Key takeaways

Before launching into a new export market like Australia with your product, do market research, attend trade shows and figure out which geographical markets to target first.

If launching a store or showroom in an Australian market, bring a team of NZ design experts with you to create a truly NZ-centric experience for Australian customers.

For many outward looking Kiwi businesses, their first overseas market will be Australia and for the BAYA brand, launched in 2022, Australia has been the focus from day one.

BAYA is known by its trade professional audience for its curated, contemporary collections of premium soft furnishings - rugs, cushions and throws

Designed in its Tamaki Makaurau showroom, the BAYA team works with long term global artisan collaborators.

BAYA has recently opened a 270 sq m showroom to trade professionals in Richmond, Melbourne, the showroom designed by Sebastian Negri of StudioStudio and features furniture by designer Tim Webber.

Richmond is the foremost design destination in Melbourne, with companies like Poliform and Jardan and is not too far from the brand’s warehouse out by Tullamarine airport.

BAYA is part of the Furtex group founded in Dunedin in 1939, by Arnold Heath, and now has the third and fourth generations of the Heath family running the company.

Sam, Josh and Louis work across the business in sales and marketing and their father, David, is a company director and in charge of product sourcing and design. Their Uncle Ben heads up operations and finance.

The interiors industry thrived during Covid and gave the family business the impetus to spread its wings.

Sales for the BAYA brand in New Zealand and Australia were up 100% in 2024, compared with 2023.

“We’d like for Australia to become larger than our New Zealand business, which it’s not too far from achieving,” says Sam.

BAYA’s target market is made up of architects and interior designers, known as the A & D sector, according to BAYA marketing manager Mason Feehan.

The brand also has retail partners across the country including Norsu Interiors in Melbourne, Trit House in New South Wales and Kira & Kira in Queensland, he says.

BAYA’s ideal retail partners are those who have a hybrid model with a retail showroom and an interior designer side business, says Mason.

“We’re focused on building BAYA’s footprint in a considered manner, striking a harmonious balance between servicing the A & D market, a curated retail footprint and e-commerce,” adds Sam.

The hard work before setting up shop in Oz

The Melbourne showroom opened after careful foundational work over the past two years.

This included attending The Design Show Melbourne in 2023 and The Design Show in Sydney in 2024 - where BAYA received a strong response, says Sam.

“We quickly realised we needed a centrally located space to service clients we’d built up from the show,” he says.

While there is more competition in Australia for BAYA, the market is bigger, says Sam.

“We know there are roughly 10 times as many interior designers in Australia than there are in New Zealand. This suggests more people use interior designers per capita there than they do in New Zealand, “ says the business development manager.

The company did market research prior to launch which showed that BAYA would benefit from a certain amount of pseudo-localism given to New Zealand design brands in Australia.

Something BAYA is moving to over time, is making all its rugs and throws in 100% NZ wool which will affect prices by around 3% to 5%, says Sam.

The US market likely to be next

The BAYA brand has identified the US market in the future with the help of New Zealand Trade & Enterprise and has had interest from US interior designers and retailers.

“Tariffs are a concern, but at the end of the day, we’re importing products so we’re always going to be at risk of tariffs, just like many businesses in our space,” says the business development manager.

The family business will take the same measured approach to entering the US as it did with Australia.

“This will include some paid research, potentially attending a trade show, building a network and getting the lay of the land on what state to enter first, as well as the logistics, distribution or agency models,” says Sam.

For the full article go here on Stuff.

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