From Beachside to Business Hub: The Coast’s Rise in Innovation with Craig ‘CJ’ Josic

Full Transcript

Note: the following transcript was generated by AI and therefore may contain some errors and omissions.

Collaboration is really important because I do think more now than ever, collaboration is the new competition. We work together, we’re not competing, you we’re actually competing out in the rest of the world. We’re competing with the major capital cities that we have in our country and also the rest of the world that are striving to grow their business and their ecosystems. So I think collectively, by us working together and having a place within that ecosystem, we all can win.

Before we get started, the team here at the Coast and Commerce podcast want to acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land where this podcast is created, the Kabi Kabi and Jinibara people. We honour their rich culture of storytelling as we share the inspiring stories of business leaders across the Sunshine Coast. We pay our respects to their elders past, present and emerging. Let’s get on with the show.

Welcome back to the Coast and Commerce podcast. I’m your host Ben Amos from Innovate Media and this is the show where we share stories, insights and inspiration from Sunshine Coast business leaders to help you in whatever you do in business. And one of those inspiring business people of the Sunshine Coast that we have here today is Craig Josic, often known as CJ. Most people know you as CJ and he’s an entrepreneur, he’s a philanthropist, he’s a futurist.

And you might know him from Forward Fest (FWD>>>Fest) as well, but you’re involved in a lot of stuff, CJ. So before we get into some of that, for people that haven’t come across you before, tell us who is CJ and what do you do and what brought you to the coast? I’ll tell you what, it’s actually when you reflect back on what made you come to the coast, it’s actually really quite interesting. I’ve been in business forever. My first business was in 92 and we actually moved to Queensland.

got married and I said to my wife, you where would you like to live? We can live anywhere in the world. We really wanted to take an opportunity to look at the future for us and our family and where we were heading. And I very much plan ahead, look forward where we can, what we can do and how we can actually create a life for us and the opportunities for our family and so on. So we said Sydney too busy, Melbourne too cold, Queensland perfect.

And we were actually very fortunate. We had a month here on honeymoon and we traveled around in 91. And so, you know, the opportunity to actually really set our foundation here. So we moved to Queensland, set up a business in Brisbane and was there for a decade. And then after that business actually folded, we ended up saying, well, where’s the next opportunity? I’ve done multiple businesses in that time. And we said, the opportunity is, I can see it. It’s actually on the Sunshine Coast.

And so we spent a bit of time up here. Our original plan when we first moved to the coast, but I’m sorry, Queensland, was to actually move to the Sunshine Coast. But we ended up in Brisbane. So it was nice to actually come back and actually reflect on that and actually move here. So we’ve moved here in 2008. So I know we’ve got a lot of audience at the Coast and Commerce podcast who are more new to the coast than you and I here. And many also who have been on the coast all their lives. But for you,

As an outsider at the time, but many years ago, what was it about the Sunshine Coast that you saw as a place to continue on that growth as an entrepreneur? Because obviously lifestyle is a given, right? We love the lifestyle here. you were coming here and you were in business and you’re planning on continuing to grow in business. So what brought you to the Sunshine Coast from a business sense at that time? At that time, it was very much

looking out for the opportunities that we can actually establish. Like I said, I was actually moving. I had an agency at the time. I finished another business. I was in the process of doing some stuff with AustraliaZoo.tv just before Steve passed away. And we were looking at that opportunity. And I thought, the coast is so much here available for us and for our family. And in that time, I could work remote. So I had an APN joint venture with APN.

And we actually ended up that business got acquired by In Style Magazine. And then we actually ended up establishing ourself here as a digital agency. So that was an area that I realized I could work anywhere. And that’s actually what the goal was to actually remote work, build a business here and a lifestyle. That’s what’s really important to me and my family more than ever, anything else is that’s number one. So we’re talking about 2008, 2009.

So can you describe for us what in your opinion was the business ecosystem like here at that time? Yeah, I realised really early that it wasn’t who I knew, was who knew me. Yeah. And then I early days. So I established myself in different connections, different groups, bringing, I suppose, forming those relationships, which are fundamental because I look back in when I was in business in Brisbane and I looked at the…

The fundamentals are really important thing that I realized how important it was to have those relationships with key people. And I was very fortunate to be mentored with screw Turner from Flight Center, Lorna and Bill Jane, before she was Lorna Jane. And looking at those businesses that have become now global successes.

