Meet the Board MEMBERS

The Byron Bay Chamber of Commerce is made up of a volunteer board which meets on the First Thursday of every month to discuss member initiatives and the state of Byron Bay Business.

Jason Bentley | President

Everyone that knows me knows my passion is creating an imaginarium of magic & wonder for my little girls. In business the Start Up & Entrepreneurial spirit is strong in Byron Bay, I love working with the next generation of talent exploring immersive technologies. Sharing the realisation anything is possible, you control your own destiny in business if you have the courage to work hard & turn your dreams into reality.

What makes Byron Bay unique is the people, the diverse characters and personalities exploring non- traditional pathways for their families & friends. It’s a tight local community where there is authentic care and respect for each other and the environment. 

We relocated from Sydney to the Rainbow Shire in 2018 so our little girls Violet & Eden were more connected to nature, the ocean and the like-minded community of families that live in the Northern Rivers. 

 

Diego Trigo  | Vice President 

For the past 10 years Diego has worked as Managing Partner, CTO, start-up founder, technical director and always as developer/builder across Melbourne and Sydney – now living in Byron Bay.　

Expert in convergence of marketing, media, data, commerce, CMS and CRM related technology, Diego brings a wealth of knowledge in building and prototyping digital solutions.

Lately, Diego’s main focus has been on creating new businesses in uncharted territories, advising on technology strategy, ideation and roadmaps for start-ups.

Donna Lorenz | Vice President

Donna is Founder and Chief Dog Lover of I Love a Dog, a dog nutrition and natural health start up that is changing the way we feed our dogs and value their health.

Before training in canine nutrition and entrepreneurship, Donna was a regular in board rooms and government offices advising on climate change risks to business and infrastructure.

She cut her corporate teeth in digital content development, event production and destination travel management. She has a Masters from Monash in Corporate Sustainability and Environmental Management, and her thesis explored the fiduciary duty of
company directors and climate change risk.

She is excited to share her experiences, whether corporate, climate or start up, and support Byron’s businesses all of dimensions realise their potential through the Chamber.

Yasmin Dulley | Secretary

Yasmin has 10 years’ experience as a family lawyer, with a strong background in family law, being the daughter of two family law professionals. She started her career as a law clerk in 2005, working exclusively in the family law industry for 15 years.

Yasmin has knowledge and experience in all aspects of family law, with a keen interest in parenting and property matters.

Yasmin holds two degrees, a Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Justice, and is currently completing her Masters of Law. She is a qualified Collaborative Lawyer and currently undertaking her mediation training. She is a passionate lawyer and involved member of the Byron community. Yasmin currently sits on a number of community boards, and joined the Byron Bay Chamber of Commerce with a view to make an impact in the Byron Bay business community by creating new opportunities for collaboration, growth, innovation, and conservation.

Matt Williamson | Treasurer

Matt is the Founder & Principal Broker of local insurance broker, and risk adviser Good Cover. Having enjoyed a 20 plus year career in the insurance industry to date he has held senior leadership roles in at some of Australia’s largest insurers, travelled overseas with work and most recently took a start-up Insurtech, Honey Insurance, from conception all the way through to completion of Australia’s largest seed funding round for an Insurtech.

For seven years Matt and his family lived in Bangalow and he would commute off to the main cities for work most weeks until COVID stuck. It was the clarity of finally been free of the burden of travel that inspired Matt to launch Good Cover. The inspired opportunity to bring his passion for community, the planet together with his knowledge and experience in the insurance industry together into one business. Good Cover.

 

Erle A Astrup | Board Member

Meet Erle A Astrup, the visionary founder, and CEO of Foods That Love You Back, a cutting-edge company that leverages the science of food  to develop nutraceuticals that can help prevent and reverse chronic diseases. With over two decades of experience in the health and wellness industry, Erle arrived in Byron Bay three years ago after founding and running Yogafusion, a highly successful yoga and functional movement studio on the Côte d’Azur. Prior to that, Erle co-founded Dropout Productions in Oslo, where she spent nearly as much time working in TV and media. Erle holds a master’s degree in Media & Communications and is a mother of four. She is also an active supporter of our local community and is committed to giving back to people and planet.

Julian Edwards | Board Member

Julian Edwards has worked as a professional art consultant for 20 years and founded JEFA Gallery in 2018. As a Byron Bay art gallery, we offer a variety of services around the collecting and selling of art in the primary & secondary market, whilst providing a platform for local, national and international artists to exhibit their work. Julian is always interested to hear from artists who might need advice or guidance and some of the artists JEFA Gallery represents, include: Blak Douglas (Archibald Winner 2022), Vanessa Stockard and local artists like The Space Cowboy, Mandy Nolan and Tim Fry to mention but a few. Services include Art Money, conservation, framing, art hanging (nationwide), storage, valuations, worldwide logistics and advice on buying and selling art from private and corporate collections. We offer advice and obligation free appraisals, and we work with a variety of partners that assist us to provide some of these services, as well as with interior designers, collectors, institutes and estates. Our goal is to create long term relationships with artists, art collectors and professionals in the industry.

 

Felipe Favaro | Board Member

Felipe has extensive experience in the hemp and food industry, being GM of Hemp Foods Australia since 2017.  Hemp Food Australia is one of the most established and well-known hemp foods brands in Australia, with exports to Japan, South Africa, Korea and USA. Prior to his work in the hemp industry, Felipe was a venture capital investor, investing in companies in Consumer Goods, IT, Biotech and Cleantech industries. 

 

Gaby Amaya | Executive Officer

Gaby has worked in the graphic, advertising, and manufacturing producing industry for 8 years, with strong knowledge of the use of technology to create, design, and develop different kinds of graphics, artworks, and tech solutions for several companies. She has the ability to work with multidisciplinary teams or independently and communicate with a high level of English. As a second career, She has 5 years of experience in the Travel & Tourism Industry, working as Flight Attendant and Travel Agent Consultant for this sector. She has now settle down in Byron Bay and starting her own Creative and Design Freelance Brand viajeralibre.com where she can provide with the best marketing, IT and design advice and services to more brands around the shire.