Hi! I’m a mother, a wife and the Founder, Creative Director & CEO of the inspirational stationery brand and online community LH Agenda. It’s nice to meet you.
I come from a background as a commercial analyst, management accountant (ACMA), and project management professional. After observing women struggle with confidence in the workplace I wanted to be part of the solution to create change.
My ‘Why’
My desires to nurture, inspire and empower come from my mum, who strongly shaped my views on the power of women.
Our story, and my story, starts with her (well before I was born in Poland). When Poland was still a communist nation in the seventies, every citizen had a job guarantee and everyone was paid the same, no matter their experience or commitment. So when my mum decided to go to university instead of working to earn money, everyone laughed.
Fast forward to the nineties – I was 12 and my dad had just passed away.
Mum suddenly became a widow and a single parent to two kids. Communism was now a thing of the past and thanks to her foresight, she was well-educated and working in a senior position in a large company – most likely managing those who had laughed at her before!
From her example, I learned that education is a person’s most valuable possession, as no one can ever take it away from you. She also taught me that there’s no bigger achievement for a woman than claiming her independence.
The spark of an idea
As a grown woman myself, with a blooming corporate career, I emigrated from Poland to Australia.
One day, a female colleague came to me. She was disappointed that she didn’t get a role that was available in our department. When I asked her what our boss said when she asked him for the role, she said she’d never asked. Despite being highly qualified and deserving, she had hoped her hard work alone would speak for itself.
It was at this moment I realised how many women struggle to advocate for themselves and seize opportunities. Through my experiences in Australia’s multicultural work environment, I began to witness the disparities, unconscious biases, and stereotypes that persist.
I decided I wanted to inspire and empower women, and show them that they can create the lives and careers they truly love. I wanted to help them shape daily success habits enabling them to reach their full leadership potential and make their mark on the world, on their own terms.
All habits need to be reinforced daily.
As I explored what things I could do, I realised that stationery is something women use on a daily basis, and that perhaps I could make it a tool to help them develop these habits.
Of course, it played on my mind that an accountant with English as her second language may not be cut out for starting a brand, but I had a passion and a burning desire to make things happen.
And that’s what I did!
OUR TIMELINE
2008
In 2008, LH Agenda founder Kasia Gospoś left her corporate role in Poland, stepping out of her comfort zone to seek new horizons in Australia.
2011
Her journey of discovery led her to interview women from all walks of life to connect with them, learn from them and then share their experiences to inspire and empower other women. From these interviews, Leaders in Heels online magazine was born.
2012
Leaders in Heels went on to feature interviews with hundreds of successful women, and articles covering leadership, success, career development and entrepreneurship. The site has been visited over 8 million times! In this time Kasia identified six common traits shared by successful leaders. These came together to form the LH Manifesto, which is at the heart of all products she develops. From its humble beginnings as a simple blog, Leaders in Heels has grown into an online community of dynamic and successful women.
2014
In 2014 Make Your Mark was launched, an everyday notebook with a simple goal in mind – to unleash a remarkable leader in every woman on Earth. It was fully crowdfunded within 10 days, completely selling out all 2000 copies. Make Your Mark notebooks were sent to over 20 countries, delivered to the offices of companies such as Unilever, Microsoft and American Express, handed out at women’s leadership events, and even featured on Australian national TV!
2015
Following the success of the Make Your Mark notebook, we have continued to evolve into a personal growth and productivity brand with a mission to nurture, inspire and empower female leaders and entrepreneurs.
2020
As we strived to be more relevant, inclusive, and reach a wider range of future leaders we launched our first range of unisex career products. The Leaders in Heels dream of inspiring and empowering women hadn’t changed but the times were and we recognised a desire to help our young leaders, so it was time for an expansion.
2021
Leaders in Heels rebranded to LH Agenda. This was a perfect way to mark an exciting new chapter. The mission to empower women through female-focused stationery remains, alongside launching into new products and markets.