And I was very fortunate to be mentored by them. And so when I moved to the coast, I wanted to be able to do the same and give back to others. So I’m looking at opportunities I could help grow personally and also make those connections. And so what happened there is I started to be involved in number of activities and events, put myself out there really looking where, how can I contribute? How can I give back? And there was a moment in time where we realized that, you know,

maybe there’s an opportunity that we can actually shape the actual Sunshine Coast and reimagine where we were currently. I’ll never forget the mayor, Mark Jemison at the time, talked about how do we at an event, how do we actually change the culture of the Sunshine Coast from this tourism, know, retirement sort of capital into a thriving, you know, he didn’t use those words, but into an innovation ecosystem. But it really changed the culture of our region. And that was an opportunity where

Collectively, we actually started talking about that openly and there was an opportunity to expand that. And so what were those moments, those pivotal moments that you kind of saw that shift taking place? Because I believe that at that time, I started my business in 2008 as well, like similar time you came to the coast, right?

Started in my home garage. You know, I didn’t have any kind of knowledge of what the business ecosystem was like here on the coast I was just starting a business and seeing what I ended up in right? Yeah But very early on in my business as well I started to realize the value of those kind of networks and those business connections and you know soon after Not long after starting the business. I you know grew out of

home office and moved into the Innovation Centre at the Sunshine Coast University. That’s where we met actually. Absolutely, many years ago now, right? And that really for me was an eye-opening moment. So a pivotal moment for me in business was realising this ecosystem that I’d found myself in starting, for me, a digital video business was really exciting to be in that Innovation Centre at the time and see some of the amazing stuff that had already been happening.

you know, there was a real shift, like title surge, I guess, maybe not the right word to use when there’s a cyclone off the coast today as we’re recording. But, you know, so tell me from your perspective, CJ, like what was, what was the pivotal moments that you talk about where, you know, that shift kind of was taking place? I think too, when you start looking forward, it’s important to look back. And the pivotal moment was definitely, as I mentioned, we moved here and we had a very successful business, but then that all came unstuck.

You know, we lost millions of dollars. You know, we realized we had to start again. And when we moved to the coast, like I said, fundamentally, what was really important to me is the connections and the relationships I had. More important than anything else. Money, you can always make more money. But you can’t make, you know, those connections, that credibility that you have is such an important thing. And for me, that was so important. And I wanted to build a family here. I wanted to build a lifestyle and…

and be part of the community. So when I embraced those opportunities and I was attending all the different things, I met the likes of Gavin Keighley and Yvette Adams. Those people we started to come together and talk, Sean Bannister and Ben Duncan. A lot of people wouldn’t know those names, but these are the champions, Mike Black. They’re the champions of who, where we are today as an ecosystem. We came together and we recognize that

We actually were selected by Google back in 2013 and we actually received a trophy. And here it is. Here it is. For those that are watching on YouTube, you can for yourself. And we received this trophy and you talk about a pivotal moment, a catalyst, that was that. When we received this award, we came together those people that were

Yeah, one to actually help grow our ecosystem. At that time, we weren’t talking about how we use that language today, but we were talking about how do we actually come together? How do we change the culture of our region and work together, collaborate, work together? And that was a moment in time. So I’ll never forget when we actually received that award, we actually stepped up and said, we will actually have an event. We will celebrate that.

We had a great relationship with the UniSC. And so we said, let’s have it at the Innovation Center. And that’s where we met. And it was like bringing the community together. And at that moment in time, I’ll never forget Mark Jemison at the time, we invited him to come to the event. We had Google Hangout at that time. And they said, who are you? Who is this group that you’ve actually got here? Because obviously we had the council, but we also had other

stakeholders and partners that wanted to embrace this. And so we’re Silicon Coast, because obviously we had Silicon Valley on the other line, and we said, yeah, we’re Silicon Coast. And that’s actually where the name came from, because we had that moment that we had the link with Silicon Valley, and it sort of brought us together. And we had over 100 people, and I don’t forget Mark saying, in front of him, there was over 100 people in that auditorium at the time. And he said, so this is a real industry.

he suddenly saw everyone in front of them. This is before remote working was cool, which is today. We actually brought everyone together. And that was one of those moments in time that I’ll never forget. Selection, achieving the, sorry, achieving the award, but being selected and having this award for our region to recognize this. I mentioned all those champions that came together. We actually formed a group and that was the foundation of Silicon Coast.

