“Our vision to become the number one real estate training company is borne out of our desire to make the industry a better place, where young and old talent can thrive.” – Josh Phegan, Managing Director.

Josh Phegan sold his family’s 30-year-old real estate business to pursue a career in real estate training in 2007. His new job lasted just five months before he was retrenched. Unswayed, Josh started his own training business, Josh Phegan Training, coaching about 40 real estate agents over the phone from his home in Albury-Wodonga. In 2008, Josh branched into speaking events and the following year relocated to Double Bay in Sydney’s eastern suburbs to be closer to his growing client base. Josh Phegan Training now runs more than 630 one-on-one coaching sessions and a further 140 training seminars a year in Australia and overseas for leading real estate brands. The business has also produced its own audio learning modules on CD and is currently launching an online, 12-video training program. Josh now employs an assistant and, despite his hectic schedule, continues to offer coaching over the phone six afternoons a week.

“Working with young people can be very rewarding, knowing that they are working through one of the most important milestones in their life.” – Sue Tyler, Director.

Highlands Drive Safe driving school was founded in 2007 by teachers Murray and Sue Tyler who were looking for a career change. The pair knew they had to stand out from the crowd so they purchased a fleet of bright green Mazda 2s. Gradually they gained exposure and credibility by working with the local council road safety officer and participating in road safety education for Year 11 students. Growth in bookings last year prompted the Tylers to take on a trainee, who helped set the business up online and on Facebook, where it connects directly with its 16-to-21-year-old target market. Sue believes referrals and bookings via Facebook have helped triple sales over the past year. While teenagers are still Highlands’ primary customers, it also offers assessments for older drivers, rehabilitation lessons and plans to teach people with learning disabilities.

“We always aim to deliver a product of quality and value and, wherever possible, offer innovation to consumers and retailers.” – Joseph Marando, Director.

Impulse Products sources, develops and commercialises fast-moving consumer-goods for discount variety retailers. Started by Joseph Marando with three products in 2006, the Burwood company develops and markets its own line of products, acts as an agent for other organisations looking to sell their brands and consults to manufacturers wishing to develop their business. Impulse Products now imports, warehouses and distributes more than 44 lines, from breakfast cereals and biscuits to bottled water. In recent years it has distributed its innovative packaging design of Sweet Occasions confectionery range nationally, introduced a peanut butter range for a variety chain and developed stylish plastic cutlery. Now with four employees and handling 500 container loads of goods a year, Impulse Products continues to grow by undertaking constant category analysis to identify new trends, track the success of existing lines and provide feedback to clients on consumer preferences.

“We are passionately committed to promoting healthy lifestyles and changing people's lives, so they look and feel their best.” – Ariel Gonzalez, Managing Director.

While working in the not-for-profit sector, Ariel Gonzalez was saddened by the number of people with disabilities who were overweight and leading unhealthy lifestyles. In 2007, he set up Motivate You Fitness and Personal Training in south-west Sydney to include special needs exercise programs for the disability sector. He also ran one-on-one sessions and boot camps for the wider community. Ariel has grown the business by adding value for clients beyond a few hours of exercise each week, including tailored programs and sales of supplements, apparel and equipment. Motivate You supports clients with lifestyle advice and encourages boot-camp clients to mentor each other between sessions. Ariel believes he has succeeded by applying the principles of personal fitness – overcoming failure, operating outside of one’s comfort zone, discipline and determination – to his business. Motivate You now has five employees and operates in north-west Sydney, the Central Coast and the Hunter region, with plans to expand interstate.

“We want to help build a vibrant future for people living and working in rural and regional Australia.” – Robbie Sefton, Managing Director.

Best known for its beef and country music, Tamworth is not where you expect to find the headquarters of a national public relations consultancy. Yet Robbie Sefton has primarily based, and grown, her communications business in rural and regional Australia for more than 20 years. With expertise in corporate affairs, training, government and media relations and community consultation, Sefton & Associates specialises in reaching and giving a voice to “people in the bush”. Its six Tamworth employees and six associates throughout Australia work on projects critical to rural communities, such as agriculture, water, farm-to-market retail and supply, climate change, mining and tourism. Like many of its agri-based clients, Sefton & Associates has had to adapt to weather the prolonged drought and the GFC. The business has maintained strong revenue over the past four years by diversifying its client portfolio with regional corporates and growth sectors, such as natural resources, and expanding its services to facilitation and leadership programs.

“None of our competitors have holiday rental as their core business. We consider ourselves in the tourism industry, not the real estate industry.” – Perrie Croshaw, Director.

