14 July 2009 - By turning the humble coffee bean into a tourism drawcard, a boutique coffee roaster has taken out the top honour in the 2009 Western Australia Telstra Business Awards.

Telstra Business Executive Director, Steve McAllister, said Yahava KoffeeWorks was proof that taking something simple and doing it better than anyone else is a recipe for success.

"Yahava has built a manufacturing, wholesale, distribution and retailing business putting its coffee on the map alongside the great wineries in the Margaret River region," Mr McAllister said.

"With an eye on creating customer loyalty, they have turned buying coffee into an experience like no other."

Yahava KoffeeWorks, was the overall winner of the 17^th annual Western Australia Telstra Business Awards announced in Perth tonight.

The firm also took out the MYOB Small Business Award category. Other Award winners announced tonight were Loose Goose Chalets of Nannup (businessowner Micro-Business Award), Perth-based Lavan Legal (Panasonic Australia Medium Business Award), Addwealth Pty Ltd of Cottesloe (Sensis Social Responsibility Award) and Tim McCartney-Snape's Sea to Summit adventure retailing business which took out the AMP Innovation Award.

Presenting the winner's prize, Mr McAllister said the judges were impressed with Yahava's aggressive expansion strategy which included plans for new outlets in specialty food and wine regions in NSW, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.

The business was founded by Alex Kok, who grew up amid the café culture of Amsterdam and saw how sharing coffee was central to many social gatherings. After years of experience in the hospitality industry, his interest in coffee turned from a hobby into a full-time business.

"All the old maxims hold true," Mr Kok said. "Attention to detail, keep your promises, be different, build a strong team, establish strong relationships with customers and suppliers, and have a clear vision."

Taking out the Telstra businessowner Micro-Business Award (for businesses with no more than five staff), Loose Goose Chalets owners Laraine and Grant Raynel identified a gap in the tourism market for disabled-friendly holiday accommodation and set out to fill it. Since revamping their property and focusing on providing excellent customer service, this thriving husband and wife business has tripled occupancy rates.

Named the WA Panasonic Australia Medium Business Award winner, Lavan Legal has used innovative marketing and staff retention strategies to become successfully established in the Perth legal scene.

Well-known mountaineer Tim McCartney-Snape received the AMP Innovation Award as joint CEO of Sea to Summit - a fast growing outdoor adventure equipment company.

Financial planning firm Addwealth took out the Sensis Social Responsibility Award, with 25 per cent of its team engaged in leading and managing social responsibility activities.

Each of the category winners will now be judged against the category winners from other states in the lead up to the national Telstra Business Award to be announced in Sydney on August 20. There is over $400,000 in cash and prizes to be won.

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§  Alex Kok - Yahava KoffeeWorks acceptance speech

Alex Kok - WA coffee entrepreneur's acceptance speech after being Telstra Business Award winner in Perth.
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29 June 2009 – Mandurah-based small business, Concise Services, has been named as one of only five finalists in the MYOB Small Business Award category of this year’s West Australian Telstra Business Awards.

The Telstra Business Awards is Australia’s largest, most prestigious small business awards program which recognises the courage and determination of Australia’s business-building entrepreneurs.

Telstra Country Wide Area General Manager for Southern WA  Ray Philp, said Concise Services joined an elite group of Australia’s best small and businesses, united through the national awards program.

“For 17 years, the Telstra Business awards have applauded and inspired the strength and spirit of Australia’s entrepreneurs as part of Telstra’s support for the engine room of the economy,” Mr Philp said.

“Concise Services, which is a thriving business providing branding, marketing, design, web design, database and direct marketing services to small and medium sized businesses across Western Australia, is a great example of the type of business we want to support.”

Enthusiasm is infectious with the young entrepreneurial leader, Gareth Lane, who simply loves what he does.

At just 22, he has already established Concise Services as a business with three locations – Perth, Mandurah and Bunbury – and has plans for an additional two offices north of the Swan River and another three employees.

