Business Review Australia - March 2015

WWW.BUSINESSREVIEWAUSTRALIA.COM | March 2015

AUSTRALIANS ARE READY FOR APPLE PAY: IS YOUR BUSINESS?

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AN EXCLUSIVE LOOK AT BUSINESSFRIEND

AUSTRALIAN ORGANISATIONS ENCOURAGING

FEMALE PROFESSIONALS LAURA MCBAIN, 2013 TELSTRA AUSTRALIAN BUSINESS WOMEN’S AWARDS WINNER.

EDITOR’S COMMENT

“The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.”

– Ayn Rand The entrepreneurial spirit and the desire to lead doesn’t live within all of us. But for those who are hell bent on getting their ideas heard, changing the world and doing great things, it’s hard to do so alone. In celebration of International Women’s Day on March 8th, Business Review Australia brings a spotlight to organisations in Oz that are encouraging women and women-led businesses to reach their goals.

For those businesses that are passionate about staying ahead of the trend, we researched what it would take for Apple Pay to become a reality for your company. Although it’s not yet available in Australia, you can be ready when the time comes for the technology to launch.

Rounding out our features this month is an interesting piece about the trend towards integrating social media and print marketing, as well as an exclusive look into businessfriend, a new professional social media platform.

Enjoy the issue!

Laura Close Editor laura.close@wdmgroup.com

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CONTENTS FEATURES This month we focus on the customer experience with the latest technology

6 Tchnology

Australians are Ready for Apple Pay: Is Your Business?

14 Marketing

It’s Not Print Vs. Digital : Combine your Social Media and Print Advertising Efforts

24 Top 10

10 Organisations Encouraging Female Professionals In Australia

COMPANY PROFILES MANUFACTURING 42 Australian Bluegum Plantations

36 Businessfriend

Business Utility with a Social Identity: An Exclusive Look at businessfriend

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Australian Bluegum

Plantations

HEALTHCARE 52 Healthy Sleep Solutions

FOOD 64 Primo Smallgoods 74 Foodbank Australia

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Healthy Sleep Solutions

64

Primo Smallgoods

74 Foodbank Australia Association

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TECHNOLOGY

NFC payment technology is familiar in Oz—so can we expect Apple Pay to take hold with businesses?

Australians are Ready for Apple Pay: Is Your Business?

W R I T T E N B Y: L A U R A C LO S E

TECHNOLOGY AUSTRALIA IS ONE of the few places in the world that has taken to using NFC payment options in force.

Many people are used to taking out their bank card and tapping it against the sensor at the cash register. But what if you didn’t even need the card?

Enter Apple Pay. If you’ve decided to come out of your hermitage recently and haven’t heard of Apple Pay, it’s a really big US tech company’s response to getting rid of your wallet.

If you’ve got an iPhone 5, 6 or 6 Plus—and who knows, there may be several other iterations by the time this magazine article goes live—Apple Pay will be coming to you shortly.

Apple Pay was launched in the US in October of last year and already has 60 in-country banking institutions signed up to allow their customers use of the service. Major credit card companies Visa and MasterCard went on the record with their support of Apple Pay with Charlie Scharf, Visa CEO, and Ajay Banga, MasterCard CEO, excited about what Apple is doing. And as the Apple Watch comes into the fray in April of this year, Apple Pay will become even easier to use.

Although Apple Pay doesn’t have a launch date for Australia yet—sources 8

March 2015

There’s a chance that PayPal could lo working with Gizmodo Australia say that it may be as early as this month—businesses that could benefit from Apple Pay should start working towards it now.

Here’s How It Works Passbook, an Apple-developed app, stores your credit card information on your phone or mobile device like your iPad or future Apple Watch. The Touch ID function—your fingerprint scanner

ose out to Apple Pay. in the home button—helps protect your personal encrypted information so that even if your phone is stolen, the thief cannot make purchases with it. You’ll just scan your phone over the NFC sensors, and payment made!

In the US, Apple negotiated with the big banks and credit card companies first to reach the widest audience from the get go. Anticipate the same approach in Australia with most, if not all, of the big four banks—Westpac,

NAB, CBA and ANZ—by launch time.

For businesses, a contactless terminal on your EFTPOS (electronic funds transfer at point of sale) machine will need to be installed at the cash register. Since NFC technology and payments are already pretty common in Australia, we’ll bet many of you already have at least one at your business counter.

Another cool feature is Apple Pay’s integration with your business 9

TECHNOLOGY

Apple Pay will be available within your business’s apps.

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March 2015

A U S T R A L I A N S A R E R E A D Y F O R A P P L E PAY

app. Instead of signing into PayPal, entering your credit card information at checkout or having your credit card, businesses that allow Apple Pay in their apps will let their customers just pick a card from Passbook and pay that way.

A recent article from Mainstreet discussed the threat Apple Pay poses to Paypal.

“Analyst Steve Weinstein believes that PayPal suffers from a challenging relationship with payment counterparties and can’t offer the biometric security capabilities that Apple Pay can,” the article reads. “Apple Pay also has the power of the brand’s affinity and an ease of use that will be difficult for competitors to overcome.”

With Apple Pay already poised to overtake the transaction volume of Google Wallet, which never took hold in the US, PayPal and similar apps and technological payment options need to figure out ways to stay on top and evolve into something that can compete with this behemoth.

It’s Not Just for McDonalds or Macy’s Small business could really benefit from Apple Pay, but they have to make sure it works for them before jumping in wholeheartedly. There are a few things to consider.

In 2012, there were two iPhone users for every one Android user: Apple has a big market in Australia.

Big companies could up the ante

In the US, Apple negotiated with the big banks and credit card companies first to reach the widest audience from the get go. Expect the same in Australia at launch time.

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TECHNOLOGY

Apple’s Touch ID security utilises your fingerprint to keep you personal information safe. by getting customers used to the ease of the NFC payment option, leading to them demanding it from smaller companies. NFC technology is expected to be integrated into the Apple Watch, facilitating a wider market. And as it was mentioned earlier, many small businesses in Oz 12

March 2015

may already have NFC readers that would work with Apple Pay. If you think that Apple Pay would be an asset to your small business, there are two approaches going forward: integrating it as soon as it’s available, or waiting to see if widespread use takes off.

A U S T R A L I A N S A R E R E A D Y F O R A P P L E PAY

What Your Business Can Do To Prepare If you are ready and willing to integrate Apple Pay into your business model, start investigating your options for contactless terminals on your EFTPOS machines. This is the only piece of hardware you’ll need to provide Apple Pay as a service, so it may be a good investment for your company.

These machines range from US$150 to US$500, so check your budget to make sure it fits. If your business already has one, even better!

Next, keep an eye on your bank to see if they will be integrating Apple Pay. It would be a bit much to change banks just to have this as part of your business, but when Apple Pay does get introduced your bank may not be far behind in including it with its services.

I think the ability to combine Apple Pay into an existing business app is one of the best things about the service. It provides you an easier way to accept payment, and peace of mind to your customer, especially with all the news of security hacks that are happening all too often now.

