Annual General Meeting
Our Annual General Meeting was held on Thursday December 12th 2019 at the Tank Stream Hotel, 97 Pitt Street, Sydney from 4.00p.m.
At this meeting, the Board of Directors was elected for 2020.
The 2020 Board is:
- Bruce Robson - Chairman
- Yezdi Daruwalla - Deputy Chair
- Melissa Humphries - Treasurer
- Mimmo Lubrano - Director
- Ken Hartley - Director
- Cecil Louw - Director
- Andrew Low - Director
- Anthony Nay - Director
- Lindsay Yeomans - Director
- Eugene Visione - Director
- Wayne Viles - Director
- Vince Crawley - CEO/Director
Board of Directors
Our Board comprises senior leaders in the foodservice industry who have committed to the improvement of services for members.
Eugene Visione
Eugene is the Head of Sales, Marketing and NPD at Birch & Waite. Birch & Waite is well known for it’s multi-award winning fresh chilled mayonnaise, dressings and sauces and is renowned as one of Australia’s most innovative food companies, with a core capability in fast to market new product development and a strong track record of investment in industry leading technology.
Prior to Birch & Waite, Eugene gained his significant senior level FMCG experience and developed his passion for the Foodservice industry from leading the Coffee and Foodservice divisions at Cerebos Australia for 6 years. Eugene also has the unique perspective of having spent time on the buying side before his years in sales and marketing, with roles leading the procurement functions at both Steggles and Cerebos.
Eugene has an MBA from AGSM and his interests include spending time with his young family, playing golf and staying fit.
Cecil Louw
Director
Cecil is Head of Marketing for Nestle Professional and has been in the Food and Beverage industry his entire career, predominantly with multi-national companies.
He has worked in South Africa and New Zealand in various marketing roles.
Cecil is active in sport ranging from soccer to swimming and running.
Vince Crawley
Chief Executive Officer
Vince has been in the industry for +40 years, starting as an apprentice cook at QANTAS. He has owned a restaurant, taught at TAFE and held senior positions in general management, sales, marketing and strategic development with major companies such as Chefs Pride, Goodman Fielder and Uncle Tobys.
Vince's interets include baseball, most other sports, cooking, meeting people and music.
Lindsay Yeomans
Director
After completing formal qualifications in 1973 and subsequent interesting vocational positions, Lindsay launched The Armory in 1980 as a Foodservice specialist communications agency.
Over the next 30 years plus The Armory has developed with the industry it is passionate about! With his partner, Lorraine Lovelock, the company is seen as being at the forefront of Foodservice communications, and with its integrated marketing approach, has assisted many organisations in launching new Foodservice companies, brands and products.
"Foodservice is an exciting business to be in - if you're not, you don't know what you are missing!"
Melissa Humphries
Treasurer
Melissa Humphries has extensive experience in the Food Service Industry, starting as an apprentice chef some 26 years ago.
After a number of years in the trade, she moved into Sales and Marketing as an Area Manager for a Food Distributor before moving on to Unilever as an account manager, Top Hat Fine Foods as QLD /NT State Sales Manager and State Sales Manager QLD for Steggles.
In 2005 Melissa started her own successful company, All Foodservices Australia. In July 2013 Melissa took advantage of an offer from Trumps Foods and is currently their National Food Service Manager.
Interests – Camping, Swimming, Trail bike riding and chasing after her young children.
Bruce Robson
Chairman FSAA
Bruce has spent 30 years dealing with the Foodservice market in a range of positions and a variety of business sectors.
Companies
He had his own brokerage business for 7 years contracting to companies such as Nestle, Tetley Tea, Stimorol, Helene Curtis, Ballantyne and Huhtamaki across a number of market segments – Confectionary, Hair Care, Drinks, Food Ingredients and Packaging.
Bruce then spent a number of years in the Plastics and Steel industries before returning to the Foodservice sector in 2007 spending a year living in Shanghai setting up a company providing deodorising solutions to the hospitality sector.
In 2008 he took the reins of Robot Coupe Australia as Managing Director and has led it to the undisputed market leader in Australia and New Zealand. The Australian business is recognised as the number one performing business for Robot Coupe worldwide.
Since 2008 has been involved in the major industry associations as a board member, Vice President and President of NAFES ( National Association of Food Equipment Suppliers ) and board member, Treasurer and Vice Chairman of FSAA.
