David was born and raised in Sydney’s Inner West, one of two kids to a single mother. He went off the rails a bit after his father died, lost his scholarship to Newington College, went to Balmain High, discovered life, but did poorly in his HSC. David worked in various jobs for a few years, in advertising mainly, and travelled every chance he got. At 23, when David returned from 6 months in India, he was at a bit of a loss, so took a mature age university entry course, did well, and was offered a chance to study Law.
David graduated from an undergraduate Law and Arts degree at UNSW in 1998, whereupon he began practising as a solicitor with Freehills, a large commercial law firm in Sydney. After four years as a practising solicitor, and with a vision of owning and building a business of his own, he came across someone making hand-made, artisanal candy in a unique theatrical retail setting. David fell in love with the process and presentation but was convinced he could do it better and smarter. David borrowed some money, lied about money he didn’t really have, and Sticky was born, operating out of the Rocks in Sydney
Since then, his spent the last 20 years riding the highs, and the lows, of SME business ownership with his wife Rachel, and more recently with their daughter Annabelle.