Farm’s sweet smell of success rewarded

BRIDESTOWE Estate has been recognised by the federal government with the Australia-China Achievement Award for Entrepreneurship.

It was one of just three awards given to Australian organisations at the gala dinner held for Chinese President Xi Jinping in Canberra on Monday night.

The lavender farm’s managing director, Robert Ravens, said they felt honoured to be given the award in recognition of how the company had developed strong links and a highly successful export market to China, particularly with its Bobbie Bear product.

The President and his wife, Madame Peng Liyuan, were each presented with a lavender-filled bear when they arrived in Hobart yesterday.

Mr Ravens said they had seen the success of the company develop over the past three years and it was paying off, not only for them, but for the North-East and the state as a whole.

‘‘This award really is the most amazing recognition for Tasmania,’’ Mr Ravens said.

He said the company identified the huge potential of the Chinese market about five years ago and since then had established a very specific marketing campaign and stuck to it.

Bobbie Bear has now taken on a life of its own and has come to represent what Tasmania is about in relation to something authentic with wide appeal, Mr Ravens said.

So much so that short films featuring Bobbie and his friends Tassie devil and tiger, will begin production in December for China and the wider global market.