Corporate News
New VET Student Loans Scheme
This week the Federal Minister for Education and Training announced a new VET loan system to replace the flawed VET FEE-HELP scheme. The VET Student Loans scheme includes: Limiting courses eligible for VET Student Loans to those that align with industry needs and are...
Review of Mandatory BUNK BED Standards
Manufacturers, Importers, Agents and Retailers were in attendance at the recent AFA Seminar on the Review of the Mandatory Standards for Bunk Beds and how they will be affected by these changes. The Australian Furniture Association hosted this exclusive AFA Member...
2016 ACE Winner Tamara Glick
Tamara Glick was one of our 2016 ACE Student Design Winners. Recently she collaborated with Aine Dowling to create another one of her clever designs for Hollywood Primary School, their own Bench. The bench's varying heights and colours are a nod to the schoolyard's...
Business Confidence jumps again in April
Good news for Members, Roy Morgan Research’s Business Confidence rose again in April (up 6.4% to 123.1) and has now risen 12.5 pts over the last three months since a 2016 low of 110.6 in January. The rise in Business Confidence comes after more improvement on...
2016-17 Budget Summary
TARGET PRACTICE The 2016-17 Federal Budget is a budget of targets – broad targets to boost business and innovation and the narrow revenue targets of the wealthy and multi-nationals. It’s a big, long-term crafted budget designed to give enough pre-election glow...
Casual employees and dismissal
All AFA Members who employ staff on a casual basis should know that their entitlements including their dismissal rights, change over time. Casual employment is becoming increasingly popular in Australian business with a whopping one in five employees classified...
Be a part of the next edition of Australian Furniture &;amp; Furnishing
REACH OVER 40,000 READERS WITH A SPECIAL OFFER for all AFA Members and Subscribers. Be a part of the next edition of Australian Furniture & Furnishing. With FURNITEX & design 2016 just around the corner, we’re filling the last available spots in our...
Inland surf beach to be pitted in western Sydney car park
First, it was Melbourne now Sydney with plans for an an old car park at Sydney Olympic Park to be transformed into an artificial surf beach by surf park developer Wave Park Group and Perth-based architecture practice MJA Studio. Wave Park Group has announced it...
Red Dot Awards
This year's Red Dot Awards for Product Design received more than 5,200 entries the highest number of submissions ever in the 61-year-old design competition—across 31 categories spanning lighting products to fashion accessories to finish materials. Among the...
2016 Victorian Architecture Awards Shortlist Revealed
The Australian Institute of Architects Victorian Chapter has announced the shortlist for the 2016 Victorian Architecture Awards. From 198 entries, 14 juries carried out an extensive schedule of site visits and have shortlisted 70 individual projects across 15...
How to spot a dodgy business!
TV show Kochie’s Business Builders is set to produce a series of videos to help you spot and protect yourself from dodgy phoenix operators. What is a phoenix company? A phoenix company is one that closes up by going into liquidation. It then starts trading...
Hemp at the heart of Western Australia’s first eco-village
The project manager of Western Australia's first eco-village, partly built with hemp, believes the finished product will add weight to the growing push for it to be widely used in the construction industry. Which could see it roll out into mainstream furniture...
Xenophon on VET Reform and Jobs
Senator Nick Xenophon will open the 2016 Furnishing Futures Conference where the hot topic will be the impact of VET Reform to Industry. The annual event features a number of high profile industry experts, both local and international, who will present across a...
Penalty rates talk out of this world for Labor
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has suggested that the Fair Work Commission is unlikely to recommend a reduction in weekend penalty rates. The FWC were tipped to make a decision last Sunday on penalty rates in the retail and hospitality sectors soon after the...
Senate Threat to Company Tax Cuts
The Australian Financial Review - Page 1/4 : 2 June 2016 Original article by Phillip Coorey Roy Morgan Summary The Parliamentary Budget Office estimates that the Federal Government's proposal to progressively reduce the company tax rate to 25 per cent will cost...