Perhaps the most important is to read up on the security that Apple Pay provides its users. If it’s a service

you are going to tie your name and your business to, it is imperative to know the ins and outs. In the early days of implementation, there will most likely be several questions from your customers about its use. With security at the forefront of everyone’s minds, being able to share information about Apple’s Touch ID function and its encrypted data will help put your customers at ease.

Offering any sort of NFC payment technology to your customers is about ease of use, for you, your business and them. Apple Pay is just another way to provide a helpful service to your customers. If it doesn’t take too much effort to do so, it just might be worth it in the long run.

A look at a Passbook Wallet.

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MARKETING

IT’S NOT

Print Digital: VS.

Combine your Social Media and Print Advertising Efforts It doesn’t have to be a war between print and social media advertising for your budget: see how the two mediums can work together for your business.

W R I T T E N B Y: L A U R A C LO S E

A LLE N .G / S H UTTE R STO C K .C O M

MARKETING PRINT IS DEAD. But is it? I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard that phrase uttered over the last 10 or so years. As a student of English literature at university, e-readers and social media were the bad guys. As an editor for a digital publication, I’m not longer so cynical. The Internet and all that goes along with it isn’t killing all print media; there are still newspapers, magazines and books—just less of them.

What the Internet is doing though, is making us become more creative about how we market things. It’s been proven that banner ads are largely ignored by the surfing public, so new and innovative solutions are needed constantly. And while print isn’t new or innovative, it could be the solution for your next brand awareness campaign.

Not just print though: print and digital, working together in harmony, to promote your brand for maximum exposure. It’s possible! Digital venues— social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest—are the easiest ways to connect with your customers, and it’s not as hard as you think to integrate social media with print.

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Hashtags rule the Internet. Use them One Word: Hashtag Hashtags rule the Internet. If you can hashtag your Instagram photo or tweet right, thousands of people will see it. Society has used hashtags for important rights campaigns— like Sydney’s recent #Illridewith you campaign that gained prominence after the #SydneySiege. Companies hashtag shortened versions of their mission statements or latest advertising push with the hopes

m right, and thousands of people can see your message. that it will be picked up by the larger tweeting public.

An important note before getting started: make sure your hashtag hasn’t already been taken. It would be a shame if your campaign accidentally helped promote something else!

One of the best things about using hashtags is that the trend is very easy to follow: just click on your hashtag within the appropriate social media

platform and you can see exactly how your campaign is being received.

Adding a hashtag word or phrase to your print advertising is incredibly easy and is a great way to give your customers a window into your campaign. Social media users can type in the hashtag right there and then to see what exactly the campaign is about and how other people are responding to it. Add it to everything in your print advertising: 17

MARKETING

COM

Catalogues in print are read more than digital catalogues, so make sure your business is spending its money where it should. business cards, postcards or mail you send out, catalogues, flyers, billboards and the like. It doesn’t have to be the focus—actually, you can usually have your hashtag in a smaller font and offset from the rest of the text—and it can still generate interest.

Don’t give much away at all on in your print advertising—hit the high notes, and provide just enough 18

March 2015

information to interest the reader or viewer—and then direct him or her online via your hashtag or links to social media accounts.

Consistency Across Platforms A strong, recognisable logo is the cornerstone to any business, and to major marketing campaigns.

Keeping your logo—as well as

MBINE YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA AND PRINT ADVERTISING EFFORTS

hashtags—consistent across all platforms is one of the keys to driving a successful marketing campaign.

If your company has been around long enough, chances are your logo has been through a few different iterations. Some companies also present their logos in different colours and different formats. When running a new marketing campaign, sticking to one logo will help your customers realise your brand immediately.

Catalogues: Print, Digital or Both?

Digital catalogues are gaining more readership than print catalogues— right? As everything else moves to digital, you’d think catalogues would

be a natural fit for tablets. Better do some more research. If you haven’t had time to dig into the books (or more likely, the Internet), here are a few interesting things to know about print vs. digital.

Although easy and cheaper to publish, online catalogues do not do nearly as well as their print counterparts. A study done in the lead up to Christmas 2012 by the Australian Catalogue Association (ACA) found that only 11 percent read catalogues online, and that 70 percent of Australians—over the age of 14— prefer printed catalogues.

In relation to this trend, Australian retailers spend just about $1.5

Don’t give much away on in your print advertising—hit the high notes, and provide just enough information to interest the reader or viewer—and then direct him or her online via your hashtag or links to social media accounts.

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MARKETING

Don’t send out boring direct mail advertising that just clutters a mailbox. Col billion each year producing catalogues. At the end of the day, catalogues equal about 60 percent of retailers’ advertising budget—60 percent! This is definitely one medium where print trumps digital.

However, it’s an absolute must to combine the two.

Easy solution: depending on your company’s financial situation, offer both. Make sure your catalogues 20

March 2015

include social media URLs, hashtags for your customers to use, and maybe QR codes to direct them to your website via a QR code reader app.

Mailing: Get Creative!

You probably would expect direct mail advertising budgets to start plummeting as well, but like with catalogues, that’s not the case.

lorful, creative packaging can entice your customer to read further.

Marketing Sherpa states that a whopping 80 percent of companies that responded will either keep their direct mail budget the same or be increasing it. (A quick note on the survey: spend on email, social media and website updates was also going to increase for the majority of respondents.)

Lin Grensing-Prophal, author of Direct Mail in a Digital Age, believes

the shift to digital marketing has given print an unintentional advantage.

“Mailboxes aren’t as cluttered, thanks to digital marketing,” she said. “But, the Web is getting more cluttered.”

We’ve already mentioned that all of your social media marketing can be included on the mail or direct mail you send out. But how do you get your potential customers to pay attention to your mail?

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MARKETING

Image copyright diva creative

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MBINE YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA AND PRINT ADVERTISING EFFORTS

Again, consistency is important, as far as a company’s logo and message goes. But your packaging should be eye-popping and as interesting as you can get it. There are so many different options for printing these days, including new and innovative formats, paper wraps and even 3-D mailers if you’ve got the budget for them.

Combining print and digital means limitations no longer apply in print.

With so many digital technologies options, you can add links to printed materials for digital targeting, webcasts and videos, PURLs, and QR and other 2D codes. This Renewal by Anderson 3-D campaign introduced its newest product to sales managers by combining print and digital to drive prospects to a webinar.

Where Should Your Business Focus Their Efforts?

As usual, there’s no advice that fits each and every business; however finding a way to add an aspect of your online advertising or social media platforms to your print media is a win for most companies.

“There are certain industries, serving a specific demographic,

that will always appreciate and need a tangible representation of a product, service or company,” says Jennifer Fuhrman, marketing executive with Chicago agency Marketcity.

The only way you’re going to know what you need is to know your customer base as well as you can.

“You have to know your audience.

Evaluate your clients and their specific needs to determine what will work best,” said GrensingProphal. “Don’t jump on the bandwagon just because it’s the latest big thing.”

“You have to know your audience.

Evaluate your clients and their specific needs to determine what will work best.

