Video summary
Trandos Farms represents the fourth generation of an agricultural legacy that began in 1939 when Jim Trandos' grandfather emigrated from northern Greece and started cultivating vegetables on small plots of swampland near Perth. Today, the business has expanded significantly to become one of Western Australia's largest growers of sweet corn and beans, operating three distinct locations including a packing facility north of Perth, a production farm in Gingin, and a winter operation at Shalimar Station far north towards Broome. This strategic expansion allows the company to offer year-round supply for major Australian supermarket chains while also exporting products to over 27 countries worldwide, marking a significant evolution from their humble beginnings into an international enterprise.
The journey toward global export status was not without its challenges and required a shift in mindset regarding both branding and market strategy. Initially hesitant about high-profile marketing due to the desire for privacy within the domestic sector, Jim eventually embraced professional rebranding assistance that highlighted the distinctly Australian nature of their produce with kangaroo imagery on packaging labels. A pivotal moment occurred when he noticed South African corn dominating Dubai supermarkets at a lower price point; realizing that air freight could overcome seasonal limitations and currency fluctuations, he pivoted his strategy to focus on high-quality exports despite initial rejections from buyers loyal to existing suppliers. This resilience paid off after the quality of South African shipments failed in Dubai, allowing Trandos Farms to quickly fill the gap with their superior product and establish a strong presence in international markets.
Beyond commercial success, Jim shares candid insights into the realities of modern farming, including labor shortages exacerbated by mining booms which have made manual harvesting nearly impossible for many crops like cauliflower and lettuce. He emphasizes that while maintaining excellent relationships and adhering to good manners are crucial for navigating complex export landscapes, ultimately only product quality matters in securing contracts. The narrative is punctuated with humorous anecdotes about the unpredictability of farm life, such as dealing with his own fear-inducing presence around dogs or accidentally meeting a delegation member at an empty venue while covered in manure from cleaning tractors late on a Friday afternoon. These stories illustrate that despite the high stakes involved in international trade and payment security issues being paramount for any business owner, maintaining authenticity and focusing on producing high-quality goods remains the most important factor for long-term success in horticulture.
Read the full video transcript
trend oz farms is a fourth generation of
farming business the business was
started by my grandfather in 1939 he
emigrated on his own from northern
Greece and began growing vegetables in a
small plot of least swampland in one
earlier Perth our packing facility is
still in one area where my grandfather
first began my family has several other
farming interest including Tran das beef
trend oz chicken farm and Travis
hydroponics and we have 14 family
members in various roles throughout the
businesses they're not also like to
acknowledge my excellent stuff I was
once asked why i love the industry well
the truth is I'm not I'm actually not a
morning person at all so it's very hard
to love anything when you get up for 30
every morning of your life I'm actually
so scary that my two iconic farm dogs my
japanese shih tzu pixie in by my French
poodle tetas afraid of me and it's
that's Ted getting ready for a cattle
master there and my mobile I footies and
he had cold so put a good jump running
now I'm shocking in the morning I really
am it's it's a tough business to be in
when you're like that after our humble
beginnings trade-offs Farms is the
largest grow of sweet corn and beans of
Western Australia we have three
locations our packing and processing
facility in 10 rue 40 minutes north of
Perth our some production farm in gingin
90 minutes north of Perth and our winter
production farm shalimar station 2,000
kilometers north of Perth 200 500 metres
south of Broome our aiming grain crops
in broom is to offer year-round supply
of corn and beans a fresh commercial
crop had never been grown in the region
before so I was an incredible risk for
my company to take in order to achieve
around supply after digging a big hole
and pushing lots of money into it it is
now working although in farming is and
everything else we are still learning we
supply the major supermarket change
throughout Australia and now exporting
27 countries throughout the world
we used to grow cauliflower broccoli and
lettuce in the winter and corn and beans
in the summer however at the height of
the mining boom it was nearly impossible
to get people to manually harvest crop
in the field i believe so as a picture
of the proofer i believe that labor
