BAI FOCUS

PRESS RELEASE 21/08/08

A New Focus on Byron Arts & Industry

A new and exciting line up of projects and events has been announced by Byron Arts & Industry Focus (BAI Focus), the new group formed to represent businesses within the Byron Bay Arts & Industry Estate. The first decision, popularly agreed upon at early meetings was the renaming, or rather shortening of the name to Byron Arts & Industry Park (BAIP), which will be tagged with, ‘Uniquely Byron’. New signage and campaigns to promote the BAIP will commence immediately to bring the community, that accounts for almost one third of Byron Bay’s businesses, sharply into focus.

BAI Focus was initiated by an email circulated among businesses last month, and was followed by well attended and inspiring meetings. Last week a steering committee was formed along with departments focusing on specific goals and objectives. BAI Focus will work independently, and together with Byronshire Council and Byron United, to further the interests of the BAIP and the Byron Bay community at large.

“With over 300 businesses here in the Byron Arts & Industry Park alone, we have a huge pool of talent and resources and a strong will to move forward with our objectives”, says BAI Focus Chairman, Sean Mahoney;

“Our mission objective is simple, and that is to be a community voice where none has existed before. We will initiate schemes and promote the Byron Arts & Industry Park for the businesses here, and provide a forum for discussion and feedback."

For the last three years the Byron Arts & Industry Park has been fortunate enough to have had a Pocket Guide that caters exclusively for the area. It is a vital tool as it provides a simple and easy to use guide for locals and visitors to Byronshire, whilst being an invaluable sourcing directory for wholesale buyers. BAI Focus looks forward to the expansion of the Pocket Guide as well as the creation of other printed information about BAIP which will further highlight the immense diversity and choice of shopping and services within the BAIP. Copies of the Pocket Guide can be found throughout the BAIP as well as at the Visitors Centre in Byron, the Byronshire Council front desk in Mullumbimby and other selected outlets throughout the shire as well as online online at www.byronindustrial.com.au.

It is the diversity of enterprise in these few acres that really sets Byron Arts & Industry Park apart from other ‘industrial zones’. We have a huge collection of nationally and internationally recognised businesses, and award winning artists and entrepreneurs. Where else can you shop at some of the shire’s most innovative outlets while you get your car fixed? You can buy your groceries, a work of art, solar panels, designer fashions, jewellery and crystals, the latest in interior design, a broad range of surf boards & accessories, a cube of road-base, and re-Gyprock your castle without having to leave the area. There’s ample free parking right next to the places you need to visit, kid’s playzones, technicians, mechanics, and engineers of every sort, and even a flying trapeze! And while you’re wondering why you didn’t give yourself enough time, there are excellent cafes & bakeries to grab a bite or get a coffee. You can even finish the afternoon with a visit to the hairdressers and a session at the gym. Now that’s diversity! Byronshire is in many respects the hub of alternative living in Australia, and Byron Arts and Industry is its cutting edge.

Among the host of projects now underway are new branding and signage, transport to and from the BAIP, electric bicycle rental while you are there, artist and fashion trails, special events including markets, street fairs, extended opening hours, and late night shopping, and advertising in areas outside the shire to bring more visitors to Byron Bay in general.

BAI Focus on behalf of all businesses in the Byron Arts & Industry Park is also a proud supporter of the Beautiful Byron campaign and teams are currently being formed to work on the beautification of the area.

BAI Focus is now taking membership and sponsorship both from within the Byron Arts & Industry Park and outside from the community at large. We are initially targeting signage and beautification so any donations will be gratefully accepted.

· General Membership is open to owners and/or businesses in the BAIP and is $30/year plus an optional donation.

· Associate Membership is open to anyone and is also $30/year plus an optional donation.

Those interested in becoming a member can contact BAI Focus at membership@baifocus.org.

Sponsorship pledges can be made to sponsorship@baifocus.org

A General Meeting will be held to raise and discuss new ideas. It will take place on Wednesday 3^rd September and will be held upstairs at Byron Creative, 18 Centennial Circuit, opposite Byron Entertainment Centre.

