Why You Should Hire an Indigenous Business in Australia

why hire indigenous business in australia

All across Australia, there are more than 7,000 aboriginal business owners, some smaller and some larger, who have started their own business. IF you're looking to support indigenous business in Australia, you'll find partners and vendors in every conceivable industry. As part of working with aboriginal communities in Australia, a lot of people say that want to support them but not everyone puts their money where their mouth is.

Here's your chance to support your community in a material way.


Defining Aboriginal Businesses

Aboriginal businesses are more than just a colloquial term to define the owner or the figureheads of a business. At this point, they describe businesses where at least 51% of the share capital is owned by Aboriginal people. This helps to screen out any businesses that might seek to take a claim of this term or designation for fraudulent benefits.

These days, the IBA governs the application process that gives businesses access to the benefits of being an Aboriginal business. The Indigenous Business Australia board looks at corporations across the mainland and the Torres Strait. With thousands of businesses registered, there might be just as many that haven't been registered yet.

While the current definition of Aboriginal businesses helps some businesses, there are other businesses where a majority of the work is performed by indigenous people. These companies don't benefit from the certification because the majority of share capital is owned by others.

There is a different operational definition now where indigenous business is also defined when at least one owner identifies as indigenous. This helps to include businesses that are owned by outside capital or recent startups where venture capital helps them to run.


Indigenous Businesses Employ Indigenous People

For those of us who are concerned with the health and security of the indigenous economy, working with indigenous businesses makes sense. The businesses that identify as indigenous tend to be more likely to employ indigenous people. When we support those businesses, we put our money where our mouths are.

There's a multiplier effect whenever you support minority-owned or marginalized owners of businesses. Because people who belong to these identity groups know how hard it is to get ahead, they're often more willing to support other people from that group. Supporting one indigenous business often helps to create many jobs and opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Economic self-determination is one of the most powerful things to bring to any community that's struggled with economic inequality. When indigenous people see businesses succeeding, they're likely to want to help foster this economic future.

When indigenous business owners get the chance to support their community with positive role models, they lay the path for the future. Those successful entrepreneurs become mentors that later indigenous entrepreneurs will look to when they need inspiration.


Choose an Indigenous Supplier or Partner

If you're a current business owner, it's often easy to switch to an indigenous business as a supplier. For businesses of any size, there are multiple vendors to work with when it comes to getting more stationary and office supplies or the raw materials you use. There's likely to be an indigenous supplier or vendor to work with no matter what you need.

If you need consultants, HR staff to train, or project managers for your next engineering job, there are indigenous business to work with. For every role from cleaning services to logistics, there is going to be an indigenous option for you to choose from. There are even staffing agencies to link you to those indigenous partners.

When you are unsure about working with a new business, you can offer them a small contract at first. This will help to build your working relationship with them when they are at an early stage of growth. If they are a well-established indigenous business, they may even be able to guide you in finding other indigenous business solutions for your company.

If you are looking for a new business to work with, check out the Indigenous Chamber of Commerce as well as Supply Nation for tips to find a partner.

If you are in the world of construction, engineering, or logistics, check out what PACM has to offer in the way of indigenous construction and architecture for Australia.


Social Media Can Help

If you're in search of companies that work with the indigenous population or that are owned by indigenous people, there are some initiatives to check out. The most prominent one is started by Ngakkan Nyaagu and uses the hashtag "BuyIndigenous." It's been a really successful marketing tactic.

When you're looking for something on social media, start by searching "#BuyIndigenous" to see what you can find. There are all kinds of new products and service providers who have found connections with social media. This is a great way to see what people think about a product before you start using it.

When you use indigenous products and services, you can use the hashtag on your own social media profile. This will raise awareness of the issue and even attract a new customer base to you.

If you put up a post on your company's social media profile that you're looking for an indigenous business to partner with, you'll be able to connect quickly. You'll find a whole new group of businesses to open up to, learn from, work with, and build a supportive network around.


Indigenous Business In Australia is Booming

Once you start looking at the productivity of indigenous business in Australia, you'll find that these businesses are a powerful force. They're driving a lot of change and innovation all throughout the country.

If you find that you want to stay out of debt as you grow your business, check out our guide for some tips.

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