Rockhampton Regional Council's SmartHub continues to drive business growth in the local economy with five resident members leaving the Hub in the last three months so they can expand their businesses into commercial premises.
Mayor Tony Williams congratulated the businesses on taking the next step while paying tribute to the hard work of the SmartHub who helped them grow.
"To have five businesses move into commercial premises in just two months is an incredible achievement and Council is proud to have made this happen through our hardworking SmartHub team," Mayor Williams said.
"Small business is the engine room of our economy and Council is proud to partner and support these members to turn ideas into reality and guide them along the way.
"It also shows that Council is doing the right things to help businesses not just survive but thrive during these times. I look forward to hearing about the successes of these businesses in the months and years to come and I congratulate them again on this key step," Mayor Williams said.
Centelle Winstanley, owner of asset finance brokerage Fraction Finance, said the Smart Hub helped both professionally and thanks to the support of Council staff and other members.
"The assistance from the SmartHub has been invaluable in terms of growing my business to the point of needing to break out into my own office space," Ms Winstanley said.
"The SmartHub facility itself has been such a great place to work and I am very grateful to all the team for their mentoring and support.
"I'm excited about the possibility of scaling my business event further as an ongoing SmartHub member," Ms Winstanley said.
SmartHub Business Manager, Elize Hattin, says the vision of the SmartHub is to be the home of people in business and to provide all the resources required for business success.
"That vision is now a reality for these five and for a number of others over the past years," Ms Hattin said.
"I am absolutely thrilled that so many SmartHub members have scaled in the last 12 months, further building the region's economy, increasing jobs and fortifying the local innovation ecosystem.
