Samantha Freidon - Nothing That Felt Like Me

A science degree. A brand agency. A personal health diagnosis. And an entirely new business born from a mobility aid store visit that left her cold.Samantha Freidon built Milkshake Creative on the somewhat unconventional foundation of a science degree nobody thought she'd ever use. The test-and-learn rigour of the scientific method, it turns out, is exactly the discipline most brand-building is missing. But it's Wayfarer her assistive technology startup, born from a personal health diagnosis at 27 and a morning spent in a mobility aid store finding nothing that felt like her that gives this conversation its second, deeper dimension. Mobility aids need to go through the same transformation glasses did. She intends to be the one who makes that happen.IN THIS EPISODEHow a 'loving redundancy ultimatum' from her now-fiancé pushed her to launch Milkshake Creative and how a science background became her biggest point of difference A personal health diagnosis at 27 that began stealing her mobility and the moment in a mobility aid store that sparked Wayfarer Why mobility aids need to go through the same shift glasses did: from medical equipment to a genuine category with choice and agency Two surprises about running a business she wasn't ready for sales and numbers and the shift from hiding to asking every question The brand strategy frustration she can't shake: a PDF that gathers digital dust rather than a belief that lives through the business Wayfarer's vision convertible systems, jewellery-inspired bracing, and a community for people who believe their disability is the least interesting thing about them