The ‘in good company’ Northern Rivers project has been developed as a project and campaign driver for keeping business in the region and attracting business to the region. We invite you to be part of the project as we celebrate, connect and collaborate to enhance business opportunities and facilitate economic development.
Our region is home to a diverse range of business and industry leaders and as you explore their business stories you will see a common thread and tribute to establishing or operating in the Northern Rivers. Whether it is in a coastal village, hinterland hamlet, a CBD or industrial estate Northern Rivers businesses are the mainstay of the economy and integral to employment growth and sustainable community endeavours.
In a region of close to 300,000 people within an enviable landscape of 20,000 plus kilometres, the Northern Rivers has a GRP of $13.305 billion (2.3% of the state) and significant opportunities for continued industry sector growth and development. Our project partners are facilitators in the area of economic development and have collaborated to leverage the dynamic strength of the entire Northern Rivers business offering.
Sharing business stories, connecting businesses to each other and creating collaborative opportunities are important to developing a thriving economy and positioning our region for future investment and reinvestment.
Hurford Hardwood
When Olive Hurford told the bank manager she’d be looking after the accounts of her husband’s new building company, the story goes…
Tweed Coast Glass
Anyone who lives between the Gold Coast and Ballina with even a passing involvement in the building trade will be familiar with Tweed Coast Glass.
Husk Distillers
The Husk Distillers story starts in the tropical paradise of the Caribbean. Paul and his wife Mandaley Perkins were on holiday in 2009 and discovered…
Stone & Wood
“That’s like asking parents to name which of their children they prefer,” says Jamie Cook, Stone & Wood co-founder. He has been asked which of the…
Zepto
What do you do next after more than a decade building up a Byron Bay skydiving business to become a national success and then stepping back after listing it on the Australian Stock Exchange?
Spell Designs
The scent, texture and aura of Byron Bay is famous, and well-loved. If that Byron Bay feeling was a fashion brand, it would surely be Spell & The Gypsy Collective….
Osteria
Mark Wilson, Lia Mason and Lee Middendorf all met when the three of them were working in hospitality jobs at The Sandbar …
Casino RSM Club
The 23 of March 2020 was the hardest day of Neale Genge’s career.
Norco Primex
Bruce Wright has made his career by bringing together and supporting many of the region’s farmers and primary producers.
Table Under A Tree
Georgina Inwood credits the evolution of her business, Table Under a Tree, to her ability to “take stock while still running at a million miles an hour”.
Nimbin Apothecary
Nimbin Apothecary is a herbal medicine dispensary providing acute over-the-counter consulting for herbal medicine prescriptions.
Air T&G
Northern Rivers is well known for its breathtaking natural beauty, and imagine if your day at the office involved enjoying these views from the air…
Foods That Love You Back
Health activist Erle Astrup founded Foods That Love You Back in January 2021, and her business – which has created the world’s first affordable, alkaline shot of concentrated microgreens – is infused with the passion she has for driving it.
Tweed Real Food
Tweed Real Food is a business launched in 2018 from a desire to be resilient. Little did founder Julia Foyster know how prescient her plan would turn out to be.
Grafton to Yamba Houseboats
The Clarence River, at the southern end of the Northern Rivers, is known colloquially as the ‘Big River’, while its Aboriginal name is ‘Breimbah’ or…
Aurora Suspended Fires
Aurora Suspended Fires arose from the perfect marriage of Chloe Allan’s creative talents with Neil’s engineering background. But building a successful…
Frontier Pets
Diana Scott was more than a bit annoyed at being unable to find a premium quality food for her dogs that was also ethically produced, so she did what all great entrepreneurs do – she created it.
Fliteboard
It was meant to be an extended break for David Trewern and his family. A chance to rest and reset in Byron Bay after decades of building and selling fast-growing digital marketing agencies. But as he looked out over Belongil beach in 2014, an idea struck him.
Connect Business Solutions
Connect Business Solutions can be thought of as the glue that holds a business community together.
Skye Park Pet Resort
In 2014, a long-held aspiration finally came to fruition for Helen and Ian MacGregor when they purchased an existing pet boarding facility in bucolic Clarenza, with the dream of making it their own.
Following the impacts of Cyclone Debbie and the groundswell of both business hardship and determination over the 12 months of recovery, we wanted to launch a project that would show our confidence and our pride in our people and our place.
Initiated by the NSW Business Chamber, in partnership with the seven local Government Councils of the Northern Rivers (Tweed, Byron, Ballina, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Clarence Valley), Regional Development Australia, Southern Cross University and supported by the NSW Department of Premier and Cabinet, the project will celebrate, connect and collaborate to enhance business opportunities and facilitate economic development.
Our project supporters have been integral to the development of each element of the project deliverables and we thank them for their expertise, creativity and shared passion for the project.
