Hills & Coast Grant: Inavogue

Grant Recipient Case Study – 2022 Funding Round

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Since 1990, Inavogue has been creating beautiful custom kitchens and cabinetry for homeowners in the Adelaide Hills.

Their team of designers, cabinet builders and installers have built a reputation for creative design, quality workmanship and great customer service.

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Inavogue focus on designing custom cabinetry solutions to complement the existing space and needs of their customers, both indoors and out.

Taking design to the edge

An integral piece of Inavogue’s production equipment is an edge bander. This vital machinery is used to create clean, even finishes on cabinetry panels, which is difficult and time-consuming to do by hand. By milling timber while using an adhesive, the edge bander ensures a more durable finished product that is less susceptible to damage, while generating more consistent outcomes across an entire project.

The existing edge bander used by Inavogue was nearing the end of its useful life. Increasing breakdowns, that often required parts imported from Germany, meant build and installation times were being adversely impacted by the age of the machine.

Updating this critical piece of equipment would be essential to increase productivity and reduce downtime. Additionally, by purchasing a new edge bander from a local supplier, future maintenance and part requirements would support local businesses and keep money within the local economy.

How the grant funding was used

As a small business, raising funds for significant equipment purchases from ordinary operating surpluses is always a challenge, while the economic instability in recent years, due to a range of global and domestic factors, has created additional financial risks.

Funding from the Hills & Coast Business Grant provided Inavogue with the immediate cashflow to mitigate these constraints. Additionally, it gave the organisation the capacity to consider purchasing new equipment, rather than exploring the second-hand market and buying machinery that would likely experience maintenance issues much sooner.

As a result, Inavogue could not only ramp up production, improve efficiencies and reduce downtime, but investing in new equipment would significantly delay related maintenance and repair costs to maximise profit margins.

What has happened since receiving the grant

After experiencing some slight delays with getting the machinery on site, Inavogue has already seen anticipated benefits come to fruition. The new edge bander is bigger than its predecessor, allowing the production team to process 3 pieces of timber at time, rather than 2, equating to an immediate 50% increase in production capacity.

The team have also discovered a number of smaller time efficiencies across the day with the new equipment – all of which add up to greater time savings that free up staff to focus on other tasks within the facility.

As a result of increased production, efficiencies and output, Inavogue has since employed 3 new staff, adding an apprentice and an admin to their team.

Feedback on the Hills & Coast grant process

Rowan Edwards, owner of Inavogue, found the experience of applying for the grant quite efficient, from lodging the application itself to receiving the funds. While the grant was open for just over 3 weeks, he suggested business owners should always be looking for new opportunities for their business, and be ready to take action when they arise.

He considers grants such as the Hills & Coast Business Grant to be a lever to initiate business growth and accelerate business potential.