Welcome to your Dubbo Chamber Newsletter - Your Dubbo Winners Announced.
Congratulations to the three winners of the Your Dubbo 2014 Business Development Grants. We had 100+ attending the sold-out breakfast at Lazy River Estate who put on a great morning for everyone. Well done to everyone involved.
That’s the main focus of todays Newsletter. We will have another Newsletter early next week with more information on Rhino Awards, some exciting developments with our Women In Business program, a great opportunity for Dubbo businesses leading up to the Dubbo Sustainability Expo and lots more.
Plus look out for a big announcement for our September Breakfast - another big one!
Final note - Orana Mutual 2014 Rhino Award applications are due 5pm next Thursday, 14th of August.
$30,000 awarded to three businesses to create inspired change.
Mayor of Dubbo, Councillor Mathew Dickerson has announced the successful Your Dubbo Business Development Grant applicants and presented $30,000 to Adventure Water Sports, Burgun and Brennan Optometrists and Eastern Mechanical Services.
The businesses were among 91 who registered for the Your Dubbo Program, now in its second year, and announced this morning at a breakfast hosted by Dubbo City Council and the Dubbo Chamber of Commerce at Lazy River Estate.
Clr Dickerson said applicants were judged by an independent panel of three and determined based on customer insight, knowledge of their market environment and recognition of growth opportunities.
“With their $10,000 grants and the added value of a $3,000 business diagnostic review from Your Dubbo Business Development Partner, PrincipleFocus Dubbo, the successful applicants will implement unique initiatives to grow their business and increase their customer base,” Clr Dickerson said.
Adventure Water Sports will purchase equipment and provide staff training to expand services to meet visitor needs, including addressing the underutilisation of the Macquarie River.
Burgun and Brennan Optometrists will invest in a refit of its retail environment, increase its marketing activities and train staff to improve their customer service to remain competitive with online and multinational retailers.
Eastern Mechanical Services will expand its online business, including the creation of an employee portal for staff and a dedicated eCommerce store to sell more than 1,000 products for worldwide delivery.
Your Dubbo, Major Partner, Orana Mutual Area Manager Orana Region, Ben Luck said the Your Dubbo Program provided a valuable growth opportunity for all registered businesses and yielded unique insights to inspire change.
“Almost 5,000 points of customer feedback were collected throughout the campaign which, combined with the information gleaned at the business development workshops, will equip business owners with the tools to successfully make changes to remain competitive and meet customer needs,” Mr Luck said.
The Your Dubbo Program ran from Monday, 10 February 2014 until Wednesday, 6 August 2014 and was a unique business development initiative of Dubbo City Council, partnered by Orana Mutual Dubbo.
The Your Dubbo program was valued at $176,000 and was largely supported via industry participation and in kind support and included four business development workshops, a customer feedback component with a $5,000 customer prize and the opportunity to apply for one of three $10,000 business development grants.
Media Contact:
Mayor of Dubbo, Councillor Mathew Dickerson 0418 639 053
To speak with business participants please contact Council’s Economic Development Officer, Jacki Parish on 6801 4000.
2014 Orana Mutual Rhino Awards - Entries Deadline Extended
Business and individuals have an extra two weeks to submit their entries for this year’s Rhino Awards.
Due to popular demand, the deadline for the Orana Mutual 2014 Rhino Awards has been extended to 5pm on Thursday 14 August 2014.
Entries can be lodged online in 20 award categories via the Dubbo Chamber of Commerce website, with the winners of eight awards gaining automatic entry into the 2015 NSW Business Chamber Regional Business Awards (Central West).
Chamber Vice President, Megan Dixon said Chamber recognised July was a busy time for businesses when they had to finalise arrangements after the end of the financial year.
“We recognise that people are pushed for time at the moment, so we have opened up the awards process for another two weeks to make sure people don’t miss out,” Mrs Dixon said.
Chamber has again formed an independent panel of business experts from outside the region to carry out the judging process.
“We know the Rhino Awards are held in very high regard throughout the region, so we take the judging very seriously and have a panel of experts who have no association with any local business to review the submissions and determine who this year’s winners will be,” Mrs Dixon said.
The Rhino Awards are free to enter for business in the Dubbo Local Government Area that have been operating for at least two years, regardless of whether or not they are a Chamber member.
Chamber has developed a comprehensive Entry Info Pack to provide entrants with detailed information about the entry process. The pack can be downloaded from Chamber’s website.
Finalists in this year’s Rhino Awards will be announced at a Cocktail Party on 24 September, with all winners announced at the gala night at Dubbo RSL Club on 24 October.
