By Casey Neill
Brothers Callum and Nat Reeves tried their hand at making cider for a friend’s wedding.
Now they’re exporting beer from Dandenong South to Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.
South East Brewing Company, Uncle’s Smallgoods and Dandenong Market were announced as Greater Dandenong Chamber of Commerce Business Awards nominees at the chamber’s first breakfast for the year, held at Sandhurst Golf Club on Wednesday 29 March.
Nat studied science at university and was a passionate home brewer. Callum had a background in wine.
They turned their hands to the “really hoppy, American-style beers” they couldn’t find in Australia and last year set up in Dandenong South.
They exported about eight containers of beer and cider last year and are now tapping into China.
“We always try and stay a step ahead of the market and really look at what people love at the moment and what are they going to love next,” Callum said.
Uncle’s Smallgoods has been a Dandenong fixture since 1994. Bert Glinka and Brendan D’Amelio acquired the store in September 2013.
They both had corporate jobs they hated and decided to sell Uncles sausages at a festival, to huge success.
“We really believed in the product, we couldn’t stop eating that sausage,” Bert said.
The elderly Uncles owners were looking to step back and put the duo to the test with a truckload of wood for the smoker before agreeing to hand over the reins.
This year they launched a sausage bouquet for Valentine’s Day and were inundated with demand.
Their online store is now going strong, they acquired a factory in Dandenong late last year to pursue the wholesale market, and “in the short term we might see another Uncles in Dandenong”.
The Greater Dandenong Council-owned Dandenong Market became an independently-managed commercial enterprise in 2012.
It celebrated its 150th anniversary last year, is home to about 200 traders and supports charity SecondBite with unsold fresh produce.
“It’s a retail experience but it’s actually all about the individual family businesses,” chair Julie Busch said.
She said the relatively new Sunday trading had become one of busiest days of the week and was further boosted by cultural celebrations and festivals.
“It’s very colourful, it’s full of energy and we need to celebrate that,” she said.
Greater Dandenong Chamber of Commerce Business Award winners will be announced in November.
