'Unique' pool opportunity

The company will be headed up by former managing director of Elders Toepfer Grain, Mark Thiele, and will focus exclusively on accumulating grain via pools.

In spite of the launch of other pool focused businesses recently, Mr Thiele was confident of attracting tonnage to Unique Grain’s pool offerings, available in wheat and barley this year.

“Our objective is to ensure that we offer exactly what our research has shown us growers want – outstanding marketing expertise for their grain, with no strings attached,” he said.

Initially, Mr Thiele said the company would focus on the southern states, but he said he hoped to expand the business in coming years.

“We think we’ll have a business model growers like,” he said.

In spite of constant industry dialogue about the demise of pools in the deregulated market, Mr Thiele said his discussions with the production sector showed there was still room for pool products.

“It’s all about the evolution of pools, which is why we are calling our product a ‘new pool’, we are doing away with some of the aspects that have not worked," Mr Thiele said.

“For instance, we will be running the pool solely, there will be no other business units to muddy the waters, and I think if growers can get a transparent pool marketing product they will use it.

“To ensure it’s all transparent and that growers can see we are focusing solely on marketing their grain within the pool, we will not participate in the cash market and only operate pools.”

Mr Thiele said the pools would be actively managed and would offer a range of flexible payment flows as required by growers.

He said he took the decision to embark on a pools business because he believed it was an underserviced area of the industry.

“Growers have many options with cash buyers, but what is not well serviced is the area where growers who choose a pooling option could work with a service provider who did nothing other than actively manage a pool,” he said.

“We have also managed to attract the support of the business community in getting the capital to set the business up to run a pool.”

He said the company’s major point of difference compared with major pool operators would be in increased transparency.

“Unique Grain will bring what we believe is unparalleled transparency of information around grain marketed via our ‘New Pool’, allowing growers constant knowledge of expected outcomes, immediate notification of significant events, ongoing and detailed revenue and cost analysis, and a commitment to what growers should expect from Unique Grain up front."

He said grower feedback was that using pools was one way they could concentrate on their major skill set, grain production.

“Obviously the cash market works for a lot of growers, but there are times when you want exposure to the market over a longer period than just one day.”

Mr Thiele was particularly encouraged by the off-shore support for Unique Grain.

“Strong connections to companies wishing to purchase Australian grain from across the globe are critical to achieving marketing success,” he said.

Unique Grain has also snared another name familiar to Aussie growers in Tony Critch.

Mr Critch is a former chairman of CBH and will join Unique Grain as a board member.

The initial Unique Grain pool estimate and associated information will be available within the next week to 10 days.

Mr Thiele said the company would work on a limited tonnage in the first year and would look to expand over coming years.

“In the first year we just want to focus on getting it right and we’ll be happy to shut the book if we need to.”