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Coffs Coast Business News - August 2026
Each month, the City of Coffs Harbour's Economic Development & Tourism Team collates information for all businesses, large and small, across the Coffs Coast - helping you stay informed, keep connected, and feel supported.
We hope you find our monthly newsletter valuable. Please feel free to forward it to colleagues and your team. They can also subscribe to receive a copy directly. Previous editions of Coffs Coast Business News are available to view here.
IN THIS ISSUE:
Business events and training
- Exploring AI Workshop: Creating Content, Images & Video for Small Business Owners - Wednesday 12 August
- LinkedIn Local Coffs Coast - Friday 14 August
- Thriving through Change - Breakfast Panel Discussion - Tuesday 18 August
- Love Coffs, Give Local - Thursday 20 August
Local news and opportunities
- In case you missed it around the region
- 2026 North Coast Tourism Awards
- Business NSW Paper - Keeping Regional NSW Connected: The Future of Our Airports
- Tourism Australia - National Farm Tourism Survey
- Coffs Harbour Bypass Updates
Grant funding and business support
- Coffs Harbour Grant Finder & Grant Writing Courses
- NSW Government - From Risk to Respect: Workshops for preventing workplace sexual harassment
- Australian Government - Digital Solutions program
What's On Coffs Coast and major event calendar
LOCAL BUSINESS EVENTS
Join us for a free, hands-on AI workshop and learn how to use AI to create content, generate images, write better prompts and save time in your business.
You'll work on real activities using your own business, leaving with practical tools, prompts and an AI style guide you can use straight away.
Bring your laptop (if you have one). Perfect for small business owners -no previous AI experience needed.
Free for eligible small businesses through the Australian Government's Digital Solutions Program. Places are limited. Register now!
Wednesday 12 August, 5.00pm - 7.00pm, Business@Yarrila, 27 Gordon Street
Join us for our upcoming Friday morning event featuring some fun break-out sessions over coffee at Stef & Co at the Promenade.
There will be plenty of time for chatter, but we are bringing back the popular break-out sessions from a few years ago. Sessions will be from 10:15 - 11am (approx).
We will break out into groups of 5-7 people and work through a series of questions to spark conversations and help support other local businesses. If you're new to LinkedInLocal, we love meeting new people and getting to know the people behind the LinkedIn profiles, so you're very welcome. This is a free event.
Friday 14 August, 10.00am - 12.00pm, Stef&Co, The Promenade, 319-321 Harbour Drive
Join the Coffs Harbour Chamber of Commerce for an inspiring and practical breakfast designed specifically for small business owners. You’ll hear real-world insights, proven strategies and honest conversations from people who have successfully navigated change, overcome challenges and continued to grow. Speakers include:
- Hunter Leonard - Blue Frog Marketing
- Mel Zander - MJA Business Solutions
- Matt Gosling - Gosling Electrical
- Nikki Williams - Enhance Aesthetics
- Charlie Nalder - North Coast Hotel Group
Tuesday 18 August, 7.00am - 9.00am, Coffs Harbour Golf Club, Earl Street
BWN is bringing our community together for an afternoon of connection, good food, and giving back, because when we love where we live, we show up for it.
Join us for a special charity lunch featuring a panel of three incredible local organisations: Coffs Kids Charity, Warrina Domestic and Family Violence Specialist Service, and DM Rescue.
Each will share the vital work they do in our community, the challenges they face, and how we, as individuals, businesses, and a community, can support them beyond just this one afternoon.
Thursday 20 August, 12.00pm - 2.00pm, The Link Events, 631 Hogbin Drive, Toormina
LOCAL NEWS & OPPORTUNITIES
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Check out this monthly snapshot of articles, marketing activities, and campaigns making news across our region and beyond. Here's what's happening:
- Link Airways: Canberra to Coffs Harbour direct flights recommence 10 September
- Andrew Ettingshausen - Escape Fishing with ET: Inshore Reef Fishing Adventure featuring Coffs Coast
- Port Stephens Examiner: Coffs Coast's promise of an idyllic escape
ALL COFFS COAST BUSINESSES are invited to share these news stories in their business marketing. This is a great way to bring people from out of the area to your business - and the content is already created for you.
The Coffs Coast has capped a landmark week for the region’s visitor economy, with local operators claiming a swag of honours at the 2026 North Coast Regional Tourism Awards – held on home soil for the first time since Coffs hosted the inaugural event.