So for those that aren’t able to read on the small shiny award here or those listening on the podcast, this is the Google E-Town Award that Craig pulled out from some hidden place behind the desk here. So this was in 2013, Google E-Town Award. obviously global recognition by a very significant player in the tech and innovation and entrepreneurship space, Google, right? Still continuing to hold that title, I think.

Can you maybe just give us a quick summary of what did this represent? it was not only a, I guess a catalyst or a watershed moment for the Sunshine Coast of being recognised as punching above its weight in innovation and entrepreneurship and technology, but what does it mean like on a global sense that little old Sunshine Coast was kind of named at that time? Absolutely, you know, they obviously awarded it without us applying for it from connectivity.

That’s where it came from. They recognized that the connectivity had increased in the area and they wanted to put a spotlight on that. So 100%, it put us on the global start stage. We started then talking to different groups and different organizations that could actually come to our region. At that moment in time, what started the conversation was a lot of people don’t realize, but we were right in the heart and we had a seat at the table talking about the new CBD that’s being built right now.

you know, back then, you we were part of that conversation. We’re also instrumental in actually helping to get the undersea cable here. Collectively as a group, working with local, state and federal government to actually make that possible. Now, the great thing there is, again, that was the vision that we had for our region. So this moment in time was a way for us to go, you know what, absolutely, this is actually a vision for us and…

I mean, obviously I had a young family at the time and I wanted them to be able to work here. I wanted them to be able to work for global companies and not have to leave the Sunshine Coast. And that is true today. Because the opportunity that we saw and the vision working at a moment in time that we looked at the future and then brought back and what are the things we have to do today? The key there was to bring everyone together, continue to bring that community together in different ways.

solve problems, but also we were known for sharing our trainwreck stories. Don’t be afraid to actually share a story. It doesn’t always have to be success. We struggle through, being an entrepreneur is lonely. You’re on your own most of the time. You’re working through the thickest stuff. People see the success. They see the glitter, glit and the glamour, so to speak. And they see all that and they don’t see the other, the hard knocks.

you know, waking up at 2 a.m. sweating because you can’t pay payroll. And I’ve been there, you know, I’ve ran, you know, to the point where I needed to collapse because I had 20 people that I had to pay the payroll for and I didn’t have the money to do it and I had to get through that next moment in time. And so when you have that stress that builds over time, you need to have people who are going through that same thing. And so…

For me, it was really important that we make sure that we have a community that recognizes that and we actually are there for each other and help each other celebrate the wins, but also the losses. I think one of the critical things that stands out to me as you describe that is we refer to, and we’ve even mentioned it on this podcast so far, of this ecosystem, this business ecosystem or innovation ecosystem. And often that term is thrown around, right, ecosystem. But when you…

really think about the definition of an ecosystem. is these disparate kind of bodies working together to function and thrive together. So I guess it’s no mistake that it’s referred to and we continue to refer to it as an ecosystem of business here on the coast because of exactly that. That if businesses are standing alone, by doing it separately and in their own silos, then

You know, it’s not an ecosystem, right? Absolutely. It’s an ecosystem. Exactly. An ecosystem. Yeah. And we see that time and time again. You you just don’t have to look very far for you see actually how that plays out. And I think for us, people look at us and go, wow, look what’s happening on the coast. You know, like there’s all these incredible things that are happening. And you’ve had some incredible guests on your podcast and people that I’ve personally built these relationships with over the last decade and us working together.

to collaborate. Collaboration lives here and that was a brand that I started back before COVID and we wanted to recognize that collaboration lives here. Collaboration is really important because I do think more now than ever, collaboration is the new competition. We work together, we’re not competing, you we’re actually competing out in the rest of the world. We’re competing with the major capital cities that we have in our country and also the rest of the world that are…

are striving to grow their business and their ecosystems. So I think collectively, by us working together and having a place within that ecosystem, we all can win. It’s all a benefit and it can be a beautiful dance. You look at some ecosystems and that nature has, and it’s just spectacular the way it all just flows. And I feel like that’s where we are now. We’re getting to that next point where we’re starting to grow up.

to that next level of a thriving ecosystem, but not just an ecosystem that’s built on just success, it’s built on wellbeing. It’s built on safety and our community that works together to make sure that we have, what we have is really unique and we make sure we sustain that as well as we grow. Yeah, I love it.

