A Katherine not-for-profit has scored a $25,000 grant to open a new Indigenous business hub.
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Enterprise Learning Projects CEO Laura Egan was named an ‘AMP Tomorrow Maker’ at an awards ceremony in Sydney last week.
“This award will support ELP to work with new start-ups and aspiring Aboriginal entrepreneurs across the Katherine region to launch and grow successful businesses,” Ms Egan said.
“ELP’s Incubation Hub will facilitate unique collaborations that will enable Aboriginal people to harness their cultural and land assets and share these with a global audience.”
Ms Egan said the hub would act as a space for businesses from around Australia to come to Katherine and collaborate with aspiring Aboriginal entrepreneurs.
“The purpose of the hub is to help create and grow emerging businesses by providing them with necessary infrastructure, support, financial and technical services,” she said.
The hub will provide retail space, product warehousing, packing facility for online order dispatch, business mentoring and work space.
Ms Egan said she is currently scouting a space for the new hub.
ELP provided the initial start up costs for successful Katherine based fashion start-up, Magpie Goose.
“Magpie Goose has tapped into the growing interest and demand for Indigenous textiles and is on a rapid growth trajectory,” Ms Egan said.
“ELP’s Hub will provide the business with the facilities to expand, and this will enable Magpie Goose to create a significant number of local jobs.”
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Gulbarn Tea is another ELP business which stands to benefit from the new hub.
Gulbarn Tea is produced in Miniyeri, about 370km west of Katherine.
“The potential for other native food businesses to enter the market is huge, and this will now be a lot easier with a dedicated incubation hub in Katherine,” Ms Egan said.
ELP chair Lindsay Bevege said Australia’s remote Aboriginal communities contain some of the most resilient and creative people in the country.
“This hub will provide them with the support and resources to unleash their potential and forge their own future through enterprise. It is a long-term pathway out of social welfare to sustainable economic independence,” Mr Bevege said.