After a rocky start where many would have closed their doors, Gareth believed in his business and worked even harder to get it off the ground.

Now he’s proving he has what it takes to succeed, with Concise Services now having three times the employees, three times the offices and four times the turnover since it started in 2007.

The winners of the West Australian awards will be announced on July 14 and the winners of each category will progress to the national awards to be announced in Sydney on August 20.

Mr Philp said Telstra Business was committed to helping small and medium-sized businesses succeed by providing them with business grade tools and guidance for today’s challenging and ever-changing environment.

“We touch more small and medium businesses than almost any other organisation and we want them to succeed not only by providing services and solutions, by also by working in partnership with them to help their business thrive into the future,” Mr Philp said.

“As part of this commitment, each year Telstra invests months of work and millions of dollars to assess the hundreds of entries in the Telstra Business Awards.

“We make such a significant undertaking because we want to work with small and medium businesses to realise their potential and help them receive the recognition they deserve.”

29 June 2009 – Karratha-based small business, Coral Coast Print and Design, has been named as one of only five finalists in the micro-business award category of this year’s West Australian Telstra Business Awards.

The Telstra Business Awards is Australia’s largest, most prestigious small business awards program which recognises the courage and determination of Australia’s business-building entrepreneurs.

Telstra Country Wide Area General Manager for WA North, Tony Carmichael, said Coral Coast Print and Design joined an elite group of Australia’s best small and businesses, united through the national awards program.

 “For 17 years, the Telstra Business awards have applauded and inspired the strength and spirit of Australia’s entrepreneurs as part of Telstra’s support for the engine room of the economy,” Mr Carmichael said.

“Coral Coast Print and Design – a small business which started with basic equipment and a handful of clients - is a great example of the type of business we want to support.”

For the country-based printing and media business, located in Karratha, the focus is on getting the job done.

Coral Coast Print & Design provides state-of-the-art print work to both local and statewide clients and publishes the Pilbara’s only locally owned newspaper, The Pilbara Echo.

Owner Alan Richardson points to his understanding of the urgency and efficiency required when working in a boom town where every job is a priority as the basis for his success.

One of the unique challenges of working in a country boom town is the tough competition for employees, something Coral Coast Print & Design overcame by offering flexible working hours for its staff.

The business continues to branch out into other print service opportunities to keep pace with client requirements and is now considering establishing a second newspaper in Port Hedland. 

The winners of the West Australian awards will be announced on July 14 and the winners of each category will progress to the national awards to be announced in Sydney on August 20.

Mr Carmichael said Telstra Business was committed to helping small and medium-sized businesses succeed by providing them with business grade tools and guidance for today’s challenging and ever-changing environment.

“We touch more small and medium businesses than almost any other organisation and we want them to succeed not only by providing services and solutions, by also by working in partnership with them to help their business thrive into the future,” Mr Carmichael said.

“As part of this commitment, each year Telstra invests months of work and millions of dollars to assess the hundreds of entries in the Telstra Business Awards.

“We make such a significant undertaking because we want to work with small and medium businesses to realise their potential and receive the recognition they deserve.”

Two south west businesses named finalist in Telstra Business Awards

29 June 2009 – Two very different South Western WA businesses are in contention to win one of Australia’s most prestigious business awards.

Loose Goose Chalets has been named as a finalist for the Businessowner Micro-Business Award and Yahava KoffeeWorks has been named as a finalist for the MYOB Small Business Award in this year’s West Australian Telstra Business Awards.

The Telstra Business Awards is Australia’s largest, most prestigious small business awards program which recognises the courage and determination of Australia’s business-building entrepreneurs.

Telstra Country Wide Area General Manager for Southern WA, Ray Philp, said Loose Goose Chalets and Yahava KoffeeWorks joined an elite group of Australia’s best small and medium businesses, united through the national awards program.

