Ellie Shedden is a true international citizen.
Born a Kiwi, she lived a chunk of her childhood in Australia, returned to New Zealand and boomeranged back to Oz.
But Melbourne was a mere bounce for a degree and to start work in the construction sector. By age 26 Ellie, a now well-travelled business woman, was promoted to the Czech Republic as a senior corporate services manager with a portfolio of projects – budget US$40 million.
Then love entered the picture – of her Venezuelan partner Sarkis Agobian and the Czech Republic.
“Who wouldn’t love being in the centre of Europe with the ease of travel and such culture,” she laughs. “Sarkis and I love it there.”
But there was only one way to meet the visa rules around staying – quit her job and start her own company. OOP Clicks was born (the name comes from Ellie and references “ Alley Oop”, an old song and French circus acrobatic move).
Ellie built a substantial digital affiliate marketing business, think retail, tourism, banks, airlines… by reaching out to her network and aligning with one of the world’s biggest affiliate networks.
Next came COVID. The pair needed somewhere safe and Ellie, a Kiwi by birth, soon found Sarkis could get a partner visa as a permanent resident to join her in Auckland. She sold the business and secured the Australasian market for the affiliate network.
Elle brought OOP Marketing into the B:HIVE in February this year and quickly found out that New Zealand marketers don’t really understanding the value of affiliate marketing.
That’s something she is helping change – with agility that would be the envy of any circus acrobat.