New market for locally-made products emerges out of pandemic

16 July 2020 10:51

By Staff Reporter

The new Buy Aussie Now online marketplace has received over 2,000 registrations so far, ahead of an official launch next month.

The website followed the success of a related Instagram account launched in March in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, showcasing Australian businesses and inviting followers to buy their products. It has 25,300 followers at the time of writing.

“My business, like many other Aussies, was hit badly in late March when the marketing sector pretty much came to a standstill,” entrepreneur and the project’s founder Mitch Catlin told the Bega District News.

“I turned to creating a community of other businesses who were stressed and anxious and I was just so overwhelmed with the number of Aussies who needed help and mateship during a tough time.”

The marketplace is currently free to list on for SMEs, and charges when a sale is made. There is no charge for not-for-profits and Indigenous-owned businesses.

The website’s blog advertises the importance of local manufacturing through a Meet The Maker profile series, and advises readers to “get behind the local manufacturing industry now more than ever as we continue to work our way through the horror that has been Covid-19… because those Australian jobs are so incredibly important.”

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