Ken Hartley
Ken Hartley is the Chief Executive Officer of Priestley’s Gourmet Holdings. A leading and multi award winning dessert company, Priestley’s Gourmet Holdings operates in Australia and New Zealand and encompasses Priestley’s Gourmet Delights, Melba Foods and the Elite Food Group.
With 27 years of food industry experience, Ken brings a well-rounded cross-functional awareness developed through senior roles in Sales, Operations, Commercial Management, Product Development and Quality Assurance within significant food organisations including JBS Swift, Frito-Lay, Vesco Foods and Woolworths. This is supported by both domestic and international business experience across the Middle East, Asia, Australia and NZ.
Formal qualifications include a Ba. App. Sc. Food Technology (honours) from UQ and an MBA from QUT.
Interests include rugby, athletics and anything that the whole family can enjoy together.
Yezdi Daruwalla
Yezdi is Managing Director of Unilever Food Solutions where he has led the business in Australia and New Zealand as one Purpose driven team.
Yezdi is a Foodservice specialist with ten years experience as a chef in India, Switzerland and Australia and was Executive Chef at the Old Sydney Parkroyal Hotel prior to joining Unilever Food Solutions in 1992. With Unilever Food Solutions, Yezdi has spanned roles in Sales, Chef and Marketing and has been Managing Director Australia and New Zealand since 2004 during which time the business has transformed from a commodity driven business to one which consistently delivers strong turnover and profitability growth. The business has won a number of internal and external accolades including Global UFS Best Business Results Award in 2012 and Global UFS Compass Award in 2013 and 2014.
Yezdi did the AGSM Graduate Management Qualification in 1996 and is a highly motivated individual with effective communication skills, business understanding and a passion for business and people development.
Wayne Viles
Wayne is the Managing Director of Unox Australia, a market leader for commercial ovens and globally recognised as the fastest growing oven manufacturer in the world.
Wayne began his career as a trained Pâtissier, ran a pizza business for 10 years before selling up and securing a position at Robot Coupe as the Sales Manager for Victoria and Tasmania which was his introduction to UNOX.
Now, Wayne is the coalface of a company that is known for invention and innovation.
Given its growth as a global company, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that UNOX is still a family operated business, which hold these family values close to its hearts.
Tony Nay
Tony established Incremental in 1996 from his home in the Blue Mountains of NSW. 22 years on Incremental has a fulltime team of 35 and conducts sales and marketing programs in 17 countries throughout the world. Based in Sydney, Incremental also operates satellite offices in both Auckland in New Zealand and Houston in the USA. Tony is passionate about delivering profitable and sustainable sales growth for his blue-chip partners and is in awe of the role and the speed of change that digital strategies are driving in the Food Service industry today.
Andrew Low
Andrew is the co-founder and co-CEO of Ordermentum, an ordering payment and insights software product custom built for the Food Service Industry. Ordermentum has been running for 5yrs and currently supports over 400 F&B suppliers collect orders and payment from over 23,000 bars, restaurants and cafes around Australia.
Prior to Ordermentum, Andrew cemented a unique mix of experience spanning all functions and channels of the FMCG industry. A qualified accountant and CPA, Andrew embarked on a 10 year career as a finance professional with Unilever, spanning several roles in both Australia and the UK. With a passion for general management, an FMCG sales role in a Suntory food business then led Andrew in 2010 to securing the Managing Director position at Toby’s Estate Coffee, a market leader in the specialty coffee industry.
Andrew has a passion for the Foodservice industry and is driven to extend innovation, insight and financial success to everyone who makes and shares the food and drink we all love. In his spare time, Andrew loves hanging out with his 3 children, being at the beach and squeezing in a round of golf
Mimmo Lubrano
Mimmo Lubrano is the CEO of Sandhurst Fine Foods and has been working alongside his brother Ray for the past 28 years.
Sandhurst is a family owned and operated company creating innovative products by sourcing the very best produce within Australia and around the world. The business was created by Mimmo and Ray’s parents, Vince and Geraldine, who eventually persuaded their sons to leave the corporate world and join the family business.
Years of experience gives Mimmo his in-depth knowledge and understanding of food cultures and products from across the globe, and foodservice in general. He is an extremely accomplished presenter and loves to share his knowledge, so it’s no surprise to see him speaking on stage at industry events and Masterclasses.
Outside of work, Mimmo spends time giving back to the community involving himself with business groups such as Family Business Australia and PROBUS clubs. He is also actively involved in the music industry where he performs in a rock band on weekends at club and private function venues across Sydney.
Mimmo is a passionate family man and business owner who has a solid understanding of the needs of family businesses however small or large they may be.
