Bianca: a diamond in the rough winning over business

When Bianca Lore approached the IBA for a loan for her start-up business Wiimali Co, they turned her down.

But Bianca didn’t take no for an answer, she knew she was on the right path with her idea.

She ploughed $30,000 of her own savings into her new company and two years later she was turning over $1m.

And a few weeks ago she was named as one of the ’40under40′ business leaders at a Business News gala event in Perth.

I like to be in the dirt, on site, Bianca Lore told First Nations News.

“Still trying to play it cool … but as you can probably tell from my face, I’m incredibly excited to be recognised as a 40 Under 40 award recipient,” she wrote on social media.

“Behind this recognition is a whole lot of people, hard work, and moments that endured the unattainable while going against the grain.

“To the team, the mentors, the clients, and everyone who’s backed myself and what we’re building at Wiimali Co. … this is just as much yours as it is mine.

“Grateful. Fired up. Proud!”

Proud would be an understatement for this get-up-and-go entrepreneur who battled personal breakups to restart her life and create a business in a male dominated environment.

And, Bianca doesn’t come from a mining background, she holds a degree Psychology.

Bianca after being named in the 40under40 awards.

Her company Wiimali Co is based in Perth and is a 100 per cent Aboriginal-owned business.

The business operates in a niche area of mining, the belt splicing sector – conveyor belts to transport mining products on site. Her company provides services and repairs these key components so vital to the industry.

“I started it from the ashes of a previous business a former partner ran,” she told FNN.

“I knew it could work and I was determined to make it work.”

Her former life as a psychologist, she believes has also helped her in business, understanding people, how they tick and how that knowledge can improve your business.

She holds a Bachelor of Psychology from Murdoch University, Certificate IV in Business, Business Management and Marketing from Swinburne University of Technology.

“I like to be in the dirt, on site,” she said, on a Starlink call from somewhere in the Pilbara.

“I’m here on site, yes a woman, but I love what I do and we do it well.”

So was it easy to start up and then get a foothold?

Male dominated business

“No, but we worked hard and survived the first year and grew from there.”

“It’s definitely a male dominated business, but I knew people. Some would be curious and ask ‘who is this woman?’, but we showed them we could do what they wanted, we were reliable and we are known for our quality.”

The company provides culturally informed mining and construction practices across projects and has collaborated with industry leaders.

“We now have contracts with BHP, Rio and Roy Hill.”

Ms Lore is focused on the strengthening of cultural awareness, connections to Indigenous Australians, community customs and systems.

Wiimali’s meaning is ‘one to light fire’ – and she has certainly done that.

And of that gala evening where Bianca swapped overalls and safety helmet for some glamour. She says she is at home in either.

A total of 1,000 of WA’s business leaders have been inducted as 40under40 winners.

Having judged most of the 40under40 awards since its inception in 2002, Business News senior journalist and chief judge Mark Pownall said WA has continued to offer up a diverse cohort of excellent candidates.

Choosing the winners, he said, remained a challenge from the beginning.

“In our first year of 40under40, the judging panel caused a bit of angst for the event organisers by deciding to name two winners, because we could not split the tied pair,” Mr Pownall said.

And now Bianca Lore is one of them. A diamond in the rough, she jokingly said during the conversation.