Don’t jump on the bandwagon just because it’s the latest big thing.” ­ Executive — Lin Grensing-Prophal, author ofline Direct talks at picket Mail in a Digital Age 23

TOP 10

10Encouraging Organisations

Female

Professionals

In Australia The glass ceiling is still there, but these organisations are helping Australian women break through.

W R I T T E N B Y: L A U R A C LO S E

TOP 10

10. AUSTRALIAN CENTRE FOR LEADERSHIP FOR WOMEN The Australian Centre for Leadership for Women (ACLW), a virtual Centre was founded by Dr Diann RodgersHealey in 2000 to assist emerging and established women leaders and advance gender equality outcomes.

ACLW has been the focal point of significant achievements, including the establishment of national awards recognising women’s advancement in workplaces and communities, research and extensive writing on key issues, submissions related to gender equality legislation, empowerment of women and women’s groups through coaching, mentoring, strategic facilitation, and giving women a platform to raise their issues, as 26

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well as numerous interviews with international leaders.

ACLW awards and recognises women and men who advocate for women in organisations and in the community through its national Awards Program. Diann has run ACLW on a not-for-profit basis steering its vision and enabling outcomes by bringing in teams of community and industry leaders to work on common goals to advance women in the community and in workplaces. Women who have registered their interest engage in a spirit of empowerment, learning and leadership.

9. INSPIRING WOMEN, DELOITTE AUSTRALIA Inspiring Women is a program within Deloitte Australia, one that its

TIONS ENCOURAGING FEMALE PROFESSIONALS IN AUSTRALIA

own employees benefit from. The program was formalised in 2000, and in 2014 the company was recognised as one of only 76 organisations that have been awarded the 2014 Employer of Choice for Gender Equality by the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) The program is not just a project: it’s a firm, wide-encompassing strategy. It has done—and continues to do—several great things for the company, including creating an inclusive culture driven by the leadership of the firm, increasing the number of women in leadership positions by promoting talented women, investing in talent identification, development and recruitment, building an appropriate environment to retain talented women and positioning the firm as the professional services firm of choice for women.

8. CHIEF EXECUTIVE WOMEN Chief Executive Women had its foundations in 1985 as a branch of the Paris-based organisation, “Women Chiefs of Enterprise”. Barbara Cail was a founding member who wanted to provide a haven or respite for women seeking to share their experiences as pioneers in the boardrooms and C-suites of Australia.

During its first decade of operation, one of the first CEW initiatives was to provide an annual scholarship to aspiring women leaders.

“CEW’s scholarship has been a very unifying act for the whole group.

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TOP 10 There is now a good alumni group of the women who are connected through the opportunities that the CEW gave them and I hope the cascading effect of that is that in their lives they’ll reach out for other women and help them,” says Wendy McCarthy, founding member. With skilled members came increased resources, which now include a Talent Development Program and the CEO Kit. As of last year, membership was around 300. At the same time as building the scholarships program, the organisation is becoming more externally focused, to reflect the fact that advocacy for gender balance and greater participation of women at all levels is still much needed in Australia today.

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The program provides information and resources, support, advocacy, connection and communication services to support Australian business women to engage in international trade and investment.

WIGB works closely with stakeholders and the private sector partnerships to deliver the program’s services and addresses the barriers women face in doing international business.

These services include a mentoring program, skills and capacity building, workshops and events, research into the barriers and motivations of women as they engage with international markets, inbound and outbound missions, information and connection and advocacy on the domestic and international stage.

7. WOMEN IN GLOBAL BUSINESS PROGRAM The Women in Global Business program is a joint initiative of the Australian, State and Territory Governments, supported by Austrade.

The objective is to increase female participation in international trade and investment delivering increased economic benefit and job creation through greater diversity.

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6. WOMEN’S ENTREPRENEUR NETWORK Dell Australia’s Women Powering Business organisation is offered through the company’s Women’s Entrepreneur Network.

TIONS ENCOURAGING FEMALE PROFESSIONALS IN AUSTRALIA

Dell hopes to support one million female entrepreneurs.

5. EY ENTREPRENEURIAL WINING WOMEN ASIA PACIFIC PROGRAM

“Women share a unique approach to business; they are using innovative technology to reach customers and utilize data in unprecedented ways,” said on the company’s website.

“Women especially understand that it’s not the technology itself that is important, but what connections, solutions and changes it enables you to make.”

Dell Australia offers several ways for women entrepreneurs to succeed including a centre for entrepreneurs; Dell’s Women’s Summit, an annual event taking place this year in Germany; and a Pay It Forward initiative, which works on the premise that if each contributor helps a woman business owner advance—and that woman, in turn, supports another— then we a global community of women supporting women can be created and the initial efforts can be greatly amplified. By the end of 2015,

The Entrepreneurial Winning Women Program in the Asia-Pacific is in its first year. The program, which has already had success in North America, has seen great success. So what can we expect for our region?

“We intend to leverage our global know-how, networks and convening power to help accelerate their growth journey,” shared Annette Kimmitt, Asia Pacific Executive Sponsor of

the Entrepreneurial Winning Women Program. “In the Americas, women business owners who participated in our program have reported a 49 percent increase in average annual revenue and a 26 percent increase in average annual job growth. I’d like to see us achieve at least these same growth rates, which would see the combined revenues of these 29

TOP 10 14 businesses grow by more than $700m over the next 3 years and more than 2,500 jobs created over that same period.

“As I’ve said to each of our Class of 2015, my hope is that in three years’ time, when they are each running internationally successful market-leading businesses, they’ll look back and see our EY Entrepreneurial Winning Women program as an important catalyst in accelerating their growth jouney.”

4. BUSINESS CHICKS Business Chicks is a community for inspiration, for both women and men.

“There’s definitely something that sets us Business Chicks apart,” shares Emma Isaacs, founder and CEO, on her website. “It’s not an age or a stage, and in spite of our name, it’s nothing to do with being in business. What unites us is our shared passion for ideas, our lust for creativity, our boldness, curiosity and generosity.

The community of 35,000-plus strong, independent thinkers is a great venue for people to swap ideas, share stories and, most 30

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importantly, spark inspiration. But it’s not just all work—much of it is play. Business Chicks is known for its events, which regularly feature high-profile speakers like Sir Richard Branson through to Diane von Furstenberg, Ita Buttrose, Julia Gillard, Michelle Bridges, Dr Brené Brown, Arianna Huffington, Sir Bob Geldof and Seth Godin, with their most recent lunch series featuring Bobbi Brown.

TIONS ENCOURAGING FEMALE PROFESSIONALS IN AUSTRALIA

3.LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY WOMEN The League of Extraordinary Women is on a—well—extraordinary growth path. Only founded three short years ago in Melbourne, the organisation now has nine locations within Australia and one now in the UK. “Such quick organic growth indicates that there is a deep seated need for the League, which is why it is now the largest and fastest growing movement of female entrepreneurs within Australia,” shared Chiquita Searle, General Manager of the League.

The goal of the League is to provide a powerfully influential community for women, globally, who are passionate and motivated

entrepreneurs, who are inspiring each other to succeed while also participating fully in entrepreneurial communities world-wide.

