Blog Entries for The Fast Lane

The Fast Lane: It’s common sense that franchising needs a national system

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Mon, 20 May 2013 02:13:48 +0100

The release of the Wein Report into the Franchising Code of Conduct needs to mark the end of the move by some states to regulate franchising separately.

South Australia previously announced it would reform its state franchising laws rather than relying on the national legislation.

But the Wein Report now makes it clear that [...]

The Fast Lane: Swan on the defensive

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Tue, 14 May 2013 09:46:22 +0100

Treasurer Wayne Swan has come out on the defensive after suffering the election year ignominy of having to deliver a budget short on sweeteners and long on cuts and revenue raisers.

There’s a few measures in there aimed at delivering votes, like assistance to businesses in accessing the National Broadband Network and [...]

Five things SMEs would love to see in the budget and what they are likely to get

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Mon, 13 May 2013 01:34:00 +0100

Tomorrow morning, the SmartCompany team is flying up to Canberra to cover the budget for you as it happens.

We’ll be in the “budget lock up” where all journalists are locked in rooms underneath Parliament House for a few hours to get our hands on the budget papers to analyse them and write about them before they are released to the [...]

Australian SMEs lose out from failure to participate in report on small business finance

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 01:16:23 +0100

Australia has once again failed to participate in an international report on small business finance and this omission will cost small business.

The Organisation for Economic Development and Co-operation conducts a yearly report, Financing SMEs and Entrepreneurs 2013: An OECD Scoreboard, which looks at access to finance for small a [...]

Adam Scott wins the US Masters: Lessons for your business from the game of golf

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 01:00:54 +0100

An Australian has clinched golf’s biggest prize, the US Masters, for the first time ever with Adam Scott’s victory at Augusta this morning.

Scott won a playoff against Argentina’s Angel Cabrera to clinch the title and will earn $US1.44 million for the win, not to mention the countless endorsements and sponsorship deals which will [...]

SmartCompany has a new look

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 02:22:00 +0100

Have you noticed things look a little different around here?

There’s been a lot of behind the scenes work going on here at SmartCompany to finally unveil the new look for our website.

You can see the first results of all this work today with a fresh, new-look masthead and website focused on improving reader experience.

[...]

Misguided GST exemption push must be ditched

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 00:14:32 +0100

Almost since online shopping first became available in Australia, retailers have been pushing to cut the $1,000 Goods and Service Tax exemption.

Retailers argue the exemption makes it impossible for them to compete with prices charged by overseas retailers.

Now retailers are being backed by the state governments in their campaign to abolish the Low Value Threshold after a report from Ernst & Young found the move could give states an extra billion dollars a year collectivel [...]

Tinkler sells up Patinack Farm: Why he must really be broke

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 00:27:47 +0100

Nathan Tinkler’s move this morning to put his horse racing empire on the market reveals the true state of the embattled coal baron’s finances.

At a recent NSW Supreme Court hearing, Tinkler was very cagey about the extent of his assets and debt.

He put a value of $1.2 billion against the assets held in his family’s trust, all in his wife’s name but this is an aggressive valuation.

He also revealed he had as much as $600 million debt against these assets.

Tink [...]

What 20 Italians in a café could tell Gillard about 457 visas

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 01:12:09 +0100

Iconic Melbourne café Brunetti has just imported 20 foreign workers to help run its new 400 seat venue.

It’s a move that’s at odds with Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s crackdown on workers on skilled 457 visas.

Yuri Angele, co-owner of the 39-year-old store, said he hand-picked a team of specialist Italian staff.

He told Fairfax while he didn't advertise positions in Australia, the business "received applications all the time".

"But we've never been able to find [...]

Real action needed on fake online reviews

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 00:36:21 +0100

The competition watchdog has once again signalled its intention to crack down on fake online reviews but it’s hard not to yawn at this latest announcement.

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission deputy chair Delia Rickard told an industry forum yesterday that businesses paying individuals to write false positive of malicious reviews is something the watchdog has identified as “a priority going forward”.

“There are so many businesses organising fake online reviews tha [...]

Wanted: A small business minister who actually gets small business

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 01:01:23 +0100

Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced her cabinet reshuffle today after the blood-letting which followed last week’s attempted leadership spill.

Gary Gray was appointed as Small Business Minister after the resignation of Small Business Minister Chris Bowen, a key supporter of Kevin Rudd.

Gray's appointment seems to fit with reports Gillard planned to reward her most loyal supporters with the prized cabinet positions as Gray is a former national secretary of the Labour party [...]

