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Hunkering down at home and avoiding public outings at all costs, Australians turned in droves to the magic of e-commerce in 2020.
For example, Australia Post notes more than 200,000 Australians bought something online for the first time in April during the height of the pandemic.
Whether it be for clothes, food, homewares, electronics or even toilet paper, online purchasing has become the new normal this year. But if you're ahead of the curve like New Aim founder Fung Lam, you knew this e-commerce boom was coming and the current market dynamics are just ahead of schedule.
His success in 2020, accelerated substantially by COVID-19 online shopping trends, is just one reason the importer and distributor has been named the Melbourne Young Entrepreneur of the Year today.
Click here for a presentation of all the winners and finalists at the Melbourne Young Entrepreneur Awards 2020.
While New Aim might not be a household name, it's possible that you've bought a product imported and distributed by the business.
Fung's company trades on major Australian marketplaces such as eBay, Amazon, Catch, Kogan, My Deal and more.
New Aim is currently one of the biggest sellers across these platforms, distributing more than 6,000 products to consumers Australia-wide.
In addition, New Aim's dropshipping website Dropshipzone is helping thousands of small businesses get into both the pure-play and bricks-and-mortar retail spaces.
To assist these online businesses, New Aim has developed a Shopify app in-house called Sofortig - derived from the German word for immediate - this year.
The app helps users with real-time inventory updates and automatic product distribution, enabling business owners to focus on the fun stuff - driving sales.
COVID-19 has been a boom period for Lam's New Aim, with the company more than doubling sales since the pandemic hit.
"Our business has thrived during the pandemic because it has changed consumers' shopping habits," says Lam.
"Demand for our stock has been through the roof. Because we trade with multiple marketplaces and partner with multiple retailers our sales rocketed."
Lam's win this year is the second year running for the Young Entrepreneur who also won the 2020 Retail and Services Award today.
Trailblazers revolutionising Australian distribution and supply chains
Emerging manufacturing, supply chain and distribution consultants Giovanni Pino (pictured left) and Ellie Vaisman (pictured right) have also been recognised today for their fast-growth scaleup Sourci.
The pair received the Trailblazer Award at the 2020 Melbourne Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards today for Sourci - a one stop shop for supply chain assistance, procurement of goods and distribution consultation.
Sourci grew from a pain point during Pino's stint working for a printing company, during which he came face to face with the difficulties of sourcing products from overseas.
Teaming up with real estate agent Vaisman, the duo got to work on building their now successful business.
With manufacturing, distribution and supply chains slammed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Sourci stepped in to get things back on track for its clients.
This translated into some of the biggest orders the company has seen to date, especially as the company played a pivotal role in procuring personal protective equipment (PPE) for Australian and international government clients.
"It was like the wild west in China," Pino said.
"We were able to perform quite well during that period to make sure that what we brought into the country was at the highest quality."
New Aim and Sourci were just two examples of the amazing entrepreneurial talent that the Melbourne scene has to offer.
Click here or in the banner below for a presentation of all the winners and finalists.
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