“The start-up culture in Australia is incredibly exciting to be a part of and to be included in the Business Review Australia’s featured best organisations for professional women in Australia for 2015 is an honour,” said Searle. “Any platform developed to support women, who may be experiencing feelings of isolation and who simply want to connect with other women in a similar position on a regular basis, is incredibly important and we are delighted to be recognised as such

by BRAu.”

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TOP 10

2. INKLING WOMEN Inkling Women exists to inspire women to create extraordinary lives and careers. The helps women leaders develop the capability and confidence to step up into more senior roles and to create careers and lives that they love and thrive in.

This year Inkling will partner with several of Australia’s leading organisations to run in-house development programs for their high-potential women, as well as develop a gender diversity strategy to increase gender diversity across these organisations.

“Too many years have been lost with the wheels spinning on this issue,” said CEO Gemma Munro in an article she wrote for CEO Magazine. “It is

time to be guided by the evidence.

High quality leadership programs, pragmatic courage on quotas and sustained, top-down culture change are needed—and not for political reasons. The positive organisational outcomes of diversity suggest serious action on gender equity is an obligation for leaders everywhere.”

There are also several programs open to the public, including Ignite, for emerging women leaders; Speakeasy, to help women leaders speak with “confidence, excellence and ease”; and Inspirit, for senior women leaders.

Two further programs—Unstoppable (in partnership with Taryn Brumfitt, founder of the Body Image Movement), and The School of Purpose and Passion—also run online.

1. TELSTRA BUSINESS WOMEN’S AWARDS For 21 years the Telstra Business Women’s Awards have celebrated and recognised the determination and innovation of many thousands of Australia’s brilliant business women, whose leadership and inspirational stories have made a positive impact in business and the community.

“Receiving the award is a great honour!” shared Anne Cross, CEO Uniting Care Queensland. “It is very exciting and I am especially pleased

that the not-for-profit sector has been recognised through these awards by the business community. It is a privilege to lead an organisation of great complexity that does so much good work in community. I hope that the award will encourage other women to contribute their passion, skills and expertise to the not-for-profit sector.

“I think this showcases women’s achievements to the whole business community, builds networks and highlights to other women and the whole community what is possible.”

EXCLUSIVE

Business Utility with a Social Identity: An Exclusive Look at

Businessfriend Business Review Australia was granted an inside look at a new app that’s looking to take the market by storm.

W R I T T E N B Y: L A U R A C LO S E

EXCLUSIVE HAVE YOU EVER heard of a BUSI platform? Neither had we until learning about businessfriend, a new app that promises to simplify your life. But it doesn’t just want to be your go-to social app, it wants to be your ‘everything’ app.

BUSI stands for Business Utility with a Social Identity. For all of those who have thought that Facebook is a little too personal, and the Linkedin doesn’t offer enough as far as chat or messaging capabilities are concerned, businessfriend might be your solution.

It’s actually the solution for a lot of things. Video chat, IM with free VoIP calls and a unique contact management system called Digidex allow for ease of communication.

Free cloud storage complements the chat applications, encouraging teams to collaborate online for their work. Ironically enough, “Where Professionals Collaborate,” is the app’s tagline.

“Most platforms are either social or business, not both,” said Leslie

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Choose what topics you’d like to Nash, VP marketing communications at the tech company. “businessfriend allows you to have both—so instead of juggling apps to get you through your day (i.e. Gotomeeting for screen sharing to LinkedIn for professional, Facebook for social), you have everything you need in one platform.

appear on your social feed: only get what you want!

“In July, Nielsen reported that app use was up a remarkable 65 percent from two years prior, but number of apps used only increased slightly...Evidently consumers have tapped out on juggling apps and are sticking with those that work the best—for them.”

Businessfriend launched at CES 2015 this year, and the response was impressive. CEO and founder Glen White commented everyone

who came by the booth was excited about the product: and it was easy to see the founder himself really believes in this platform.

“It’s a totally new concept for social networks and content provision, but it’s also a social network with a unified communications platform,” said White. “It allows users to not only be social, not only to see the feeds of their favourite brands or 39

EXCLUSIVE

their colleagues and friends and contacts, but also to have the tools such as instant messaging, video chat, audio chat and digital contact management system.”

White mentions the population of your social feed with articles and news from brands that you enjoy connecting with. This is a great feature, especially if—like me—you sit in front 40

March 2015

of your computer all day working. Have businessfriend open to your social feed, and you won’t miss the info from your favourite companies. White has commented that he will be taking a trip to New York in the near future to negotiate with other big-name brands to partner with the app.

Back at CES, Techpodcasts.com interviewed White and Scott Ertz, host

BUSINESSFRIEND

of the interview, agreed that the app had great potential in the hands of a determined and busy professional.

“Businessfriend is a social network with a true purpose, though,” shares Techpodcasts.com.

“Created to help people collaborate with their colleagues and favourite brands, businessfriend offers a number of personal and

business-related features missing from any single platform.”

He also commented on its usability across platforms: PC, Mac or mobile devices.

“I like that it’s got a unified experience. It doesn’t matter where you are, you feel like you are in the same app,” said Ertz. And it does.

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Australian Bluegum Plantations:

Australian Bluegum Plantati Prepares for Growth With a diversifying market and strong growth, Australian Plantations is a young business with a bright future.

Written by: Sasha Orman Produced by: Cory Shields

ions Bluegum

A U S T R A L I A N B L U E G U M P L A N TAT I O N S

I

n the past few years, the world economy has made it a difficult time for Australian businesses with products seeking to export outside of the domestic market.

But while many have struggled, others are on the rise.

Among them is Australian Bluegum Plantations Pty Ltd. With 110,000 hectares of Bluegum (Eucalyptus globulus) plantations spread across Western Australia, South Australia and Victoria, ABP is in the business of producing premium wood fibre for the pulp and paper sectors. By exploring new markets and vertically 44

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integrating its operations, the fledgling venture is striving to become a successful integrated forestry business.

Growing the Business from Scratch Every business has to start somewhere and with Australian Bluegum Plantations it commenced with the acquisition of a large plantation estate and the purchase of additional plantations adjacent to these plantations, as well as two port operations. “In November 2009, we purchased 93,000 hectares of

M A N U FA C T U R I N G

plantation—with no access to export markets, we just bought the land and trees,” says ABP managing director Tony Price, explaining that the land was purchased from a previous plantation venture that had failed and gone into receivership.

That lack of direct market access required the negotiation of partnership agreements with thirdparty businesses for processing and shipping ABP’s product, which was very important to get the business up and running in the first couple of years. Through these arrangements the business was

able to gather momentum with the business increasing its sales by almost double from 2012 to 2014 “In 2012, we had the opportunity to acquire the forestry assets and port facilities of a company that was seeking to exit the forestry business,” says Price.

“The additional plantations we purchased increased our total estate to around 110,000 hectares, and with that acquisition we purchased a port facility in Albany in Southwestern Australia.

Shortly after that acquisition, we had the opportunity to buy another port facility at the Port of w w w. a u s t g u m . c o m . a u /

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Peterson is represented by Komatsu Forest in Australia and New Zealand which provides a strong combination in meeting the local requirements.

