Amazon Australia awards five grants to help drive Aussie innovation in small and medium businesses

Each Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grant is worth more than $200,000 and includes a combination of cash, mentorship and marketing support

SYDNEY –16 June 2021 – Today Amazon Australia announces the winners of its Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grants initiative, awarding five grants worth more than $200,000 each to trailblazing entrepreneurs and startups across Australia.

Amazon Launchpad, a program by Amazon Australia that empowers small-to-medium sized businesses (SMBs) for growth, has awarded baresop, Goldilocks Suit, Patch, UpFlow Brewing Co. and Milkdrop for their innovative ideas and unique product offerings.

With research from Amazon Australia showing that 82% of Aussie SMBs say they will lean into innovation to grow their business over the next 12 months, Amazon Australia is committed to supporting local innovation to help SMBs from across the country realise their full potential and to help them grow their e-commerce capabilities.

Chadd Ciccarelli, Head of Launchpad, Amazon Australia said, “Amazon Launchpad highlights innovative, cutting-edge products from start-ups, and entreprenuers from around Australia and the world, making it easy for them to on-board, market and launch new products to Amazon customers.

“As the Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grants are all about celebrating innovation in small businesses, it’s been amazing to see so many strong businesses apply to take part in this year’s program. It is a timely reminder that the Australian entrepreneurial spirit is alive and well, despite such a challenging year.”

“We’re also thrilled to be able to launch the winning brands on Amazon.com.au in time for Prime Day 2021, and put them in the spotlight for one of our of biggest shopping events of the year.”

The five grant recipients were selected with the help of 2020 Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grant winners Rosa-Clare Willis and Andrew Ford from Crockd; founder of Carman’s and one of Australia’s leading entrepreneur success stories Carolyn Creswell; and Kylie Frazer, managing partner of tech investment group Eleanor Ventures.

An overview of the Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grant Winners:

• baresop(Elwood, VIC) – baresop founder Prisca Ongonga-Daehn had a vision for “waterless” toiletries that would reduce waste, be good for the planet, and be better for your skin. Her hard work paid off when baresop officially launched its planet friendly, powdered hand wash formula in November last year.
• Goldilocks Suit (Marden, SA) – Goldilocks Suit is a next generation baby monitor built into a singlet allowing parents to keep track of their baby’s wellbeing, via an easy to use app. Founded by Shem Richard and his wife Laura, the Goldilocks Suit was born from their personal experience with their firstborn.
• Milkdrop (Bright, VIC) – When Alex Sinickas had difficulty using a breast pump to feed her daughter, she set out to completely re-design the traditional breast pump. An engineer by trade, Alex created an ultra-soft silicone cushion that stretches over existing breast pumps to add softness and comfort, offering a new take on traditional pumps.
• Patch (Cheltenham, VIC) – When James Dutton’s son experienced a reaction to an everyday wound care product, he discovered it was a common problem and became determined to find a solution. In 2017, James launched Patch – a 100 per cent natural, bamboo fibre alternative to regular wound care products.
• UpFlow Brewing Co. (Kew, VIC) – Having designed 47 craft breweries around Australia, founder Julian Sanders became inspired to solve the conundrum of enjoying beer culture without alcohol, so he launched UpFlow Brewing Collective, a full-flavoured non-alcoholic beer.

Each Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grant includes a $20,000 cash grant, Amazon advertising support, an exclusive boot camp experience with access to Amazon experts, a national advertising package with JCDecaux Nurture, industry mentorship, and onsite marketing placements on Amazon.com.au.

“Teaming up with an organisation like Amazon, which is in Australia, but has global legs, is an amazing opportunity for us to scale our business and our product to really make an impact on the world stage,” says Shem Richards, Co-founder of Goldilocks Suit. “So many people use Amazon to shop online now, and with that comes trust, which is an integral part of connecting to our ideal customers.” 

Carolyn Creswell, founder of Carman’s said, “It was an incredible experience being on the judging panel this year. I was so impressed by the level of innovation these businesses showed and the bold creativity demonstrated from SMBs all around the country, it’s a really promising sign of the state of businesses around Australia. Not only that, as a business owner, I know how difficult those earlier years can be, which is why I’m so excited for the winners as they progress on their e-commerce journey and look to expansion under the mentorship of Amazon Australia.”

Australians can shop from 2021 Amazon Launchpad Innovation Grant winners here. Budding Australian entrepreneurs, startups and small-medium-sized businesses can submit interest for the Amazon Launchpad program here.

-ENDS-

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About Amazon Australia

Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit amazon.com/about and follow @AmazonNews.

About Amazon Launchpad

Amazon Launchpad launched in August 2019 and highlights innovative, cutting-edge products from startups and entrepreneurs from around Australia and the world, making it easy for them to on-board, market and launch new products to millions of Amazon customers. Participants benefit from custom product pages on the Amazon.com.au Launchpad store, marketing support and access to Amazon’s local fulfilment networking including Amazon Prime. Amazon Launchpad also gives Australian consumers a chance to discover and support local brands.

Research footnote

Unless otherwise stated, the research included in the Amazon Launchpad Innovation Report was commissioned by Amazon Australia and conducted by McCrindle in March 2021, surveying 1,003 Australian small to medium sized business owners.