A partnership between an entrepreneur (Chris Smeed), a not-for-profit medical practice (Inala Primary Care) and a Brisbane data-analytics firm (Aginic), Cubiko helps medical practices with insights to prioritise and manage their business operations and growth efficiently. 

Chris said involving the wider team in Innovate Queensland activities such as the ACE workshops and mentoring has helped Cubiko “laser-focus” on its tremendous growth over the past year. After a successful pilot program with 12 medical practices around Australia, it’s now serving over 300.  

“The two achievements we’re most proud of are launching a free product for medical practices to adapt to COVID-19 and to grow to a team of 12 Queenslanders in Brisbane and Cairns,” said Chris.  

“As a first-time founder, the support has been amazing, coming from a small general practice in Inala to what is now a successful and rapidly growing software company. My recommendation to any soon-to-be-founders or current founders, is participate and learn as much as possible from the Innovate Queensland experience.” 

Heidi Smith from All Quotes Direct offers business owners, managers and anyone living in rural and regional Australia the quickest and easiest way to receive quotes from local rural and regional suppliers. 

Heidi sought out the Innovate Queensland program to understand more about funding sources and pathways to grow her business. Since then, she was able to capitalise on some of the unexpected opportunities presented by COVID-19, and has also formed a partnership with Australian Sustainable Energy to offer solar quotes.

Davis and Norelle Blumentals from Certify eliminate the need for principal contractors to maintain subcontractor records through their innovative technology platform.

Through the Innovate Queensland program workshops and mentoring, Davis and Norelle were able to receive valuable feedback about their new technology. “It’s not easy being an entrepreneur, often we spend more time looking inwards, reliving mistakes and disappointments rather than being innovative and moving forward.  It was terrific to have the opportunity to discuss our business plans with Dr Tracy Stanley who provided valuable feedback during our meeting and pointed us to like-minded groups and individuals who may assist our journey.” 

For Sandra Ebbott, an opportunity to attend the Innovate Queensland Money Magnet workshop came at just the right time – at the beginning of her research into capital raising possibilities for the award-winning Mizzie the Kangaroo teething and educational toy company.  

Sandra says the workshop enabled her to understand her options, discuss their pros and cons, and appreciate investor expectations. “When you start the process, it’s very much an information gathering time, and this was a perfect way to not only ‘read’ about it, but to get it explained and to be able to ask questions.” 

Sandra also found the hands-on workshop valuable as a networking opportunity to hear what other businesses have done to fund their innovative ideas.  Since raising capital, Sandra has scaled the business across Australia and expanded globally, won more awards, and released four new products this year. With Mizzie’s new Memory Match game the company is also creating jobs for Queenslanders living with a disability through a partnership with Multicap/Makeables.

PLF – Precision Livestock Farming – is commercialising sensor technology that monitors and measures farm operations remotely, 24/7, to optimise performance and profitability. 

Managing Director Paul Stapleton said attending an ACE Scale Up workshop helped him address some key challenges, such as whether PLF needed to attract investors to accelerate achievement of its goals and how to best leverage existing contacts. The workshop provided clarity around developing strategic alliances and supplier relationships, as well as the value of social media. 

Paul also participated in a Commercialisation & Growth workshop, which prompted him to review how PLF’s ideal business model reflected the company’s core competencies for solving its customers’ main problem.  

Marion Glover from Vessel Nundah provides an affordable zero waste shop for quality skincare and home cleaning products.

Having attended several Innovate Queensland webinars, workshop and a My Innovation Advisor consultation, Marion continues to touch base with us to gain insights into valuable resources that are available through the program.

During COVID-19, Marion and the team at Vessel Nundah changed from accepting BYO containers to sourcing, cleaning and offering upcycled jars and bottles for free. They started serving from their doorway in ‘tuckshop style’ manner and despite the small space and hard work, it all paid off as March was their biggest month ever, as they were able to provide hand sanitiser due to their local supply chains. 

Darren Walters, CEO of EcoTekk attended the Pathways workshop in Cooroy in 2016 and has tuned in to many Innovate Queensland webinars and workshops since 2015.

He has developed an app for his environmental sustainability enterprise and says the Innovate Queensland workshop and webinars have helped him refine his product and prepare for an important pitch to investors. Since then, he’s gone from two bikes to a fleet of 25 electric trikes and pedal-assisted electric bikes in just a few years.

Darren says all aspects of the IQ training have been helpful and he has already recommended the program to others. His connection with Innovate Queensland also put him in contact with a social media expert who has helped him promote his company for eight months at no charge. This has enabled Ecotekk to build a profile for little or no cost.