“For 17 years, the Telstra Business awards have applauded and inspired the strength and spirit of Australia’s entrepreneurs as part of Telstra’s support for the engine room of the economy,” Mr Philp said.

“While very different businesses, Loose Goose Chalets and Yahava KoffeeWorks are both great examples of the types of businesses we want to support.”

Loose Goose Chalets used real estate and tourist trends, current statistics, local business knowledge and a lot of hard work, to identify a gap in the tourism market for disabled-friendly holiday accommodation and sought to fill it with a carefully selected location in Nannup, south west WA.

After modifications to make the accommodation wheelchair friendly and a little marketing, owners Laraine and Grant have tripled the occupancy rates since taking ownership of the property. In making the facilities more wheelchair friendly, they have also won favour with elderly people with mobility difficulties and parents with prams who make use of the easy access and open layouts.

Yahava KoffeWorks is another business that has benefited from delivering its clients with positive results despite the global economic situation. Yahava KoffeeWorks has built a strong reputation throughout Western Australia for specialty coffees, teas and other beverages products.

Strategically located in the Margaret River wine region, Yahava KoffeeWorks gives visitors the opportunity to see coffee roasting and offers free coffee tasting. A new retail outlet is opening soon in Swan Valley with further retail outlets planned for specialty food and wine regions in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania.

Yahava KoffeeWorks’ emphasis on quality is fast earning accolades nationally. Recently a Gold Medal Winner in the 2008 Golden Bean Coffee Roaster Competition, Yahava’s potential for growth is enormous.

Loose Goose Chalets and Yahava KoffeeWorks are just two of the 17 WA businesses announced today as finalists in the Telstra Business Awards across five categories. Each finalist has undergone a rigorous self-assessment process with their plans and processes assessed by a panel of independent judges. The winners of the West Australian awards will be announced on 14 July. The winners of each category will progress to the national awards to be announced in Sydney on 20 August, 2009.

Mr Philp said Telstra Business is committed to helping small and medium-sized businesses succeed by providing them with business grade tools and guidance for today’s challenging and ever-changing environment.

“We touch more small and medium businesses than almost any other organisation and we want them to succeed not only by providing services and solutions, by also by working in partnership with them to help their business thrive into the future,” Mr Philp said.

“As part of this commitment, each year Telstra invests months of work and millions of dollars to assess the hundreds of entries in the Telstra Business Awards.  We make such a significant undertaking because we want to work with small and medium businesses to realise their potential and receive the recognition they deserve.”

Relaunches itself to be THE VOICE of regional WA

The Regional Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Western Australia voted in a new Executive Committee at its Annual General Meeting held recently in Perth.

The recently released draft review of Business Enterprise Centres’ (BEC) presented to the Minister for Small Business, ignores the needs of regional businesses according to the Regional Chambers of Commerce and Industry (RCCI).

RCCI representing over 4,000 members throughout XX regional Chambers is asking the Minister to be aware that the recommendations made in the review to reduce the number of local Business Enterprise Centres removes another much needed resource currently being used for the benefit and survival of the small business community in regional Western Australia.

RCCI Chairman Rolf Stene says that in addition to the removal of a valuable resource for regional small businesses, the flow on effect needs to be considered.

“Small business, particularly in rural Western Australia, is the backbone of the community and provides opportunity and hope for the unemployed to obtain the dignity of work. The draft review sends an inappropriate message by removing not only a much needed service and its manager but replaces it with an unrealistic proposal of inefficient use of time and over extended resources,” Mr Stene said.

“The contribution that regional Western Australia makes to the wealth of our state cannot be ignored and that is why we are seeking support for those small towns that don’t have Chambers of Commerce to help them and rely on the services of a local BEC.”

“We all enjoy the benefit of the wealth created by regional Western Australia, now is the time to ensure we reward those who generate it.

“A healthier business community brings great benefits in terms of lowering unemployment and reducing social problems in these rural communities, let’s not ignore this,” Mr Stene said.