You know, take me from that point of 2013, winning the Google E-Town Award. You saw that as a moment as a catalyst for change. And, you know, I guess it was that kind of rising of the tide, you know, to use a metaphor and maybe to carry on that metaphor. I guess we’ve continued to somewhat ride the wave of that as we’ve moved forward as a region and as an ecosystem. So describe to us, like, where do you personally see

where we are now today, 2025 as a region when it comes to entrepreneurship and innovation and in technology and all of that stuff that we kind of saw starting to kick off back then. I think like anything, it evolves over time. And as I mentioned before that we have different groups, which is wonderful to show how diverse our ecosystem is. And that’s really important.

we have to really play a strong, I have a strong message that one voice that we did a work really closely with obviously all levels of government. And recently, we’ve essentially has council working with them on mapping out our ecosystem and where are the gaps. What’s that blue sky? That’s the key or the blue ocean that we talk about sometimes from an entrepreneur point of view, where’s that space? And actually looking at that as an ecosystem and where’s that?

How’s that fit to make sure that we fill those gaps together and work and solve some of these problems? We have wicked problems that are happening in our society, not just in our region, but in our country and the world. I truly believe entrepreneurs will save the world. You know, we look at things differently. We look at opportunities in education. How do we help our youth? How do we give them a pathway of entrepreneurship and solve problems? You know, our real pandemic is

You know, depression. Depression comes because we don’t have a vision. As a young man, I left school at 16 years old. I never went to high school. I never went to university. You know, I left and I started my own business. You know, I bought my first house before I was 20. You know, I didn’t actually need to follow that traditional pathway. And I want to make sure that other young people, if never aware they are in their life, that there’s actually, there’s a place for them.

there’s an opportunity for them to be part of that. Entrepreneurship is about solving problems. And wherever we are on our business life cycle, we all contribute. It’s a bold statement, but together we’re better. If we come together, matter where we are. So where we are currently, I really believe, is really getting a clear message of that voice. So we have a new state government. We’re soon to have an election.

coming up, let’s see what happens there. But the important thing is making sure that we have a voice and we have a seat at the table that we recognize. We are one of the fastest growing regions in Australia. We need, it’s our time, our time to shine. We need the infrastructure, the ability, just like we saw the vision with the cable and we’ve built that now and it’s right there on our doorstep that we can start attracting, not just companies, but talent.

to our region. That also is a catalyst, a moment in time that we can actually work together and attract the right people to help grow that thriving innovation ecosystem. Yeah. Where do you see some of the key gaps right now, whether they be gaps that are already on their way to being filled or addressed in some way, or whether they’re glaring gaps that you feel that need to be addressed in order to really solidify and position ourselves as a leader in innovation?

and really competing strongly with those capital cities that tend to draw most of the investment and so on. What are those gaps, those key gaps that you see? We have a unique advantage over a capital city. It’s busy and it’s just hectic. We can get clarity. We can get clarity as a region. We can actually recognise that. Where do we sit?

And I was just, we were just talking about this actually when I was in Sydney, I was at the Salesforce, the world tour for Angelforce. And that event that they had, it was really looking at where AI is in the world and what’s happening. And it was phenomenal. But it also took me an opportunity to spend some of that with some time with some key stakeholders and talk about our region and where we sit. And the AI space is really important.

it crosses every sector. I was recently appointed co-director of the Queensland AI chapter for Sunshine Coast. And I’m really proud of that because that’s an opportunity that I can help together with Karen Sutherland. We can actually bring the community together to recognise that the AI is not, this is an incredible time to be in. And this moment in time that how we can actually help educate businesses, help them to

grow their business in that space, but also attract businesses to our region. With the cable, it’s perfect timing. And that all brings together. There’s a gap there that I think we can fulfill that narrative really well. And it can also give us longevity like never before. There’s a lot of other things happening in our region. We’ve got some incredible manufacturing, advanced manufacturing. We’ve got…

I don’t want start naming companies because I’m going to miss someone, but we’ve got some incredible companies in our region that are doing some amazing things in all areas. and agriculture is such an important part of our region. know, clean tech and all those parts, they all fit, the biospheres, they all fits together. Again, part of our ecosystem. So I think collectively is be looking at that narrative. Where does that all fit?

