To the Krost community around Australia

As we continue to monitor and act on the impacts of COVID-19 through the guidance issued by the Australian Government Department of Health and the World Health Organisation, we have enforced precautionary measures to help keep our employees and customers safe. We’d like to highlight the strategy Krost is implementing during this unprecedented time. 

OUR TEAM

• Our team has been divided into two groups which will be working from home and in the office on alternating weeks. By separating our team in the event that one group becomes sick, the other team will remain unaffected and can continue to support our clients.

• We have increased precautionary and hygienic measures across our Sydney and Melbourne showrooms. Hand sanitiser stations are located throughout for clients and our team members carry hand sanitisers with them at all times.

• In accordance with government advice we will be practicing social distance measures in our showroom and offices. As such, we will refrain from handshakes and physical welcome gestures on your entry. We will also aim to maintain a space of 1.5 metres between people at all times. 

• We have implemented safety measures for individuals returning from travels and any team members who show signs of sickness to self-quarantine.

OUR OPERATIONS

• Our factory, warehouse and operations (including drivers and installers) are still in full effect. Through our local manufacturing plant in Sydney and large stock holdings in our Sydney and Melbourne warehouses, we are able to manufacture and supply furniture in fast lead times.

• Similarly to our office teams, our operational teams are on split day rosters to ensure continuity of operations. 

• Our online store is open 24/7 with free delivery to Sydney and Melbourne CBD. Our staff will be on hand daily to answer any questions you may have. Visit our online store for products including task seating, occasional seating, desking, steel storage and accessories. 

OUR SERVICES

• We understand that our clients may not be able to visit our showroom or speak with one of our team members in person. With this in mind, our team will be available via phone or email and can conduct virtual meetings. In addition to this, our team can post material samples, and provide close up images or videos of specific products as though you were here in person.

• If you are unable to visit our showrooms, we also have a virtual tour where you can immerse yourself in our entire range from the comfort of your home or office. See the tour here for our Sydney showroom and here for our Melbourne showroom. 

If you have any questions please contact us on 1800 1KROST or email us at sales@krost.com.au. We will continue to share any updates or changes within our business and keep assisting you in the safest way possible. Thank you and stay safe.

What The Government Stimulus Package Means For Your Business

The federal government announced a 17.6 billion stimulus package with funding allocated to measures targeted at small businesses. For new and existing businesses which require an office fit out and purchasing furniture, this is a great time to take advantage of these incentives and plan ahead. 

Increasing the Instant Asset Write-Off

• $700 million to increase the instant asset write off threshold from $30,000 to $150,000 and expand access to include businesses with aggregated annual turnover of less than $500 million (up from $50 million) until 30 June 2020. For example, assets that may be able to be immediately written off are a concrete tank for a builder, a tractor for a farming business, and a truck for a delivery business.

This instant asset-write off allows businesses to purchase capital equipment for their business and obtain an immediate tax deduction for doing so (rather than depreciating the cost over a number of years, as was previously the case).

Accelerated Depreciation for Investments

• $3.2 billion to back business investment by providing a time limited 15 month investment incentive (through to 30 June 2021) to support business investment and economic growth over the short term, by accelerating depreciation deductions. Businesses with a turnover of less than $500 million will be able to deduct an additional 50 per cent of the asset cost in the year of purchase.

Cash flow assistance for businesses:

• $6.7 billion to Boost Cash Flow for Employers by up to $25,000 with a minimum payment of $2,000 for eligible small and medium-sized businesses. The payment will provide cash flow support to businesses with a turnover of less than $50 million that employ staff, between 1 January 2020 and 30 June 2020. The payment will be tax free. This measure will benefit around 690,000 businesses employing around 7.8 million people. Businesses will receive payments of 50 per cent of their Business Activity Statements or Instalment Activity Statement from 28 April with refunds to then be paid within 14 days.

• $1.3 billion to support small businesses to support the jobs of around 120,000 apprentices and trainees. Eligible employers can apply for a wage subsidy of 50 per cent of the apprentice’s or trainee’s wage for up to 9 months from 1 January 2020 to 30 September 2020. Where a small business is not able to retain an apprentice, the subsidy will be available to a new employer that employs that apprentice.

Source: https://www.pm.gov.au/media/economic-stimulus-package

Back to Work

2020 has now kicked off and while some of you might still be enjoying a holiday, this time of the year is also associated with new resolutions of how we can make this year a better, healthier, more fulfilling one.

