Ben's RunLaservisionMassel Pty Ltd
Ben’s Run
Norman Marran was an experienced exporter before starting Ben’s Run vineyard in the Hunter Valley. And, as a small producer without a cellar door outlet, he had always planned to sell his single wine, a Shiraz, overseas.
Norman was therefore an interested participant at the expert presentation organised by the Department’s Hunter regional office in 2006 that pinpointed Japan as a promising but undersold market for Australian wine. He then opted in to the subsequent Hunter wine mission to Japan put together by the Department in partnership with Austrade. The mission visited Osaka, Nagoya and Tokyo in May, 2007.
It proved the start of something big, with Austrade later brokering a deal between Australia Post and Japan Post for cheap delivery of small wine consignments to Japan, an arrangement ideal for Japanese buyers unwilling to import by the pallet load. Japan Post acts as an agent/distributor.
“So far I’ve sold over a quarter of our annual production to Japan and anticipate that sales will continue to build,” says Norman. “It’s a great concept with a great future for smaller Hunter wine producers.”
Ben’s Run has also benefited from post-mission support from the Department for creation of Hunter wines marketing material specifically for the Japanese market, including a new website.
ContactDepartment of State and Regional Development export programsPhone: 9338 6985Email: first@business.nsw.gov.au
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Laservision: exporting entertainment
Laservision is an entertainment communications company with expertise in lighting, lasers, sounds, fountains and water screens, digital image projection and special effects. It invests heavily in research and development and has successfully commercialised new products for use in high-tech attractions.
Exports account for 90 per cent of total revenue - an impressive result for a small company and one that marketing director Miles Pepperall acknowledges was achieved with support from the Department of State and Regional Development. Our role has been to help Laservision build the knowledge and connections critical to export success.
Continuing a longstanding relationship, in 2006 Laservision sought departmental assistance to further explore its export potential. After qualifying for the New Export Opportunities Program, Laservision was encouraged to join the Department’s market visit to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. The Department organised individual business appointments with potential importers, agents, distributors and retailers.
Providing Laservision with maximum exposure, the visit was also timed to coincide with "City Scape 2006", a major international architectural, building and construction trade show. Laservision is presently following up promising contacts made on the Dubai visit.
In November 2007 Laservision was named an Export Super Hero by the Australian Institute of Export.
The flavour of success
Western Sydney food manufacturing company Massel Pty Ltd is a family business that has been manufacturing and supplying flavouring products such as stock cubes and powders since 1982 and, more recently, liquid bouillon and herbs and spices in portion control form. Turnover is around $12 million a year.
While Massel has exported for some time, recent assistance from the Department of State and Regional Development has the business poised for export success in the highly competitive US food and beverage market.
Following their participation in the Department’s 2007 trade mission to the Winter Fancy Foods Show in San Francisco, company principals Frank and Chiara Caine returned with market information that helped them tailor their products for the US.
Changes included new packaging and clearer product information plus new presentations for potential distributors. “What we found was that subtle differences between the local and US markets were actually very important,” says Chiara. The Department helped by providing support for packaging redesign under the Post Market Visit Program.
Massel later relaunched their products at the 2007 Chicago Food Service Show and, says Chiara, are already seeing progress.