Cyan Ta’eed – Australian Executive Director

The Co-founder of Envato, Cyan Ta’eed has just won the most influential women in business enterprise from the Australian Financial Review and the Westpac Women of Influence Awards. Started in her parent’s garage back in 2006, her company has become the largest digital marketplace in the entire world, with seven million members that buy and sell digital services and stock.

Since inception, Envato has been able to deliver more than $400 million in earnings to it members in the “community of creatives”. Ever since Envato was started, Cyan has been a voice for women in technology and holds open office events to mentor youth and young entrepreneurs.

The road to building a business has not always been easy for Ta’eed, as she was seriously ill when she founded Envato. She learned early on that life is way too short to get caught up in your own thoughts, and you should get things done rather than stress out about doing them.

In 2013, Ta’eed founded New Day Box, which makes the community mobile and brings cosmetics and skincare product to women in crisis situations. Last year, it provided 2,500 boxes of products to Victoria alone.

Ta’eed was born in New York but was raised in Sydney by a couple of creative parents. She went to school and studied graphic design before starting a business.

The feminine name Cyan is taken from the English word that means “greenish blue”. The name was ultimately derived from the Greek word kyanos. The name is rare throughout the English-speaking world and is not given to many notable people.