City of Coffs Harbour, through Destination Coffs Coast, was the host destination partner for the two-day North Coast Tourism Symposium and Awards which drew more than 260 tourism professionals, along with state and national industry leaders, to the region on 29 and 30 July.
Coffs Coast award winners are:
- Tanya Watts – Outstanding Contribution to Regional Tourism
- Yarrila Arts and Museum (YAM) – Gold, Cultural Tourism
- Hoey Moey: Tidal Sounds – Gold, Festivals and Events
- Spare Chef Catering – Gold, Tourism Restaurants and Catering Services
- The Big Banana Fun Park – Silver, Tourism Attraction
- Coffs Coast Accommodation – Silver, Tourism Retail, Hire and Services
- Woolgoolga Brewing Co. – Silver, Tourism Wineries, Distilleries and Breweries
- C-Change Adventures – Bronze, Ecotourism; and
- Coffs Harbour Trike and Private Tours – Bronze, Tour and Transport Operators.
Business NSW's paper calls for a renewed, state-focused framework for regional aviation in NSW. It outlines the role of regional airports as essential economic infrastructure, identifies risks to connectivity, and proposes reforms to strengthen infrastructure, support sustainable air services and improve coordination across governments. A resilient regional aviation network is critical to competitive regional economies and a connected state. This paper aims to inform national reform processes by setting out practical policy actions to improve reliability, affordability and resilience.
Tourism Australia has launched the National Farm Tourism Survey, and we're asking Coffs Coast farmers to have their say. If you're a farmer delivering visitor experiences, or you know farmers in the region welcoming guests onto their properties, your input will help build the first real benchmark of what agritourism means to farmers, their families and the communities around them. It takes just a few minutes to complete.
Commissioned by Tourism Australia, the survey is gathering deep, rich insights into where farm tourism operators are at right now, from paddock tours and farm stays to cellar doors and cooking classes.
Coffs Harbour Bypass Updates, including:
- Existing highway to be renamed Solitary Islands Way
- Future traffic changes
- Temporary turning restrictions and closures
- Traffic switches
GRANT FUNDING & BUSINESS SUPPORT
COFFS HARBOUR GRANT FINDER
The City of Coffs Harbour provides a free service for locals to find grants and grant writing tips. Register to be notified of specific grants for your business or organisation.
To support the above, Grant Guru offers a few different Grant Writing Courses.
Introduction to Grant Writing - $69
For everyone: A short course - good for anyone who would like to get a quick understanding of how grants work.
Strategic Grant Writing Courses - $295
Business: Good for any size business looking to advance projects and gain extra support via grants.
Community & NFPs: Designed for community organisation, not for profits, sports clubs and health organisations.
Learn at your own pace via reading, interactive tasks, videos and case studies while earning your own grant tool kit that includes cheat sheets, top tips and templates as well as a digital certificate and digital badge proving your competency in grant winning core principles.
Preventing workplace sexual harassment isn’t just about having policies in place —it’s about creating a culture of safety to protect your workers in the long-term.
SafeWork NSW is offering a free face-to-face workshop in Coffs Harbour on Wednesday 19 August at Jetty Beach House.
These one-day workshops will help you understand the drivers of gender-based harm, and how taking a work health and safety approach helps prevent workplace sexual harassment. Workshops have been designed for business leaders, including owners, executives and senior managers who have direct responsibility for setting organisational direction, allocating resources and making decisions that influence workplace culture.
The discussions are grounded in the practical actions leaders can take to prevent harm and drive meaningful change within their organisation.
To attend, you'll need to provide some basic details about your role and organisation. SafeWork will review your submission and confirm via email whether you've successfully registered. Attendance is limited to a maximum of three representatives per organisation to support participation from a broad range of businesses and an interactive group experience.
The Australian Government's Digital Solutions program helps small businesses to make the most of digital opportunities and grow their business.
Access free workshops, webinars and self-directed tutorials on topics like digital marketing, business software, AI and cybersecurity.
Small businesses can also access 5 hours of one-on-one digital advice from a qualified adviser for a small fee.
WHAT'S ON @ COFFS COAST
Polar Plunge
8 August
2026 AUS PEV Nationals
21-23 August
AFLW: Sydney Swans V St. Kilda Saints
29 August
Coffs Harbour Running Festival
30 August
Please reach out to our team at City of Coffs Harbour if you have any questions.
Check out our 6 degrees business support website for business events and resources.
For tourism industry and visitor economy business support and information, go to our Coffs Coast tourism industry hub.
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