Australia Post set to invest in e-commerce innovation
Australia Post will invest an initial $20m in emerging e-commerce businesses and co-locate its accelerator at Lab-14 premises with its first partner, the University of Melbourne’s Melbourne Accelerator Program (MAP). In an official statement issued today (30 October), Australia Post said that the investment fund and initial partnership with MAP are part of an ambitious programme “to support small business and to accelerate e-commerce innovation across Australia”.
“We will work with our people, our customers, the community and our partners to identify new opportunities and emerging, disruptive e-commerce businesses that we can accelerate,” said Australia Post Managing Director & Group CEO Ahmed Fahour.
“We will use the $20m capital fund, which with the success I expect could grow to more than $100m over coming years, to directly invest in great e-commerce businesses with ideas that will improve the lives of our customers.”
Australia Post said the three-year, $1m MAP partnership will be “the first of many with accelerators around Australia”.
Key elements of the three-year million-dollar partnership with MAP include:
- Two new places for e-commerce businesses in the MAP Startup Accelerator. Like others in the Accelerator, each will receive $20,000 in funding, office space, mentoring and connections to local and international networks.
- A $20,000 annual scholarship to the Wade Institute for Entrepreneurship.
- Three specific outreach programmes targeting regional & rural areas, women and social entrepreneurs
Fahour said innovation is already at the forefront of Australia Post’s transformation into a leading eCommerce business.
“Throughout our 207 years of serving the Australian community we have always innovated in response to social and technology changes. And innovation is essential to remaining relevant to our customers as their behaviour and expectations change,” added Fahour.
“Through programmes like ‘GoDigi’ which is building our nation’s digital literacy, to our Go&Grow Online seminars aimed at regional small business, and our relationships with global partners like eBay and Alibaba, we are encouraging digital engagement and innovation.
“We will soon pilot ‘The Hive’ in Geelong where we are working with the community to offer meeting spaces, IT support and business coaching to local start-ups and micro-businesses.”
And sticking with the theme of innovation, local media have today reported that Australia Post will be trialling the use of drones for parcel deliveries next year – and it is working in partnership with an e-tailer which sees drones as a good way of delivering to customers in regional and rural communities.
