Popular Brisbane farmers’ markets now deliver to your door

A new online venture now delivers produce from some of south-east Queensland’s most popular farmers’ markets straight to your door.

Brisbane farmers’ market kingpin Mark Power is going digital.

Power, who is the youngest son of beer baron Bernie Power, has launched an online farmers market called Field Good where produce usually only found at farmers markets can be delivered direct to customers.

Power manages 12 of south-east Queensland’s favourite farmers markets as well as 30 events including the Teneriffe Festival and Westoria in West End through his company Goodwill Projects. Power tells your diarist that the first boxes of produce were sent out from the company’s warehouse in Murarrie on Friday.

He says the concept has been two years in the making and initially grew out of concerns that

the Covid-19 pandemic would shut down the physical markets.

While markets were closed for a short period during the initial stages of the pandemic, they have since bounced back. Power says he persisted with launching the online platform because it offered convenience to people who were busy to get to a market. “People may be shift workers or have sport on the weekend,” he says.

Mark Power manages 12 of south-east Queensland’s favourite farmers markets. Photo: Paul Guyis

The platform also allowed market vendors, who sometimes only trade once a week, to have exposure on a broader platform.

“Many of the vendors at our markets and events are keen to grow their micro businesses beyond the markets they attend, but struggle due to the barriers of startup costs, overheads and delivery experience,” says Power. “Field Good gives them the platform to reach more customers and grow beyond the markets they attend.”

Online shopping in Australia has increased by 39 per cent over the past three years allowing small businesses to compete with big national supermarkets and other retailers. That’s a trend Power sees paying off for local producers.

Field Good will deliver to Brisbane, the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast initially once a week. “We see 50,000 customers through our various markets each week and many ask our vendors about their ability to deliver and order online,” Power says.

Youi Hire

Former Suncorp Bank boss David Foster has been picked as chairman of Sunshine Coast-based national insurance firm Youi.

Foster, who has been on the board of Youi since August 2019, is an experienced non-executive director with more than 25 years’ experience in financial services including on the boards of Bendigo and Adelaide Bank and G8 Education.

David Foster is the new chairman of insurance firm Youi.

He also has held senior executive roles including chief executive of Suncorp Bank and 14 years at Westpac. Youi chief executive Hugo Schreuder says Foster’s experience will be invaluable to Youi as it responds to opportunities and challenges in the general

insurance market. “David has already made a significant contribution to the board over the last few years and I am looking forward to working with him as chairman,” says Schreuder. “His extensive financial services experience, both as a director and in executive roles, means that he is well placed to lead the board.”

Powering Up

Brisbane-based traffic control firm Evolution Group is going off the grid. The firm has signed a deal with Tembo, the electric vehicle subsidiary of VivoPower, for the full electrification of its fleet of light utility vehicles for traffic management and fleet management.

The agreement aims to convert 500 existing and new vehicles to full electric over the next five years. In its first phase, about 80 traffic management vehicles will be electrified by Tembo subject to the successful completion of commercial and technical trials. It has been a tough couple of years for Evolution, with some painful internal restructuring followed by the impact of Covid-19 on road projects around the country.

Back in June Evolution received a new injection of funds after a key subsidiary collapsed owing creditors more than $14m. Creditors agreed to a deed of company arrangement (DOCA) for Evolution Traffic Management that employs more than 700 workers in Queensland, New South Wales and Western Australia.