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For six years, Tradeware and Endeavour Foundation have worked together to assemble products, grow a trusted Australian brand and create meaningful employment for people with intellectual disability.
When Tradeware began looking for an assembly partner on Australia’s east coast in 2020, CEO Dave Foy knew what he wanted the relationship to look like.
Tradeware represents a number of brands in the Australian market, including Envirosafe, which produces environmentally friendly pest control products designed to be safe for people, pets and the planet.
The business needed a partner it could trust to assemble products to a high standard, respond when demand changed and ultimately represent the Envirosafe brand well.
But Dave was also looking for something deeper than a transactional supplier relationship.
“Having shared values is always really important for us as a partner,” Dave said.
“Endeavour Foundation really took the time to get to know us and what was important to us, and we connected really well.”
Six years later, that connection has grown into a partnership that delivers commercial outcomes for Tradeware while creating ongoing employment opportunities for people with intellectual disability.
Building a Partnership That Works for Everyone
At Endeavour Foundation’s Geebung Business Solutions site, supported employees help assemble several key Envirosafe products, including jumbo fly traps, alfresco fly traps, indoor fruit fly traps and the associated baits.
For Tradeware, the relationship works because Endeavour Foundation understands what the business needs and can adapt as those needs change.
“Endeavour Foundation’s approach is one that really connected strongly with us,” Dave said.
“It’s around getting to know each other really well, working together as a partnership and as a team, understanding what’s important to us and being really flexible to help us achieve the right outcome.”
That flexibility was put to the test recently when Envirosafe launched its indoor fruit fly trap.
Demand exceeded expectations and Tradeware needed additional products assembled and ready for customers quickly.
“We had to get new stock in really quickly and we worked really closely with Endeavour Foundation,” Dave said.
“They were fantastic with changing shifts and really prioritising the work to be able to maximise the output of the new products as they came in.
“They got them assembled really quickly and we were able to deliver for our customers.”
It was a commercial challenge solved through the kind of communication and trust the two organisations had built over years of working together.
“It was just a really transparent partnership and communication that ended up getting the right result for us,” Dave said.
The People Behind the Partnership
The impact of the relationship is perhaps most visible on the floor at Geebung, where employees assemble and package the products that eventually make their way onto shelves across Australia.
For some employees, Endeavour Foundation has been their workplace for decades.
Nicole, 52, started working with Endeavour Foundation after leaving school and will celebrate 30 years with the organisation next year.
Over that time, she has taken on different jobs, learned new skills and formed friendships with the people around her.
“I love it here. All the supervisors are very nice and friendly,” Nicole said.
“My favourite part is just helping each other out and working as a team.”
Kelly McGee has worked at Endeavour Foundation for 16 years and says packing fly trap boxes is one of her favourite jobs.
But when asked what she enjoys most about coming to work, her answer goes beyond the job itself.
“I just like working here because I have made a lot more friends,” Kelly said.
For 20-year-old Thomas, employment at Endeavour Foundation is much newer.
After finishing school and spending around two years out of the workforce, he recently completed his first 13 weeks at Endeavour Foundation.
“My favourite part of the job is making friends here,” Thomas said.
“Earning my own money means that I’m an adult and being responsible.”
Why Business Partnerships Matter
As Endeavour Foundation celebrates its 75th anniversary, relationships with businesses like Tradeware remain an important part of creating sustainable employment opportunities for people with intellectual disability.
Endeavour Foundation CEO Andrew Chesterman said meaningful employment can provide far more than an income.
“It’s about purpose, belonging, teamwork. And really it’s about having a good life as well,” Andrew said.
Those opportunities rely on genuine commercial work coming through the doors of Endeavour Foundation Business Solutions sites.
“Partnerships with business are fundamental to our offering,” Andrew said.
“Endeavour Foundation has a long history of working with some of its partners, sometimes for decades, creating meaningful employment for the people that we serve.”
At Geebung, Workplace Inclusion and Support Officer Rachel Bladen sees that connection every day.
She works with supported employees, their families, staff and support networks, while also spending time alongside employees on the warehouse floor.
For Rachel, every business that chooses to work with Endeavour Foundation has the potential to create another opportunity.
“It creates more opportunity, more jobs, the possibility of more supported employees being able to come and work with us at Geebung and give them the opportunity to grow,” Rachel said.
“Inclusion starts with the opportunity.”
Seeing the Impact Firsthand
The partnership has also had an impact on Tradeware’s own team.
When Dave and his colleagues visit Endeavour Foundation, they see employees taking pride in the products they have helped assemble and the work they have completed.
“The site visits are always fantastic and you can see the environment that’s created at the Endeavour Foundation sites with the team members,” Dave said.
“It’s great to have this sense of achievement at the end.”
Some employees even recognise Envirosafe products when they see them in stores and proudly point out the products they helped assemble to their families.
For Dave, those moments have made the partnership something his team is genuinely proud of.
“The impact on our team and our culture from having a partnership with Endeavour, it’s been immense,” he said.
“When you ask our team at Tradeware what the highlight of working for Tradeware is, so many of them say being able to partner with Endeavour and seeing the smiles on the faces and the joy that it brings the Endeavour Foundation team.”
Looking Towards the Future
After six years of working together, neither organisation sees the partnership standing still.
Tradeware wants to continue growing Envirosafe in Australia and bringing new products to market, creating further opportunities for Endeavour Foundation to support that growth.
“We want to continue to launch new products into the market and Endeavour Foundation are a great piece in the puzzle for us to be able to help get it to market and continue to expand and scale,” Dave said.
For Endeavour Foundation, partnerships like this help create the consistent, meaningful work that allows employees to continue developing their skills, building friendships and experiencing the sense of belonging that comes with having a job.
For Dave, the partnership is proof that commercial growth and meaningful employment can grow side by side.
“When I think about our partnership, I think we’ve been able to build a lot of trust over the last six years... I’m really looking forward to what the future holds,” he said.
Could your business be our next long-term partner?
Tradeware’s story shows what six years of working with Endeavour Foundation Business Solutions can look like - a partner that scales with demand, adapts as your products change, and delivers.
Whether it’s product assembly, general packing or food packing, our teams can help your business meet demand the same way we helped Tradeware – while creating real world employment opportunities for people with disability.
Discover our Packing Solutions and request a personalised quote today.
