Putting people first

For Founder and Executive Chairman Bruce Frith, that philosophy wasn’t always obvious. It was learned the hard way.

Around 30 years into the business, Tasfresh made a defining shift. Decades of long hours and relentless customer demands had, as Bruce puts it, meant that Tasfresh wasn’t a great place to work. The penny dropped when Bruce realised that the best way to deliver great service wasn’t to push harder but to build a better place to work.

“If you genuinely care about your people, they will go out and look after your customers,” Bruce says.

By resetting expectations, supporting staff and focusing on sustainable service, the impact was immediate. Morale improved, problems were solved faster and customer relationships strengthened.

That philosophy continues to shape Tasfresh.

The early years

When Bruce and his wife Judy started the business in 1975, success was far from guaranteed.

“There is no way any sane person would have done it,” he says.

Working from home and small leased facilities, Judy handled the books from the kitchen table while Bruce worked long days on the road. For five years, the dining table was an office, with not a single meal shared there.

The first decade tested everything. High interest rates, limited access to finance and the realities of running a small business created constant pressure.

But those years also brought some of life’s most important moments. In 1978 and 1980, Bruce and Judy welcomed their children, Andrew and Belinda – both of whom now play key roles in the business.

“The first five years were nothing but solid hard work… and the next five weren’t much easier. But fear of failure kept us going.”

Looking back, Bruce reflects that as a young family building a business together, they had become an unbeatable partnership – even if they didn’t realise it at the time.

Building for the future

A decade in, Tasfresh reached a turning point, building its own facility in Camdale, just outside Burnie.

“It wasn’t through being smart. It was through being naive,” Bruce admits.

But the move marked a shift. Tasfresh was no longer just surviving, it was building a future.

From servicing part of Tasmania, the business steadily expanded to cover the entire state. Today, Tasfresh operates across five locations and employs more than 200 people, with growth coming both organically and through acquisition, including a major expansion in 2011.

A people-first business

The lessons learned over decades continue to define how Tasfresh operates.

For Bruce, looking after your people is not at odds with looking after your customers, it is how great service is built. When employees feel valued and supported, they bring care, accountability and consistency to every order and every delivery.

It’s this culture that allows Tasfresh to deliver the reliability and responsiveness customers depend on, even in an industry where challenges and last-minute changes are part of daily life.

A family business, redefined

Tasfresh has remained true to its roots as a family business.

Bruce and Judy’s son Andrew – who as a child spent time on deliveries with his parents – now leads the company as Managing Director. Daughter Belinda also plays a key role, alongside a broader leadership team.

Together, they continue to build on the values established in those early years while evolving the business for the future.

Stronger together

As a long-standing member of the Countrywide network, Tasfresh combines local expertise with the strength of a national group of independent distributors.

“On your own, you’re small. Together, you’ve got strength in numbers,” Bruce says.

The network provides greater buying power and supplier relationships, while allowing Tasfresh to remain proudly independent and responsive to local customers.

After more than 50 years, Tasfresh remains focused on being better every day: for its people, its customers, and the communities it serves.

Because for Tasfresh, success hasn’t come from chasing profit, it’s come from building a business where people, service and relationships come first.