26. StudioHawk

Revenue: $8.7 million
Growth: 29.24%
Founder: Harry Sanders
Head office: Melbourne, VIC
Year founded: 2015
Employees: 68
Industry: Marketing and advertising
Website: studiohawk.com.au

How StudioHawk started

Harry Sanders was 17 years old and living under a bridge in Melbourne when he founded SEO agency StudioHawk.

Self-taught in SEO from the age of 13, he put some wins on the board with his father’s business in the next few years, before finding himself on the street and motivated not just to make some extra money, but to survive.  

Growth

Since it was founded in 2015, the business has now grown to 68 employees, and raised tens of thousands of dollars for the Lighthouse Foundation, to which StudioHawk also donates office space in its Prahran headquarters.

But you can’t give money without first making it, and Sanders’ strategy for growth in the SEO game is simple — actually delivering the service people pay for. That track record has helped land clients like Ryobi, Vodafone and Officeworks.

StudioHawk has grown its revenue from $5.3 million in 2020-21 to $8.7 million in the most recent financial year, and drastically expanded its workforce, adding 26 new employees in 12 months.

Where to next

StudioHawk has proven itself in Australia, and next it’s looking abroad. Within a year, Sanders wants the business to open branches in the US and expand its UK team.

On the charitable front, Sanders’ business has pledged $190,000 in donations over the next three years.

“When you’ve gone from sleeping under a bridge to leading a multimillion-dollar company, you realise the power of community support and the ability of individuals to make a monumental difference,” he said.

StudioHawk won the Resilience Award, and was shortlisted for the Community Award at The Smart50 Awards 2023.

Back to The Smart50 Awards 2023.