Komatsu Forest offers chipping contractors real product support and expertise.

www.komatsuforest.com.au

Komatsu Forest Pty Ltd. 11/4 Avenue of Americas Newington NSW 2127 Australia T: +61 2 9647 3600 E: info.au@komatsuforest.com

A U S . B L U E G U M P L A N TAT I O N S Portland which was in the other area we operate—so we acquired that, which allowed us to have our own avenue to market in Eastern Australia as well as Western Australia.”

As Price explains, the purchase of these port facilities has been as strategically valuable as the acquisition of the trees themselves. “It allowed us to move down the supply chain,” he says.

“Where we’d been totally reliant on third parties for getting our wood to market in the past, this gave us the opportunity to more effectively manage our supply chain, which we believe is a very sensible move in the long term.”

Over the two years, ABP has worked hard to integrate its new facilities and staff into the business as a whole. “We think we did that pretty well,” says Price. “Now that we have pulled the supply chain together, the next step is to optimize and improve the efficiency of that supply chain.”

Exploring New Markets Diversification can be vital to the growth of a new business, and Australian Bluegum Plantations is

M A N U FA C T U R I N G

looking outside of the paper pulp industry to discover new markets and develop new partnerships.

“One that’s exciting to us at the moment and where we think there’s the potential for even more growth t is a product called dissolving pulp,” says Price. “This is used in the production of rayon for clothing. In China alone, that market is projected to grow 50 percent from its current level in the next two to three years.

Historically, softwood was used for that process—but it’s now been found that the high quality of our fibre is well suited for this process. Probably 80 percent of our wood that is exported to China at the moment goes toward that process. So that’s an emerging or growing market for us and we’re pursuing that.”

Protecting the Environment Environmental protection is always a concern within the industry.

Rather than avoiding the subject, Australian Bluegum Plantations embraces it, caring for the remnant native vegetation on its properties, along with native wildlife. w w w. a u s t g u m . c o m . a u /

47

The real BIG Blue Gum forwarder… Solution

Komatsu Forest’s ECO Harvester Komatsu Forest matches a Komatsu PC270-8 with a Komatsu C202E debarking head and forestry modifications to comply with Australian Forest Standards.

The PC270-8 provides the higher engine hp for optimum performance of the Komatsu C202E head with this combination providing: • High Production • High Availability • Lower Purchase Price • Low Operational Cost Komatsu Forest offers alternatives to meet the various harvesting demands in the blue gum plantations plus local factory support offering real benefits to contractors.

www.komatsuforest.com.au

Komatsu Forest Pty Ltd. 11/4 Avenue of Americas Newington NSW 2127 Australia T: +61 2 9647 3600 E: info.au@komatsuforest.com

Total Forestry Focus Komatsu Forest AB (KF) is a major global supplier of forestry equipment with its Head Office located in Sweden. The distribution of KF forestry equipment is carried out by factory owned sales companies and dealers which are supported by the Komatsu factories located in Sweden, USA, Japan, and Brazil.

The Australian sales company Komatsu Forest Pty Ltd (previously known as Valmet Logging) was established in Oct 1990 with the Head Office located in Sydney which incorporates the main parts warehouse. The Head Office supports the KF branches in Albury / Wodonga, Mt.Gambier, Launceston, and Rotorua as well as the service / parts agents located throughout the more remote forest regions of Australia and New Zealand.

Komatsu Forest is rather unique in that it relies totally on forestry business whereas with all other major suppliers forestry is very much a sideline or secondary business interest. This forestry focus enabled KF to take the market leadership in the early 90’s and continues to hold this position today through its concentration on customer support; •

• • • •

Customer/Product Support through; i. In field technical expertise ii. High spare parts availability iii. Competitive pricing Close customer relationships Long term specialised staff Flexibility to meet quick changes to market demands Product modifications to satisfy local conditions

Also Komatsu Forest is able to adapt to the different demands of the various sized companies within the Forestry industry. Being able to adjust to these different requirements is very important. In many cases the harvesting demands and expectations of the equipment may vary, so in this situation KF is able to find a solution that normally will satisfy all parties involved.

With 25 years of experience, Komatsu Forest is the longest serving machinery supplier to the Australian and New Zealand Forestry Industries and it will continue to meet customers’ expectations as the prime supplier of quality forest machines. i.e. TOTAL FORESTRY FOCUS…

Management: Brett Jones - Managing Director, Mike Jones - Marketing Director, Brenton Yon - Sales/Marketing Manager (Aust), Dean O’Connor - N.Z. Manager, Sheryl Pavloff - Financial Controller and Paul Harrison - Product Support Manager.

Website: www.komatsuforest.com.au

& L.V. Dohnt and Company - The largest infield chipping contractor in Australia and Function Chains Pty Ltd, both leaders in improving woodchip quality and increasing wood fibre recovery.

Bracke Plough

Their R&D partnership resulted in the invention of the “square flail chain” which is now widely used in Australia, Canada and the USA.

CHAMPIONS IN CHIPPING

Peterson chipper

Skidder

Feller buncher

Visit us online:

www.lvdohnt.com.au

1.8 million hectares of plantation. one specialist insurance broker.

Flail drum with square chain

Ph: +61 8 8739 7276 Email: admin@lvdohnt.com.au

“We operate in accordance with Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) forest management principles,” says Price. “We’re very proud of that and we have a strong commitment to sound environmental management, it is ingrained in our business.”

Aiming for the Best Australian Bluegum Plantations certainly intends to continue explore growth options in the future, and always has an eye out for potential new opportunities,

T 02 9965 1100

F 02 9965 1111 E info@agririsk.com.au

www.agririsk.com.au

A U S . B L U E G U M P L A N TAT I O N S

M A N U FA C T U R I N G

whether it’s markets or acquisitions. But with that said, it is not a business concerned with growing at any cost.

“We’re not necessarily the biggest, but I think we’ve got ourselves well positioned as a significant, reliable, high-quality supplier in this market and we’ll acquire assets if it makes sense and fits with our strategy,” says Price, explaining that quality growth will always be our goal.

“One of our customers asked last year if we’re going to become pretty big,” he says. “I said: look, the business has grown and we’ve done that to improve the efficiencies of our business. But at the end of the day our target isn’t to be the biggest company, it’s to be the best. That is our philosophy.”

Company Information INDUSTRY

Manufacturing HEADQUARTERS

Part Level 1, 24 Albert Road, SOUTH MELBOURNE VIC 3205 FOUNDED

2009 EMPLOYEES

52 REVENUE

NA

“The additional plantations we purchased increased our total estate to around 110,000 hectares, and with that acquisition we purchased a port facility in Albany in Southwestern Australia.”

– ABP managing director Tony Price

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Healthy Sleep Solutions:

Helping patients with sleep apnea live l healthier and more fulfilling lives

Working with leading, independent specialist sleep physici Solutions is committed to delivering an innovative, conveni for definitive sleep apnea diagnosis and subsequent treatm Written by: Stephanie C. Ocano Produced by: Troy Barker

:

longer, happier,

ians across Australia, Healthy Sleep ient yet simple benchmark service ment, management and support.

