Three-way tie for top SA business awards
Not one, not two, but three businesses won the top award at a major S awards ceremony, while one supermarket doyen was inducted into the hall of fame.
Three South Australian companies were named joint winners of the 2026 William Buck Impact Award, the programme’s highest honour, at a gala dinner at Adelaide Oval last night.
Hydrofoil board maker Foil Drive, point-of-sale tech company MyVenue and fintech HowMuch Group all tied for the top gong that recognised innovation, growth and their contribution to the state’s economy.
“This year’s winners show just how much business capability is being built here in South Australia,” William Buck Impact Awards chair Seth Thuraisingham said.
“From locally manufactured technology finding customers around the world to software transforming international industries, these are businesses proving that you don’t need to be based in a major global city to compete on a global stage.”
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And the founder of Drakes Supermarkets, Roger Drake, was inducted into the William Buck Impact Awards Hall of Fame, joining the likes of Maggie Beer and Glenn Cooper.
Drake established his first supermarket in 1974, and has built the business into Australia’s largest independent grocery retailer with more than 68 stores across SA and Queensland.
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When accepting his award, he said: “You’ve got to surround yourself with people that are a lot smarter and who have better visions and better knowledge of what you’re doing”.
“Surround yourself with people who challenge you. Sometimes they give me the shits because they say ‘my dreams aren’t going to achieve what I want’, but again, they challenge me.
“And when I come up with a silly idea, they come up and say, ‘Do you really think that’s the right idea?’ And so you need those people around you.”
Other award winners included Adelaide-based livestock breeding technology company ART Lab Solutions. The business won the ‘Dark Horse’ award, which recognises a company demonstrating potential for future growth.
Inovor Technologies won the Innovation Award for its work advancing the state’s sovereign space industries. The Adelaide company develops, manufactures, tests and operates satellite technology.
Four scholarships were also awarded to leaders looking to extend their capabilities and access global networks.
This includes:
- CEO Institute Scholarship: Tim Stollznow, MyVenue
- Stone & Chalk Scholarship: Trent Rowe, Foil Drive
- SA Leaders Executive Leaders Series Scholarship: Brandon Reynolds, The Yoghurt Shop
- Australian Centre for Business Growth Scholarship: Marie Ellul, ART Lab Solutions
“These businesses are creating opportunities, developing valuable expertise and showing what’s possible when South Australian ambition is matched with innovation and commercial capability,” William Buck managing partner Adrian Chugg said.
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