For any startup to succeed, there’s one absolutely essential ingredient that’s required: passion. It was just so for Sydney-based Beck Howe and the team behind Meluka Australia who turned their lifelong passion for health and wellness into an organic and Australian raw honey range produced from bees harvesting from a wide variety of native Australian botanical species.
“Working with health brands for as long as I have you see through product labels and you learn to prioritise high quality ingredients and product innovation,” said Howe.
It was this ability to sort through the wellness wheat from the chaff that saw Beck and the Meluka Australia team spot the huge potential when they stumbled upon a certified organic tea tree farm in northern NSW’s picturesque Bungawalbin Valley three years ago.
“I jumped into the back of a farm ute and ventured through ancient tea trees and knew that this was the perfect base to share Australia’s unique flora with the world—and what better way to do this than through organic honey.”
Launched in 2019, Meluka Australia’s range of products are built around the natural properties of raw honey and its touted ‘superfood’ status.
“Our raw honey is sustainable,” said Howe, “and it tastes great too!”
Unsurprisingly, the ‘wonder honey’ has garnered an army of fans, both in Australia, and overseas, and Beck says that the cornerstone of their business’s success has been Amazon.
“Amazon has provided us with access to customers globally without the need for significant capital expenditure,” she said. “In Australia, Amazon has given us timely access to consumers across the entire country, which is difficult to achieve via traditional distribution channels.”
Despite only debuting on Amazon’s store less than two years ago, in March 2020, the company hit record sales and was ranked in the top 20 bestselling honey products available in the U.S.
“Amazon has placed our products in front of customers who might not have found us otherwise,” said Beck. “And has subsequently opened up opportunities in emerging international locations too. Amazon Australia really encourages Aussie SMBs, such as ourselves, to think big.”
Last year Aussie SMBs had the two biggest days on Amazon.com.au during Prime Day and ahead of the annual sales event later this month, Beck anticipates that the demand for Meluka Australia’s organic honey—coupled with the lure of big savings across the store—will see her and her team very busy.
“Prime Day will be big for us,” she said. “Our office will be buzzing—we’ve been blown away by the results previously, so we’re gearing up for one of our busiest days of the year!”
The focus for Meluka Australia is to keep doing what they’ve done since their formation. While expanding the business is a priority, Beck is committed to operating ethically and growing in a sustainable way.
“With 2000 acres of organic farm land, we’re passionate about the preservation of the environment and pride ourselves on the sustainability of every drop of honey,” she said. “As such we’re committed to protecting the natural ecosystem of our farm and to look after our bees to ensure they can produce honey that is superior in both taste and quality.
And Beck says that working with Amazon has made this possible, giving them access to customers who believe in their philosophy.
“We know that Amazon.com.au share our values,” said Howe. “And it’s important to us that we’re able to work with a company who can connect us to people who care about the same things that we do, namely making sure that we always put nature first.”
Meluka Australia is one of the Aussie small businesses that will be front and centre during Prime Day and beyond through Amazon Australia’s ‘Shop Local’ store.