H E A LT H Y S L E E P S O L U T I O N S

HSS being awarded Natus Distributor of the year for Asia Pac in KL Malaysia

O

ur vision is to help people with sleep apnea live longer, happier, healthier and more fulfilling lives. We do that by delivering innovative, convenient and simple solutions that remove the barriers to their happiness,” said Marjan Mikel, managing director at Healthy Sleep Solutions in a recent interview.

Founded in 2007 with the express purpose of providing primary care doctors and their patients at risk of sleep apnea with appropriate and affordable access to diagnostic, treatment and long-term disease management solutions. Delivering 54

March 2015

on these promises Healthy Sleep Solutions quickly became Australia’s largest provider of sleep diagnostic and treatment services.

“At the moment, peoples’ primary medical touch point is their General Practitioner. Extremely busy and time poor these primary care physicians have much to tend to with patient care and, understandably, may not routinely assess patients for sleep apnea.

It is estimated that 80% of people suffering with sleep apnea remain undiagnosed. Furthermore, once patients are identified as being at risk of sleep apnea there has often

H E A LT H C A R E

Finance and Administration Manager Bernadette Frech and one of our Sleep Services Coordinators Catherine McCaffrey

been a rather convoluted and time consuming process for the patient to be definitively diagnosed and then treated. All of this can be very costly,” discussed Mikel. “Our goal has been to eliminate the obstacles and barriers; making it easy for the patient to navigate what can be a confusing and convoluted process.

We streamline as much as we possibly can without compromising the medical service. We also ensure that the independent Sleep Physician is the integral stakeholder of the diagnosis and that the General Practitioner remains the champion of the patient’s care.”

Healthy Sleep Solutions has established a unique disease management and patient pathway that understands the obstacles currently affecting most sleep apnea patients. This included submitting a comprehensive health economic study to the government that helped institute a reimbursed home based sleep diagnostic and continues to cooperate with the Ministry of Health to ensure that these diagnostic investments are delivered to the appropriate patients and delivering the . This has fundamentally redefined the way key stakeholders can approach the diagnosis issue. w w w. h e a l t h y s l e e p . n e t . a u

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Breathe easier, sleep more naturally Philips are passionate about providing solutions that help people sleep and breathe easier. Our Sleep and Respiratory Care solutions improve people’s lives through meaningful innovation in the areas of sleep apnoea management, oxygen therapy, non-invasive ventilation and no respiratory drug delivery.

Our latest innovation in the area of patient self-management, SleepMapper, puts your sleep therapy data in the palm of your hand.

Phone: 1300 766 488 Email: prcontact@philips.com Web:

www.philips.com.au/healthcare-solutions/sleep-and-respiratory-care

H E A LT H Y S L E E P S O L U T I O N S A Unique Approach to Disease Management The disease management model that Healthy Sleep Solutions follows is one that brings together all stakeholders, eliminating patient pathway inefficiencies that may compromise at risk patients being effectively identified, diagnosed and then appropriately treated and managed.

“What we do is bring all the stakeholders together. That includes patients, sleep specialists, primary care physicians, device manufacturers and technicians to make sure we come up with a

H E A LT H C A R E

simple, highly coordinated solution that overcomes the obstacles that were traditionally inherent in the system. This helps ensure that effective disease management occurs,” said Mikel.

“The typical sleep apnea patient is an obese 50 year old male, who snores and has an identified cardiovascular and/or metabolic disease such as high blood pressure or Type 2 Diabetes. However, they are generally not aware that the quality of their sleep is being severely compromised but rather attribute their tiredness to being older and overweight and not

SUPPLIER PROFILE PHILIPS HOME HEALTH Philips Sleep and Respiratory Care is part of Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands, a diversified world leader in healthcare, lifestyle and lighting. As a global leader in the sleep and respiratory markets, we are passionate about providing solutions that lead to healthier patients, healthier practices, and healthier businesses.

For us, innovation is driven by gaining insight into the needs of the people who use our products in the areas of sleep apnoea management, oxygen therapy, non-invasive ventilation and respiratory drug delivery.

Our quality CPAP systems reflect our commitment to providing exceptional therapy, enhanced patient comfort, and essential compliance tools so important in today’s challenging environment. Philips SleepMapper mobile and web-based solution lets OSA patients enhance their sleep therapy experience. EncoreAnywhere is a web-based system that makes it easier and more efficient for sleep professionals to manage patient compliance and therapy. Anytime. Anywhere.

Website: http://www.philips.com.au/healthcare-solutions/sleep-and-respiratory-care

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Bruce Piggott franchisee far North Queensland. Bruce services patients in an area the size of Belgium.

H E A LT H Y S L E E P S O L U T I O N S to the possibility that they may have sleep apnea; tiredness becomes an accepted normality for them,” he continued. “Unless General Practitioners proactively manage patients to help them understand that it is sleep apnea that could be the root cause of their fatigued state and also exacerbating their cardiovascular risk profile then there is little chance of the patient taking steps to address their condition.

We work in a way that reinforces that the sleep specialists and general practitioners are the key stakeholders in the identification and management of at risk patients and this helps to proactively search for potential sleep apnea in a medical setting.”

“We also employ a national team

H E A LT H C A R E

of Sleep Service Coordinators who are a key factor in helping to ensure that General Practitioners are more aware of the risk of sleep apnea in their own medical practice as well as the convenience, simplicity and effectiveness of our solution” Mikel explained.

“The effectiveness of Healthy Sleep Solutions and the General Practitioner working together to identify at risk patients can be seen in the fact that normally one in twenty adult Australians are thought to be at risk of moderate to severe sleep apnea, however, working together our diagnostic “hit-rate” is ten out of every twenty referred patients and a further six out of twenty referred patients have mild sleep apnea”

“We invest very heavily in building and maintaining a world class team. The people in this organization are the fundamental assets that we have.”

– Marjan Mikel, Managing Director

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C O M PA N Y N A M E

HSS being awarded Natus Distributor of the year for Asia Pac in KL Malaysia

Redefining the Supply Chain Model The supply chain at Healthy Sleep Solutions involves the provision of medical devices and consumables, but it’s not about machines. It’s about the service and the people involved in delivering that service. “A landmark clinical study has shown that you only need to treat 60

March 2015

seven mild to moderate sleep apnics to prevent two serious or fatal cardiovascular events. However, in order for this to happen the patients need to have the right treatment solution customized to them and to be adherent and compliant with that treatment. We therefore co-ordinate the key stakeholders around the patient, General Practitioners, Sleep

SECTOR

Specialists, Sleep Technicians and suppliers. We have been successful in redefining what the supply of excellent service and duty of care to sleep apnics really should be,” said Mikel. “It’s not necessarily about the type of machine used in treatment, when one is recommended by an independent Sleep Physician, because they’re all very good. We

use all the major brands: ResMed, Philips, Fisher and Paykel. They all work well when they are used properly. That’s not the issue. It’s about the patient, their needs and aspirations. You need to recognize that it’s all about the individual then everything else needs to be redefined and aligned accordingly.