Former business writer Perrie Croshaw launched South Coast Holidays in Gerringong in 2000 to give holiday-makers and property owners an alternative to booking through real estate agents. Aware most agents focused on home sales and permanent rentals, Perrie spotted an opportunity to offer a more specialised tourism service that would help owners derive more value from their properties and help tourists have a more enjoyable stay. Business partner Paul Baldwin came on board in 2006 and they manage more than 80 quality holiday properties, advising on set-up, managing promotions and bookings and overseeing maintenance. South Coast Holidays also adds value by renting high-chairs, cots and bicycles and up-sells with catered meals, tickets to local events and pamper services. The business has grown revenue by more than 50 per cent per annum in the past five years due to online bookings, search engine optimisation, working with visitor centres in target markets and referrals and repeat stays by satisfied clients.

“We want to affect people positively through everything we do – through our vibrant marketing, our incredibly nutritious products and the way we function as a business.” – Dwayne Martens, CEO.

In 2008, self-confessed health fanatics Dwayne Martens and Chris Norden started importing Brazil’s nutrient-packed, purple acai berries and used them to produce freeze-dried health powders in a friend’s kitchen. Now based in Bondi with 13 employees nationally, Amazonia produces an extensive range of acai products for five countries, including capsules, chocolate, purees and snack bars. Dwayne says Amazonia overcame “hype” about exotic super-foods and gained credibility by educating retailers and consumers on their product and by sharing their company’s sustainable business and community practices. Amazonia is the only manufacturer of certified organic and free-trade acai products in Australia, and protects 2,000 acres of native acai rainforest, which supports around 4,000 families in the Macapa region of Brazil. Recognised by its signature purple packaging and merchandising, Amazonia has this year launched four products into supermarkets to build on last year’s five-fold increase in turnover.

“Our unique and sustainable nature experience delivers the ultimate wow factor and is perfectly adapted to Australian people and environment.” – Sandrine Gaymard, Founder and Business Development Manager.

High-wire expert Frederic Galimard and business partner Sandrine Gaymard see trees as an opportunity for adventure. The pair launched Ecoline in 1998 to design and build unique, tree-based activity structures before deciding to open an entire adventure park. It took five years to plan the facility, find the right location and negotiate with the NSW Government to sign over crown land for commercial use. In 2008 Ecoline opened its first TreeTop Adventure Park in Ourimbah State Forest on the Central Coast. Visitors explore the forest on flying foxes and suspension bridges, while children as young as three can experience the tree canopy safely on an innovative pulley system called Ecotrack. A second park opened in Newcastle in 2009 and a third is underway near Melbourne. Now with seven employees and more casual staff, Ecoline markets to corporates, schools and families and is looking to patent and market its unique Ecotrack design globally.

“Consumers are turning to each other to help guide the decisions they make about what products to buy.” – Sharyn Smith, CEO.

Soup’s aim is to get people talking about new products and services. Founded by Sharyn Smith in 2006, Soup became Australia’s first word-of-mouth marketing and media company, encouraging consumers to endorse products in their every-day face-to-face and online conversations. The Surry Hills company has signed on 100,000 consumers, or “Soupers”, whose demographics, lifestyles and product preferences are matched with brands so they can receive products pre-launch or exclusive access to new activities and events. In return, Soup’s clients obtain a credible, “people-powered” promotional channel to help cut through traditional advertising and fragmented media channels. Soup experienced early success with the launch of Coke Zero in Australia and now counts leading brands such as Nestle, Penguin, Huggies, Renault, Commonwealth Bank and Sony among its clients. In three years the business has tripled revenue, opened a New Zealand office and grown from four to 13 employees.

“Verify's service offering has increased exponentially over the past three years in response to legislation, compliance requirements, societal pressure and the increasingly diverse needs of our expanding client base.” – Greg Newton, Managing Director.

When employment checks in the United States tightened on the back of large corporate accounting scandals, recruiter Greg Newton realised the Australian market lacked the same scrutiny. In 2007, he started Verify to act as a one-stop-shop for all employment checks and induction services, including background checks on qualifications, criminal backgrounds, medicals, financial history and psychology assessments. Greg says the business has grown by targeting sectors that have recognised the need to reduce recruitment risk, such as the mining, energy, infrastructure, pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. Verify now has 12 employees and offers more than 75 types of checks and assessments. It was the first employment check company in Australia to develop online candidate consents to expedite the verification process and recently developed the first iPhone app for background screening. Based in St Leonards, Verify has offices in New Zealand and the United Kingdom, plus strategic partners in south-east Asia, North America and South Africa.

