Sharing the Thankyou story in Albury and Wagga Wagga

30 APRIL 2019

Sharing the Thankyou story in Albury and Wagga Wagga

The ‘community builder’ with successful social enterprise Thankyou, Mr Kalvin Hart, will discuss setting up and growing enterprises that highlight social justice in an interconnected world.

  • A community builder will share the Thankyou story in Albury (2 May) and Wagga Wagga (6 May)
  • CSU and high school students will hear the story with support from the CSU AgriTech Incubator
  • Thankyou brand started 10 years ago and has 55 products in major supermarkets in Australia and NZ

The ‘community builder’ with successful social enterprise Thankyou, Mr Kalvin Hart, will visit Albury and Wagga Wagga in the coming week to discuss setting up and growing enterprises that highlight social justice in an interconnected world.

Hosted by Charles Sturt University’s (CSU) AgriTech Incubator, Mr Hart will speak with local high school and CSU students as well as the wider community in Albury on Thursday 2 and Friday 3 May and Wagga Wagga on Monday 6 and Tuesday 7 May.

“Thankyou is a social enterprise that aims to help end global poverty in this lifetime,” said the University’s Research Partnerships Manager, Ms Annette Davies.

“All profit from the sale of Thankyou consumer products fund sustainable development work around the world.”

While visiting these cities, Mr Hart will also visit local high schools to educate students about innovation and entrepreneurship with a view to inspiring and activating budding entrepreneurs.

“Albury and Wagga Wagga are developing sound innovation ecosystems and are great places to start businesses, now and into the future. Such ecosystems can also offer employment for students during and after their studies,” Ms Davies said.

Thankyou has come a long way since the founders googled ‘How to start a bottled water company’ while studying at university. Ten years later, Thankyou sells 55 products through major supermarkets and retailers in Australia and now also in New Zealand.

Thankyou also mentors budding entrepreneurs at universities, in the community and those working in the not-for-profit sector, having had important mentors that did the same for them. 

During sessions with students and the community, Mr Hart will share the Thankyou journey, including the challenges they faced and the approach they used to break the status-quo.

Along the way, they learned lessons around perseverance, thinking big and getting outside of their comfort zone. This session aims to inspire participants from the Riverina and Border region into believing that changing the world is totally possible.

Event details

Date: Thursday 2 May

Time: 5:30pm to 6:30pm

Venue: Albury Northside Chamber of Commerce, 512 Swift Street, Albury

Register here

Date: Monday 6 May

Time: 4:30pm to 5:30pm

Venue: Charles Sturt University, AgriTech Incubator, building 6, CSI in Wagga Wagga

Register here

Media Note:

To arrange interviews with Ms Annette Davies or Mr Kalvin Hart, contact Chris Gillies at CSU Media on mobile 0439 068 752 or news@csu.edu.au

The visit is being funded by the NSW Department of Industry through the Local Innovation Network, a collaboration between CSU, Working Spaces HQ in Wagga Wagga and Wagga Wagga City Council. The collaboration aims to promote innovation and new businesses in the Riverina and Border region.​

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Albury-WodongaWagga WaggaCharles Sturt UniversitySociety and Community