25/06/2026
A MESSAGE FROM PETER STAHLHUT – AG TRADERS AUSTRALIA
After a great deal of thought and disappointment, I feel it is important to explain why we have made the difficult decision to close Ag Traders Australia in Biggenden.
The main reason is simple: a lack of local support.
When we first bought Ag Traders people told me they wanted and needed a local rural produce store. They wanted choice, competition, convenience, local knowledge and local service. Unfortunately, wanting a local business and supporting a local business turned out to be two very different things.
The reality is that no business can survive on good intentions alone. It survives when people choose to spend their money locally.
Since opening Ag Traders Australia, we have worked hard to provide quality products, genuine service and practical advice to the local rural community. Like every small business, we have invested heavily in stock, wages, rent, insurance, freight, power and countless other operating costs.
Despite those efforts, the level of support simply has not been enough to make the business sustainable.
At the same time, small businesses are facing challenges that seem to grow every year.
Freight costs continue to rise, making it increasingly difficult for regional businesses to compete with larger city-based operations.
Major suppliers continue to favour large corporate stores and buying groups, often providing pricing and incentives that smaller independent businesses simply cannot access. The playing field is far from level.
Government policies and increasing costs have also placed enormous pressure on small business owners. While politicians frequently talk about supporting small business, many of us working at the coalface see very little evidence of that support when it comes time to pay the bills.
What many people fail to realise is that when a local business closes, a town loses far more than a shop.
It loses local jobs.
It loses local investment.
It loses local knowledge and experience.
It loses sponsorships, community support and another reason for people to shop locally.
Every dollar spent outside a community is a dollar that helps weaken the businesses trying to serve that community.
We have done everything we could to keep Ag Traders Australia operating. However, there comes a point where the numbers simply no longer stack up, regardless of how much effort, time and money you are prepared to invest.
The saddest part is not that we are closing the doors.
The saddest part is knowing that it didn’t have to end this way.
I would like to make comment regarding sadness that the brand Ag Traders which Glen & Julie Chapman began years ago is now no longer.
To the staff who worked with us over the years particularly Scott, Angeline and Troy thank you for your loyal service to us and the community.
To the customers who genuinely supported Ag Traders Australia over the years, I sincerely thank you. Your loyalty, friendship and support have been greatly appreciated and will never be forgotten.
As we close the doors for the final time, I leave with one message.
If communities want local businesses to survive, they must support them while they still exist.
Because once a local business is gone, it is usually gone forever.
And when people ask why another local business has disappeared, perhaps the better question is:
“What could we have done differently before it was too late?”
Thank you.
Peter Stahlhut
Ag Traders Australia
Biggenden
