Throughout the country, thousands of column inches in newspapers and magazines have been dedicated to the decline of Australian manufacturing industries.
Causes of this decline are many and varied, however there does seem to be one recurring issue – increased competition from imports.
In most cases the popularity of the import over the locally produced version, is attributable to the price. Both price to the consumer, and cost to the manufacturer. Companies can increase their profit margins by closing their local production, and importing an offshore equivalent. In many cases it has simply become uneconomical to manufacture in Australia.
With all this negative press, its rare that we hear of companies that have turned the tide. These companies have analysed where there strengths are, and play to them. Many companies have not only increased their sales in the local market, but also increased their sales into the export market.
A relatively small company, Antry P/L, is one such company. The list of international projects they have been successfully involved with reads like a world tour. The detailed joinery work of Antry can be seen everywhere from restaurant fitouts in the USA to furniture in Mongolia, they have supplied decking to the United Arab Emirates and completed furniture fitouts in Kathmandu.
All manufactured by a growing family owned business based in Perth, Australia.
Established in 1992, the company has aimed to provide unique furniture designs using hardwood timbers. Today they can lay claim to an impressive record of awards including offerings from the Furnishing Industry association, Sydney international furniture fair, and WA Timber Industry Awards. More recently the company picked up the 2005 Most Innovative Furniture Product at Furnitex (presented by Elite Publishing).
The company revolves around 3 management staff, Edmund Damouni, the Managing Director, Maha Damouni who acts as administrator and Robert Lund, who is the operations manager specialising in design.
Edmund has a unique insight of the export market, having lived in both the United Arab Emirates and the USA for many years. A master woodcarver by trade, Edmund owned and operated a succesfull gallery in Soho for many years. Not only has this given Edmund local knowledge of these markets, but his large network of contacts has proved invaluable in marketing and promoting the Antry product.
Edmund and Robert work closely with the design team to ensure Antry create a unique and exciting furniture range. Everything from large corporate projects to custom made private commissions are all influenced by Edmund and Roberts technical knowledge and creative eye.
