Lawand Trade was established in 1992 and is the exporter and marketer of the largest range of branded “non-commodity” Australian foods and beverages in the Middle East.  Lawand Trade is based in Sydney, has had its own permanent Regional Marketing and Support Office in Dubai since January 1995, its own permanent Marketing Liaison Office in Riyadh since May 2003, its own Marketing Liaison Office in Beirut since April 2004 and its own Marketing Liaison Office in Kuwait since February 2005.  Lawand Trade is well entrenched in Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and is considering opportunities in the fringe markets.

Lawand Trade is driven by a mission statement of regionalising, for the long term, as many workable brands as possible.

Lawand Trade operates in four streams:

•    Distributed Brands:  We buy our tailored products in Australia and for each brand and in each of our markets, we appoint a suitable, well-established distributor who has wide and deep reach into supermarkets, convenience stores, catering institutions, Duty Free outlets, gyms/clubs, etc.  We oversee the distribution coverage and plan/implement all associated marketing activities.  

•    Consolidated Brands:  We source and prepare several brands in one shipment, which we send directly to our partner supermarket chains, in each market.  We consolidate ambient, chilled and frozen products and send these by sea and air.  This stream provides openings for niche products, creates opportunities for potential brands to gradually grow into distributed ones and allows our partner supermarket chains to differentiate by carrying items not commonly available in their respective markets.  This portfolio is dynamic by nature and is growing exponentially, given the dynamics of the Middle Eastern markets.

•    Private Label Brands:  Our larger partner supermarket chains own respective Private Label brands.  Under these brands and in various categories, we source quality products with competitive pricing, we co-develop the required packaging and we co-market these products with our partner supermarket chains.

•    Consolidated Premium Fresh Fruits and Vegetables:  We supply, directly to our partner supermarket chains, premium fresh fruits and vegetables, in consolidated airfreight shipments.  We developed a concept of “Just in Time” fresh fruits and vegetables, whereby we offer consumers, through our partner supermarket chains, fruits and vegetables that were picked from the orchards/gardens less than 24 hours before becoming available on the supermarket shelves and that have had minimal handling and virtually no storage.                

Lawand Trade is managed by a suitably qualified team with real knowledge of the Middle East and with firm understanding of the Australian business environment.  Core to the operations of Lawand Trade is LATOS, its proprietary state-of-the-art online ordering and tracking system.  Coupled with its own active in-the-market teams, Lawand Trade provides comprehensive and complete service, from order time by the partner client till product purchase by the consumer.  Lawand Trade is acknowledged by and is in close contact with the Australian Trade Commission (Austrade) posts and the various Australian State business bureaux in the region.

Lawand Trade is committed to servicing the Middle Eastern markets with quality products and will continue to work tightly with its partner clients and its partner suppliers to achieve its objectives.