Q150 BREAKFAST CELEBRATES 150 YEARS OF BUSINESSES BUILDING QLD

Businesses building Queensland are invited to the first of two Q150 Business Breakfasts, presented by Qantas, where they will celebrate their contributions to making Queensland great over the past 150 years, Premier Anna Bligh said today.

Ms Bligh said the first breakfast would be held at the Gabba in Brisbane on Friday 27 February 2009, 7.30am to 9am with keynote speakers Juli Grbac a 20-something Brisbane fashion designer and Malcolm Middleton, an outstanding Brisbane urban designer and architect, who are both taking the world by storm.

The breakfast will also feature entertainment from another talent, songstress Kate Miller-Heidke, who is fast becoming one of Queensland’s greatest music exports.

“Literally hundreds of businesses by entrepreneurial men and women have built Queensland to what it is today whether they started up in this State or had the foresight to move to Queensland and be part of what is Australia’s economic powerhouse,” Ms Bligh said.

“These breakfasts are a tribute to their entrepreneurial spirit, their ‘can do’ attitude and the innovation for which Queenslanders have become renowned and sought after.

“Juli Grbac and Malcolm Middleton are exciting modern-day examples of Queenslanders turning heads in international markets for all the right reasons.

“Juli was the 2008 winner of Project Runway Australia.

“Her label is a ‘must have’ amongst stockists and fashionistas in Queensland, Australia and overseas.

“Her entrepreneurial flair manifest itself early.

“Juli will take guests on a journey from her primary school days when she sold pencil cases to her friends for a profit and bought fabric and shoes, to her life today as a successful small business owner.

“Malcolm’s experienced eye for urban design, architecture and master planning has also seen him enjoy his fair share of award winning accolades.

“He was the project leader for the award winning Roma Street Parklands, architect for Brisbane Airport Rail Links’ domestic and international stations and has worked on numerous projects in the South Pacific, Asia, New Zealand and China.

“He was also the master planner behind the award winning Seaspray Master Planned Community project near Emu Park in Central Queensland.

“Malcolm will highlight what sets Queensland ahead of the rest of Australia in urban planning and why there’s a case for Northern New South Wales to consider becoming part of Queensland.

“With such strong business talent in Queensland, it’s fantastic that our national airline, Qantas – another Queensland success story – is the presenting partner of the Q150 business breakfasts.

“If you are in business, come along to the Q150 Business Breakfast at the Gabba on 27 February.

“This is a great opportunity to hear what these two talented Queenslanders in business have to say and share in the celebration of the achievement of businesses building Queensland.”

Qantas Regional General Manager, Queensland, Andrew Hogg said Qantas was proud to be involved in the Q150 event.

"This event celebrates the achievements of Queenslanders who have continued the entrepreneurial spirit that led to the establishment of Qantas, right here in Queensland.

“The future of aviation was seen by three Queenslanders in 1920, when Hudson Fysh, Paul McGuiness and Fergus McMaster joined together to form Qantas.

"Qantas hopes that this event will continue to inspire business people in Queensland to achieve their full potential on both the national and international stage."

Inquiries for tickets to the Q150 Business Breakfast on 27 February 2009 can be made by email qld150@premiers.qld.gov.au or by telephone 07 3247 3995 or visit www.q150.qld.gov.au

Tickets for the event are limited and will be allocated on a first-in, first-served basis. There is a limit of five tickets per booking.

The second Q150 Business Breakfast will be held in July 2009.

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