Family business means family values

A tour of A&G Lamatinna and Sons impressive farming operation

In 1955, A&G Lamattina & Sons launched with two acres and a horse shared with their neighbours. Today, the iconic Australian family business produces more than one million tonnes of vegetables every year from its headquarters on the Mornington Peninsula.

It is also proudly supported by Jadig Finance as its private capital partner. As the group gears up for its 70th birthday, we interviewed COO, Dominic Lamattina, on what makes a successful partnership in life and work.

Fresh start

As a young boy, Dominic grew up riding motorbikes and earning pocket money on his family’s farm. He also learned the ropes of the family business alongside his five brothers and sisters. Today, it’s a responsibility he now shares with each of them, alongside his parents, Tina and Russell, who are both on the farm daily.

“Even though we are all in senior management, we’ve worked right from the bottom all the way up. We’ve done everything,” he laughs.

Dominic has now occupied the group’s COO role for 16 years, where he leads all finances across logistics and sales to agronomy and field production. Day to day, he manages the operations of the team’s staff of 200-plus as well as supports its core business as a long-established and major supplier to Coles and Woolworths, and to many cafes and restaurants throughout Victoria.

Commercial thinkers

When Jadig and A&G Lamattina & Sons first met in 2019, the Lamattina family was searching for a new funding partner to replace the bank and provide a new path forward for the business. It was a meeting of like minds: a family business meets another with shared values of building a legacy couched within a clever culture of smart thinking.

“Jadig are commercial thinkers. They understand that our business doesn’t fit inside a box, because in our line of work, every season is different and every day is different,” he says.

With the support of their wider family, a large parcel of the urban growth land was provided as primary security for the business loan. This, however, was not the last time Jadig demonstrated its ability to flex where others cannot.

For example, the Jadig team was just a phone call away when a bad hailstorm took out an entire season’s worth of crops – and potential revenue – where a simple solution was reached by shifting payment terms. Another was during COVID shutdowns when the business could not access drivers and packaging to ensure products reached retail floors promptly, materially restricting the cashflows of the group. Again, Jadig was responsive and found a way to support during a tricky period.

For Dominic and his family, it’s providing a pragmatic approach that cuts through to the core of complex problems.

“There’s no hidden surprises,” he says. “They give us a set of options and we just think through them logically.”

Family values

Jadig and Dominic are part of a younger generation, which allows for new thinking and the ability to do things differently from their parents and older generations.

“The Jadig family complements our family business and values. We are both very proud to be carrying on our family name for generations to come and achieving more milestones in the future,” he says.

For example, in the past, Dominic’s parents shouldered the entire load of running the business. Today, Dominic and all seven members of the family actively try to meet monthly for board meetings, sharing the decision-making, discussing opportunities and acquisitions, and predicting where the market is going.

“We have eight different points of view,” he laughs. “We are Italian, so we’re expressive, but we also know how to separate church and state.”

Life success

With 11.5 nieces and nephews representing the next generation after his, Dominic is passionate about ensuring the business not only provides an opportunity to create rewarding careers should they wish it, but that the business itself is in excellent shape.
“It’s very important that my parents pass the torch to us, and then we pass the torch on to all the kids,” he says.

With Jadig’s support and guidance beside him, the Lamattina Group is in good hands.

“It’s a genuine friendship, and I believe that’s not just uncommon in business, but rare,” Dominic says.