So it’s not the device, not the w w w. h e a l t h y s l e e p . n e t . a u

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H E A LT H Y S L E E P S O L U T I O N S

“The more we focus on the fact that we’re here to deliver a service to our patients, the more other things fall into place.”

– Marjan Mikel

Sleep Specialist, not the General Practitioner, but the sum total of everything that the patient needs.”

Healthy Sleep Solutions partners with market leading organizations and develops relationships with them in order to provide the right solution to the individual patient.

“It’s one thing to sit there and have discussions about margins and terms of trade, etc; and it’s another thing completely to work together to develop solutions that are geared towards the real issues and obstacles that limit our patients’ access to world class solutions and resulting better health outcomes,” said Mikel. “What we try and do is find organizations to partner with that truly understand that.”

Goals of Expanding in Australia Healthy Sleep Solutions is focusing 62

March 2015

heavily on expanding its presence in Australia.

“We’re basically scratching the surface. Despite our success in working with medical practitioners to diagnose tens of thousands of at risk patients 80 percent of individuals with sleep apnea still remain undiagnosed. Many of them will not have access to diagnostics, not just in this country, but globally.

We’ve got a lot of work to do to make sure we make the appropriate services available to the people that really need them and in turn this will continue to fuel growth and continued success,” said Mikel.

“We’re also looking at taking what has worked very successfully in sleep apnea and applying this to other relevant disease states,” continued Mikel. “Most of our patients are high-risk cardiovascular

H E A LT H C A R E

patients and at this juncture we do a very good job of looking after their sleep apnea but then really do have a limited impact on the other cardiovascular risk factors that they have.

What we want to achieve is to provide General Practitioners and relevant Specialists with a partnership to continue to enhance the quality of care patients receive. When you stand still in a dynamic market like healthcare provision, you invariably go backwards and we intend to stay ahead of the game. We know that we have been able to achieve very positive outcomes to date with sleep apnics and so we are very confident that we can broaden our care portfolio to address other relevant disease states that typically occur in sleep apnics.”

According to Mikel, 2015 will be a year of local expansion, continued investment in Healthy Sleep Solutions’ patients and developing the IT infrastructure to streamline processes.

“We will continue to look at partnering with our suppliers at a level that is not transactional but more a true partnership where we work together to solve some of the broader issues impacting the most important people in this whole process; the patients,” concluded Mikel. “We will continue to grow our market share in Australia from our current strong position and we have objectives of launching Healthy Sleep Solutions in two or three international markets in the coming 12 months.”

Company Information INDUSTRY

Healthcare HEADQUARTERS

Sydney NSW Australia FOUNDED

2007 EMPLOYEES

50+ REVENUE

NA PRODUCTS/ SERVICES Healthy Sleep Solutions is dedicated to the multitude of patients in Australia who suffer daily with the consequences of Sleep Apnea and associated conditions. We try to remember that we exist solely to help these patients.

We try never to forget that the patient is at the centre of everything we do. The more we remember this, the more successful we will be.

w w w. h e a l t h y s l e e p . n e t . a u

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Primo Smallgoods:

Primo Smallgoods Group Prepares For Growth

Primo CEO Paul Hitchcock discusses the JBS acquis exporting and plans for growth.

Written by: Sasha Orman Produced by: Rob Benson

p

sition, a future in

65

PRIMO SMALLGOODS

Primo Headquarters

A Sensible Partnership As Primo Smallgoods CEO Paul Hitchcock explains, the company’s attributes make it a perfect addition to the JBS family.

“Primo is a branded meat business, and we’ve been bought by an organization whose core business is meat and who wanted 66

March 2015

to invest in branded and nonbranded meat assets,” says Hitchcock. “In terms of capital investment, it makes sense for them to invest in a business like ours.”

The acquisition also poses many benefits to Primo Smallgoods as well. The support of a worldwide business like JBS, which has

FOOD, DRINK AND FRANCHISE

established roots in a number of countries, promises to be a strong asset as Primo prepares to ramp up its efforts in exporting its products in the Asia market.

“Within Australia and New Zealand our distribution is strong,” says Hitchcock. “The benefit with us is into the Asian export

market, where JBS has established businesses. It will certainly help our export business, which is relatively small and relatively new. We’ll be able to leverage the JBS Asian distribution infrastructure to grow Primo export sales out of Australia.”

The partnership between JBS and Primo Smallgoods has

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65 NORTHGATE DRIVE THOMASTOWN VICTORIA AUSTRALIA 3074

E: sales@burgessprinting.com.au

P: +61 3 9205 8900

Our considerable experience in the production of a range of Barrier Flexible packaging webs, Pouches and a wide range of Labels across many applications within the Perishable Food, Beverage, Pharmaceutical & Petrochemical sectors puts us at the forefront of product knowledge and innovation.

WWW.BURGESSPRINTING.COM.AU

PRIMO SMALLGOODS F O O D , D R I N K A N D F R A N C H I S E also extended into the field of philanthropy. Primo Smallgoods processes meat donated from JBS Australia, along with other livestock companies like Wellard Group and Austrex, into sausages for Australian food relief organisation Foodbank.

This partnership helps Foodbank achieve its goal of providing 75,000 meals to Australians in need every month.

Building for Innovation and Growth Growing a business properly requires plenty of groundwork,

and Primo Smallgoods has been committed to putting in the time and effort. Recently the business invested $200 million AUD in the construction of a brand new production site in Brisbane, with features like a product development facility, test kitchens and other facilities to develop new products. The opening of this facility has allowed Primo Smallgoods increased opportunity to innovate with new products, like the recently launched olive oil-infused Ham’s O-Living product line.

“That will be a focus—new

SUPPLIER PROFILE PRIMO SMALLGOODS Burgess Printing & Packaging has forged a reputation for it excellence in meeting the demands of its customers in today’s competitive market within the fresh food packaging sector.

At Burgess we understand the demands that our customers like Primo face in today’s retail market space. We understand not only the importance of delivering a quality product but the need to deliver flexibility and a dynamic service enabling our customers to meet the changing demands of their market.

Our reputation to achieve and deliver a “Speed to Market” service for new products is we believe unmatched in today’s market.

Apart from our dynamic supply offer we count among our staff an extensive level of packaging product and market experience that is equal if not superior to the rest of the flexible packaging supply sector.

We have and will continue to invest in the latest equipment to deliver quality product and service to our customers.

Website: www.burgessprinting.com.au

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PRIMO SMALLGOODS product development,” says Hitchcock. “We participate in a very large category, and our customers and consumers are looking at us as market leaders to grow that category. A key plank of that growth will be through new product development, innovation, packaging and expanding the smallgoods category.”

Along with the ability to focus on new product development, the new Brisbane production site is also built with extra space,

Serious about business since 1870 The Food Ingredients Division manufactures and blends a wide range of selected ingredients for the meat, poultry, smallgoods, bakery, health & nutrition, snack food & beverage industries.

1300 130 952

www.oppenheimer.com.au

allowing for Primo Smallgoods to add production lines and ramp up its output as it makes moves to increase its export reach.

