.
Notaras says she quickly learned that the transition from an employee of a large corporation, with all its silos and supports, to small business owner, needs some gap filling. “I’ve learned to garner support from outside professionals like accountants. I’ve got people here too who have management experience.
“I’ve got the expansion model. We’re looking at businesses that are struggling. We’ve developed a knack for turning them around and making them profitable and efficient — it’s one of our key strengths. After all, I was able to buy this business without any goodwill. I paid only for the value of the equipment.”
Tanya Notaras’s childhood passion for science has not waned.
“I want to increase the awareness of science in the community through the Science in Schools programs. Science is a very male-dominated industry. As a woman I feel like a trailblazer. There are thousands of highly intelligent and capable women.
“Our incredibly successful first 3 1/2 years says something: that anything is possible as long as you have a dream, ambition, a good plan, the right individuals to put it into place, and the proper motivation to see it through.
“Our plan is to have at least three locations within the next five years; to have more of a national focus. We’re cautious but we’re also bullish.”