“Given that Booktopia had no external investment and has grown purely from customer sales, it has been absolutely critical to be innovative, entrepreneurial and work with a very limited budget.” – Tony Nash, CEO.

Brothers Tony and Simon Nash launched online bookstore Booktopia in 2004 with their brother-in-law Steven Traurig on a budget of just $10 a day. It took the business three days to sell its first book but sales picked up quickly and Booktopia now ships more than 700,000 books a year from its Lane Cove West warehouse, managed by Steven’s wife, Elana. Experienced in internet marketing and software, the business partners knew their biggest challenge was competing with online giant Amazon. Booktopia learned early to keep as much stock on hand as possible to carve a niche for quick delivery and they ship at a flat rate of AUS$6.50, no matter how many books are ordered. Now with 40 employees, the online retailer lists more than three million titles, while turn-over continues to grow by about 25 per cent through online marketing, targeted customer emails each month, author links to Booktopia and eBay.

“Dynamiq’s success stems from the courage, determination, loyalty and dedication instilled in many of our staff by their Special Forces and emergency service backgrounds.” – Anthony Moorhouse, CEO.

Exposed to various crises while in the Australian Army Special Forces, Anthony Moorhouse saw an opportunity in 2005 to set up a one-stop shop to help organisations prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies that could affect their people and operations. Within a year, Sydney-based Dynamiq had set up an alliance with a major corporate travel insurer to support the emergency needs of some 6,000 organisations and more than one million travellers. The company delivers crisis support through three centres of excellence: identification of risks for organisations and response training; a 24/7 global response service for medical and security incidents; and HR placement and emergency solutions for remote sites worldwide. The business has 45 full-time employees – including doctors and nurses – operating out of four offices in Australia, and 300 global contractors servicing clients on six continents. Revenue grew by nearly 75 per cent last financial year and plans are afoot to open offices in Asia and the Middle East.

“IPscape's vision is to redefine the way that businesses communicate with customers – to make that communication agile and smart.” – Simon Burke, CEO.

IPscape’s four founders Simon Burke, Darren Younger, Sam Hodgetts and Dr Bruce Whitby realised in 2005 that business contact centres had to do more than talk to customers on the phone. Two years later they launched cloud-based software for contact centres to support companies across all customer service channels. IPscape’s True Cloud contact centre technology allows customer agents to operate phone, SMS, email and social media communications through one simple, secure web browser, streamlining processes and creating a more consistent customer experience. Clients pay for the service based on agents’ logged-in time only and changes can be made “on the fly”, giving organisations greater agility. IPscape recently introduced an Australian first with its Agile Messaging Service, which enables rich, automated dialogue with customers via smartphones. Based in North Sydney, IPscape has grown to have 30 employees and more than 40 clients in Australia, including AAPT and Tony Ferguson, plus reseller agreements both here and in the United Kingdom.

“A key lesson has been the value of innovation. You must be prepared to be brave and to innovate to achieve success.” – Wayne Houlden, CEO.

Coffs Harbour software development firm Janison helps teach more than one million people around the world. Established in 1998 by Wayne and Jacquie Houlden, Janison develops, produces and hosts online learning systems, portals and assessments. The business began catering to TAFE colleges and small registered training organisations with its self-developed Janison Learning System, one of the first online learning tools in Australia. Janison now supports the e-learning needs of 100 local and international clients and has seen consistent annual revenue growth of 20 per cent. It has developed remotely-synchronised learning servers for ships and battle units in the New Zealand Defence Forces, supports an online global leadership academy for Deloitte, and has completed an e-learning rollout for vocational and technical education in Vietnam. Janison’s rapidly growing hosting network includes servers in Sydney, Dallas, Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Ho Chi Minh City, all supported from the Coffs Harbour office.

“Few companies in the world view the poorest on the planet as viable customers, or a multi-million dollar market.” – Stewart Craine, CEO.

Established by Stewart Craine and Harry Andrews in 2005, Barefoot Power is a social “for-profit” enterprise that helps poor communities in developing countries access affordable and renewable electricity through LEDs, solar panels and housewiring. Barefoot Power has sold more than 200,000 lighting systems for the benefit of more than one million people in Africa and Asia, eliminating use of flammable kerosene, reducing burns and respiratory illness, and saving more than 20,000 tonnes of CO² emissions. Users leapfrog over expensive fossil fuels and switch straight to renewables. Based in Bathurst, the business produces its high-quality and affordable LED multi-lamp systems in developing countries, creating entrepreneurial and economic development opportunities. The company recently developed LiFePO4 batteries, with a five-year life, three times the longevity of previous ones. The business can now offer a two-year warranty on its lighting, helping the poor attract more micro-lenders because the product is still guaranteed while repayments are being made.