The theme of this year’s awards is Fast Forward, in recognition of where business has come this century and the advances in technology that have created opportunities for regionally-based businesses.
For more information about the Orana Mutual 2014 Rhino Awards, phone Chamber on 6884 4883.
For more information, visit the Rhino Entry Process page on our website and download the Entry Info Pack.
Entries can be lodged via our Rhinos Awards Submission page.
Good luck!
Short Notes:
Australians to PIN only at point-of-sale from 1st August Did you know that signatures at EFTPOS machines will be phased out from August 1st? Visit the PINwise website for more information.
Members Blasts
Charles Sturt University Dubbo - Free Public Lecture - Professor Tim Wess
Reading the unreadable, information beyond the written word:
Documents, objects, artwork and remnants of everyday life that have defined our society and culture are at risk of being lost through molecular changes that come with ageing. Professor Tim Wess will talk about the study of these changes and what we need to do to protect our future – a discipline known as cultural heritage science.
New techniques, projects and challenges have come with trying to protect our history, and Tim will also speak about how information can be retrieved that had been thought to be lost.
This is a free event and refreshments will be available in the Explorers Cafe on campus following the event.
Tuesday, August 19th, 6pm. CSU Dubbo Campus, Main Lecture Theatre.
More Information on our Dubbo Business Events page.
Tony McGrane Memorial Scholarship Dinner - CSU Dubbo
The bi-annual Charles Sturt University Tony McGrane Memorial Scholarship Dinner will be held on Monday 15 September 2014 at the Dubbo campus of CSU.
The dinner will be held on this date to mark the tenth anniversary of the death of Tony McGrane, who was the Independent Member for Dubbo at that time.
The guest speaker will be Ruth Shanks, President of the International Country Women’s Association. Mrs Shanks was elected to the position of President of the Associated Country Women of the World in 2013 and has been a member of the Country Women’s Association of New South Wales for 45 years, serving at both state and local levels.
We look forward to seeing you at this event to celebrate Tony McGrane’s legacy and acknowledge his contribution to the establishment of the CSU Dubbo Campus. The scholarship established in Tony McGrane’s name has already assisted eight first-year regional students from 2011 to 2014. The purpose of this year’s fundraising is to ensure that the scholarship can continue to assist students in the Orana region.
More Information on our Dubbo Business Events page.
Recent New Chamber Members 2014
Some more new members that have joined the Chamber recently.
- Dahab Cafe - 197 Brisbane St
- Quality Inn Dubbo International
- Central West Lifestyle Magazine
- Brigade Café
- 2 doors tapas & Wine Bar
- Dubbo College Careers Senior Campus
- Little Rive Land Care
- Westpac local Branch
- Basement Studio
- Sureway Employment
- Aon Risk Solutions
- Cornerstone BMC
Welcome to them all - please support your fellow members.
NSW Business Chamber
Did you know all Dubbo Chamber of Commerce members also get affiliate membership with NSW BC?
Upcoming NSW BC Webinars
| Date | Webinar |
|---|---|
| August 12 | How to use media to get number one on google and create more sales |
| August 19 | Country of Origin branding: Get the Australian Advantage. |
| NSW BC | For more information & webinar registration |
For Your Diary - Save The Dates
For more details and events, please see the Dubbo Chamber Business Events Calendar.
| Date | Dubbo Event |
|---|---|
| August 9 | Dubbo Vintage Truck & Tractor Fair |
| August 14 | Orana Mutual 2014 Rhino Awards - Applications Close (Extended) |
| Aug 15–17 | Dubbo Jazz Festival |
| August 19 | CSU Dubbo Public Lecture Series |
| August 21/28 | Women In Business Coffee - TBC |
| August 23 | Dubbo Sustainable City Expo |
| August 31 | Lion Club Car & Bike Show / Swap Meet |
| Sept 18 | Women In Business Lunch - Abbie Widin |
| Sept 24 | Orana Mutual 2014 Rhino Awards Cocktail Party - Finalists Announced |
| October 24 | Orana Mutual 2014 Rhino Awards Gala Dinner |
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Join the Dubbo Chamber of Commerce & Industry Inc.
Have you renewed your Dubbo Chamber Membership for 2014 - or still thinking about joining?
Click Here to renew your Membership today, or Contact our members services officer, Toni Beatty, to discuss joining the Dubbo Chamber.
#DubboChamber
The Dubbo Chamber of Commerce and Industry Newsletter is published twice a month around the 2nd and 4th Wednesday.
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^MQ
2014/16 August 8.