Bush to Bowl’s EOFY Tips for Small Businesses

Community is at the heart of every decision Clarence Bruinsma and Adam Byrne make for their business, Bush to Bowl.

From growing the business at a pace that meets their families’ needs to ensuring their team has access to community leave and a flexible working style that aligns with their role in the business, the pair have been determined to build their social enterprise from the ground up in a way that truly reflects their values.

“Family and community must be first and present [in our] thought process, so that we provide a safe space for us to work,” says Clarence.

After meeting by chance and realising they had a shared passion for creating education opportunities on Indigenous culture – with a particular focus on native bush foods – Clarence, from Yaegl, far-north coast NSW, and Adam, from Garigal, Sydney, got to work on Bush to Bowl.

Adam and Clarence standing in their nursery surrounded by rows of potted plants under shade cloth; Clarence holds a tablet. — Bush to Bowl founders Adam Byrne (left) and Clarence Bruinsma.

[Initially, they ran it as two sole traders but transitioned into a company before long, at the same time as growing their young families.

“As much as demand has been there at times, we've also been conscious of… how much pressure we wanted to put on ourselves in doing that,” says Clarence. “So at times, [growth has] maybe been a bit slower than what [it] could have been, but that also worked well for us as well.

“We put in our diaries when we’re doing just family time and everyone knows that they are emergency hours for calling us. You’ve got to make sure of that work-life balance, that family life is supported, because it’s no use having the business by itself – we’re doing this for our families and for our communities.”

Now, the 100 per cent Indigenous-owned social enterprise comprises a native nursery for wholesale plants and online orders, cultural and bush food workshops for schools and corporate groups and cultural landscaping services.

Two Bush to Bowl employees tending rows of potted green plants on raised benches in a nursery under shade cloth.

Currently there are 11 employees across roles in administration, the nursery and running the workshop, but since it began, Bush to Bowl has employed more than 40 First Nations individuals in different roles. Clarence and Adam have particularly focused on mentoring young people in their communities and, through working at Bush to Bowl, provided pathways into industries including horticulture and cultural consultancy.

The Bush to Bowl team is currently moving their thousands of native plants into a new nursery space in Sydney, that’s being built from the ground up to prepare them for the next phase of growth.

“[There’s a lot of] management conversations and we’re putting in more stringent financial processes, recording processes,” says Clarence. “When you run as a smaller operation you can keep those conversations more easily between you, but as the number of people grow, the number of people touching things grows, it just increases. There’s complexity at the moment, but long-term it should make things smoother on the team.”

‍ Clarence’s Best Advice for Tax Time as a Small Business Owner

Adam from behind in an olive T-shirt reading ‘OUR FUTURE OUR FOOD OUR WAY’ walking between rows of potted plants, holding two black pots.

Embed a Team Mentality

“One of our busiest times of year is the end of the financial year, and not just because of getting our finances in order, but because it’s right when National Reconciliation Week [27 May to 3 June every year] and NAIDOC Week [the first week of July each year] are happening.

“So our admin teams are taking bookings for 50 to 150 people a day [for corporate workshops] and still delivering our school workshops, deliveries of plants and then there’s the back end of managing our finances. And we’re also in the peak time of growing for spring.

“It’s really frantic! So having that team mentality that no matter what happens, everyone’s leaning in and pitching in. And then when we get to the end of the crazy period, we give people time off to refresh and reconnect.”

Adam and Clarence review a tablet among rows of potted plants under shade cloth; a label printer sits on a nearby bench.

Mark Everything in Your Calendar

“We’ve got to make sure that our calendars are really up to date in a lot of detail. Adam and I, as we’re making the day-to-day decisions, [we make sure] we’ve also got that long-term vision of where we're going and what we’re trying to maintain.”

A Bush to Bowl employee standing behind a table holding a credit card reader, with a 2-in-1 laptop, label rolls, rolled paper and trays of native seedlings.

Use an Officeworks for Business Account

“It just streamlines things. If an employee goes to purchase something on their way home, or uses a credit card, you have to have more remuneration and recuperation systems in place to manage that.

“Whereas with Officeworks for Business, you’re not chasing receipts that have faded in the sun two weeks later, it’s all digitised and automated to pass on to the accounts team. And then you’ve got the benefits of the discounts you get for that relationship as well; it becomes more of a relationship as opposed to just you being a customer.”

Officeworks for Business customers can also receive a 5%* discounts on thousands of business essentials to help them run their businesses, like these essentials that Bush to Bowl uses every day:

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Bush to Bowl’s Small Business Essentials

Packaging Supplies

Clarence and the team bulk-buy packaging essentials, including boxes, padding, packaging tape and address labels to ensure they’re always stocked for sending out plants and merchandise to customers who buy from their online shop.‍

What to Try

‍Bespoke Printing and Event Signage

A series of images showing an assortment of custom Bush to Bowl stickers being placed on plastic pots and packages.

Bush to Bowl has custom flyers, pull-up banners and A-frame signage with essential and interesting information about the business and bush food on display for when they’re running workshops or information stands. “It’s not just the stationery we get, but the event stuff we need to take for workshops or for a school to display,” says Clarence.

What to Try

Stickers and Pens for Labelling

Clarence using a Posca pen to label a potted plant, standing next to Adam in a nursery with rows of plants on benches under shade cloth.

As well as mailing essentials, supplies to clearly label plants and ingredients are key for making sure their customers and audience have the full picture of what the workshop instructors are talking about. Bush to Bowl often use POSCA pens to mark up their plant pots and create name displays. “We love the POSCAS!,” says Clarence.‍

Kitchen Essentials

A series of images showing an assortment of catering supplies. Products include boxes of tea, tins of instant coffee, bottled water, paper plates and wooden cutlery.

Bush to Bowl stocks the office team room with tea and coffee essentials as well as large bottles of water to keep the team hydrated while working outside. “The guys get their water from Officeworks – the big 12-litre bottles. I was like ‘Why are you getting your water from Officeworks?’,” laughs Clarence - he didn’t realise such large bottles were available. The business also uses catering supplies to set up their workshops on native plants and ingredients.‍

What to Try

Daily Tech and Tools

A series of images showing an assortment of small business supplies. Products include a Square POS system in use, a Brother label printer, POSCA markers, extension cables and more.

Bush to Bowl relies on portable tech like tablets, Square readers and label printers to manage inventory and orders, as well as essentials for running and organising the nursery such as protective gloves and storage units.

‍ What to Try

It’s free to sign up for Officeworks for Business – all you need is an ABN. You’ll save 5%* on thousands of business essentials, get access to exclusive deals and unlock tailored support for your team.

This is general information only and does not constitute taxation or legal advice. Other requirements under the tax law apply. Seek professional tax and/or legal advice.

*Available to Officeworks for Business customers with a valid ABN only. Excludes account holders with negotiated pricing.

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