And is there an opportunity that we can actually try not to be everything to all people, but have a clear voice of where that space is? And that’s probably the more important now than ever before. I love that. I also love how, you know, the eternal optimism and leadership of yourself there as CJ, as a leader on the Sunshine Coast, took that question about identifying gaps and weaknesses into so much positive in your response there, which is great, you know, and I 100 % agree.

But I love that idea of really refining and defining the narrative that we want to put forward to the world of who is the Sunshine Coast in this way and how we’re going to come together and collectively kind of move that narrative forward. think that’s great. And I think that’s also a great segue into one of your other things that you’re passionate about is obviously Forwardfest, which you’re now the chair of Forward fest and one of the co-founders of that event. But it’s more than event, right?

Tell me, like, what role do you see Forward Fest playing, ideally, in driving this narrative and moving this forward? I’m gonna make a bold statement here, a massive role. Because it’s not an event, as you just mentioned, Ben. I do believe it’s a way of thinking different. It’s a movement. And by when it’s a movement, you embrace. The community leans in and wants to be part of something bigger than them.

That’s really important. As I mentioned before, there’s lots of things going on and there’s lots of wicked problems that are happening. But let’s look at what we can control, not what we can’t. And what we can control is we can control the people that we associate with. We can control the people that can come to our region, not as a fly-in, fly-out speaker, but someone who actually is embracing our environment, where it’s celebrating with them and we’re sharing.

all the things that are happening within our region and they’re going, wow. And that’s I want someone to walk away from. actually, lot of people don’t realise this, but we actually had innovation before Forward Fest from our brand point of view was actually before COVID. It was actually called Innovation Week. That moment, BC. That happened. We had a hundred events, activities, we, you know, from Coda Dojo to Starlet Weekends.

to activities like the innovation week and so on. We had so many different activities, but we also recognized we actually didn’t have a brand. So we actually leaned in and actually said, let’s create a brand. Let’s actually, during COVID, we actually recognized we actually needed to also step up and put a flag in the sand. Now I have a physical flag that I actually put in the sand, but really being recognized for something. And I always also had the vision that as we were talking about this,

I never forget Adelaide and I were talking about length and she was on the board with Gavin Keighley at the time and we were talking a lot and Gavin’s now the chair of ADA and we have a lot of history, Gavin and I. And Adelaide was part of the Innovation Centre and so, and now works at Stanford University in Silicon Valley. And so these are people that have a vision that are not only, you know, not afraid to be a little bit.

Yeah, let’s put it out there as they say, you know, a bit of a little bit more bold than the rest of us. And so collectively, when you put us together, was unstoppable. So from that, we actually formed our own brand, Forward Fest. We realized what we had to do was actually move forward and how do we move our community forward in a positive way. So that’s where Forward Fest was born. Three years or four years on, if we come out to our fourth year.

First year, a lot of people didn’t realise, we actually funded it ourselves, personally. The first event, we actually didn’t ask for any support, any partners, we actually wanted to show this is a product that we believe in. Just like you would create a startup and you actually do YMPV, create your own product, develop it, and get feedback. We did that the first year. And so from that, we didn’t even have any marketing collateral at that time.

We created it, we had an incredible event at UniSC, and then that was, again, a catalyst moment that we recognised that, this is actually a great opportunity for us to take that next step. And then from there, we actually got a three-year partnership with state government under Events Queensland. Sunshine Coast Council and Noosa Council started to see this is a great opportunity to bring the community together. And we then have now, proud to say, most of the actual innovation or…

industry groups that are based on the coast are part of this event in different ways in the chambers Last year we grew that about 85 percent and this year I want to be able to have every chamber and organization part of it because it’s actually it’s their event We just created a brand to be able to bring people together So I said before it’s a bold statement because I do believe this is actually our moment that we can bring our community together celebrate that

and show the rest of the country and the world that what we’re about. And Forward Fest is a way of, I call it those collaborative collisions. You never know who you’re gonna meet at Forward Fest. It’s now recognised by state government as the one of the three main innovation festivals in our state. And we’re now playing with the other different organizations or run events throughout the country.

