How Cargo Crew grew from a startup into a global modern workwear leader

Cargo Crew’s story begins 24 years ago with a modest $2,000 tax return and a bold idea to reinvent modern workwear. Founder Felicity Rodgers spotted a gap in the market early, a lack of modern, design led workwear that reflected brand identity as much as it served a practical purpose. What started in Melbourne as a one-woman venture, soon became a family affair with Felicity’s sister Narelle Craig and husband Paul Rodgers joining the business early on as co-founders. Fuelled by creativity and a multi-generational entrepreneurial spirit, Cargo Crew soon grew far beyond expectations.

Throughout this journey, ANZ has been a long-standing partner, supporting Cargo Crew from their early growth years, and continuing to back the business as it scales internationally.

You started Cargo Crew in the early 2000s with a $2,000 tax return. What gave you the confidence to take the leap?

I genuinely believed in what I was creating. I knew there was an appetite for the offering and that belief gave me the confidence to jump in.

I also grew up surrounded by small business, our mum had a salon, our aunties and uncles ran restaurants, hardware stores and plumbing businesses. So, the idea that you can start something of your own was normalised for me very early on.

Even our great grandmother was entrepreneurial. She owned a pub, flipped houses – things women simply didn’t do at that time. Looking back, I can see this thread of ambition and self belief running through generations of our family. It’s definitely part of why I felt I could give it a go.

Your background combines fashion design and PR. Which skills from those early experiences were most helpful when you launched Cargo Crew?

PR was a huge eye opener. It was my first job out of university and it taught me the importance of being part of the conversation as a business. This was pre social media, so everything was done through old-school networking, media showings and relationships. That still matters today; being visible, being memorable, building connections.

The second big influence was the fashion label I ran with a friend for five years. It was a deeply creative pursuit, but we struggled financially. We were chasing payments, couldn’t afford coffee some weeks. When I started Cargo Crew, I knew I had to balance creativity with commercial thinking. That experience shaped how I approached building a sustainable business with genuine scale potential.

How did you develop your commercial acumen? Was it on the job or learned?

Totally on the job. I didn’t realise it at the time, but I’ve always been naturally curious. I’ve learned everything by asking questions – constantly. Every person you work with has something to teach you, and that’s genuinely how I built my commercial muscle.

I wasn’t trained in negotiating, or pricing, and before we had dedicated teams with specialised skills, we just had to figure it out. Sometimes by making the wrong call first! But that’s how you grow. At the same time, I was raising small kids and running the business in the early days, so there wasn’t a lot of time for formal courses.

You work closely with family. How do you manage boundaries in a family run business?

Honestly? There are no boundaries, and somehow that works for us. It’s all consuming, but the upside is trust and radical honesty. We each have very different skillsets and very clear roles, which reduces friction. And because we’ve grown the business ourselves, we share a deep understanding of the pressures and what’s at stake.

It’s not always easy, but it’s been incredibly rewarding.

Cargo Crew has grown from a local Melbourne business to supplying uniforms in 90 countries. What were the key operational turning points that made that growth possible?

The biggest shift came in 2012 when we launched our online store. Before that, everything was custom made and our customers were mostly based in Victoria. Once the website went live, we suddenly became a national business. Then international orders started landing – our first was from Mexico.

It seems obvious now that a uniform company should have an e-commerce model, but back then it wasn’t done. Once we went digital, the growth was organic and fast, and the market responded favourably to our brand-led approach.

Then social media accelerated things, especially in the US, where hairdressers started posting our denim aprons. We even had a Hollywood moment when Gwyneth Paltrow donned a Cargo Crew apron for a Goop event. That snowball effect was huge.

Now, growth is much more structured – integrating with DHL, improving logistics systems and building teams on the ground in LA, New York and Dubai.

How did winning the Telstra Small Business Award in 2014 impact the trajectory of Cargo Crew?

The Telstra Award created a huge shift in awareness, especially at the enterprise level. Before that, our customer base was mostly small businesses. After the award, and Telstra’s national campaign, we were suddenly in front of major corporate clients. The campaign ran on national TV, in Qantas Lounges, even on Qantas flights.

Within 12 months, we grew from seven people to around 20. It wasn’t overnight, but it accelerated our growth stage.

It also directly led us to the ANZ Business Growth Program, which became an important part of our development. It helped us think more strategically about scaling and gave us tools we still use today. The program helped us put structure around our ambitions.

Did you rely on borrowing or bank lending during that growth?

We bootstrapped for years. I was quite scarred by the financial instability from my younger years of the fashion label days, so I was determined to build Cargo Crew sustainably.

But as we scaled, especially with e-commerce, ANZ supported us with things like international transaction security, credit card limits and the systems that underpin online retail today. That’s been a huge help in building a global business. We do all of our business and private banking with ANZ.

You recently accepted outside investment. What made you decide the timing was right?

It was a huge decision both personally and professionally, however we felt the timing was right. Cargo Crew is built with so much heart, so bringing in investors wasn’t something we rushed. We evaluated partners carefully, we wanted people who understood our vision and were aligned with scaling globally.

Glow Capital was the right fit. The investment allowed us to accelerate growth, enter new markets, improve systems, and continue to build a business of tomorrow.

How does Equipt fit into your broader global strategy?

Equipt sits under Cargo Crew as a distinct brand, offering elevated hotel and corporate designs. It fills a gap we saw – more tailored, fashion inspired professional wear that complements our everyday uniform range.

We developed it closely with clients, launched the physical range first, and are now building out the digital presence. It’s already gaining traction with customers even before launch. It’s absolutely essential to our vision of becoming the global destination for modern uniforms.

How has AI played a role in your business so far?

We see AI as an enabler. It’s helped us speed up admin-heavy processes like order handling, embroidery approvals, document drafting and internal comms. We’re also exploring AI for early stage visualisation for client uniform curation, a space that’s still very manual.

The flip side is protecting IP. We recently found an overseas company generating AI altered versions of our images. That’s a real issue for creatives, small businesses and designers globally, and something we’re navigating with legal support.

For aspiring business owners who want to grow, what three pieces of advice would you give?

1. Be passionate about your product. You can’t sell something you don’t deeply believe in.

2. Know your story and show up with authenticity. The world is noisy, your story is your differentiator.

3. Put yourself out there. Network, participate, host events, collaborate, find your community.

And eventually, bring in great people to scale with you, you can’t do everything yourself forever.

Learn more about Cargo Crew.