Commissioner hails rise of the micro business

Most small businesses in NSW are not just small, they’re micro. 

Where a small business has less than 20 employees, a micro business often has just one: the owner-operator.

Take Ross Muller, the owner of Vino Rosso Tours, for instance. 

Ross runs food and wine tours in the Southern Highlands, with the help of a couple of casual drivers.

“For the most part, it's me. I'm very much a sole trader – so driver, mechanic, cleaner,” Ross said.

A multitasker, Ross has been introducing visitors to the Southern Highlands' cool climate wines for five years, as well as offering wedding and business transfers.

“Last week would have been 60 or 70 hours,” he says. “I had big tours from Sydney last week, corporate tours, and some of those were 15, 16-hour days. So big days, but good.”

The rise of micro businesses like Vino Rosso is highlighted in 'A story of diversity and dynamism', a new paper from the NSW Small Business Commission to mark October's Small Business Month.

The report also tracks the shift from shopfronts to online services. While construction is Wollongong’s largest sector, the local government area is home to 15,855 small businesses with a growing contingent of professional services driven by technology, digital platforms and flexible working arrangements. 

Statewide, there are more micro than small businesses.

“Right now, 63% of all small businesses in New South Wales have four people or less,” Small Business Commissioner Kalina Koloff said on a visit to Kembla Grange this month. “They are non-employing, they are sole traders and partnerships.

“That says there's a lot of new people coming into the market, doing different sorts of work and doing it in a way that represents flexibility and desire for a different way of working.”

The NSW Small Business Commissioner addressed a room of about 50 people, including Whitlam MP Carol Berry, at the Grange Golf Club on October 16. Business Illawarra and Destination Sydney Surrounds South hosted the event as part of her regional Small Business Month tour. 

For several entrepreneurs, it was their first encounter with the Small Business Commission. An independent statutory authority, it's tasked with finding out what small businesses need, then advocating on their behalf to government. The commission also provides a low-cost mediation service. 

'Hardwired' into small business

New to her role in May 2026, Kalina Koloff introduced herself as being “hardwired” into the challenges of small business. Her mother came from a fifth-generation family business of timber cutters on the north coast, while her father migrated from Eastern Europe to start a micro business, decades before the term was invented. 

“He emigrated from Bulgaria in the early 1970s and built a civil and structural engineering practice that he operated for more than 40 years," Kalina told the Flame.

“Growing up, our home and the business often felt intertwined. There were always builders, tradespeople, draftsmen and clients dropping by, and our kitchen table was regularly covered with blueprints, plans and drawing tools. It gave me an early appreciation for the hard work, resilience and commitment required to run a small business. 

“Those experiences have stayed with me throughout my career and continue to shape my understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing small business owners today.

“I know how hard it is to find the capital, run a business, do the paperwork, be enthusiastic 365 days of the year – because sometimes it's a lot. But there is a real need for small business to continue and to thrive in this country.”

The Illawarra punches above its weight in this division, with 98.5 percent of businesses being small businesses, compared to the state average of 97%.

“Small business is not a niche part of the NSW economy. It is the economy,” the commissioner's report notes.

Driven by 'purpose and pride'

While the new paper acknowledges the long hours and financial uncertainty of small business, it says entrepreneurs are driven not money, but "purpose and pride".

“Being their own boss and building something meaningful consistently outrank income as the reason people value running their own business,” according to the report.

Only a handful of micro businesses attended the Small Business Commissioner’s talk, but there was a strong sense of purpose in those who did, from the start-up team at Fresh Loop to established filmmaker Nick Bolton, the award-winning co-founder of Ten Alphas who also heads regional non-profit Screen Illawarra.    

Carol Brown – who has run Mrs Oldbucks Pantry in Berry for nine years – told the Flame she sees herself as a “brand custodian”. 

“It has been going for 49 years,” she said. “So it's why I refer to myself as the brand custodian, because I believe the business is bigger than the person who owns it.

“We are a local produce store, so we do about 150 different varieties of jams, chutneys, pickles, those kinds of things; 200 varieties of tea, all Australian produced.

“I employ four others, and they are all the primary wage earner for their family.”

2026 is Carol’s 50th year in retail and she’s come through many “roller-coaster rides”, including Black Summer, the pandemic and the squeeze of rising costs and falling demand.

“Each decade has its challenges,” she said.

“I think it's the cost of doing business at the moment that's putting on the most pressure.

“But I think if you are offering what your customer is looking for, there is still money being spent. We've noticed for Christmas this year, it appears that it's turning into a very practical resource. So people are looking for a family hamper, something for the kids through to mum and dad.

“It's my belief that in tough times, you come back to what your core business is, and you do what your core is very, very well.”

Pivoting with the times

Ross Muller has seen spontaneous wine tour bookings fall, only to be replaced by event-driven bookings, like birthday and business trips.

“That just means we have to pivot and adapt to that,” he said.

“We've probably just had one of our busiest weeks. But I think the nature of the business is changing. We're certainly pivoting to more towards things like business clients.”

Ross said the commissioner's talk made him realise the importance of talking to policy experts about the issues on the ground.

“It's made me think I need to put my hand up a little bit more and actually flag that stuff,” he said. “Just because I'm aware of it doesn't mean they are. So that's probably my big takeaway.

“I like the idea of trying to cut through some of the red tape.”

Kalina Koloff wrapped up the presentation with good news.

Last year, the Business Connect program – which gave operational advice – ended after the state government did not renew its funding, but it has been revived under a new name: the Small Business Advisory Service. 

“The service has been reinvigorated,” the commissioner said. “It was highly regarded by business owners and government got that message loud and clear.”