Kat THEOPHANOUS (Northcote): I am delighted to direct my adjournment tonight to our excellent Minister for Small Business, who is working every day to put small businesses at the very heart of Victoria’s economic agenda. The action that I seek is for the minister to visit the shopping strips of Northcote and Fairfield to meet and hear from our local traders and celebrate their achievements. Small businesses have faced significant challenges over the last few years, but what has shone through is their perseverance, innovation and just how much our community love to support and shop local. Whether it is Cedar Bakery, Captain Robbo, Think Thornbury, the Northcote Social Club, Moon Dog, Briki Cafe, Three Locals, Tickled Pink or Frank’s barber shop, the inner north is buzzing with vibrant and diverse businesses that are the lifeblood of our local economies and precincts.

As the member for Northcote, I have been proud to support some really exciting initiatives that will showcase the talents and offerings of our local traders, creatives and musicians while bringing new visitors to the area and turbocharging our local economy. Plans are in the works for our iconic High Street, Northcote, to host a fantastic family-friendly festival next year, with a $300,000 grant from Business Victoria, and I give my thanks to Zowie Minchin, who was the president of Northcote Rise for many years and has just stepped down recently. She has done an outstanding job leading Northcote Rise, and I wish her well for the future.

Later this year the whole tramline through Northcote, Thornbury and Preston will be alive with the Eighty-Six music festival, backed by a $600,000 grant from the Victorian government. This music festival is going to be extraordinary. It is being curated by the extremely talented Woody McDonald, former program director for the Meredith and Golden Plains festivals, along with Johanna Greenway, who has decades of experience in the industry. It will well and truly put Northcote on the map as a live music destination, and we are backing it.

This is just a snippet of what is going on in the inner north. Down in Fairfield the traders organise a wonderful family fun day that draws in over 1000 people each year. Up north new businesses like the Keys vintage bowling alley have opened their doors, offering unique experiences for everyone. I encourage anyone who is interested in coming to this awesome vintage bowling alley to get down to Preston. The Small Business Bus will also be coming to Thornbury next week and will offer free business advice to traders or anyone thinking of starting a small business in the inner north.

We are so proud of our community, and we look forward to welcoming the minister and hearing firsthand from our traders about their work, their aspirations and how we can support them to continue their outstanding efforts.

Answer

Answered: 5 June 2023

I would like to thank the Member for Northcote for highlighting the vibrant small businesses in her community. The Andrews Labor Government is proud to support traders, events and organisations across the state, including in the Member’s local community.

The Government, through the High Street Festivals initiative, is investing in the Northcote Rise Festival. This investment enables trader groups and businesses to activate the local retail precincts that are the backbone of our local economies. The Northcote Business Association received funding to run this family-friendly festival, showcasing everything the local community has to offer and giving people the opportunity to celebrate local businesses while also discovering new ones.

I understand planning is well underway for the Northcote Business Association to run the Northcote Rise Festival for early 2024. Businesses or groups planning to hold an event or festival can access Business Victoria’s free Event Planning Tool at business.vic.gov.au. This connects businesses with the permits and resources needed to plan a safe and successful festival.

Small businesses in Northcote are also able to access a range of supports to assist their businesses to grow and thrive, including capability building through the Small Business Toolkits program; planning to grow through Ready for Growth; the Small Business Bus; and integrated financial counselling, business advice, and mental health and wellbeing advice through Partners in Wellbeing.

The Andrews Labor Government continues to back our state’s vibrant multicultural small businesses and precincts.  The recent 2023/24 Budget invests $17 million to upgrade and revitalise business and cultural hubs in Victoria’s multicultural precincts, ensuring places like Chinatown in the CBD and Eaton Mall in Oakleigh continue to support our businesses and communities for many years to come. Cultural diversity strengthens our businesses and communities, fills skills gaps, and helps us innovate.

The Northcote community is a hub of creative workers and small businesses. I would be pleased to work with the Member for Northcote and her office to find a suitable time to visit the shopping strips of Northcote and Fairfield and celebrate the achievements of local small businesses.