In this episode of High Agency Women, Tash sits down with Astrid founder Lisa Nguyen following the sale of her medicinal cannabis business to Chemist Warehouse – a landmark moment for Australian female founders, and one of the most significant exits in a frontier category still shaped by stigma and misunderstanding.

Lisa shares what it took to build Astrid from the ground up, the realities of scaling a business in a highly regulated and often misunderstood industry, and why Chemist Warehouse felt like the right home for the next chapter of the company.

In a deeply honest conversation, Lisa also opens up about the emotional terrain behind the headlines: ambition, resilience, grief, growth, the acquisition process — and the beautiful news that after multiple failed rounds of IVF, she and her husband Hansen are now 12 weeks pregnant with twins (!!). 

This is a convo about building something brave (because we need that right now), backing yourself in an emerging category, and the very human story behind one of Australia’s most exciting founder journeys. We know we say this about every episode, but it's a must listen!

Sponsored by Blackbird.