Women in business, especially those working in the Australian arts community, have been shocked to learn that one of the industry's leading female entrepreneurs has lost her battle with breast cancer.
Di Gribble passed away on October 4 but her legacy will be sure to be felt for many years to come.
Gribble's career spanned more than three and a half decades in the competitive world of media.
She co-founded her first publishing company McPhee Gribble in 1975 and the business proved to be successful at unearthing local talent such as Tim Winton and Helen Garner.
It was later taken over by Penguin and in 1999, Gribble went on to co-found a new company working within the same commercial sector called Text Media Group.
More recently, Gribble yet again co-founded another media-publishing company, Private Media, which owns a number of well known print and online publications.
Crikey, SmartCompany, The Power Index, StartUp Smart and Property Observer are among the titles owned by Private Media.
In addition to the work conducted as a part of her own commercial enterprises, Gribble solidified her dominance of media sector by collaborating with national and international companies, roles that involved working in a variety of high-profile, high-pressure positions.
Gribble was, at different points in her career, deputy chair of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, as well as director at Lonely Planet, Care Australia and the Australia Council.
Described by those who knew her as a kind and gregarious woman, Gribble was also praised as a savvy businesswoman.
In an interview with The Australian, literary critic Peter Craven highlighted her ability to "back a winner".
However, it was her employees at Crikey that spoke most openly about the role Gribble played in publishing.
Writing on their official blog, the team at Crikey said: "Di was a creator. She inspired and indefatigably supported the people around her – family, friends, colleagues, authors, artists. She nurtured young talent and motivated old talent."
Ann Skowron says
I felt sad when I heard this news. I worked for Di in the 90s and even after all this time I felt numb at this announcement. You were a lovely Lady Di , you had the knack of putting people completely at ease. My time at Text was the most memorable of my working life.
RIP Di, you will be missed terribly.