Speakers
Ren Fernando
Session
Two Co-Founders on what it looks like to receive catalytic family capital — and what it requires of both sides.
Purpose: To take stewardship out of the abstract — asking what long-horizon, catalytic-capital-backed work actually looks like in practice, told by Founders who've built it from scratch.
Discussion: What ReLove is building, what catalytic capital from families has meant in practice, where that partnership works (and where it breaks), and what circular-economy stewardship looks like inside a single concrete enterprise.
Outcomes: You'll leave with a grounded view of what “catalytic capital” actually means from the receiving end, a frame for evaluating similar opportunities that come to you, and a sharper sense of what stewardship at this level really demands.
Ren Fernando is an architect, artist, and Co-Founder of ReLove. Together with her Co-Founder, Ben Stammer, she founded ReLove in response to a surge in domestic and family violence during COVID. With a background in sustainable architecture and a deep commitment to social and environmental change, Ren recognised an opportunity to tackle furniture waste while helping people in crisis create safe, fully furnished homes.
ReLove has created a free furniture store for women impacted by domestic violence and homelessness where they can choose great-quality furniture, household goods and all the furnishings that they need to start again. ReLove then delivers everything within the next couple of days and helps to set up the client’s new home to ensure that the transition out of crisis is as stress-free as possible.
ReLove currently partners with over 55 charities that refer people in crisis to ReLove when they access safe housing. In the last twelve months, ReLove furnished the homes of 780 families (including 1200 children) of women and children impacted by domestic violence and people experiencing homelessness.
Ren was a 2023 Snow Entrepreneur and AMP Tomorrow Maker, Finalist Marie Claire Woman of the Year Eco Warrior, 2023 NSW Local Woman of the Year, Maroubra and 2021 Westfield Local Hero. ReLove was the winner of the 2023 Tomorrow Awards Change maker of the Year.
