The first female retirement village operator to strike out on her own, Chiou See Anderson has been paving the way for women in retirement living for 20 years – now, she is advocating for gender equality on a bigger stage.

The retirement village sector has made promising progress in the last 20 years – but gender equality across the sector and the wider community will only become a reality if both women and men are prepared to push together for change, says the village operator and advocate.

Chiou See’s career is a fascinating one.

After arriving in Australia from Singapore aged 20, she managed a diverse range of businesses from a coal mining firm to a flying school while gaining her qualification as a Certified Practising Accountant and raising three children.

Studying for her MBA and working as a consultant in 2002, Chiou spent two weeks looking at the aggregate purchasing power of the global ageing population and decided that she wanted to go into business providing a service for older people.

A block of land came up for sale at John Paul College at Springwood, 20km south east of the Brisbane CBD, and Chiou See bit the bullet.

“I have a high risk appetite”

She s