Exploring Life & Business with Thu Nguyen of Unhinged Business Co.

Today we’d like to introduce you to Thu Nguyen.

Hi Thu, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
My career has taken me across fashion, FMCG, beauty and startup technology, building, operating and scaling businesses in markets around the world. Along the way, I’ve held C-suite leadership roles spanning every function of an organisation, giving me a broad understanding of what it takes to grow a business—and the work required to sustain that growth.

A significant part of my experience has involved international expansion across the USA, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. That has meant developing commercial strategies, establishing international operations and bringing together the teams, systems and financial foundations needed to succeed in each market.

I’ve also worked closely with founders, investors and boards through periods of growth and transformation, advising on expansion, supporting capital raising and helping businesses prepare for their next stage, including an eventual exit.

What connects all of this work is my ability to move between strategy and execution. An ambitious vision needs commercial discipline behind it. Finance, operations, supply chain, technology, people, governance and capital strategy all need to work together to build a resilient business with lasting value.

That experience now informs what I’m building with Unhinged Business. Alongside my advisory work, I’m bringing together a community where founders can access practical knowledge, have honest conversations and build meaningful relationships.

Having worked through the complexity of growing businesses, I understand how valuable it is to have people around you who can offer perspective, challenge your thinking and help you move forward. Through workshops, events and The Unhinged Minds Podcast, I’m creating more opportunities for those connections.

For me, this next chapter is about sharing the experience I’ve gained globally and making it useful to founders building their own businesses.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It hasn’t been a smooth road. Growing and scaling businesses means making decisions with incomplete information, taking responsibility for the outcome and adapting when things don’t go to plan.

One of the biggest challenges has been managing the gap between ambition and capacity. A business can have a strong product, growing demand and exciting opportunities, but its people, cash flow, systems and operations need to keep pace. Part of leadership is recognising when to accelerate, when to strengthen the foundations and when to say no—even to an opportunity that looks attractive.

Working across international markets adds another layer of complexity. What succeeds in one country doesn’t automatically translate to another. Different customer expectations, commercial environments and ways of working require you to listen, challenge your assumptions and earn trust again.

There’s also a personal responsibility that comes with leadership. You’re making decisions that affect people’s livelihoods, founders’ ambitions and investors’ capital. Learning to carry that responsibility while remaining decisive—and knowing when to ask for another perspective—has been an important part of my growth.

Over time, I’ve learned that resilience comes from being willing to recognise what isn’t working and having the discipline to change it. Experience gives you stronger judgement, but it should also make you more open to learning.

Those lessons are part of why I’m building the Unhinged Business community. Founders need spaces where they can speak openly about difficult decisions, access practical experience and build relationships before they urgently need support.

I’m proud of what I’ve helped build, but the challenges have shaped how I lead just as much as the successes.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Unhinged Business helps ambitious founders build businesses that are equipped to grow. We specialise in fashion, beauty and FMCG, bringing executive leadership, commercial strategy and operational expertise to brands navigating launch, growth, transformation and international expansion.

Our work reaches into the decisions that determine whether a business can scale successfully: how products are sourced and manufactured, how inventory and cash flow are managed, how pricing protects profitability, and how a brand enters new markets. We support founders through fractional C-suite leadership, strategic advisory, supply chain and manufacturing, operational improvement, retail expansion, brand strategy and capital raising preparation.

What sets us apart is our ability to connect the entire business. A retail opportunity, for example, affects far more than sales. It changes production requirements, working capital, logistics, systems and team capacity. We help founders understand those connections and execute a strategy that the business can actually support.

That approach draws on my experience building, operating and scaling businesses across the USA, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. We bring a global perspective alongside a willingness to get into the detail—working through the numbers, negotiating with suppliers, strengthening processes and helping teams deliver.

I’m particularly proud that Unhinged Business is developing into both an advisory business and a founder community. Through workshops, events, executive mentorship and The Unhinged Minds Podcast, we’re creating opportunities for founders to access practical knowledge, build relationships and speak openly about the realities of business.

The name reflects our willingness to question established ways of working. We encourage ambitious thinking, supported by commercial discipline, clear decisions and accountable execution.

If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
The quality that has contributed most to my success is resourcefulness—the ability to find a way forward when the answer isn’t obvious.

When you’re growing businesses, entering new markets or navigating change, you rarely have perfect information or unlimited resources. You need to ask good questions, understand what matters commercially and turn uncertainty into a practical next step.

For me, resourcefulness combines curiosity with action. I’m willing to challenge an assumption, learn something unfamiliar, bring the right people into the conversation and get into the detail. I can see the bigger ambition while working through what needs to happen today to move towards it.

Working across industries and international markets has reinforced that approach. Experience gives you perspective, but every business has its own challenges. You have to stay open enough to recognise when a familiar solution won’t fit.

It also means knowing when to change direction. I’m committed to the outcome, but willing to rethink the route. That has helped me navigate difficult decisions, identify opportunities and keep businesses moving through periods of growth and uncertainty.

It’s a quality I bring to Unhinged Business every day: helping founders see their options clearly, make informed decisions and build the confidence to move forward.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://unhingedbusiness.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unhingedbusinessworld