Dr Tanya Unni was our 2020 Health & Wellbeing Business gold award winner.
Husband and wife team, Dr Ameer and Dr Tanya set up their first Amtan Medical Centre in 2010 three months after arriving to Australia from India, from what was originally meant to be just a holiday that soon became permanent.
Today, over ten years later they are so proud to have a portfolio of eight Amtan Medical Centres across the Gold Coast. Then Dr Tanya tried her hand at combining her love for skincare with her medical accolades to develop a new cosmetic centre brand called ‘SkinLab & Beauty’ in which she has two salons located on the Gold Coast.
As a Mum of two young boy’s, Dr Tanya then decided to turn her attention to developing a beauty range as this is clearly something, she is passionate about. It wasn’t long before along came an exfoliation device ‘Nusonic’ and rejuvenation cream ‘NuDerm’ both of which sold out after featuring on the television shopping channel. This success drove Dr Tanya to launch two new products: Nusonic Hairbrush & Holy Basil serum. Both products were nominated as a finalist in the ‘Best New Product’ for TVSN for 2020.
By December 2020 the team launched the hair range; ‘HolyBasil Shampoo and Conditioner’ another product which sold out in the last TVSN show in March 2021 and received and astonishing 5 star reviews.
When did you start your business?
Australia was always perceived the promising land of unlimited opportunities and clearly on my ‘to do list for holidays. Little did I know the holiday would turn into a permanent relocation with my husband and now I am a proud resident with two little boys attending schooling here on the Gold Coast.
What was the inspiration behind starting this business?
The initial struggle to adapt to a new culture with no family or network was no easy feat let me tell you. However, with a receptive mindset and inquisitive temperament within three months of arriving to Australia I finally opened my first medical centre on the Gold Coast.
The transition was a huge learning curve for me as I navigated my way through the Australian tax system, business requirements, legislations, Codes of Practice, logistics and planning just to name a few.
I spent countless hours upskilling and training after hours whilst jugging her responsibilities in the clinical practice each day. Driving my passion was the ambition to improve the quality of health & wellbeing for all local communities across the Gold Coast.
What are you most excited about in your business?
I love being considered as a Mumpreneur personally and in business. I feel it’s such a unique and inspiring position to play in the wider community. The role allows me to grow and feel empowered to think outside the square using my own experiences as a Mother and wife. I believe creating networks of Mumpreneurs either virtually or in small communities will assist working Mums eliminate the overwhelming feeling of burn out or isolation whilst encouraging them to follow their dreams. Mumpreneurs provide opportunities to collaborate & leverage one another’s skills and attributes in business.
What has been the most challenging thing about starting your business?
When I commenced my medical career operating initially as a contractor on the Gold Coast knowing nothing about operating a business in Australia. Yet it wasn’t long before my inner drive for change in health & wellbeing led me to open her very own medical centre within three months of arriving in Australia in 2010.
Looking back, I know it was preposterous. I didn’t know anything about owning a business let alone the Australian legal system, taxes, how to tradmark or even how to operate the day to day operations of a medical practice.
Self-aware of my limitations, limited understanding of Australian life I enrolled myself into self-directed learning on top of working full time. I am the first to admit I made mistakes along the way, often I thought of giving up when times were just too challenging. Yet, I am proud of my perseverance, strong determination and drive to improve health & wellbeing in local communities that’s really what encouraged me to keep going. As Amtan Medical continued to grow in leaps and bounds so too did tour little family with the arrival of two little sons. Despite my professional responsibilities continuing to grow, I really tried to remain grounded.
What advice would you give to other women thinking about starting a business?
I am incredibly proud of our empire of medical centres, cosmetic skin retail stores and of course having a skincare line. But if I am honest in thinking about what advice I would offer it would be:
- Do you market research and know your core demographics
- Make sure you know your product (price, product details, where it sits in the market, who are its competitors etc
- Research your competitors and their strengths & weaknesses
- Always get quotes in writing from contractors
- Have the right resources in place and delegate – you are not the master of everything!
- Trust your motherly instincts
- Don’t be too proud to ask questions and advice along the way and most importantly.
- Remember work life balance and ensure you get down time where you can.
Why did you enter the AusMumpreneur Awards?
I am living proof and validation immigrants can experience the great Australian dream, which no doubt will only entice more immigrants from around the world to call Gold Coast/Australia home.
Entering the awards for the first time in 2020 allowed me to meet and hear stories from so many amazing and inspiring women making a huge impact on society. This has further encouraged and inspired me to continue to add value to the wider community and create new & innovative medical, health & wellbeing programs along the way.
What did you enjoy the most about being part of the awards?
I just absolutely love being considered as a Mumpreneur. It makes me proud to considered as unique and inspiring and just drives me to want to do more for the community.
The award also empowers me to think outside the square using my life experiences as a Mother and wife. Being surrounded by so many amazing women makes me so proud to life in this beautiful country and have the support of such wonderful women.
Did the awards help you in your business?
The awards allowed me to learn more about so many inspiring women in Australia and gave me the opportunity to connect with them directly.
What has been the best thing about starting your own business?
I would definitely say being my own boss has given me the chance to manage day to day affairs for the company and balance the expectations of being a wife and a mother.
What’s happening next in your business?
Lots of great things happening here at Amtan Medical, we have recently been awarded the Covid-19 vaccine distributor for Northern Gold Coast which is very exciting plus we also announced late last week new technology to check your heart health which is exclusive to Amtan Medical and a first in Australia. The Butterly iQ, is a hand held ultra sound scanning device which is able to show imagery of a patient’s heart almost instantly on a smart device.
“By seeing the heart function via an ultrasound in our clinics, we can detect early stages of heart disease without having to wait for a hospital visit to be scheduled and results to be sent to us. A number of key dignitaries attended the launch mid-March including MP Ros Bates and Shadow Minister of Health, Mr Michael Crandon MP, Professor Rohan Jayasinghe the Director of Cardiology, Life Sciences QLD as well as over 120 Amtan patients interested in learning more about the device and how it is able to detect heart failure. The event was a complete success, we have had new patients coming to our clinics to be scanned along with over 120 of our current patients.
What are your big plans for the future?
At the moment I am supporting and funding a program for a number of young girls in India who sadly have experienced mental and psychical abuse. My goal is to educate and mentor them in being independent and providing them opportunities to earn an income from trades such as weaving & decorating bags which will prevent them from feeling prostitution is the only way to earn income. Each day we see little wins in their personalities but the next big step is to provide a safe housing option which will hopefully prevent them from returning to abusive environments. I guess you will just have to wait and see what comes next …….
To learn more about Amtan Medical Centres, please visit their website or Facebook.