Merry Christmas and best wishes for a brighter 2021

As today is our final newsletter of the year I’d just like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. I am sure that, as I am, you’re looking forward to closing the diary on what has been one of the toughest years in living memory, and launching into 2021 with a renewed sense of optimism.

To try and give a helping hand along that way we will be publishing our first stories and newsletter of 2021 on Monday 4 January, so we look forward to bringing you all your small business and start-up news, opinion and advice then.

Thank you for all your support and increasing engagement this year – despite the challenges we have never had more hits on the website, so I help we’ve been able to help you through. As always, don’t hesitate to drop me a line if you have any feedback on the content we’re putting together for you.

The summer issue of our quarterly magazine also hits the shelves on 4 January – make sure you subscribe to or pick up your copy of the only small-business focused publication still in print. As the small-business sector leads the economy out of the COVID crisis, the magazine features four small-business owners who met the pandemic head on, rapidly understanding that they couldn’t operate the way they did before the virus hit, and pivoting to adapt to the drastically different operating environment…and prospering by doing so.

In the Insights feature we look at “survivor guilt” – the unexpected by-product of 2020 – and the question of how you communicate the fact that your business has thrived through the crisis, and the impact that may have on those who haven’t fared as well.

We spend “Five minutes with…” David Mallett, a proud Ngarrindjeri man who uses his venture Yanun – a project services company that specialises in the defense and government industries – as a vehicle to mentor your indigenous people and provide a pathway into the industry.

The new issue also profiles Chelsea Ford, a former ISB Top 50 Small Business Leaders winner and judge, and how technology has helped her take her business, Females in Food, to five continents and address the under-representation of women in leading roles in the Food & Beverage industry.

We also meet two businesses embracing cutting-edge techniques to address climate issues – an AgTech venture that helps farmers monitor and manage irrigation, and an entrepreneur using drone technology in the reforestation of bush-fire ravaged areas.

And if you’re looking for inspiration – or just a great read – over the holidays, download this year’s Top 50 Small Business Leaders report featuring Australia’s most fascinating, innovative start-up stories.

Tim Ladhams, Editor, Inside Small Business