More than 400 Australian manufacturers entered insolvency in 2025. GME’s Tony Crooke writes for Dynamic Business on what the closures reveal, and what the survivors chose to do differently.
In 2025, more than 6,200 New South Wales businesses were forced into liquidation, according to the latest ASIC insolvency data. Among them were over 400 Australian manufacturers, likely including family-run operations, regional employers, and innovators who had weathered COVID, border closures, and global supply chain chaos, only to be undone by rising costs and relentless import pressures.
Every line on that spreadsheet tells a family story. A workshop that once trained apprentices, a warehouse that sponsored the local footy club, a business built over decades of pride in “Australian made.” The ripple effect of each closure extends far beyond job losses and cuts into the social and economic fabric of regional towns and industrial suburbs alike.
The heavy machinery might fall silent, but so too does the optimism that manufacturing once represented. That steady belief that a good idea, applied with skill and hard work, could create a livelihood and legacy close to home.
The hard reality behind the statistics
From the outside, the data points look clinical. But for those living it, the economic conditions and the effect on manufacturing businesses have been profoundly personal. Inflationary pressure has been both a symptom and a catalyst, exposing vulnerabilities in supply chains and forcing a reassessment of how Australia builds and sustains its productive base.
Higher inflation has pushed manufacturers to sharpen their operations. Businesses that once had the luxury of steady procurement cycles or flexible margins are now forced to treat efficiency as a survival tactic. Many are becoming far more disciplined in cutting waste, prioritising investment areas, and rethinking legacy dependencies on imports and offshore suppliers, just to stay operational.
The closures, while painful, have also served as a mirror, reflecting where our strengths truly lie. The businesses disappearing are often those competing on volume or price, where cheaper imports can always undercut margins. But others have fared differently: those who lean on specialisation, innovation, and control over their supply lines have managed to hold their ground, even in the storm.
Resilience in local capability
At GME, we’ve seen first-hand the benefits of producing locally. Over 85% of our revenue comes from products designed, engineered, and manufactured right here in Australia. That includes our UHF CB radios and Emergency Beacons, equipment which must work every time because lives often depend on it. In these categories, reliability isn’t optional; it’s everything.
By manufacturing locally, we retain control over the things that matter most, and those are quality, supply certainty, and speed to market. When international freight costs spiked and shipping delays became the norm, our local production base kept deliveries stable. That stability builds customer trust and consumer loyalty, outcomes that no cost-saving can substitute.
Shortening supply chains isn’t just a buffer against global disruption; it’s a strategic advantage. It gives us tighter quality control, faster feedback loops between engineering and assembly, and the ability to innovate continually. Each of those factors compounds over time, turning local production into a sustainable differentiator.
Australian manufacturing can’t always win on cost, but it can win on value, especially on things like durability, safety, and the pride that comes from products made by skilled local hands. Competing on price alone is a race to the bottom; competing on trust, innovation, and expertise is how we future‑proof the sector.
Lessons in specialisation and self-reliance
There’s a misconception that manufacturing resilience comes solely from scale or government subsidy. In reality, it’s built day by day through focus and reinvestment. The stronger manufacturers emerging from this reset share three traits: they know their niche, they invest in innovation even when the market tightens, and they keep critical capability close to home.
For us, that means doubling down on research and development. Specifically, we’re continuing to refine RF communication technology and emergency beacon design for specialist sectors like marine safety and remote travel. Investment in those areas during lean years ensures we’re not just surviving downturns but leading when conditions improve.
Self-reliance doesn’t mean isolationism either. It means creating partnerships between suppliers, designers, engineers, and end users that strengthen collective capability. When we collaborate with local component makers or training providers, we’re reinforcing a network that supports hundreds of families beyond our own organisation.
A blueprint for resilience
The lesson from the recent business closures isn’t that local manufacturing is doomed; it’s that strategy matters more than ever. Businesses that focus on what they do best and do it exceptionally well, innovate relentlessly, and bring critical processes closer to home are those best placed to survive turbulence.
That requires courage. It’s difficult to invest during uncertainty or to resist the lure of cheaper offshore production when margins are tight. Resilience isn’t built in comfort, but forged through the difficult choices that prioritise control, quality, and capability over short-term gains.
For GME, manufacturing in Australia isn’t about nostalgia. It’s a determined commercial strategy that delivers competitive advantage through reliability, flexibility, and national identity. Each step in our production chain contributes directly to our brand promise and ensures that when it matters most, our products perform without fail.
The human dimension of resilience
Behind every resilient manufacturer are people, from machinists and assemblers to engineers and logistics coordinators, who choose to keep building despite the odds. Many grew up in families for whom manufacturing wasn’t just an occupation but a way of life. When a factory closes, it’s a loss of place, purpose, and professional pride.
That’s why protecting local capability is not just a business imperative, it’s a social one. Every retained manufacturing job supports livelihoods, apprenticeships, and communities. Every skilled worker who stays in Australia strengthens our innovation capacity for the next generation.
We shouldn’t underestimate what that means in the long term. The same communities that once lost their car plants are now emerging as hubs for advanced electronics, precision tooling, and renewable energy components. The skill base didn’t disappear, only evolved.
Building the next chapter
2025 will be remembered as a watershed year. It revealed the fragility of stretched supply chains, the cost of over‑reliance on imports, and the personal heartbreak behind every insolvency notice. But it also made one truth impossible to ignore: the foundations of a more resilient manufacturing future already exist in the businesses that localise, specialise, and innovate their way through hardship.
For every workshop that’s gone quiet, others are reigniting their purpose, finding new niches, and proving that “Australian made” can still mean world‑class. The path forward may not be easy, but it’s clear. Manufacturers should build where they can, innovate where they must, and never underestimate the value of control, community, and capability.
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