Athan Didaskalou

Founder, July

A leading regular commentator on consumer trends, business strategy and innovation, Athan Didaskalou is an Australian entrepreneur and the co-founder of the travel brand, July. 

With a background in brand strategy, Athan co-founded July in early 2019 with Richard Li to create a brand that people have an affinity with at every consumer touchpoint. Launching with a single luggage product, the Carry-On, the brand has since grown to include a multitude of travel accessories. 

Athan is also the founder of Australia’s largest online specialty coffee retailer, Thieves Coffee. Founded in 2013 with the mission to help more people discover Australian artisan coffee roasters, Thieves now delivers coffee experiences to over 70,000 people globally each month.

Prior, Athan developed deep expertise in business strategy, brand development and innovation through roles at global advertising agency Ogilvy as Strategy Director. Athan helped guide Australia’s largest businesses in developing strategic roadmaps across all verticals and touchpoints to meet customer needs. His clients included Google, Honda, NAB and more. 

Athan’s extensive experience in strategy, business growth and management, startups and consumer-led innovation make him an appealing speaker in the Australian startup, business and technology events. His speaker experience includes brand strategy, customer acquisition, direct-to-consumer brands, building a brand people love and disruptive business models. 

At July, Athan’s vision is to create an unmatched travel brand that speaks to the hearts and minds of adventurous travellers around the world, making the journey as exciting as the destination.