Giselle Borg Olivier read for her Master’s in business administration (MBA) during Covid. She graduated in 2022, while working and parenting from home.
A non-profit foundation, FPEI was launched in 2015 by the University of Malta and the Malta Business Bureau. Zaar Crowdfunding Malta was launched in 2016. Zaar remains Malta’s only rewards-based crowdfunding platform.
“I think success is not dreading Monday mornings. Years ago I came across a quote that read, ‘if you don’t like where you are, move; you are not a tree’, and it resonated with me. We tend to be our own worst critics, oftentimes creating obstacles and cages for ourselves that we then complain about.”
In January 2025, FPEI Future Founders Plus – a membership community for entrepreneurs, freelancers and small business owners – was launched. Borg Olivier is also the founder of Content for Success, which offers proofreading services
As a working single parent, her most important ‘perk’ is flexibility in the workplace because she can align her professional life and personal life. Having that is a sign of success, for her at this stage in her life.
“A younger me would have positioned salary as the top indicator of success, and it’s certainly important to be adequately compensated for your work – especially as a woman where the gender pay gap remains a reality.”
From an unwinding point of view, Giselle and her family are a ‘dinner on the sofa while watching TV’ kind of family, and that is when she gets to sit down and relax.
She says that she is also making an effort to read more, especially before she goes to sleep, and she has a ‘no devices in the bedroom’ policy that allows her to rest better.
What advice would you give to someone looking to start or scale a business in your industry today?
Do your market research! Everyone has ideas and some ideas are truly revolutionary – but not all are. So, it’s important to find out whether the public believes in your idea as much as you do.
“I am a firm believer in collaboration. I like working with other people and organisations as I think that we can achieve more when we pool resources and ideas.”
Spend money on a proper market research campaign (ideally done by professionals) and use those results as your springboard.
And the reason that it ought to be done by professionals is because there is a method to research analysis and the questions that are asked.
Yes, it will cost money. But it will cost a lot more in the long run if you launch a business without any market research to base it on.
Website: www.fpei.mt | www.zaar.com.mt
Email on [email protected]| [email protected]
