Community Enterprise Employment
Aunty Margaret Campbell, Dreamtime Southern X
“We want to be able to show that we’re in control of managing our stories. We want to be able to share those stories and create our own jobs and own economies.”
Building connections, confidence and economic opportunity for First Nations people ↓
Australia is home to the world’s oldest living culture. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture is incredibly rich and diverse, with storytelling at its heart.
But First Nations people have been excluded from economic opportunity and independence in Australia for a long time. This not only impacts Indigenous people financially, but also diminishes their cultural identity, and affects their mental and physical health and wellbeing.
“First Nations people have been made to choose between participating in and maintaining their culture or engaging with studies, training and employment in Western Society,” says Desmond Campbell, CEO of Welcome to Country. “Welcome to Country provides a way to change that.”
The social enterprise aims to create employment and provide opportunities for economic development in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities through an online marketplace that connects First Nations experiences and products with consumers.
The marketplace also helps these businesses grow and develop new pathways to market. This in turn helps First Nations people recognise the strength of their cultural identity, build their self-esteem and confidence and improve their health and wellbeing.
And by helping more people connect to the world’s oldest culture, it also builds respect for and recognition of First Nations people’s unique and valuable contribution to Australia’s history, culture, economy and society.
“By creating a well-branded and communicated online marketplace and facilitating e-commerce, Welcome to Country helps First Nations businesses reach consumers more easily, receive additional income and increase their opportunities to employ more First Nations people,” Desmond explains.
Shifting mindsets and achieving goals ↓
Welcome to Country wanted to validate its strategic plan and get some guidance around where to focus its growth and how to measure its impact. It also needed support in becoming financially sustainable while maximising financial return to its operators and suppliers.
Sefa Partnership’s 2023 Social Enterprise Growth Incubator program gave Welcome to Country access to First Nations coaches and Sefa mentors who have been instrumental in helping the organisation move towards its goals.
“We have a different mindset because of the incubator. Now we think of ourselves as a commercial business first (social enterprise), driven by our purpose, rather than a charity. As a result of this shift in mindset, we will make decisions differently,” Desmond shares.
During the 10-month program, the organisation developed a business model canvas – a strategic tool to develop and manage business models – which the leadership team will use to help them make strategic decisions in the future.
Sprints with coaches also allowed the team to improve efficiencies in its warehouse, by reorganising the physical layout and adding additional storage shelves. This will make the pick and pack process smoother and allow the organisation to hold more product on site, helping reduce its cost of goods sold.
The incubator also helped reaffirm the importance of evaluation and impact measurement for Welcome to Country. The team is now working on building a social return on investment framework to show its impact.
This support will play a vital role in helping Welcome to Country get closer to its three-year goal of expanding to international markets and becoming financially independent and sustainable by 2028. However, in the current domestic and international economic environment, Welcome to Country is feeling the pinch. In order to achieve that goal, Welcome to Country requires the support of consumers, corporations, government agencies to dig deep and buy Welcome to Country products or go experience a First Nations experience with this dynamic social enterprise.
If you are interested in helping Welcome to Country create more employment and economic opportunities for First Nations people, the team would love to hear from you. The social enterprise is currently looking for a warehouse space from which to operate its shop – and seeks support in building its brand and reach to find new customers.