When COVID hit, Melbourne faced some of the world's longest lockdown conditions. I led a consumer goods studio through the crisis, restructuring for remote work, scaling the product range, and delivering 170% revenue growth with 100% on-time delivery throughout.

The situation
When COVID hit, Melbourne faced some of the longest and most restrictive lockdown conditions anywhere in the world. For a consumer goods business focused on puzzles, board games, and licensed toy lines, this created two simultaneous problems: a sharp spike in demand for home entertainment products, and severe constraints on how to operate, remote teams, disrupted supply chains, and no ability to conduct in-person production reviews.

My role
As Head of Product, Brand and Marketing, with direct reports and full oversight of studio operations, supplier coordination, and licensing compliance. I was responsible for scaling the portfolio to meet demand while keeping quality, delivery, and commercial performance on track.

What I did
I restructured studio workflows for fully remote operation (digital-first systems and operations) and consolidated our supplier relationships to reduce lead times and improve production reliability. I expanded the licensed product range by 25%, adding new ranges across major international IP, while managing simultaneous licensor approval processes remotely.

I introduced agile working rhythms, standups, WIP meetings, and retrospectives, to keep the team aligned and moving under lockdown conditions. I implemented remote QA and approval processes to replace in-person production reviews, maintaining compliance and quality standards throughout. I also mentored and developed the team through what was a genuinely difficult period, maintaining morale, clarity, and momentum when the external environment was doing everything it could to slow us down.

What it delivered
170% revenue growth during the COVID lockdown period. Product range expanded by 25%. Lead times reduced by 20% through supplier consolidation. Team efficiency improved by 25% through workflow restructuring and structured coaching. On-time delivery was maintained at 100% across licensed and OEM product lines throughout Melbourne's lockdowns.