After launching just over 10 years ago and establishing itself as the largest mobile virtual network operator in the country – as well as Australia’s fourth-largest mobile service provider – amaysim sold its energy business to AGL in the second half of 2020 for $115 million. It then sold its mobile arm to Optus, with a $250 million purchase being finalised earlier this year.

Following these two sales, and ultimately the entity’s delisting, a team of six from amaysim – comprising Alex Feldman, Rosa Smith, Gareth Turner, Natalie Duncan, Andrew Medlicott, and Rochelle Schuenker (all pictured, left to right) – all found themselves in the “fortunate position” where they were each available for their next vocational steps.

Speaking to Lawyers Weekly, the team said they had worked together for many years – with some of them having operated in tandem for over a decade – and, collectively, they were keen to identify an opportunity to continue working together.

Hence, Tiger & Bear Partners was born. And, given their collective expertise in the telecommunications and energy sectors over the years, there are “obvious areas”, they said, where they have leading industry knowledge and background.

What the firm will do

The team of six brings a diversity of skills and experience to the new firm. Mr Turner was amaysim’s CFO, Mr Feldman, Mr Medlicott and Ms Schuenker made up the law department, Ms Smith worked in investor relations and Ms Duncan was an executive assistant and legal secretary.

All are co-founders and directors of Tiger & Bear.

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Together, they are well placed, it argued, “to help businesses at pivotal moments in their journey”.

“From experience, we understand the burden that transactions and major projects can place on a business, be it a capital raise, acquisition, divestment, business restructure, launching a new product or an IPO,” they explained.

“Through our service offering, we encourage clients to leverage our operational know-how and experience by allowing us to take ownership over these critical business decisions, and by doing so, free up core resources and enable executive teams to focus on running their businesses.”

The multidisciplinary firm will provide clients, the team continued, with “holistic and pragmatic advice” by leveraging its top-tier professional experience across a full suite of corporate expertise. This will include, they said, communications, finance, corporate and strategy.

“By bringing together our strong networks and operational experience across various industries, we believe we are a formidable force with a unique combination of skills and people that can solve almost any problem,” they said.

What sets them apart, they posited, is their collective operational experience.

“Having been responsible for running a number of large businesses, some of which were listed, and having been executives and leaders in businesses, we understand the importance of delivering practical, digestible and useful advice that takes into account all angles of the problem,” they said.

“Our aim is to present a business with tailored, cohesive and integrated strategic solutions with hands-on support.”

Thriving moving forward

When asked what they see as being the major issues and challenges for their clients that will need to be addressed as the market looks towards a post-pandemic landscape, the team outlined that the challenges facing their clients will range from the level of corporate experience, business maturity and available resources to the execution of business deliverables.

The core solution to such challenges, they surmised, is twofold: “One, professional experience, and two, operational experience and know-how.”

“We are the team that delivers practical advice (for legal, financial, stakeholder communications and commercial issues) and then helps our clients implement the recommended solution,” they proclaimed.

Moreover, the team added, they are in a good position to assist growing businesses that may not yet have a full corporate suite of services in-house or require external support.

“Whether it be a significant business project, such as an expansion into a new market, raising capital, restructuring, launching a new product or transaction that requires independent and objective advice and support, Tiger & Bear Partners is able to support, facilitate or lead the business through the entire project to ensure business continuity and project success,” they espoused.

Looking ahead, the team is excited about being able to offer “real, actionable advice with strong conviction” to those coming through its doors. Being able to continue working together doesn’t hurt, either.

“We enjoy working together, we respect each other (personally and professionally) and only take on clients that we believe in and enjoy working with (so we always enjoy going that extra mile…which we do every time),” they concluded.

“Importantly, we are just a good bunch of people who don’t take themselves too seriously (which you can probably already tell from our name, Tiger & Bear Partners).”