2026 AGM Wrap-Up: Celebrating Our Heritage and Looking Towards 2032

Good evening, everyone, and a very warm welcome to our 2026 Annual General Meeting.

Before we move into the formal part of the evening, I would like to begin by acknowledging the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we gather tonight, the Kabi Kabi (Gubbi Gubbi) people. I pay my deepest respects to their Elders past, present, and emerging, and extend that respect to all First Nations people here with us this evening.

Tonight is an incredibly special milestone for our business community as we celebrate 90 years of Chamber advocacy in the Eumundi district since our original formation in 1936.

We are absolutely delighted to have some of our key regional leaders and industry partners standing alongside us on this historical occasion.

I formally welcome our special guest dignitaries:

Mayor Rosanna Natoli from the Sunshine Coast Council.

Kade Lamont, who is here this evening representing Ted O’Brien MP, LNP Member for Fairfax.

John Baker, CEO of the Sunshine Coast Council, and Sharon Raguse, CEO of Tourism Noosa had also intended to join us but have been unable to attend with last minute priorities.

I am also thrilled to extend a very warm welcome to Councillor David Law from Division 10 of the Sunshine Coast Council. Councillor David joins us tonight to officiate over proceedings. Thank you, David, we are absolutely delighted you can be with us tonight!

I also want to make a special, warm mention of Andrew Fairbairn. As many of you know, Andrew played an integral, tireless role as the Head of Industry and Trade Development at Visit Sunshine Coast until his recent retirement. Andrew, you have been one of our most valued industry partners, and we are so glad you are here to celebrate with us.

Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to express our collective appreciation to Dennis Dijst, the owner and head chef of Alfresco’s Garden Cafe. Thank you, Dennis, for your wonderful hospitality in hosting this year’s AGM and ensuring that we are all exceptionally well catered for tonight!

Member and visitor attendance is noted as per the attendance book. For reference, formal apologies have been recorded from:

• Sandy Bolton MP, Independent Member for Noosa
• Dan Purdie MP, Member for Ninderry
• Cr Maria Suarez, Deputy Mayor and Division 9 Councillor, Sunshine Coast Council
• Tyler Harford and Tim McGee, Economic Development & Business Services, Sunshine Coast Council
• Paul Garcia, past Regional Representative, Business Chamber Queensland
• Joe Proctor, Business Concierge, Queensland Government
• David and Linda Perez, Villa Prestige Properties
• David and Sue Campin, Eumundi Guesthouse B&B
• Sacha Laing, Ray White Rural
• Nicky and Jay Turner, Laguna Pest Control,
• Matt McGree, Matso's Sunshine Coast, and
• Lisa Jayne

Ninety years of regional business advocacy is a spectacular achievement. I uncovered this fascinating historical connection a few years ago through the National Library of Australia’s Trove archive. The digital newspaper records confirmed that the Eumundi Chamber of Commerce was formally established in September of 1936, evolving out of the original Eumundi Business Men's Association.

Our inaugural President, Mr J. R. Candy, and Secretary-Treasurer, Mr T. O. Jones, met with local operators nearly a century ago to handle a very different set of economic realities. In 1936, the cutting-edge business discussions in Eumundi revolved around lobbying for railway stockyard upgrades and fighting for the very first construction and sealing of our main street as part of the Bruce Highway. You can read more in the article we’ve published in Latest News on our website.

Today, we gather in a world dominated by artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure, and global economic shifts. Yet, looking back across those nine decades, it is striking how our core purpose has not changed a single bit. We still exist to grow the Eumundi and surrounding centres of commerce together, supporting local enterprise, and making the region a better place for everyone.

Through world wars, economic recessions, and global pandemics, the collective voice of Eumundi business has remained unbreakable. We stand here tonight because generations of local operators before us understood the power of a unified business voice working collaboratively alongside our regional partners to shape a thriving hinterland economy.

There are a number of copies of the 2026 Annual Report available in front of you tonight, and a digital version will be accessible on our website. A tremendous amount of heart and soul went into serving our members and ensuring we delivered on key deliverables this year, and because our management committee completely smashed our strategic goals, a Top 3 list just would not do them justice.

