S1 E32: Grace Brennan, founder of Buy from the Bush

In this week's episode of The Weekly Grill podcast series, host Kerry Lonergan turns up the heat on Grace Brennan, founder of 'Buy from the Bush.'

In 2019, drought in New South Wales was devastating rural livelihoods and communities. In response, rural-dwelling, self-employed mum, Grace, started a social media campaign, #buyfromthebush, a campaign and online marketplace connecting talented makers, creators, artists and retailers from rural Australia with global consumers.

Showcasing beautiful wares available to buy from drought-affected bush businesses, the platform on Instagram, Facebook and website aims to strengthen connections between city consumers and creative, innovative and productive rural communities.

Buy from the Bush has become a social media and ecommerce phenomenon, now hosting goods from more than 250 sellers from across rural and remote Australia, creating stronger, more empathetic connections between rural and urban Australia. In the first four months of the campaign, an economic impact study found the platform generated $5 million in revenue for featured supplier businesses, with one in five hiring new workers. Ninety six percent of the businesses involved were run by women, and one in five started shipping products internationally.