PUTTING SOUTH AUSTRALIA IN THE SPOTLIGHT
I’ve never watched the world go by without wanting to stick my hand up and disrupt proceedings.

At school I was the one with the locker full of PlayStation memory cards, running my own business and disrupting. School students are supposed to sit and learn, not teach entrepreneurialism.

You can’t be an innovator without wanting to disrupt the established order. That means seeing gaps in the market and researching and developing new products to challenge the status quo, without being afraid to back yourself, your ideas and take that leap.

For me it was looking up at an NBL game and realising that we were effectively sitting in the dark. If I could design a stadium-specific advanced LED lighting system, VALO could lift stadia and sporting events to a new level of broadcast quality, saving energy and the environment at the same time. We did it, and we’re now manufacturing the most advanced stadium lighting system in the world from our Kent Town base.

At VALO we’re building a culture of innovation and encouraging creativity. We work in light-filled spaces with a games arcade, engaging activities and even a drinks menu. If staff feel valued, they’re enthusiastic and they contribute.

If we can create a culture of innovation within and then share the VALO message throughout South Australia, we can help build the economy through knowledge, job creation and advanced manufacturing.

We know there are lots of naysayers in Adelaide, but we need to say yes more often.

Build it and they will come – whether that means innovation precincts such as Lot Fourteen or the Monarto Innovation Precinct, Adelaide’s biomedical, education and research strip along North Terrace, or building stadia which illuminate our passion for sport, we need to not just say yes, but say it with certainty.

We support the State Government’s passion for job creation and building the knowledge economy, with a vibrant capital that people want to live and work within. I’m passionate about motorsport, and when the State Government announced it would bring back motor racing on the Adelaide Street Circuit, VALO jumped on board as naming rights sponsor of the VALO Adelaide 500. Our philosophies align – to grow advanced manufacturing, create a vibrant state and to foster innovation.

It’s why we’re VALO – we have great courage, strength and moral worth