Instead, let's take a look through the Top 5 Wins that defined our past 12 months under our banner of Building Capability, Connection, and Regional Influence:

Win #1: First-of-its-Kind Capability and Event Collaboration

This year marked a deliberate shift for the Chamber into a practical capability partner. The Business Growth Accelerator was the very first program of its kind for our members. Co-funded by a major grant from the Sunshine Coast Council and Chamber sponsorship, this 10-week program trained 10 members in digital marketing, lead generation, and scaling strategies, directly resulting in three new members joining our network.

Beyond this, we successfully doubled our offering to members this year by orchestrating a comprehensive calendar of 20 events, including networking gatherings, educational workshops, and professional development sessions delivered directly and/or in close collaboration and partnership with Council, neighbouring Chambers, and industry specialists.

Win #2: Historic Financial Independence and Structural Resilience

A chamber can only be a respected advocate if it is stable. Through the steady occupancy and excellent management of our Chamber-managed Lonergan Lane Market stall sites, we successfully generated two-thirds of our annual income, strengthening our financial position beyond a heavy reliance on membership dues and grant funding.

This self-generated revenue, paired with smart cash management and prudent budgeting, allowed us to achieve a record $40,182 annual surplus for the financial year, leaving us with over $111,400 in net assets. As a result, we are completely independent and structurally secure!

Win #3: Advocacy and Streetscape Protection

We have proudly represented the Eumundi District's 1,100 plus business community across all three tiers of government. Most visibly, your Chamber committee rolled up its sleeves to actively protect and champion member interests through all three stages of the Eumundi Placemaking Memorial Drive streetscape construction works, keeping communication pipelines open and minimising trading disruptions.

Win #4: Overhauling Communication and Event Attendance

We completely modernised our communication pipelines this year. We delivered three massive eNewsletters (EDMs) and over 65 targeted member updates with an average open rate of 46 per cent, which is well above the industry benchmark. This digital reach translated to real-world engagement, welcoming over 126 unique business representatives across our packed event calendar.

Win #5: Laying the Groundwork "Towards 2032"

This year, the management committee successfully finalised the preliminary draft framework of our 2027 to 2032 Strategic Blueprint, titled “Towards 2032”. I want to reinforce that the “Towards 2032” framework remains an evolving concept blueprint rather than an adopted strategic plan. The incoming management committee will review it, and include members in the consultation process to finalise our future path.

The "so what" for our members is clear: the draft framework identifies three emerging strategic pillars and several recurring themes that will shape our future direction, business support, and advocacy priorities.

These opportunities focus directly on digital infrastructure and connectivity, business capability development, regional representation, and the economic recognition of the 4562 catchment. It explores strategic partnerships, industry diversification, and strengthening local referral ecosystems while looking at broader Sunshine Coast regional growth, changing work patterns, and the long-term economic opportunities associated with Brisbane 2032 and regional tourism visitation growth.

The work has been done to ensure our members are perfectly positioned to capture what comes next.

Before I move to my final reflections, it is my absolute honour to pause and celebrate individual excellence within our member network. Each year we present our 'Member of the Year' award to a business operator who goes above and beyond, embodying the true spirit of collaboration, selflessness, and local dedication.

This year, our 2026 Member of the Year goes to someone who has poured her heart into supporting this Chamber behind the scenes. She has been an invaluable team member of our events sub-committee alongside Janene and Nicky, but more importantly, she has been my absolute right hand in a support role at our in-person Chamber events.

While I've been talking to members, setting up, or settling in keynote speakers and workshop facilitators, she has been the warm face at the front door, welcoming our members and meticulously taking care of registrations so we could maintain entirely accurate attendance records.

She represents the absolute best of Eumundi's community spirit. Please give a massive round of applause to our 2026 Member of the Year: Lisa Jayne!

Now we come to the part of the evening that carries a genuinely bittersweet weight for me. As I mentioned earlier, after 10 rewarding years serving on your executive committee as both Vice President and President, I have made the personal decision not to renominate for the upcoming term.

Standing here tonight, looking out at this professional, digitally integrated network, I cannot help but laugh when I look back to where we started a decade ago.

