F5 Collective has unveiled the winners of its 2025 F5 Grant, with Sydney accessories label GIMME Store taking out the top honour and two trailblazing beauty brands named as runners-up.
Created to fuel women-owned businesses driving change through innovation, inclusion and purpose, the F5 Grant began as a single $10,000 non-dilutive capital prize.
The calibre of this year’s applications prompted F5 to expand the program, boosting the total prize pool to $20,000 and recognising three standout founders. Each recipient also receives national exposure via marie claire Australia and a year-long complimentary membership to The Store by F5 Collective, a marketplace championing women-owned brands.
First prize goes to GIMME Store, founded by Sydney designer Lydia Kirkland. Starting with just $150 and a sewing machine at her kitchen table, Kirkland has built GIMME into one of Australia’s most exciting accessories labels.
Its signature “low-effort, high-impact” jewellery is designed to help busy women feel instantly put-together, blending playfulness with polish and power.
Bootstrapped from the beginning, GIMME has weathered rebrands, babies and late-night packing sessions to arrive at viral status – think celebrity-approved earrings and 400 per cent year-on-year revenue growth.
“GIMME is proof that a small, female-founded brand from Australia can punch above its weight,” Kirkland says. “We’re just getting started, and with support from F5, we’ll take GIMME from hidden gem to household name.”
F5 Collective CEO Tracey Warren says Kirkland exemplifies the organisation’s mission. “Lydia embodies everything we celebrate in women in business – heart, humour and strategic brilliance. From her kitchen table to New York Fashion Week, her journey captures the spirit of the F5 community: playful, fearless and unstoppable.”
Runners-up Balmee, founded by Sydney duo Ali Beeck and Phoebe Perring, and Newcastle-based ByStorm Beauty, led by adaptive beauty pioneer Storm Menzies, round out the 2025 cohort.
From microbiome-powered lip care to accessible beauty tools co-designed with people living with disability, they underscore F5 Collective’s belief that when women have access to capital, community and visibility, they do more than build brands – they change industries.
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