The APPA Board held its most recent meeting on Friday 25 February 2022 in Sydney. Below is a summary of the meeting from President Robert Williams:
APPA's February Board Meeting was the first meeting attended by new Board Member Graeme Bulluss of Chocolate Works. Welcome to Graeme- I look forward to working with you and learning from your vast experience in the industry.
The Presidents Report opened the Board Meeting proceedings, in which I noted the challenges the industry was facing in the early months of 2022. Unfortunately, our industry has not yet overcome the issue of freight/stock shortages, nor challenges pertaining to understaffing and the "Great Resignation".
Managing the APPA finances over the past two years has certainly been a challenge, but I can proudly say that APPA has maintained a very strong cash position. The Board collectively agreed that we now need to ensure prudent financial management by investing our reserves for the future benefit of the association.
In terms of membership, the year has started off with a bang, with the Board officially accepting sixteen new members to the Association. With more membership applications coming in each week, we are feeling extremely positive about the year ahead.
Since its inception in April 2017, the APPA Code of Conduct has been the glue that strengthens our members' business dealings and relationships. While overdue for a review, the board accepted several minor changes to the code, noting that it is well-written and serves its purpose well.
The board are very pleased with the launch of the new APPA Search and by the shear numbers of distributors who have already made use of the new site. While our challenge continues to be access to supplier data, we are committed to getting as close to 100% of APPA member suppliers' product data into APPA Search as we can by year end.
Other outcomes of the February Board Meeting include:
If you wish to discuss any of the above matters, please do not hesitate to email me at robert@yourbrandunleashed.com.au.
