Brent Stewart

Chief Executive Officer

Brent Stewart is the Executive Chairman and founder of Market Equity Pty Ltd, a business he established in 1992 and grew into one of Australia’s largest privately owned marketing services companies. After selling the company to Aegis PLC in 2005, Brent took on a series of global leadership roles with Synovate (now Ipsos), one of the world’s largest market intelligence and research firms. 

As CEO of Strategic Business Units at Synovate, Brent had commercial oversight of operations spanning 50 countries across Africa, Australia and New Zealand, Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, China, Japan, Latin America, Iberia, and North and South Asia. He also served as CEO of Global Business Planning, driving the company’s worldwide strategy, leading its US$300M Global Client Relationships initiative, and overseeing knowledge management and management information systems. 

In recent years, Brent has focused on helping companies achieve growth, secure funding, and maximise enterprise value. He combines board leadership with hands-on advisory work and investment, and currently serves on the boards of HBF Health Ltd, Argonaut Ltd, Hesperia, Benara and Etherington Inc. 

With deep expertise in leadership, strategy, mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, marketing, innovation, transformation and process management, Brent has served as a director or chair across numerous public and private organisations. His past roles include Chair of the Western Australian Egg Marketing Board, Novo Foods Ltd, Workfocus Australia, Herdsman Fresh Essentials, and the Credo Group, alongside board positions with the Entrepreneurial Institute Incorporated, Rottnest Island Foundation, Relationships Australia, RugbyWA, and others. He has also contributed to multiple Western Australian government committees and advisory groups. 

Brent holds a Bachelor of Science and a Bachelor of Psychology from the University of Western Australia and has completed the core units of a Master of Business Administration.

Michelle Stewart

Director

Michelle Stewart is a Director of Market Equity’s Research division and a specialist in transforming data into actionable strategy. She brings more than 20 years of experience in market research design, advanced analytics, and competitive intelligence, applying tools such as choice modelling, conjoint analysis, and multivariate techniques to deliver evidence-based insights for clients. 

Michelle’s work spans industries including utilities, transport, education, food and beverage, agriculture, professional services, and media. She has helped shape the strategies of leading organisations such as the Water Corporation, Department of Transport, Wesfarmers Dalgety, Channel 7, Western Potatoes, the Education Department, and Goodman Fielder. Her expertise extends to image and attitudinal studies, market segmentation, competitive positioning, and client relationship–satisfaction research. 

She is a former committee member of the Market Research Society of Australia, having also served as Western Australian Editor for its national publication Research News and as state membership coordinator. Michelle has presented at industry conferences, lectured at Adschool (a collaboration between Edith Cowan University and the Advertising Federation of Australia), and tutored at the University of Western Australia in marketing and organisational behaviour. 

Michelle holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Western Australia, with a double major in marketing and organisational behaviour, and has also studied Japanese and sports psychology. She began her career with the 1992 Royal Commission before joining Market Equity, where her reputation for rigorous analysis and client-focused outcomes has made her a trusted adviser to industry and government alike.