Here are a few tips on how to be best prepared to tackle 2020:

• Get set up: is your office set up correctly for you? The right furniture can really make a difference in the way you perform at work. Good lighting, ergonomic chairs, footrests, monitor positioning are all contributing factors.

• Be organised: it helps you think clearly which in turns helps you be more productive. Clean up your digital and physical desk, sort through old paperwork and organise your filing cabinet and pedestal in a way that works for you. Keep your desktop clutter free and your valuables within hand’s reach with our Globe Underdesk Drawer. Check out all our storage solutions here.

• Stay connected: in a time where we need to be contactable around the clock, don’t let your devices run out of power. With lots of above desk power solutions available, ranging from small USB outlets to multiple GPO/USB power boxes, it is easy to charge and use your device simultaneously. Stay tuned…we have have a new wireless charging station coming soon.

• Stay healthy: we can see why this one makes the top 5 resolutions every year. It is easy to be sedentary when you spend the day sitting at a desk. Don’t forget to move! Take regular breaks and step away from your desk, even for a few minutes. Set a reminder if you need to. Switch your meetings to walking meetings. Go for a walk, run or exercise class during your lunch break. Why not invest in a height adjustable workstation? Depending on your budget and power access, you can choose between winder, pneumatic or electric options. If this isn’t on the cards, active seating options like our Balance stool and ottomans help keep your core activated.

• Go green: plants have a proven effect onto your health and your productivity. There are many ways to bring greenery into the office, from a small succulent on your desk to larger floor plants. We also offer planters that fit our Trak system and serve as a divider between workstations or that can top your storage units.

If you’d like more tips on how we can help you set up your work space correctly, speak to one of our consultants or visit our Mascot HQ or South Melbourne showroom.

Happy 2020!

The entire team at Krost would like to wish you a Happy New Year! We hope you had a safe and wonderful holiday season and are ready for what 2020 has to bring.

We have reopened and are ready to assist with all your office furniture needs. Come and visit our Sydney HQ or our Melbourne showroom or head to our online store today for a quick purchase.

We have a huge year ahead, from the upcoming launch of our 2020 catalogue to our biggest release of exciting new products.

We look forward to bringing your projects to life through 2020 and beyond.

Season's Greetings!

Thank you for your support throughout the year. We wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

We're looking forward to 2020 with lots planned including a host of new products and the release of our 2020 catalogue. 

We will be closed from December 24th and will reopen on January 8th.

Any online orders placed during this period will be processed when we return.

We hope you have a great break and look forward to hearing from you in the New Year. Until then, eat well and rest up.

And the Winner is...

We had the honour to present Andrew Parr with the prestigious Gold Medal on Friday night at the 2019 Interior Design Excellence Awards (Idea Awards).

Starting with his family home when he was 16, Andrew Parr has dedicated his life to design and creating interiors that sustain both his practice and the broader industry through his creativity and individuality.

The IDEA Gold Medal is the most prestigious prize at the Idea Awards and is given in recognition of those practitioners who have made an influential and enduring contribution to Australian design over the course of a career.

As proud sponsors of the awards for the second consecutive year, Krost would like to congratulate Andrew, all the nominees and winners of the 2019 Idea Awards.

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Only a Few Days Left until the 2019 IDEA Awards

Have you got your tickets to the highly anticipated 2019 Interior Design Excellence Awards this Friday night?

As the official Gold Medal sponsor, we can’t wait to present our awards at the Timber Yard in Port Melbourne.

We 're delighted to support this event and would like to congratulate all the participants on their outstanding work and wish them all good luck.

To find out more and view the awards shortlists, visit the IDEA Awards website here.

Krost has Expanded into Melbourne

We are pleased to announce that we have officially expanded into Melbourne.

With a new state of the art showroom and office spreading over 2000 square metres, our entire office furniture range is showcased. We now have a team of over 100 employees working together to offer you the best products and services across the country.

Krost's depth of experience in the office furniture industry, complemented by our local manufacturing, extensive warehousing facilities, product certifications and quality assurances allows us to deliver stocked products within days and complete fit-outs within 3 weeks.

If you have any questions please don't hesitate to give us a call on 1800 1KROST or email sales@krost.com.au.

Showroom

Our multi-level showrooms in Sydney and Melbourne showcase our complete office furniture range and are home to our extensive material libraries. Located at 33 Ricketty St, Mascot and 486 City Rd, South Melbourne, visitors are welcome to drop in any time. Our experienced sales executives are also on site to assist with all your furniture needs.

