October 22, 2020
“Buy From A Bush Business” – a Facebook group that came into its own during COVID-19 – is celebrating its first birthday on October 31.
During the past 12 months, the group founded by Jenn Donovan to support small rural businesses has grown from no members to an impressive 285,000.
And quite a few of them are in the South Burnett …
Jenn, who is married to a farmer, lives in the NSW Riverina and runs a marketing business.
“#Buy From the Bush was a hashtag that people were starting to know about but didn’t know how to get involved with,” she said.
“I lived and was working in drought country – years of drought had hit these (and many other) towns hard. It was coming up Christmas and no one was looking forward to it.
“I know as an ex-retailer, that if farmers don’t have money, towns don’t have money – so no one really expected a good Christmas in their business.”
Jenn decided that a Facebook group, where people could just post themselves, was the way to go.
She celebrated when the group reached 5000 members, then 10,000 members and then 25,000 members.
She had no idea it would rise to 285,000 and continue to grow.
“I have no idea how much money has been traded in the past 12 months, but it must be in the 100s of thousands – possibly millions,” she said.
Jenn and a team of volunteer admins now spend hundreds of hours each week approving posts, answering messages and taking phone calls from members who aren’t tech savvy but want to be a part of the community.
She has now set up a companion website, www.spendwithus.com.au, where regional and remote businesses can promote their goods for a small fee.
- External link: Buy From A Bush Business (Facebook)
