Beacon Laundry

We're excited to officially welcome Valerie Deneen to the Beacon Adelaide team, as our first People and Pathways Manager in SA. Valerie has spent over twenty years working in both the corporate and social enterprise sectors across the US, Asia and Australia. With a background in strategic planning, stakeholder engagement, and business development, she brings a wealth of knowledge to the local team. In 2018, she moved to Australia and made a shift to focus solely on social enterprise, joining SisterWorks Inc., a Melbourne-based organisation that supports migrant and refugee women, where she spent the last five years. In her role at Beacon, Valerie will be responsible for developing and implementing the people and pathways agenda in Adelaide, fostering an environment where people are recognised and supported for their individual talents and strengths. Outside of work, you’ll usually find her with a good book, watching a movie, or taking long walks with her partner. Welcome Valerie! Myron Mann, Nils Wartemann, Kelly Walker, Rachael Griffiths, Morag Roseby, Luke Terry

When someone decides to leave Beacon to work for someone else, we're chuffed. We actually call this a 'transition’ - it's a key part of social enterprise employment. Beacon is set up to be a safe place for people to find their feet again in the workplace, and then when they’re ready, we help them transition to another employer. Not everyone transitions. But for those that do, they know they are welcome back if things don't work out. #socialenterprise #transitions #employment #jobsfocused #peoplepurposeplanet

We're thrilled to be named as a 2024 Westpac Foundation Social Enterprise grant recipient, alongside Australian Spatial Analytics from the White Box Enterprises stable, and many other household names of the social enterprise sector - BackTrack Youth Works, Hotel Etico Australia, Plate it Forward Warrama-Li Dhiiyaan, Free to Feed, Good Cycles, Dismantle Inc., The Social Outfit. Congrats to all! A special thanks to Sally McGeoch, Lisa Waldron, Amy Lyden and the Westpac Foundation team for their years of advocacy and support for jobs-focused social enterprise.

We love Leigh. Everyone who knows her, knows she's the real deal. Beacon is her first real job. She is vision impaired and prior to this she'd struggled to find an employer who recognised and supported her willingness to work. When Paul from BUSY Ability discovered Beacon in the Northern Rivers, he had a feeling this could be the one - he connected us with Leigh and since joining the team, she's flying. Check out this neat little video from Busy Ability here: https://loom.ly/TGNqFOI

A shout out to our friends at LendForGood and the 13 wonderful people who have invested in Beacon (Bangalow) to help reduce our impact on the planet. The $77k raised through the LendforGood platform will go towards a heat exchanger for the laundry, getting us another step closer to being the most sustainable commercial laundry in Oz. #aimhigh #peoplepurposeplanet

A little Friday cheer! We're very proud to be a part of the White Box Enterprises journey since 2019, alongside Australian Spatial Analytics, Civik, Civik People, and Witton Barracks...

JayChem is delighted to provide products, systems and service to the inspirational Beacon Laundry – a NSW social enterprise that gives employment opportunities to those who would otherwise be shut out of the workplace. Offering a laundry service to local hospitality businesses, Beacon Laundry has a core value of caring for people – and that’s something they have in common with us here at JayChem. With aligned values and a shared goal of making life better, we became the founding chemical supply partner for Beacon Laundry – meeting their need for great products, excellent outcomes and unmatched value for money. Delivering measurable, sustainable results via our JayCloud dispensing system and advanced chemical dosing, JayChem is proud to be part of Beacon Laundry’s story. To learn more about the positive impact JayChem has had on the day-to-day operations of Beacon Laundry, watch this testimonial video.

Help us get to $100k in our crowding lending raise with LendForGood! Please share with your networks.

Are you curious about impact investing? Want to try it out, at a low buy-in you can afford? Would you like to earn a better return on your money while also making an impact? That's the opportunity you get at LendForGood. At LendForGood you can lend to businesses that are doing good, so they can do more good, and earn a return. Every deal is vetted and endorsed by one of our Syndicate Leads, who knows the borrower and the business context, so you can feel confident it is real and trusted. Every investment helps achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Right now we have three great impact loans on the platform that are looking for support. Collabit - Indonesia Collabit is Indonesia’s first marine biotech that converts marine by-products into high value marine ingredients. The founders are targeting 100% fish utilisation, with biotech and circular economy principles to transform fish waste into food, feed, and fertiliser. Collabit is initially focusing on tuna waste, and turning this into collagen products which are in high demand in Indonesia. They have secured US$230,000 from angel investors and secured a foundation contract for US$150,000 worth of Collagen. $500 minimum buy-in, 10% interest. Ehu Motors - Benin Motorcycles significantly contribute to GHG emissions and pollutants in West Africa. Beninese motorcycle taxi drivers, essential to the economy, suffer health issues from pollution. Transitioning to electric motorcycles will boost drivers’ incomes by lowering operating costs and reducing carbon emissions. Enthusiastic about this change, drivers need credit access to adopt electric motorcycles widely, fostering economic and environmental benefits. $500 minimum buy-in, 10% interest. Beacon Laundry - Australia Beacon Laundry is a social enterprise commercial laundry focusing on creating employment opportunities for disadvantaged job seekers in Northern New South Wales. Launched in January 2024, Beacon employs over 50 people at any one time to service Byron Bay’s hotel industry. The loan will enable the laundry to become the most environmentally sustainable laundry in Australia by covering the cost of a full solar panel installation, a heat exchanger and an upgraded water collection system. $500 minimum buy-in, 8% interest. I'll put all the links below. I hope you'll check it out and find one that inspires you to back them! This is not financial advice. You should consider the risks and your own financial situation. #impactinvesting #impinv #makeadifference #lendahand #makeadifference #socinn

Beacon Laundry may operate like a commercial business, but it’s much more about people than it is about profit. The social enterprise, which opened earlier this year in Bangalow near NSW’s famous beachside town of Byron Bay, already employs more than 70 people who have previously been shut out from work. It is the second laundry launched by White Box Enterprises' CEO Luke Terry, following his successful Vanguard Laundry in Toowoomba. Follow the link to read more. #leading #trustee #horizon #philanthropy