The Year 9 Economics and Business students complete a term of Economics and business with the annual Business Awards. The students first studied economic principles, innovative business strategies and competitive advantage in class. Later, they formed small business groups and competed against each other in a school food market that was organised by the Student Council. The business performance was judged on profit, marketing, innovation and organisation criteria.
The following students were the 2019 Business awards winners:
Category Small Business Groups
Zeke Hulyer, Harper Monaghan-Hall, Gracie O’Connor and Finn Mannion. 
Their small enterprise featured effective team work, task specialisation, successful marketing and achievement of the biggest profit while keeping costs low.
Category Individual Commitment to Business Activities:
William Kilby and Lulu Goodall.
These students exhibited extraordinary commitment to their business venture in the face of difficult circumstances. They used innovative problem-solving skills to lead their groups and to ensure that their business was able to operate despite lack of support.
Feedback by Harper Monaghan-Hall:
“From this personal learning experience, I have deepened my knowledge of Economics and what is required to be a a successful marketer. I have learnt various skills such as how to advertise successfully by creating awareness of products. I have acquired knowledge such as learning how to effectively bake products that taste good but are also cost-effective, benefiting our profit. It was also a great learning experience to be working with money, ensuring we had all ingredients and keeping track of all money spent through receipts; this helped strengthen my organisational skills. I have learnt that presentation is an important part of making a product desirable. Throughout this experience I learnt how to meet the demands of consumers, and how to interact with customers in order to make them feel welcomed and encourage them to buy from us. Overall, I have learnt that the following factors – advertising, product presentation, high quality products, service and budget – are critical to a successful business operation.”
Mr Patrick Marzohl
HASS Teacher