“Our goal is zero glass waste and to return as much glass as possible to uses that capture the intrinsic value of the glass.” – Collette Harkins, Chief Financial Officer.

Colmax Glass was established in 2005 by engineer Peter Harkins and his wife Collette, to crush, clean and grade recycled glass more efficiently than any other plant. Based in Maroota, north west of Sydney, the company processes waste from glass recyclers to produce up to 100,000 tonnes of clean-graded glass each year for use in bottles, fibreglass insulation batts, water filtration and other everyday products. Colmax is the only processor in Australia taking completely unrefined glass waste that would normally end up in landfill and turning it into the highest-value resource possible with minimal wastage. In five years, the company has built four plants in four states, grown from five full-time staff to 32 and increased annual turn-over 10 fold. Collette says Colmax’s technical innovations have been refined by building its own plants, visiting glass operations in Europe and the United States and seeking potential customers who could use glass as a substitute for another raw material.

“I am very proud and humbled to know that a whole generation, and more than two million Australian children, have now grown up with a Harlequin school bag.” – Penelope Montague-Curry, Founder and CEO.

Penelope Montague-Curry migrated to Australia 15 years ago to pursue an idea to improve school bags. She spent the first few weeks in an empty, rented house in Sydney, using the White Pages phone directory as a seat, while working through the Yellow Pages to source her first screen printer supplier and a local school. That was Harlequin School Bags’ first innovation in business, and the company hasn’t stopped since. Harlequin launched with a waterproof bag to protect school library books and now carries more than 200 lines of bags for thousands of schools nationally and overseas, leading the market in ergonomic backpacks. Committed to supporting the environment, the Matraville company launched the first school bags in Australia to be made using P.E.T. fabric produced from recycled plastic bottles and has ditched plastic wrapping in favour of compostable packaging made from cornstarch. Penelope says parents regularly share their appreciation at being able to buy bags that are good for their child’s posture and the environment.

“We've found it is often during times of stress that we suddenly discover new ways of doing things.” – Sudhindra Rao, Managing Director.

Luxmy Furniture has been striving to be leaders and innovators since it started manufacturing office furniture in Punchbowl in 1997. A manufacturer of unbranded goods, Luxmy adopted green, sustainable practices early and was the first in the industry to receive all major environmental certifications, helping it attract global furniture suppliers including Herman Miller, Haworth, Schiavello and Zenith. Luxmy was first to manufacture furniture in Australia with powdercoated MDF and pre-laid laminate on E0 board, an environmentally friendly pre-finished board that is free of toxic emissions and now an essential component of the Green Star rating system for buildings. The company continues to champion new uses of materials, recently incorporating plastics in its joinery to create more resilient and adaptable products. It’s now set to launch a home furniture range, allowing consumers to design their own tables, chairs and storage systems with interchangeable components. A major factory fire nearly destroyed the business in 2005, but Luxmy recovered quickly to grow well ahead of the industry average.

“The value we put on genuine guest relationships and rigorous processes that we have to deliver consistent service underpins our success.” – Chris Denny, Managing Director.

Trish and Chris Denny opened The Observatory Hotel on Port Macquarie’s beachfront in 2004 to deliver a “world class guest service.” Operating a 4.5-star, apartment-hotel in a highly competitive market, the pair turned to quality assurance tools three years ago to help fulfil their quest. The Observatory became the first tourism business in Australia to achieve accreditation to the International Management Standard, ISO-9001, mostly used in manufacturing or process-driven businesses, and to the International Customer Service Standard. Last financial year, The Observatory’s goal to be carbon neutral by 2012 earned it accreditation by the Carbon Reduction Institute. These accreditations underpinned the recent introduction of the hotel’s Guest Promise, a guarantee on 12 elements of service. The hotel also mystery shops competitors and itself to benchmark performance and identify opportunities for improvement. Despite a slowdown in domestic tourism, The Observatory’s annual turn-over has grown 28 per cent over the past three years.

"Innovation is woven into every fibre of the business. It is key to our success, as well as our ability to deliver market leading services to the world stage." - Oliver Palmer, Head of Innovation.

