Top 100 CEO Interviews
Issue No. 44 - December/January 2008
Hamilton’s place in the sun
2008 is a milestone year for Hamilton Laboratories.
Not only is the South Australian family company celebrating its 75th anniversary but it’s executing a succession plan to grow the business nationally and overseas.
The company was formed following the successful production of a sunburn preventative cream by young Adelaide Chemist Milton Blake - aka H.A. Milton.
Hamilton is now recognised as a leading manufacturer and distributor of premium Australian healthcare products.
Milton’s son Richard joined the company in 1963 and took over as Managing Director in 1977.
As part of the succession plan, Richard has now taken on the role of Chairman, handing over the reins to his sons Michael and Stewart Blake as Joint Managing Directors.
While entering its third generation of management, Hamilton continues to develop and manufacture its products in Adelaide.
However it has grown significantly and now has operations across Australia and has a network of distributors in more than 20 countries in Asia, Europe and North America. The company most recently secured a contract to export its products to Turkey.
Richard Blake said a focus of the next five years would be taking the company’s turnover from $17 million to more than $25 million.
“Our growth strategy is three-pronged across our home state of South Australia, interstate and overseas – all markets where we see growth potential,” Mr Blake said.
“Domestically, the company has strong long-standing relationships with pharmacies right across Australia
where our products are sold exclusively. A focus of the coming years is to continue to build our strong relationship with pharmacies.
“Last year, Hamilton’s export sales comprised 10 per cent of the company’s total manufacturing output and we are aiming to grow this even further.
“Over the past few years we’ve enjoyed strong sales growth in a number of Middle Eastern countries, for e...
