Media release from the Australian Trade and Investment Commission.
11 Dec 2020
Australian exporters who adapted to the challenges of 2020 by embracing technology, developing new products and breaking into different markets are being recognised for their inspiring achievements.
The Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment, Simon Birmingham will be congratulating Aussie exporters who overcame extraordinary challenges this past year on Friday 11 December 2020.
Exporters make an enormous contribution to the Australian economy each year, with one in five jobs tied to trade.
Eight exporting businesses have been chosen to be featured in the 2020 online Remarkable Australian Exporter showcase, from a field of more than 360 companies:
- Summernats (ACT)
- Flavourtech (NSW)
- Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair Foundation (DAAFF) (NT)
- Icon Group (Qld)
- Bec Hardy Wines (SA)
- Novaris (Tas)
- Care Essentials (Vic); and
- Epichem (WA).
Tim Beresford, acting CEO of the Australian Trade and Investment Commission, praised exporters.
“It’s been an extremely tough year for Australian businesses working internationally. Restrictions on travel disrupted global supply chains and increased the cost of doing business.
Our exporters demonstrated incredible resilience and a willingness to adapt.
“The businesses featured in the exporter recognition program are all great examples of Australian ingenuity and determination to succeed in a year of unprecedented challenges,” Mr Beresford said.
Remarkable Australian exporters showcase
Summernats (Australian Capital Territory)
Summernats, Australia’s premier car festival, developed a digital version of its popular Burnout Masters series. The gaming app has already been downloaded more than 1.5 million times. It also pivoted its event merchandise to an online retail lifestyle brand.
www.summernats.com.au
Flavourtech (Griffith, NSW)
Flavourtech, which exports high tech machinery to 60 countries adopted new technologies to install equipment remotely and managed to retain its entire highly skilled workforce.
www.flavourtech.com
Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair Foundation (Darwin, Northern Territory)
The Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair Foundation developed an online art fair platform after the pandemic forced the cancellation of its annual live event. The platform was a huge success: all ticketed events sold out within 24 hours, generating over $2.6 million in sales.
www.daaf.com.au
Icon Group (Brisbane, Queensland)
Icon Group, Australia’s largest provider of cancer care, set up remote learning models and training, and used augmented reality headsets so its clinical experts in Australia were able to watch, guide and assess their overseas counterpart’s treatment process in real-time.
www.icongroup.global
Bec Hardy Wines (McLaren Vale, South Australia)
Bec Hardy Wines invested in domestic marketing, pivoted to online sales and mapped out nine new international markets to diversify its export mix.
www.bechardy.com.au
Novaris (Kingston, Tasmania)
Electrical componentry manufacturer Novaris, had to quickly re-evaluate its operations and innovate after COVID-19 significantly impacted access to suppliers and manufacturing. It quickly adapted its Tasmanian manufacturing plant to produce products that it had never produced before.
www.novaris.com.au
Care Essentials (Geelong, Victoria)
Care Essentials pivoted its focus from manufacturing patient warming products for hospitals to produce a range of PPE products, surgical face masks and N95 respirators.
www.careessentials.com.au
Epichem (Bentley, Western Australia)
Epichem, Australia’s leading provider of synthetic and medicinal chemistry services partnered with a US-based company to acquire IP rights to a carbon-neutral benchtop flow reactor prototype to allow it to convert coal into biofuels, including ethanol – a key ingredient in hand sanitiser. It leveraged its global supply network to gain six months of critical supplies.
www.epichem.com.au
About Austrade:
The Australian Trade and Investment Commission – Austrade – is Australia’s leading trade and investment agency. We are experts in connecting Australian businesses to the world and the world to Australian businesses. We have a proud history of helping Australian businesses pursue their global ambitions and have the power to open doors, unlock opportunities and help Australian businesses go further, faster. We help attract game-changing investment to Australia, to support new industries, enhance existing ones and bolster our world-class research and development – strengthening global supply chains, creating local jobs and boosting the economy. With over 80 offices around the world, our experts in Australia and abroad collaborate to provide the best ‘in-country’ advice. Our diverse team, consisting of country experts, industry specialists, and trade and investment analysts, provides clients with actionable macro and micro insights. From trade and investment processes to protocols and regulation - we help Australian businesses, big or small, navigate complex overseas markets and make it easier for them to go global.
At the same time, our advice, contacts and support at every step, reduce the commercial risk of exporting to overseas markets. And, our work continues. At a time of increasing global uncertainty, we are transforming our services, to help ensure Australia’s growth and a global future for all.