still remains the number one problem for
vegetable growers in Australia we only
have we only grow corner beans because
they are mechanically harvested with the
slowing down of the mineral boom and I'm
very sorry about that sort of we are now
seen the return of FIFO mining workers
seeking work in industry what I will not
miss about the mining boom is the over
inflated prices that we still continue
to pay today although they now correct
themselves and it was it's quite brutal
in Western Australia we began exporting
to Japan over 10 years ago with the help
of a Japanese expat that lived in Perth
however this dropped off as a result of
increase in the Australian dollar and
improvements themselves in our domestic
market we also had an issue with
consistency and supply and we were still
seasonal and did not have scale we were
doing pretty good in the domestic market
supplying vegetable supermarket chains
and not making any money I got to say
that cuz on the farmer I was not looking
or interested in exporting at all my
friend David Wilkins who owns a major
freight forwarding company in Perth
worldlink would see me on a weekly basis
and ask me if I want to take sport
eating I kept saying Tim no David I am
NOT interested xtra factor put my hand
up and said no I'm really not interested
shortly after that conversation I went
on a trip to England to which the 2013
ashes because of a cricket die hard and
of course we lost on the way up there I
stopped off and Dubai and did what I do
in every country that i visit which is i
go through every supermarket every
shopping mall every corner store and
check the pricing of every corn product
they're the product I sure on the Shelf
was from South Africa and unfortunately
was a fairly poor quality a standing
there in that supermarket I did some
quick technical calculations I was
looking up at the sky for about five
minutes the Australian dollar was
falling and if the product had come in
by air freight and not by sea freight
we're in with a show so I had a light
bulb moments probably only want to get a
year I approached the supermarket
directly and sent samples and pricing
their comment was we appreciate that
your product is a very high quality
however the buyer in Dubai is South
African and the product is coming from
south africa the chances of you entering
the market were very sleep and my
comment simply was I respect your
company's loyalty and if ever you needed
product we're happy to help I was a
little bit disappointed but that's what
I was happy to hear oh yeah it was happy
to hear that our loyal shortly after
that about 10 days later the supermarket
caught me from Dubai telling me that it
was a problem with with the South
African product and how quickly I can
get the product up to do by then I had
to ring my friend David and so with my
tail between my legs and basically big
him he told me if I delivered the
product the following day it would end
up in Dubai Thursday morning the buyer
was very happy here quickly we could
turn it around and from that day on
nearly two years ago we now export three
to four air consignments of the boat of
corn per week I knew once we enter the
export market again that our business
would have to change from our domestic
base low profile one to an international
high profile model I had my reasons for
not wanting to be high profile in
Australia we were domestic based I did
not want to be contacted by people
ordering one box at a time as much as we
think we're clever as I thought I was
clever we all think we're clever I
needed help in updating my brand I met
Peter Bradshaw from daredevil promotions
who asked me what's the most important
thing and I said it's all about the
taste mate it's all about the taste
there he is in the middle of the road
with his back on the road doing our last
marketing initiative we trade under West
Australian corn growers this was our
label before we met Peter and this is
the label that Peter developed when I
first saw it I thought was pretty corny
pardon the pun I really did I thought
are you kidding me man kangaroos son are
you kidding me and but when I looked at
it I thought well that really is that
really is easy that really is so clearly
isn't is an Australian product you did a
fantastic job our customers absolutely
love it so we send it overseas
absolutely love it we're actually very
lucky from simple terms that we actually
have Australia in our name so my
apologies to you South Wales Victoria
and Queensland but we'll keep the
Australian hours I'd also like to
acknowledge the role the vegetable levy
has helped helped us in accessing these
markets oz virgin horticultural auto
vouchered horticultural innovation
Australia sorry david has it had in
helping me achieve the access in
building export relationships are listen
to the customer and understand what they
want where they see their business going
sometimes it's not possible to get our
product in because we are high cost
producers so having good relationship
but there may be a short window open up
at any time so having good relationships