Australian Economy Growth
National accounts data show that the Australian economy expanded by 1.1 per cent in the March 2016 quarter, and by 3.1 per cent year-on-year. However, wages grew by just 0.4 per cent and 1.2 per cent respectively, while there was a 2.6 per cent decline in...
End of Financial Year is coming
The end of the financial year is an important and busy time for AFA Members especially those who are small business owners. Completing bookkeeping, tax returns and begining planning for the new financial year. Putting the hard work in each financial year can...
Entries close for 2016 AFIA &;amp; ACE Awards
The2016 AFIA ( Australian Furniture Industry Awards) and ACE ( Australian Contemporary Emerging Designer) Awardsnominations have closed. The increase in nominations will make it very difficult for our Judges to shortlist from a wonderful selection of entrants....
Visit FURNITEX &;amp; design and WIN!
FURNITEX & design will be bigger and better in 2016 with a new home in Brisbane, the all new inspiration runway AND more award nominee's than ever before. Visitors to this years event will go in the draw to win a stunning two seater Memphis Chesterfield...
Co-Working Spaces for Business
Ever wanted to take your business to a new and exciting facility? If you’re ready to up the ante on your business’s innovation, AFA Members might like to consider accessing a co-working space, or innovation centre. Co-working spaces are specialised hubs or...
Is E-commerce the way of the Future?
According to latest reports from America E-commerce is throttling American bricks and mortar department stores and it may be just a matter of time before traditional Australian retailers are crushed too. You only need to look at your local shopping strip...
Free ‘Tax for Small Business Workshop’ for WA Members
@media only screen and (max-width: 660px) { table[class=w0], td[class=w0] { width: 0 !important; } table[class=w10], td[class=w10], img[class=w10] { width: 10px !important; } table[class=w15], td[class=w15], img[class=w15] { width: 5px !important; } table[class=w30],...
Online Dealz and its director Janet Lucas to pay $120,000 in penalties for selling unsafe baby cots and strollers
The Federal Court has ordered Online Dealz Pty Ltd (Online Dealz) to pay a penalty of $100,000 for supplying a household cot, portable cot and stroller that did not comply with safety standards, and for making misleading representations in advertisements for...
2016 AFIA &;amp; ACE Shortlists Announced
The shortlists for the Australian Furnishing Industry Awards (AFIA) and the Australian Contemporary Emerging (ACE) Design Awards have been announced with this years awards set to be bigger and better than EVER! With more entries than ever before and some...
What should you do when your trade mark is being infringed?
There are three legal avenues available to those who believe that someone else is wrongly exploiting their product or brands or business identities (whether or not registered or unregistered trade marks are involved). Trade Mark Infringement Where you have a...
Has an employee asked you to make additional Superannuation payments?
Remember to leave enough time to make any superannuation payments before 30 June 2016 in order for them to go through the super system and be counted as a contribution for tax purposes in this financial year. To find out more:...
Want to install video surveillance in your business?
If you’re thinking about installing video surveillance, here are some helpful tips to follow for best practice: Tell your staff and new employees in writing about the surveillance devices. Clearly explain your expectations of staff in the workplace and their...
Do you have a code of conduct for your business?
A workplace code of conduct can set your business’s standards and expectations by clearly documenting your business policies, values and ethics. What is a code of conduct? A code of conduct is a set of guidelines on how staff should act, and what they can and...
Marketing &;amp; Media Madness – How To Invest Your Marketing Dollars Wisely $$
Advertising. Digital Media. Exhibitions and Trade Shows. It’s all too much. So how do you decide where to spend your valuable marketing bucks for the best return on investment? Marie Kinsella is the CEO of newly formed International Exhibition & Conference...
Augmented Reality Technology comes to the Furnishing Industry
Augmented Reality is a cutting-edge technology that adds layers of digital information – videos, 3D models, live streams, images, audio – directly on items in the physical world. AR allows brands, publishers and agencies to create immersive and interactive experiences...