and we have now great partnerships with those. So we’re bringing incredible speakers and partners to our region. Yeah, well, well done in the growth of Forward Fest over the last four years. So we are coming up to the fourth Forward Fest, obviously bigger and better than ever before and recognising that it is more than an event, but that event becomes that meeting place, that central pivotal place that…

drives the rest of the activity around Forward Fest and the brand, right? So tell me for those listening and watching, whether they’d be new to the coast or otherwise, why should they attend Forward Fest? What do they expect when they show up for those two, three, is it four days? Three days. Three days. I wasn’t sure if there’s a fourth day. Okay. So for those three days, what are they going to get? Why turn up? Yeah.

As we talked before, it’s way of actually bringing people together. And so you never know who you’re going to meet at Forward Fest. And that’s the beauty about it. I’ve run over three days from the 7th to the 9th of May. There’ll be a number, I’m sure there’s going be a link below that you’ll able to click to get more information. But that opportunity, what we saw when we actually were looking at this year’s Forward Fest, what I wanted to do last year was

I could see what was happening again, that sort of future side of me. And I wanted to create an opportunity where we actually are riding this wave together. So that is our theme this year. It’s a great, great, great theme considering we’ve got a cyclone that’s coming. It’s a big wave this year. It’s a big wave, but we can ride the wave together. And I think if from a metaphor, you know, you can feel like you’re in business, you’re in the whitewash. You just, you know, you just need to get your head above the waves.

and then hop on that wave and actually see the horizon, see where you’re going. And that’s really important. Now we’ve all been there, you know, like, and we’re in the white wash and what’s happening. So riding the wave together is really important. And what you get at Forward Fest is an opportunity where you can collaborate. You can meet like-minded people who get you a thousand percent. You feel like you’ve met your tribe, your group that you can share and be willing to open.

be open to opportunities and discuss, where am I going? Where are my businesses and where am I going? And what’s happening in that space? Also, collaborative collisions are really important because you may meet someone who’s in a totally different industry that you’re in, and suddenly there’s an opportunity where you partner. We’ve had number of success stories from Forward Fest that people have met that person, and suddenly now they’ve created a partnership, and that’s helped them to.

to actually grow their business exponentially. So that’s the wonderful thing. So it’s over three days because when you have an event and it’s just that breakfast and you leave and you go, I wanted to meet that person, we have it multiple days to help you actually build those relationships. Relationships happen over time. We, Forward Fest, we fast track that in a way that we look for ways to connect people together. Each day starts, well, the first day starts with a breakfast.

where you can actually just come to the breakfast. So if you’re new to the coast and you wanna actually say, dip your toes so to speak in the water and see what it’s all about, you can actually just come to the breakfast. Or you can just come to the one day, day one. Or you can come to the three days, which is what we call our lean in ticket. You actually come to the whole three days and immerse yourself in Forward Fest. And those moments, suddenly you actually get a chance to take a step out of your business, which is the most important thing right now.

is to take a moment to step out of your business and work on your business. More now than ever before, that’s really important because otherwise you can just get so busy and you feel like you’re going down the right path and suddenly, hold on, maybe I need to actually pivot and actually turn a different direction to do the things and achieve the goals that I wish to achieve. I’m very much, like I said, working backwards on something and that helps someone to actually say, yeah, where do you really want to go?

where do you want to achieve, what do you want to achieve and how do we actually help you do that? So importantly, guess, ForwardFest is not just for those who maybe self-identify as being like a innovation business or a startup or, you know, those looking to be like the next Silicon Valley or Silicon Coast kind of business, right? So really for anyone in business on the Sunshine Coast that ForwardFest will have something for them, yeah? Absolutely. You know, we sort of using the word, you know,

SC innovate because sometimes Silicon Coast doesn’t resonate with certain people and that’s fair enough. The innovation does and the innovation and that’s also probably where you probably notice that we promote Forward Fest more so as its own brand because then attracts any business at any level. Whether you’re a coffee shop owner and you want to look at Tim Adams, what an incredible company he’s built now from cop to cop. And so no matter where you are on your business journey,