“We have some quite aspirational growth targets for exports, and what this facility has enabled is that—as we grow our export business—we’re not constrained by capacity,” says Hitchcock. “So a large part of that facility is not only growth for the domestic market, but to provide growth for the export market. At the end of the day, that’s one of the major reasons we invested in a brand new facility that was much bigger than what we need today: it’s been built with the future in mind.”

Growth on Multiple Fronts With the support of JBS, Primo Smallgoods is primed for growth in several areas. In one arena, the business is ready to take its products to new audiences in Asian markets like Korea, Indonesia and China. Primo is also taking a look at different ways to market and enhance its product lines for growth both

FOOD, DRINK AND FRANCHISE

abroad and domestically.

“We have really good products that can be consumed at various occasions, whether it’s for breakfast, snacking, lunch or dinner,” notes Hitchcock. “We’re really focusing on increasing the consumption of our existing product range, as well as on new products that are targeting specific eating occasions.

“For example: snacking. We’ve launched a range of salami bites, which are snacking products.

Rather than launching a whole lot of new products, we’re thinking about how we can use existing ham, bacon and smallgoods products for different occasions.

New products are clearly part of our growth, but it’s also about taking existing products and getting more consumers to eat them on more occasions.”

to investing in the quality and consistency of its brand. Part of that commitment is in operations that don’t just maintain the status quo but are always improving.

“Continuous improvement is something we’re always focusing on,” says Hitchcock. “How can we get better? How can we reduce wastage? How can we improve productivity? How can we reduce energy? How can we get better yields out of the meat that we’re using to produce our finished product? How can we reduce packaging waste? Those are things we’re continuously looking at, and we have dedicated continuous improvement managers at each of our two major smallgoods sites [in Brisbane as well as Chillura] that are responsible for helping our teams improve their productivity, reduce costs, and reduce wastage.”

A Commitment to Quality Another part is the willingness to What is it that sets Primo reinvest in keeping the company Smallgoods apart and has helped operating at its best. “One thing the company become a household Primo has a good track record name throughout Australia and of over the years is investing in New Zealand? A major component plants and equipment—from new is the brand’s commitment equipment and new machines to w w w. p r i m o s m a l l g o o d s . c o m . a u

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PRIMO SMALLGOODS

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March 2015

FOOD, DRINK AND FRANCHISE

just the infrastructure of running a food plant, there’s been a lot of investment to make sure we have the very highest quality and food safety standards,” says Hitchcock. “Quality is one of those things that’s a given: you’ve got to have it, and you’ve got to always produce highquality products. Every time your customer buys your products, it’s got to be that same consistent high quality, and that’s what Primo products deliver.”

Company Information INDUSTRY

Food HEADQUARTERS

Chullora NSW, Australia FOUNDED

A Can-Do Culture But beyond that commitment to quality is a company culture that ensures quality continues to stay at the forefront of all that Primo Smallgoods does. A relative newcomer to the company, CEO Hitchcock has found inspiration in Primo Smallgoods Group’s ethics and the company culture that it has cultivated for the past three decades as a family business. It’s an ingrained culture that will continue to abide as Primo continues to advance and grow with JBS and in new markets and opportunities.

“It’s an entrepreneurial culture, and the Lederer family—led by our chairman Paul Lederer—has been a driving force behind the growth of Primo,” says Hitchcock. “It has a very can-do customer focused culture.

Nothing’s a problem to the Primo people: we just get on and do it. There’s no bureaucracy, no politics. I’ve found that a breath of fresh air.”

1985 EMPLOYEES

4,000 REVENUE

$1 Billion PRODUCTS/ SERVICES For just over 30 years, Primo Smallgoods Group has been in the business of supplying Australia and New Zealand with top quality ham, bacon and smallgoods. In that time the company grew from a small family business to the largest purveyor of processed meats and smallgoods in the Southern Hemisphere. In November 2014 Primo began a transformation, merging with global meat processor JBS. Today Primo Smallgoods is leveraging that comprehensive support with the family business principles that have set the business apart for decades—and finding that there is still plenty of room to grow.

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Foodbank Australia

Primo Helping To meat The Need

d

FOODBANK AUSTRALIA

Foodbank guests serve a special midday meal at the Salvation Army’s William Booth House in Surry Hills to mark the official launch of the Foodbank Meat Program. (From left) Bernie McNally and Rob Lederer, Primo Smallgoods; Geoff Starr, Foodbank Australia; Gerry Andersen, Foodbank NSW; Annie Chapman, Department of Social Services.

E

ssential protein is on the menu for Australians in need thanks to an innovative partnership between Foodbank, Australia’s largest food relief organisation, and Primo Smallgoods.

In a chain of collaboration which stretches right back to the cattle farm, donated livestock is being 76

March 2015

turned into sausages to form the backbone of nutritious meals for struggling Australians who might otherwise go without.

Fortnightly deliveries of sausages go from the Primo factory to Foodbank warehouses around Australia. Primo undertakes the manufacture of

FOOD

Protein is a critical component of nutritious meals for people seeking food relief. With the help of Primo Smallgoods, the Foodbank Meat Program is working towards distributing enough sausages to charities for 75,000 meals a month.

the sausages with the support of its suppliers such as Devro, who provides the sausage casings and Labelmakers who provide the labels. Scott’s Refrigerated Transport delivers the sausages around the country.

Foodbank has a target of 10,000 kilograms of sausages

every month – enough for 75,000 meals - to meet the current need for this critical meal component.

To achieve this, it is working with Primo, along with the cattle industry to obtain a regular ongoing supply of animals from farmers and cattle companies to underpin the Primo production. w w w. f o o d b a n k . o r g . a u /

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FOODBANK AUSTRALIA

Paul Lederer of Primo Smallgoods prepares some of his company’s sausages for the residents of the Salvation Army’s William Booth House in Surry Hills at the official launch of the Foodbank Meat Program.

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March 2015

FOOD

Foodbank acts as a bridge between the needs of Australia’s disadvantaged and the desire of the food and grocery industry to provide assistance. All sectors of the industry, from primary producers to retailers, support Foodbank by providing stock that is surplus to need, close to expiry or out of specification.

This is not enough to meet the growing demand for food relief, however, so in addition Foodbank partners with the country’s manufacturers in innovative programs to proactively source a range of key staple foods - such as breakfast cereals, milk, fruit and vegetables, pasta, rice and meat – essential to the provision of balanced, nutritious meals.

The sausage program is the latest of these initiatives to reach

back along the food chain to fill the supply gap. Foodbank has now established programs that tap into the willingness of producers, processors and manufacturers from many sectors to help as much as they can. By involving as many players in the supply chain as possible, the challenge is shared and therefore the programs become more sustainable.

CEO of Foodbank Australia, Jason Hincks said: “Having a significant and sustainable meat program has long been a goal of Foodbank because of the vital role protein plays in a balanced diet and the relative difficulty we experience in obtaining it through our traditional rescue channels.

We are extremely grateful to Primo Smallgoods and its partners who have helped to make this possible.”

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