In this episode of Authentic Advantage, Anna Shepherd sits down with Elysium ‘Glam’ Nguyen, founder of Global Marketing Institute, for a conversation about marketing, authenticity, business growth, leadership, and why great ideas need the right support to become reality.

Glam’s entrepreneurial journey started early — from registering her first business at 15, to building a design agency as a teenager in Vietnam, to eventually founding Global Marketing Institute during one of the most disruptive periods in modern business.

In this conversation, Glam shares how marketing became the bridge between creativity and business, why authenticity matters even more in the age of AI, and what it really takes to build something that people trust, believe in, and connect with.

Anna and Glam also explore what it means to go all in on a business, how to scale authenticity beyond the founder, why kindness is a powerful leadership principle, and how business can become a platform for helping others realise what they are truly capable of.

This episode is for entrepreneurs, marketers, founders, business owners, creators, and anyone trying to build a brand that feels human, purposeful, and commercially strong.

In this episode, we cover:
– Starting a business at 15
– Why great ideas need great support
– Authenticity in the age of AI
– The difference between working hard and working smart
– Building Global Marketing Institute
– Scaling a business without losing yourself
– Why kindness matters in leadership
– How to build trust through marketing
– The responsibility that comes with helping people succeed