with your customers is important I don't
dismiss anybody in the marketplace I
sent samples and follow up with business
phone calls and emails I send a customer
a product that might match their price
point and something that may be
different enough to enter their market
we may have to go smaller or change the
count impacts I've stopped worrying so
much about etiquette though I don't
disrespect etiquette I use the
International rule of good manners and
respect I don't go by the book textbook
of international trade and I certainly
don't take myself too seriously I relax
and listen to what the customer wants
and I've got used to ask answering some
very strange questions I now do a lot
more groundwork
before running up to an export meeting
and research on the customer the quality
of the export product has to be of a
high standard or it's simply not shipped
and we have to have scale to them to
cover demand we can have all the
niceties and good relationships with
customers but it's only the product that
counts in the end so of course the L
that of course the white elephant in the
room is payment you must always ensure
you get paid and set up terms that work
for you of the dozen or so export
customers we have we're fortunate never
to have any payment issues I'd like to
tell you a little story about my last
export meeting it was my daughter's
university graduation and that night
there was about 4 4000 students
graduated in alphabetical order so
having the last name of trend aust she
came is about the 3500 that night that
night I wish my name was Adam so I could
pull a sick card and leave early I was
completely wiped out the next morning I
was writing this speech and my office
manager Jan came in and said you do
remember you've got that singaporean
delegation coming of 22 the gingy in
this afternoon at four o'clock you've
got to be kidding me so it was friday
afternoon that gin gin farm is an hour
away so I did what I thought I've got
this life to do it myself so I later the
unit up took all the refreshments put
the beer in a separate esky and I took
some microwave corn packs to go this
they could try the product I'm being
it's Friday afternoon right there won't
be anybody there and don't forget we're
now a country of innovators we're not a
country of workers I get to the farm and
there's nobody there it's very quiet I
can't hear anything the bus was coming
in the big bus was coming in so I was
right about him going around the
tractors so I started up setting up the
tables in the shed tea coffee wine or
beer and now I heard something coming
for the back of the property so I
thought I'd better go and see there that
is so I Drive to the back of the
property and who is it it's her in the
75 year old man your man
who also be working on a Friday right at
five o'clock so I walk in to yell at him
and say look there's a bus coming
through just then used to back it up and
I get covered in when you up it's
unbelievable i stunk to high heaven I go
back I'm setting up the table I was
feeling pretty good I feel ok no problem
they're coming they're running late
Steve itself thought it was ok my
brother called me and said you know you
should go and get some of that bicolor
corner throw at the barbecue and serve
it with that microwave stuff for it was
a my kitchen rules moment I rushing
around putting them up putting the core
in the microwave taking it out when pick
some corn came back and it's steve from
the delegation rang me said we're coming
to the gate I'm going to meet him at the
game which is a kilometer away or jump
in the ute it's about a kilometer I've
fly down at about 110 kilometers now and
see that I see the bus passed me down 22
minutes later he finds a place to turn
around and come back I get on the bus
and we continue down the road and I
start giving him the spiel about life
cycles of corn GPS in tractors center
pivots how hard I work that's why I
smell when we get when we get to this
and I invite him in I welcome all
in for drinks I'm there by myself so
Terry inspector Steve from the
delegation and he says to me you know I
do chairman team will have a been
thinking great Chairman's have 11 beer
again this is it so I turn around over
at least two beers in my hand and I'm
thinking I forgot which one the Chairman
was at that point in two seconds that's
when you lose a contract so fortunately
I gave it to him and there's a picture
of me and chairman 10 in the field so
everything was everything was fine in
closing I believe export is great for
the industry as it means we are not
competing for the same domestic dollar
but are bringing money into our country
while the Australian dollar is low we
have a fantastic opportunity to create
export business and relationships and
consolidate our position on the global
market
now and then we may get covered in
manure but we can't let the disco just
just be loyal genuine and focus on what
you do best which is a hot producing a
high-quality product thank you very much
I just like to show you a quick two
minute movie button day of a life of
what we do at a farm thank you