James Rae
Business Owner and Investor in Central Coast NSW, Australia
I live on the NSW Central Coast with my beautiful wife Samantha where we share a small farm with my daughter CJ and two crazy rescue dogs.
Looking back over my working life I realise that I worked with and helped make lot of wankers rich. For the past 18 years I’ve tried to apply the lessons I learned in my professional career (both what to do and what NOT to do) and put these into my businesses.
In 2003 I established Talking Stones as a “side hustle” with the goal to escape “cubicle nation”. Since then, I’ve been doing what I love most, developing new products, delivering amazing customer experience and building an outstanding team around me.
Talking Stones creates “made to order” ever-lasting products using only the highest-grade materials and quality of workmanship.
Our products create strong emotional bonds with our customers and today we manufacture the countries most trusted brand of memorial plaques for people, memorial plaques pets, outdoor urns for pets and house name plaques. We take pride in knowing everyday more than 50,000 customers receive comfort from the memorial object we have created for them.
We also work with commercial and government clients on custom engraving projects Australia wide.
Our groups mission statement is People, Passion and Product before Profit.
As you go through life hopefully you start to work shit out, like what works for you, what doesn’t, what you love doing and what drives you. What I’ve worked out is I like to grow businesses, innovate new products, nurture staff and give great customer service.
Our groups sales channels extend across wholesale B2B as well as online B2C sales channels. Our business operations have continued to expand to include OEM manufacturing and exclusive importing and distribution of quality international brands across Australia.
My wife and I established www.purplepoppies.com.au which has become an important fundraising arm for the charity Australian War Animal Memorial Organisation (AWAMO.ORG.AU). I was honored to receive an Order of The Fewterer and appointed an AWAMO ambassador to raise awareness and recognition of Australia’s war animals.
I continue to be inspired by businesses that “create a greater purpose”. As a result, I seek to integrate philanthropy into my business ventures. I am an avid investor in vehicles that promote human endeavor.
When not working on my businesses I am tinkering with my old VWs and enjoy spending time with life-long childhood friends.