June 16, 2016
Kingaroy Joinery owners Amanda and Darrin Kefford hosted the latest Kingaroy Chamber of Commerce Meet’n’Greet recently at their showroom and workshop in Kingaroy Street.
Darrin provided a short history of the family-run business as the guests inspected the new and old machinery in the joinery workshop.
The business began as RV Rodgerson Joinery in 1929 and was renamed Kingaroy Joinery in 1945.
Darrin’s grandfather Ray Kefford began his apprenticeship at the business in 1946 and went into partnership to run it in 1958. Ray finally bought out the business in 1976.
His son John and daughter Jan Kerkow took over in 1990, and Darrin and Amanda purchased it in 2005.
There is machinery in the workshop that all three generations of Keffords have trained on.
However, Darrin and Amanda have donated some of the oldest equipment to the Kingaroy Museum.
Darrin said Kingaroy Joinery is kept busy manufacturing cupboards and kitchens for schools, shops and architect-designed homes.
Their clients are not just within the South Burnett, with a lot of work being done for the Brisbane market.
Kingaroy Joinery has just been nominated for a Queensland Training Award, and has launched a new website.
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Guest speaker Sandy Towell, from the Nanango Arts Network Alliance (NANA), explained “Brushes and Flashes of the South Burnett”, a travelling art exhibition which aims to promote the South Burnett.
She said 11 artists would each submit six items of work.
The initial showing will be at an invitation-only event in September and then the exhibition will hit the road.
Sandy said it would be shown in Dalby, Ipswich, Warwick, Rockhampton, Biloela, Charters Towers and Emerald, as well as locally at Wondai Art Gallery.
It may also travel to Maryborough and Townsville.
She said a video would also be shot of South Burnett footage which would be playing during the exhibitions.
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A second guest speaker was Sharyn Garrett from South Burnett Directions who introduced the ‘South Burnett Rewards’ shop local program.
She said it was an ambitious but innovative campaign, and the first time it has been done on a digital platform at a regional level.
“It incentivises shopping locally at local businesses,” she said.
The electronic part of the rewards program is being run via Rewardle.
“Rewardle wants to use the South Burnett as a demonstration to other areas what a progressive Council can do to promote business,” Sharyn said.
The campaign will be accompanied by a radio jingle, point-of-sale material, badges and subsidised advertising packages with local media.
“Everywhere a shopper goes throughout the region, they will get the same message to ‘choose local’,” Sharyn said.
She said South Burnett Directions was finalising a kit which will detail what businesses will get if they join the campaign.
There will be two levels: a retail level (using the Rewardle tablet and app) and another for business who are not retailers.
Sharyn said there were still a few trial spots open for businesses who wanted to try the Rewardle tablet.