Or if you’re just starting out or you’re actually a manufacturer and you want to actually get involved in these discussions about AI and what’s happening, how can I automate the process or have an opportunity where you actually want to scale your business. You can talk to people who are actually doing that and they’re actually right there at that moment in time. And that can save you an incredible amount of time and money. You don’t need to go to a capital city to meet these people. We’re actually bringing them to the coast. So if you look at the financial

commitment that you have, probably the biggest commitment is your time. Because the cost, we actually keep down at a reasonable, know, the ticket price is only $198 for the day. I mean, that is so achievable. If you were to go to Sydney for the same event, you’ve got airline tickets, accommodation, travel, you know, like to and from the venue and so on. And you start adding up to thousands of dollars. So that was always a vision that we had that we bring these people to the coast.

And if you support us and partner with us in making this more successful this year than ever before, collectively together as a community, we can attract more people to the region, bigger speakers, bigger partners, and then that will help your business to grow. Our goal is to get you on that stage. So if you’ve got a great success story, apply for our innovation showcase. If you want to be a speaker or a volunteer, there’s so many opportunities. And one I’m most proud of, Forward Fest.

is we have a pay it forward model. So if you’re a business that is doing really well, very successful on the coast and you wanna give back, we have a pay it forward model. We started that from the beginning where you can actually buy tickets for young startups or young students that come to Forward Fest and participate and be part of the next generation. We give back and support them in a way that I feel it’s a wonderful thing that we do as a community and if we can collectively do that together.

You can’t do that on your own, but together, it’s a powerful message that we’re sending to the rest of the country that we support our youth. Yeah, I love that. Look, we’ll have links to Forward Fest everywhere around this video, but just give us a quick shout out. Where’s the best place for people to go prior to May in 2025 to attend Forward Fest 2025? Where should we send them? Best Go Girl website, fwdfest.co and all the information’s there. You’d be able to see our

or the speakers, or you’d be able to partner with us as well. Find your package that suits your business and where you are and how we can support you on your journey. I love it. Hope to see everyone there. So just as we wrap up here, CJ, I want to get your vision of the future. Let’s just say 10 years. I know that seems like a long time, right? But 10 years, when we’re looking forward, a lot can change in 10 years, particularly the rate of change that’s happening now, right? But we have been looking back like, you know,

12 years here to the Google E-Town Award in 2013. So where would you want the Sunshine Coast to be as a region when it comes to entrepreneurship innovation in 10 years from now in 2035? And it’s a great question, Ben. know, like it’s, it’s, think when you stop for a moment and you think that far ahead and you think of each moment in time that what I can do to achieve that goal, I would love to see us being recognised as an innovation powerhouse that people

Have you heard of what’s happening on the Sunshine Coast? Have you seen the businesses that are created on the Sunshine Coast? That we build a model and the vision I have had for a long time is this is probably the next moment that we’re now heading towards is this innovation precinct. Like I said, building a location that we can contribute, we can attract.

a talent to our region and the next 10 years play an integral part in that within Australia and not just Australia but globally. So once we’ve actually built the foundations of an innovation powerhouse, we will start, which I really think we’re so close now of that, and that’s a metaphor, but then working towards a physical location that we can actually start attracting companies wherever you are on your journey. And also,

I’d love to see us work together in the next 10 years that people are coming out of, know, from the youth and they’re coming out of, you know, school or university and they’re seeing a pathway right here that they can actually be in part of the community and they don’t need to go elsewhere to actually achieve those goals. They can actually raise a family and build a global company right here on the San Juan coast. And I think more important, the future isn’t waiting, it’s actually happening right now. Yeah, I love that.

Beautiful spot to wrap up the episode. CJ, thanks for joining me for today’s episode and also thanks for providing some inspiration to those listening and watching to not only get involved in whatever way they can in continuing to push this narrative forward of this place that we live and do work, but also some really practical ways that they can get involved. And I think the first step is to attend Forward Fest 2025, right? Absolutely. Excellent.

So if you’re watching and you wanna connect with CJ, reach out to him on LinkedIn, think good place to connect, and go to fwdfest.co to check out all the ways that you can get involved in Forward Fest. And Craig, thanks for joining me on today’s episode. Thanks, Ben. Talk to you soon.