From Retail Rebel to Tech Maverick: Unfolding Success with Collette Doyle, founder Unfold Digital & Shelfleet

Welcome to Corporate to Calm Season 2

“Have the confidence and experience to say no"

In this episode of Corporate to Calm we speak with Collette from Unfold Digital, Shelfleet and the Utu Foundation. Collette is a hive of energy, organisation, and calm. She spoke with me from Austin, Texas where she is now working on her businesses and taking part on the Techstars programme.

Collette originally from Tallaght, Dublin (Ireland) pursued a career in retail, leaving school without telling her parents and running a department on Arnott’s all before she was officially an adult.

A couple of years in Greece, then seven in England. Collette moved back to Ireland at the height of the recession and decided education was where she wanted to be. Working full-time, attending college at night, an 80-hour week was not sustainable. After a few more positions Collette’s love for marketing topped everything and this turned into a passion, eventually assuming the role of managing director in a tech start up.

In 2020 just before the Pandemic, Collette had an epiphany that do you know what  

“I can do this myself” She was working her ass of for someone else and decided enough was enough and to go out on her own. Not the best time, but to be honest, is there ever a good time to start your own business?

 

One of Collette’s other passions is her charity work. She is one of the board members for the Utu Foundation. This charity raises money for a school in Narobi, Kenya. Collette’s move out on her own gave her the freedom to focus on this project during the pandemic and in May 2020 she moved herself and her business to Kenya to work remotely for two years.

Narobi is 3 hours ahead of Ireland so Collette rising at 6am was able to get a 6 hour jump on the day which was essentially the gift of time.

“I go to the gym at six in the morning, which was only 3am in Ireland, which meant I had so much time. Back from the gym, I do yoga for an hour. I journal. I'd make my smoothie. I'd sit on my balcony. I'd read, I'd start my emails. At the time I had like half my day’s done & my clients are only starting their day.”

Collette’s organisation is the key to her success, with everything down to her selfcare captured in her diary.

 

Towards the end of last year @shelfleet was born and the decision to move to Austin, Texas. A move that came a lot quicker than expected. Collette was home in Ireland for Christmas and received a call to say they expected her in Austin on January 6^th

With all her belongings, her life still in Kenya. Christmas was cut short and with a quick trip to Kenya to pack up her life, Collette arrived in Austin to work on her new venture and take up her place on the prestigious, Entrepreneurial Accelerator Programme, Techstars.

Collette has two non-negotiables in her working day

“I will never be in the office before I go to the gym. It's so important to me that I start the day with like a clear head and not like wake his mood in a bad mood and just be fuzzy for the rest of the day. The other thing is I will never eat my lunch at my desk.”

Collette’s journey is so interesting and there is still so much to come before she retires at 40 in a castle, in Italy with 70 dogs.

I hope you enjoy Collette’s journey from Corporate to Calm x