WHAT WE DO
Freshwater Ventures gives international consumer brands the local infrastructure, expertise and on-the-ground support they need to launch and grow in Australia and New Zealand.
We bring together compliance, importation, logistics, fulfilment and go-to-market execution as one local operating team, giving brands a flexible alternative to building their own Australian operation or relying on a traditional distributor.
MARKET ENTRY & COMPLIANCE
We help brands navigate the practical and regulatory requirements of entering ANZ, including product compliance, certification, Importer of Record and Responsible Supplier requirements.LOCAL OPERATIONS
We build and manage the local operating infrastructure around the brand, including freight, customs, warehousing, 3PL, fulfilment, and returns .GO-TO-MARKET & GROWTH
We help brands build their market through DTC, ecommerce, retail development, partnerships, local positioning and on-the-ground representation
WHO WE ARE
We are founders who only work with brands we would buy ourselves.
That filter shapes everything: who we work with, how we approach the market, and the care we take in building a brand's presence here.
Between us, we have spent the better part of two decades living and building businesses across some of the world's great consumer markets. We've launched operations in new countries, built teams, grown communities and experienced firsthand the challenges of operating a long way from home.
Freshwater brings that experience together as a local team for brands entering Australia and New Zealand.
Rachel Barac / Co-Founder / Business Development & Partnerships
Rachel has a background in psychology and more than a decade of experience coaching professionals and leadership teams across Asia and Australia. She founded Boss Lady in Shanghai, a community supporting female entrepreneurs, and brings deep insight into consumer behaviour, brand loyalty and what drives meaningful connection between people and the products they love.
At Freshwater, Rachel brings the consumer and community perspective to how we evaluate brands, position them locally and build lasting connections in the market.
Billy Becket / Co-Founder / Business Development & Operations
Billy's experience spans investment banking, advertising and global creative operations. He helped build Fin Design + Effects into an international visual effects studio, establishing and managing operations in Shanghai and Los Angeles while leading teams and client relationships across multiple markets.
At Freshwater, Billy leads business development and the operational side of market entry, bringing together compliance, logistics, fulfilment and commercial partners to create the local infrastructure brands need to operate in ANZ.
WHY WE STARTED
Freshwater Ventures grew out of a simple observation. Many of the brands and products we loved overseas were not properly available in Australia and New Zealand.
The more we looked at why, the more we saw the same problem.
For many international brands, ANZ is an attractive market, but not yet large enough to justify setting up a local company, hiring a team and building the operational infrastructure themselves. The traditional alternative has often been to hand the market to a distributor.
We thought there should be another way.
Freshwater was built to give brands a local team and operating platform without requiring them to build one from scratch, allowing them to enter the market carefully, retain control and scale their investment as the opportunity is proven.
Our goal is simple: make Australia and New Zealand easier to enter, easier to operate in and easier to grow.