Recent research conducted by MYOB has concluded that women are 20% more likely than men to shop Australian-made in light of the drought and bushfire relief efforts and are twice as likely to donate items to support Australian communities who have been affected.
On March 2, 2020, NSW Rural Fire Service announced that for the first time in 240 days, there we no active grass fires in NSW. Although this was music to our ears, the devastation of the bushfires and droughts stretch much farther than just the physical damage it has caused.
From the 13 million acres that were burnt, nearly 2,500 homes were destroyed with at least 25 people dead across the whole of Australia. Many people have suffered and as a result, have had to essentially restart their lives without the comfort of home, without their possessions and with very little hope.
“For many, the glimmer of hope has been in the actions of those around them. We’ve seen huge waves of support for communities and businesses to rebuild after being impacted by fires or drought,”
said Jane Betschel, MYOB’s Head of SME Direct Sales
Women-led businesses and social enterprises have been gargantuan in their efforts to support bushfire and drought relief with Instagram pages like @spendwiththem, @buyfromthebush, @emptyesky and @findabedau all encouraging Australians to buy local products.
“It’s wonderful to see the role women play in building and rebuilding communities, and in particular small businesses, across the country,”
said Jane Betschel