Every Woman's Story Matters | Jenna Hipgrave

International Women's Day isn’t just about celebrating the extraordinary; it’s about recognising the ordinary women who shape our daily lives. The ones who work alongside us, live across the street, take our orders at the bakery, make our coffee, paint the mural, administer our vaccinations, and drive the tram that gets us to work, picks up our kids, or takes us to a laugh with a best friend.

Jenna is one such woman. She’s the brains, heart and courage behind Hungry Workshop, where she prints bespoke letterpress pieces alongside her husband. On weekends, she bakes cookies with her kids, making the most of family time.

This is Jenna’s story — just one of many women balancing it all, striving to do their best every single day. Today, we celebrate her and the countless other women who make life richer and more meaningful in the most everyday, yet extraordinary ways.

I grew up in Missoula, Montana, in the middle of the Rocky Mountains. It was the kind of magical place where we’d spend summers swimming in rivers and winters knee-deep in snow. After high school, I moved to Seattle to study graphic design and I had the chance to do a semester abroad at the Queensland College of Art in Brisbane. That’s where I met Simon – my future husband / business partner / father of my children – who was also studying design. From that point on, Australia became home.

Letterpress found me in the most unexpected way, through a neighbour, who told me about a little museum filled with old printing presses. That led us to the Caboolture Historical Museum, where we fell in love with the machines, the process and the sheer magic of letterpress. One day, they offered us a spare antique press and that was the start of Hungry Workshop.

We moved to Melbourne soon after, knowing it was the best place for a creative business like ours. We found a shopfront in Northcote, with a tiny apartment upstairs, and threw ourselves into the local creative community. A year later, we adopted Olive, our rescue dog (who’s still very much part of the family), and a few years after that, we had our son Franklin (who is turning 10 soon), followed by his little brother Huxley (now 6 years old).

These days, I spend my time letterpress printing, designing and running Hungry Workshop – while Simon now runs his own business, Bone.Digital. As Hungry Workshop has matured and myself along with it, I’m finding more time for myself and our community. I’ve joined a women’s bowling team at The Keys, I lift weights with an amazing group of women at SeeChange, I read voraciously with my book club and, every summer, I fill the garden with as many tomato varieties as I can squeeze in. I’m also on a mission to bake the perfect gluten-free chocolate chip cookie.

You don’t do it all – you get help! My husband and I both run our own businesses, which gives us flexibility, but also means juggling separate commitments and outsourcing where and when we can. 

I’ve worked with incredible business coaches over the years – Sharon McNamara, Jo Hook and Damien Hinks – who have all helped shape both Hungry Workshop and my life into what it is today. I’ve learned to set boundaries. I don’t need to be switched on every moment. When I’m with the people I love, I’m not also trying to take work calls or send emails. I’m a bit of a luddite – I don’t have a smart watch, I treat social media like part of the job rather than my personal life, I’m terrible at keeping up with the news and I’m dreaming of bringing back the home phone.

Our kids are early to bed and early risers, which allows us evenings to ourselves (and each other) and relaxed mornings (even on school days). We have a family rule of no screens at the dinner table and recently started Screen Free Sundays – giving our family time to be present with each other and, sometimes, even a bit bored.

A few years ago, I made a commitment to myself (and my family) to take a week off every school holidays and close Hungry Workshop for a month over the summer. To make that happen, I worked with my team (and my bookkeeper) to figure out the best course of action, so that everyone could all have that time off to recharge and reset. The lead-up to the end of the year is intense but knowing that beautiful big break is coming makes it all feel manageable.

Most weeks, I’m at the school gate at least three afternoons a week and I don’t often work on the weekends. I never wanted to build a business that meant sacrificing time with my kids. But I also want them to see me working – I have grit, I can do hard things and I want them to grow up believing that about themselves too.