A blog has been set up for comments and suggestions at www.baifocus.org

Byron Visitor centre

Another way we can support ourselves and the business community out here is to join the Byron Visitor Centre. We joined last week and have already had customers walk into our gallery from that contact. You can call Melissa Sanders-Ward, membership sales, Byron visitor centre 02 66 809 271 memberships@visitbyronbay.com

Hi Samaya

Thank you so much for creating the opportunity for the Arts and Industry Estate to become organised and cooperative. I think it's a great idea, and have jotted down some points below that you may like to take into consideration at your meetings, or circulate to your colleagues.

• the BVC receives 200,000 people per year; many of whom ask specifically about the Arts and Industry Estate
• be careful about changing the name, many people have already heard about you and it would be counterproductive to confuse them; after all, people have been visiting the A&I Estate for 20 years or more
• a collective of members with group advertising would be useful in forming a 'pool'; it's more worthwhile for visitors to have more than one place in their minds to visit when they come to the A&I
• the BVC has a designated A&I brochure display area, and we'd love to have more; Warwick's booklet is very useful
• we have on our VIC website (www.visitbyronbay.com) a tab for the Arts & Industry Estate; this is a free benefit to BVC members; everyone uploads their business details and photos and, with the general tab, are instantly findable
• the Here&Now free Byron Bay map has the A&I area marked; it would be a good idea for more of you to advertise on this map, rather than creating a new one; you are, after all, part of Byron Bay
• we could display a double-sided sandwich board, such as some of our Tour & Activity operators have, outside the BVC every day (the cost is $242 inc gst per year)
• the idea of an Arts and Industry Estate Festival or Event Day is really good; what about a general market/festival day during December or January when there are thousands of shoppers here? How about everyone having a trestle table outside their business displaying their wares, to give the area an open-air market feel?
• if you can pick a time when you're all open (Thursday night or Saturday for example) and organise for banners, transport etc. we would promote it as THE time to visit the estate
• a mini-shuttlebus would be very useful for those without cars; however I understand the cost would be high. There is an art to applying for money, and if you can find a person with experience in applying for grants, I'm sure a co-owned shuttle bus would attract funding; see http://www.ausindustry.gov.au/

If there's anything we can do to help, please let us know.

Katharine

www.visitbyronbay.com

Wed 2 July Beautiful Byron and ALL it has to offer!!

A gathering of more than 30 people representing the new and emerging unique face of the Arts and Industry Estate took place on Wednesday 2 July 2008 to discuss the possibilities of enhancing our beautiful Byron.

A general consensus is that the Arts and Industry Estate has a different set of issues from main stream shopping precincts. The plethora of skills and contacts of this vibrant group of businesses forms the beginning of a collaborative community project where every businesse’s vision of marketing themselves will be met in the beautiful array of a whole. After all isn’t that the attraction of living in such a rich and vibrant shire – a place where we can all come together and support one another?

Creative ideas emerged at the meeting that can generate an abundance of visitors to this unique business park, home of everything you can imagine from three dimensional glass sculptures and crystals to plumbing supplies and motorbike repair shops.

The unanimous cheers for a new and creative sign that displays the diversity of all the businesses that operate here is of utmost importance. The development of a gallery tour, the possibility of renaming the whole acreage to more accurately describe what is taking place in the Estate, ideas of a shuttle bus service and motorised cycling tour to help ease the burden of transport issues are to name but a few of the ideas generated by a group of willing and motivated small business owners and operators that want to add to the vibrancy of the Byron Shire uniqueness and ALL it has to offer.

Our next meeting on Wednesday 16 July 2008, 5:30pm at Byron Creative, 18 Centennial Cct, A & I Estate will get down to the nitty gritty where a steering committee will be elected and action will take place.

Please contact Samaya Zakay of Zakay Glass Creations for further information on 0414 596 326 samaya@zakayglasscreations.com