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If you’ve ever had a stroke of genius that you decided wasn’t worth acting on, let Gabriel Waller‘s story be the push you need to reconsider.

The personal shopper only launched her business back in 2018, yet she quickly became the go-to person for A-listers and high-profile public figures alike, sourcing clothing and accessories direct from the runway, or entirely sold-out to the general public.

“I regularly think back to those early days and remember the excitement of taking those small leaps of faith,” Waller explains. “Being able to move into my first coworking office space – back then, that was a huge jump for me, from a financial perspective, but I did it and it paid off. Every decision I made was carefully thought out.”

That’s not to say it was an easy decision to leave her full-time job to focus on her ultimate dream, yet it very rarely is.

“I was still working full-time when I started the business,” Waller continues. “Those initial three months I was juggling both my full-time work and the launch of the business. A few months in, I saw the potential that this had, and knew that I needed to dedicate 100% of my time towards it — it was nerve-wracking.”

Waller managed to find a gap in the Australian market that gave her the confidence she needed to back herself entirely.

“I’ve always had a strong desire to think outside of the box, and to step away from what everybody else was doing,” she explains. “I knew that I wanted to create a unique concept, an idea that nobody in Australia was yet doing.

“Luxury personal shopping and product-sourcing, at the time, was prominent in the US, and I discovered quite quickly that it was an untapped market here in Australia.”

After six months worth of research and forming relationships within the industry, Waller launched her product-sourcing business with a small pool of local clients in tow.

“I wasn’t well-known, but I had a vision and I was set from day one to prove myself and my services to my clients… I’m so grateful that they believed in me and trusted in me, as I wouldn’t have been able to get this off the ground without them.”

Astoundingly, Waller claims to have refrained from using any PR or marketing, instead relying solely on her reputation.

“That shows the power of word-of-mouth, and how essential it is to always go above and beyond for every single client,” she says.

“The number one career highlight to date would be Rosie Huntington-Whiteley reposting the Céline coat that I located for her…Suddenly, after one single Instagram post, the business became global.”

If you’re thinking that this was just a luck-of-the-draw situation, think again. As Waller mentioned, every decision she makes is carefully considered, and so much happens behind the scenes to get into a position that Waller’s in now. It wasn’t a coincidence that she managed to source a highly sought-after piece of clothing for Huntington-Whitely to wear.

“In order to have access to pieces that are deemed sold-out, I need to have eyes and ears globally,” she says. “The relationships that I have developed over time allow me to gain access to pieces that are sold-out, are in high demand, or better yet, early access to obtain pieces prior to them officially hitting the boutique floor.”

After the lifechanging Instagram post, Waller had to hit the ground running to keep up with the demand. It sounds like a dream come true, yet Waller admits, as grateful as she was, it was an immense effort to manage the sudden influx of clients.

“An immediate challenge following that success was being able to keep up with the overnight demand that I received,” she recalls. “Thousands and thousands of new clients were approaching me and I had to act smart and fast to manage it appropriately.

“At the time, it was only me and my assistant Amaury, who is based in Paris. It was one of the most exciting and toughest seasons of the business to date.”

Waller’s line of work allows for her to travel and relocate as she sees fit, which is reassuring to those who fear starting a business — or a career, for that matter — means they’ll be stuck in the same place for years.

“I never wanted to be tied down or held back to one certain city. I can be based anywhere, any time and the business will run as usual — that provides me with quite a lot of flexibility and freedom when it comes to long-term goals.”

So, should you have your own dream in the pipeline but you’re hesitant to invest your time and resources into it, it might be time to bite the bullet and find out.

“Mix passion, self-confidence, ambition, and most importantly, action (taking daily action steps to put your idea into practice), you will become unstoppable – my story is living proof of that.”

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