When I first stepped onto the executive team, the 'cloud' was just something that ruined a weekend trip to the beach. Everything we did was manual. We didn’t have a fully integrated Member Management Software System, and we certainly did not have AI or slick automated databases. Instead, when I took over, the entire history, financial record, and operational soul of the Eumundi Chamber of Commerce was handed to me on a single, solitary USB stick and a static website nearing its end of life.

I can assure you, back when I was plugging that USB stick into my computer, I had significantly less grey hair and a heck of a lot fewer wrinkles than I do standing before you tonight!

When it all began ten years ago, our Chamber stood at a very different crossroads, representing a total of 48 members. To guide our path forward, we initiated the 2016 Member Survey, capturing 50 per cent of the membership at the time. That survey became our operational compass.

Ten years ago, we asked members what mattered most. Their answers shaped everything that followed. They gave us our clear priorities, and our top three directives were unmistakable: they asked for stronger business networking, targeted business capability development, and stronger regional advocacy, to finally deliver the long anticipated Memorial Drive streetscape upgrades.

That 2016 survey report card was our promise. Some priorities were achieved in full, while others taught us where our influence begins and ends. But we pursued what we could, stayed honest about what we could not, and kept showing up for this community throughout.

Looking beyond the surveys, the numbers, and the software, when I truly reflect on this decade, it is the people and the wonderful, enduring friendships made along the way that mean the most to me. For me, leading this Chamber was never just about cold business strategies or baseline economic figures. It was always fundamentally about the human element.

It was about helping people learn, giving them a safe space to connect, and watching them grow into their full potential as local operators. Watching a business owner grasp a new tool, overcome a hurdle, or find a business partner right here in our gatherings has been the most deeply satisfying reward of my presidency.

The groundwork is done. The torch is ready to be passed, and I want to take this opportunity to express my profound gratitude to the incoming management committee and the members who have put their hands up for the executive team.

Stepping forward to take the reins for the evolution and next chapter of the Eumundi Chamber requires dedication, and I am incredibly proud to know our business network is in such passionate hands. The incoming committee has a historic opportunity to shape how Eumundi capitalises on the regional growth coming our way.

To our members, get involved, join a committee, and use your voice. The incoming team will need your energy and insights to drive Eumundi forward.

In closing, a report like this can never truly capture the late nights, the endless emails, and the pure grit required to run an active regional chamber.

To our magnificent volunteer management committee, Janene, Louise and Paul, our dedicated operational sub-committees, Nicky, Lisa, Jenny, Louis, Tania, Bamik, and Heidi, and our representative Directors on the Board of Experience Eumundi, David and Paul, thank you.

You’ve stood squarely alongside me, sharing the load and keeping the wheels turning. Here, I want to formally acknowledge the vital work we do with Experience Eumundi and our ongoing partnership, driven by our two representative directors on their board, and our collaborative efforts for local destination marketing.

To our neighboring chambers and industry groups, and government and industry partners, especially the Sunshine Coast Council, thank you for your exceptional collaboration and grant support.

And finally, to you, our members. Thank you for placing your absolute trust in me for the last ten years. Whether you joined us for a casual morning Coffee Connect, liked and shared our business news on Facebook, or simply maintained your directory listing while managing your own tight schedules in a tough economy, you are the sole reason this Chamber exists.

Before I step away, there is one final, deeply personal thank you that I absolutely must make. A role like this takes an enormous amount of time and energy, and I simply could not have done any of this without the immense patience and unwavering support of my husband, David.

Over the last ten years, he has watched me pour so much of my time into the Chamber, sometimes, I know, to the detriment of his own business, and he has quietly stood by through all the missed hours with him and our family. He has been my absolute rock. We are both so looking forward to finally having more time to slow down and focus on the things we truly enjoy doing together. Thank you dearest David, from the very bottom of my heart.

As my final words tonight, I want to leave you with the thought that sits closest to my heart:

Together, we will continue to shape a vibrant, self-reliant, and resilient future for Eumundi and our surrounding communities, one partnership, one project, and one success story at a time.

Thank you for an incredible ten years. It has been an absolute honour.

Cindy Suters
President
Eumundi Chamber of Commerce Inc