TigerSpike enables its clients to use personal media to form closer relationships with their customers, employees and partners. The Surry Hills-based company develops cross-platform technology solutions that allow organisations to distribute their services over handheld and tablet devices. Established in 2003 by Oliver Palmer, Luke Janssen and Dean Jezard, the business is at the forefront of the rapidly evolving personal media market to ensure clients have the most effective solutions to engage end users. TigerSpike’s success has been driven by its own service-delivery platform, Phoenix, and its expertise in developing innovative personal-media solutions. A modular digital-services platform, Phoenix allows TigerSpike to deliver a multitude of services for clients such as ‘The Australian’ – a PANPA award-winning iPad application created for News Digital Media. The company has more than 80 employees, offices in Melbourne, London and New York, and a dedicated Innovation Lab to nurture ideas, which helped drive 60 per cent revenue growth last financial year.

“My proudest moments in business are derived from witnessing the joy and appreciation of the people we support and looking over a piece of land we have actively preserved in the midst of deforestation.” – Dwayne Martens, CEO.

Amazonia’s fair trade philosophy for its large range of acai berry products is to help support around 4,000 families in the Macapa region of Brazil and protect thousands of acres of Amazon rainforest. Amazonia pays “real wages” directly to local people to harvest the nutritious purple berries and runs sustainability workshops for the pickers and their families to educate them on the environmental and financial value of protecting the forest. The company also makes an annual investment into the region’s schools, hospitals and community projects, and buys, sells and re-invests profits from bracelets that women’s co-operatives make from Amazonia’s bountiful seed by-product. Founder and CEO Dwayne Martens believes the company’s social responsibility credentials have helped its acai berry products, which include purees, capsules and snack bars, earn credibility and staying power in the fad-led health industry. The business also recently started providing its left-over seed as an alternative fuel to timber for brick furnaces, further protecting the forest.

“We’re here to help the global poor to access electricity, which is one important key to escaping poverty.” – Stewart Craine, CEO.

When engineer Stewart Craine volunteered in Nepal he was alarmed by the high percentage of income spent by the poor on dangerous, inefficient and emission-heavy kerosene lighting. He and former energy colleague Harry Andrews set up Barefoot Power in 2005 to shift third-world expenditure away from kerosene lamps to solar-powered LED devices. Barefoot Power’s lighting systems have not only given around one million people affordable, renewable energy but provided new economic opportunities in developing communities. Stewart admits operating a “for profit” social enterprise has been challenging, especially in Africa. However, by establishing micro-entrepreneurs as part of the production and distribution processes, Bathurst-based Barefoot Power has developed a highly sustainable and responsible business model, with sales tripling last year alone. Barefoot Power has also boosted sales by providing flexible credit to suppliers so customers can scale up quickly and it helps supply chain partners attract investors to grow their enterprises.

“We believe the trees are the stars of our products.” – Sandrine Gaymard, Founder and Business Development Manager.

Ecoline’s Tree Top Adventure Parks allow people as young as three to glide through the canopies of natural forests. When setting up their first park in 2008 in the Ourimbah State Forest, operators Frederic Galimard and Sandrine Gaymard had to convince government authorities that their venture would not harm the natural environment. No trees are drilled or nailed through and each tree is inspected annually by external arborists. Sandrine says if their adventure courses were removed, there would be no sign they had been there. Each year, more than 45,000 visitors experience nature at new heights on flying foxes, suspension bridges or Ecoline’s own, unique pulley system, Ecotrack. Certified by Ecotourism Australia, the parks operate with rain tanks and solar panels, and the Central Coast site runs entirely on solar power. Schools are given discounts and some have even built park visits into their curriculum, while Ecoline supports charities, such as Canteen, with adventure days.

“Our staff have planted in excess of 1,100 rainforest trees in our dedicated regeneration area on Port Macquarie's coastal walk.” – Chris Denny, Managing Director.

The Observatory Hotel in Port Macquarie is on track to be carbon neutral by 2012 thanks to operators Trish and Chris Denny developing an organisation-wide Green Future Program. The 4.5-star hotel was recently accredited by the Carbon Reduction Institute and continues to focus on four areas to lighten its environmental footprint: reducing emissions; modifying behaviours of staff and guests; forming partnerships with environmental agencies; and investing in local and international environmental programs. Recognising a growth market in luxury eco-tourism, The Observatory markets O-Zone Rooms that include energy-efficient amenities and passes to local rainforests and indigenous activities, with each O-Zone booking sponsoring the planting of a native tree on the local coastal walk. So far, The Observatory’s Green Future Program has helped reduce power consumption by 17 per cent, boosted recycling to save 119 tonnes of CO² emissions and cut water charges by nine per cent.