Lindy Rama-Ellis (formerly Lindy Klim) is a Balinese-Australian entrepreneur and influencer. She recently launched her own beauty company, Fig Femme.
Before that, she was running a skincare brand called Milk & Co. A company, that she and her ex-husband ran and operated together for 10 years.
Sitting down with Mia Freedman on the Lady Startup Stories podcast this week, Lindy explained what it was like running a company with a partner, what happens when you split up and what she did next.
Listen to the whole interview between Lindy Rama-Ellis and Mia Freedman here. Post continues below.
10 years ago, Lindy and her husband Michael Klim started Milk & Co. The company sold men's skincare, followed by organic baby skincare and women's skincare.
"It was a wild time," Lindy told Mia. "We've got an ex-model and an ex-athlete who knew nothing about skincare. It was a little bit tricky but we got there in the end."
"It ended up being a super successful company," she said.
As Lindy explained, working and operating a company with a partner isn't easy and in her case, it put a strain on the relationship.
"We were a startup and in each other's space all the time. It was relentless.
"It was really hard to keep the lid on a lot of our arguments. And bringing things from home into the office and vice-versa, it was quite tough," she said.
After 10 years together, in February 2016, Lindy and Michael announced their separation.
"The divorce was terrible. It was a really hard thing and it was quite public. I was very hurt at the time," Lindy shared.
"Also, I lived in Bali so I had to spend most of my time here with the children. I didn't know what was going on in the office, the ins and outs. I was slowly being pushed aside," she said.
"I also just lost interest. I was too focused on surviving and looking after the kids."
After the split, Lindy left Milk & Co, met her husband Adam Ellis and started thinking about her next career move.
"I'm an ex-model and I make money off my looks and the fashion industry, but if you think about it, I'm ageing. So I really needed to think about my next move," she said.
"I've got a family of four kids and a husband, I'm kind of the breadwinner and I love to work. I've been taking the last three to four years thinking about what my next phase going to look like."
However, as Lindy explained, when leaving Milk & Co there were clauses in her contract that prevented her from launching another skincare line.
"It's all I know how to do, I've been working in it for 10 years," she said.
"So I then had to pick myself up and go back to modelling. Thankfully, there was some interest in an older woman with three children. But that was definitely a really hard time for me."
Now, a few years later, Lindy has launched Fig Femme, a female, wellness company that has launched with one product: a vulva mask.
And women are loving it.
Read more from Lady Startups:
- "It makes you super laser-focused." How becoming a mother has changed how Laura Byrne works.
- “You need to have equal amounts of rage and desire.” How comedian George McEncroe became an entrepreneur.
- 'It took ages.' How Keira's small business secured a spot in one of Australia's biggest retailers.
Feature image: Instagram/@lindyklim
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