Custom Manufacturing

With our own manufacturing plant, we are more equipped than ever to provide you with a diverse, exclusive and quality-driven collection from workstations, desks, joinery to storage. Krost locally manufactures using the most technologically advanced machinery, producing custom items on lead times unparalleled in the market.

Warehousing

We’ve now opened extensive warehousing facilities in Melbourne so that we can provide you rapidly with a diverse range of products including task seating, occasional chairs, lounges, accessories and steel storage. Setting the industry benchmark with our fast turnaround times, Krost can have stocked products delivered to you within days and full fit-outs completed within 3 weeks.

The Tribal Warrior Homework Help Room Ready for Opening

Decked out in Krost furniture, the Tribal Warrior Education and Cultural Hub in Redfern, Sydney, is ready for its grand opening today.

Tribal Warrior Aboriginal Corporation is a community based organisation which has been working for the last few months on creating a homework help room for children and teenagers aged 5-18 years old and their mentors. The multi-purpose room provides a safe and quiet place for the mentees to not only do their homework, but also receive counselling, practice the didgeridoo or cultural dancing.

Relying on grants and donations to see their project through, the Tribal Warrior Aboriginal Corporation is now ready to welcome the community. We are glad we could help such a worthwhile and significant project.

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Quick Guide on How Many People will Fit Around your Table

Not sure how many people you will be able to fit around your meeting or boardroom table? Here is a quick guide:

How can you work this out?

First calculate the perimeter of the table. As a general rule, each person should have a minimum of 600mm space to give them enough arm and leg room for ease of movement to and from the table. Of course, in some scenarios more space is required and it also depends on the size of chair. For an executive boardroom setting for example, we suggest increasing the space to 800mm. 

Let’s break it down, if we take a 3000mm wide by 1200mm deep meeting table for instance, it has a perimeter of 8400mm, so depending on the purpose of the table, we could potentially seat up to 14 people. Another example is a 1500mm diameter table with a perimeter of approximately 4710mm. We would recommend a maximum of 7 people for this size table.

If you need to maximise the number of people around the table without compromising on comfort, choose a more compact chair such as our Zed or Sax chairs, or one without arms such as the Alex of the Gin chair.

For more information, do not hesitate to visit our Mascot HQ and speak with one of our consultants.

Congratulations to the IDEA Awards Shortlisted Candidates

As the official Gold Medal sponsor of the Interior Design Excellence Awards 2019 (IDEA), Krost was honoured to attend the shortlist event last week.

The IDEA Awards is Australia’s largest and most successful independent design awards programs and celebrates the best of Australian interior and product design across 13 categories and 5 special awards.

We spent an exciting night with A&D industry leaders at Beta Bar in Sydney where the shortlisted candidates were revealed.

Our Sofi ottomans and Rize height adjustable table were showcased for all to see.

We’d like to congratulate all the IDEA Awards shortlisted candidates and wish them the best of luck.

We’re very excited to find out who will take out the gold medal this year, stay tuned for the awards in November!

See the shortlist here.

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Must Have Accessories to Promote Office Well-Being

The average person will spend over 90,000 hours at work during their lifetime, so ensuring one's well-being is nurtured in an office space is extremely important.

When planning or changing your office space, a small accessory can make a big difference. Here are a few of our favourites.

Logic Monitor Arms - Having the right ergonomic setup is an important part of encouraging healthy workplace practices. Part of this setup includes the addition of monitor arms to desk tops. Logic monitor arms can be used to mount one or more screens and can be set at custom heights to suit individual users ensuring long lasting comfort.

Planters - Introducing plants and greenery into a workspace has been one of the most effective ways to bring touches of nature into the office. Recent studies have shown that workers felt an improved sense of well-being when surrounded by biophilic elements. Our Globe, Universal and Trak planters are the perfect yet simple way to make plants a part of a workplace and can be added onto storage units or used in conjunction with our Trak workstation system.

Cushi - In addition to adding Logic Monitor Arms to your desk, our Cushi footrest completes this ergonomic set up. Created with health benefits in mind, Cushi prevents long and short-term health problems such as slow blood circulation, back tension and promotes proper posture.

Sparki - In a technological age, having power solutions easily available on your desk creates a more productive work lifestyle. Compact and sleek, our Sparki above desk power solution allows users access to a GPO and 2 USB ports.