Meet the Co-Founders of Ida Sports - Ben Sandhu & Laura Youngson
GlobalMindED met with Ben Sandhu, one of the Co-Founders of Ida Sports. Laura recently has had a child, so she is on maternity leave and out of respect for her recovery and time with family, was not interviewed. All comments are from Ben. Today we will take a dive into how Ida Sports is revolutionizing the way athletics support females and how strong male allies like Ben are playing key roles in this transition.
Laura and Ben met in Melbourne in 2017 and started playing indoor soccer together. Laura was doing research for her Master's in Entrepreneurship and Ben saw the potential in her idea to create athletic footwear specifically designed for women. They sat down for a coffee in Melbourne, and in this moment they decided to join forces to make Ida Sports come to life.
What led Laura to working with a male co-founder to create Ida Sports?
Laura and I have often spoke about her decision to have a male co-founder - there's definitely times where it's come in handy. This industry is undoubtedly sexist and unfortunately in some spaces having me to advocate has proved beneficial. Despite all the amazing things she's done, there are still some dinosaurs in the industry who just don't get that there's an issue here. She shared some thoughts on this a while ago with
a major newspaper here in Australia.
I think Laura partnered with me because she saw that there was someone she could share the journey with, good times and bad, as it's undoubtedly a lonely and tough thing trying to make an idea like this come to life. We've also really tried to make it fun, and be curious and customer led.
Ben, what is your personal narrative? What key moments in your life led you to where you are?
I started out as a professional cricketer, having played sports since I was a baby. So I've always been passionate about the power of sport. When I met Laura, she had just come back from this
Guiness World Record setting soccer match at the top of Mt Kilimanjaro. She started telling me about the fact that she had to wear kids shoes due to her feet size when she played this game, and I was struck by that.
Laura took a group of women to the top of Mt Kilimanjaro to highlight the gender inequity that exists in sport. It was on this trip she started talking to the other women and realised that they too had struggled with having to wear kids' and men's cleats their entire careers. So Laura has been at the forefront of advocating for women and girls in sport for years now, and has developed an amazing reputation in agitating for positive change in this industry. When we started socially playing soccer together, we'd talk about this idea for a business and now here we are a few years later having started
Ida Sports.
Why are organizations like iGIANT (impact of Gender/Sex on Innovation and Novel Technologies) and Ida Sports important?
I think it's important women have products that are designed for them, and have seen first hand how damaging having equipment not made for you is. Caroline Criado Perez has a great book called Invisible Women that really spells out the case for why organizations like iGIANT and Ida Sports are so important.
What is the iGIANT Sports Summit? What are you most hopeful and excited about for this event?
We are bringing together a round table to discuss the impacts of not taking into account sex differences can have on female athletes and those invested in the game. I'm hoping to connect with stakeholders across the industry and share our passion for creating female specific products in sport.
What advice would you give to future Inclusive Inspirational Leaders?
Don't let big scary obstacles or competitors stop you from trying to create change. Also, if you are a man, be an ally for women and if you are woman, join with a man to further your reach. Both sexes will benefit from 10x impact.
