As managing director of Velisha Farms, Catherine Velisha sits at the helm of one of Australia’s most innovative farming outfits.

Besides providing wholesale fresh produce worldwide, including to big players like ALDI supermarkets, their Veg Education and Food Futures educational programs are helping to change the future of the Australian horticultural industry for the better.

As a young third-generation farming kid, however, Catherine wasn’t so sure she would stay with the family business, let alone own and run it one day. Her trajectory from zero business experience to the leader of a dynamic and successful team has been inspiring and sometimes rocky. She shared some insights she’s learned about business and leadership over the years with Cec Busby on the First Act podcast.

Catherine naturally began her working career on the family farm in Werribee, Victoria, packing produce and trading at Melbourne’s wholesale markets. Yet, she reveals that taking time out to study for a degree in youth work was the catalyst that changed her mind about staying within the horticultural industry.

Catherine Velisha, managing director of Velisha Farms

“I never thought I’d have a career in horticulture,” Catherine admits. “It was just something I was doing until I found the thing I wanted to do. I had full intentions of leaving the business.

“But education changed my life. Not through any skill or learnings it gave me, but through self-actualisation – the freedom it gave me to prove what I could achieve. My confidence built, and I saw what opportunities lay in this fabulous industry. I now wholeheartedly believe horticulture is the most important industry we’ve got, but also with the most opportunity for the most people.

“Fruit and vegetables – let’s be really blunt about it – other than air and water, do humans really need anything else to survive?” Catherine asks. “Yet, the little that we as consumers know, value or care about the industry, and the little support the sector gets, is mind-blowing if you think of it that way. There’s a knowledge shortage; this industry needs new talent, visions, and leadership.

“I want the best and brightest in horticulture,” she insists. “It has always been seen as one of the lower tiered-occupations, which seems ludicrous to me. If we show what horticulture truly is about, it should be as revered as being a doctor or a lawyer because there’s nothing more important.

“It’s about bringing together purpose and opportunity. You can only change it if you’ve got a seat at the table, so come and get the seat at the table of the most important industry and let’s change the world for the better,” she urges.

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A new era for Velisha Farms

Catherine purchased the business when her father retired in 2017, and a new age for Velisha Farms began under her leadership. Having never run a business before, it wasn’t all smooth sailing. Still, Catherine implemented an innovative and purposeful management style, as well as educational programs for the industry and younger generations, that have paid dividends for her business and the industry.

“Dad was a salesman; he loved to sell,” says Catherine. “Our business was based around sales numbers, revenue and moving stock, but not necessarily on business practices. Being aligned to ALDI, a very tightly-run company, it’s hard to align with what they need if your business isn’t matched to that. So, I was pretty ruthless with my efficiency.

“When you change a culture so drastically, things change. There was a significant personnel change, which was great because it was easier to alter things as we went along.

“Something I was very proud of is that at the heart of our business, we had a multicultural workforce that worked in the packing facility for years. These people may be with us for another ten years but would never be able to be promoted because I knew they weren’t up to the key roles. So, I sat down with that core group and told them the positions I wanted to add to the business and the skill sets needed for them. I told them they would have the first opportunity to fill them if they were to upskill themselves.

“And to their credit, they did,” she says with evident pride. “I wanted to be honest about why they wouldn’t be getting critical roles in their current state, but I gave them the opportunity, and they took that on. And what we’ve got now is this powerhouse of people who’ve worked together, built trust, and are all on a forward trajectory.

“I guess that was my master move, in hindsight,” Catherine admits. “I’ve got this team of weapons now because I’ve put my trust in them, and they’ve put their trust in me. We’ve grown together, and that’s unique in our industry. There are not many multicultural high leadership teams, which I think is to [the industry’s] detriment.”

Catherine and the Velisha Farms team

A fresh face to leadership

As someone new to leadership, Catherine had to learn on her feet when it came to managing a team and keeping her business thriving. After five years at the helm, the 34-year-old now describes her management style as direct, supportive and consistent and says the key to business success is taking a big-picture view of failures.

“I’m direct, but I use a lot of humour,” she says. “I think my management style is brave and consistent, but maybe a little self-centred at times. I try to be as supportive as possible, but there is a bit of tough love sometimes, and I don’t think that does any harm, particularly if you want to be at the top. The reality is that it’s a hard place to be. If you want to be an Olympic athlete, there’s no point in not being game-ready.

“I lead by example more than words. People have seen me turn a corner and go out there and chase stuff; hopefully, that inspires others to do that.

“I think the key is always to have a big-picture vision so that the failures aren’t stops; it’s just part of the walk. You’ve tripped, but you keep walking. Because the walk is long, it’s a grind, and that’s the reality, so I think that’s the key. You keep walking, you keep doing it, and there are some real highs and excitement along the way too.”

Catherine shares lots more brilliant insight into horticultural industry careers, her Veg Education and Food Futures programs and more in this episode of First Act. Listen now and get inspired!

This article was first published in November 2022.

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