Bizarre spill and yet another small business minister

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:56:39 +0100

Could things get any more farcical?

Yesterday’s failed leadership spill, and the resulting fallout which has seen Small Business Minister Chris Bowen quit his position, has left many small businesses feeling angry and disillusioned.

The constant jostling for leadership saw Simon Crean call for Prime Minister Julia Gillard to spill all leadership positions yesterday and throw his weight behind former prime minister and serial challenger Kevin Rudd.

What started with a b [...]

Businesses need us to stop giving things up

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 01:10:26 +0100

Did you know it is Meat Free Week this week?

The campaign asks Australians to stop eating meat for a week and has a lot of noble sentiments and high profile advocates behind it.

The Meat Free Week campaign website tells people that "the idea of 'the farm' as we knew it has been replaced by factory farming".

The problem is Meat Free Week is not exactly great news for many of Australia’s farmers, abattoirs, butchers and retailers.

Many independent producers and r [...]

Online renegades take aim at ASX 100 dinosaurs

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 01:02:18 +0100

There are not many tech companies on the ASX 100.

Instead, it’s a list dominated by mining companies, financial services and property trusts; all “dinosaur industries”, according to Dave Slutzkin, general manager of Smart50 star performer Flippa.com.

Writing in Business Spectator this week, Slutzkin described reading the list of companies on the ASX 100 these days as like peering into a history book.

“The top companies are born from industries and ideas very much bel [...]

457 visa restrictions won’t just hurt the tech industry

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 00:47:50 +0100

The tech industry reacted angrily last week to claims by Prime Minister Julia Gillard that the sector was the main abuser of 457 visas.

The Prime Minister said the skilled visa program is being abused as “a substitute for spreading important economic opportunity to Australian working people”.

The tech industry quickly hit back with Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes jumping to the sector’s defence alongside Mick Liubinskas, co-founder of Pollenizer, who described the Pri [...]

Coal baron Tinkler faces arrest: But don’t count him out yet

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 00:30:53 +0100

Former billionaire Nathan Tinkler has fallen further into ignominy and will be forced to turn up to public examinations into his finances tomorrow or face possible arrest.

Tinkler lost a NSW Supreme Court bid yesterday to declare the examinations of his failed company Mulsanne Resources an “abuse of process” and will now have to turn up to court.

Blackwood Corporation liquidated Mulsanne Resources late last year after it failed to proceed with a deal to buy a one-third stake i [...]

SMEs need more than a surging Wall Street

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 01:06:02 +0100

The stock market in the United States is still surging with the Dow Jones setting a fresh record for the fifth straight day.

The Dow Jones closed up 50.22 points at 14,447.29 yesterday while Apple shares jumped by 1.4% to take the S&P 500 very close to its all-time record.

It gained 5.04 to 1,556.22, nine points below its all-time closing high set on October 9, 2007.

When the US stock market first hit its historic highs last week I spoke to some of Australia’s to [...]

Lesley Gillespie’s five tips for building a $564 million business

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 00:24:06 +0100

Bakers Delight is one of Australian franchising’s big successes, with the bakery now turning over $564 million a year.

The business is run by founders Lesley Gillespie and her husband Roger and when I got in touch with Lesley last week for SmartCompany’s list of top 30 female entrepreneurs she had some great advice to share with entrepreneurs.

I asked Gillespie for advice for female entrepreneurs but she was adamant that what she was saying applied to both men and women.

[...]

Five lessons from our top 30 female entrepreneurs

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 01:09:22 +0100

If you’re feeling inspired by SmartCompany’s list of Australia’s top 30 female entrepreneurs, you are probably keen to know what makes a woman a successful entrepreneur.

What differentiates these women from struggling business owners and what challenges have they overcome, especially those which may be specifically related to their gender?

When we interviewed the top entrepreneurs in our list they had the following tips for other SME owners:

1. Work hard but be flexible
[...]

Gillard has got it wrong on 457 visas

cwaters@smartcompany.com.au — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 00:44:03 +0100

The Prime Minister’s crackdown on skilled worker visas, known as 457 visas, is misguided.

A tightening up of the visas was first announced by Immigration Minister Brendan O’Connor last month when he promised the government would target “rorts” and “abuses” in the visas.

Now Prime Minister Julia Gillard has increased the rhetoric around these visas saying “we inherited from the previous government a 457 temporary foreign-worker visa program that was totally out of control”.

[...]