our team
Australian Gift & Homewares Association (AGHA) employs 20 staff working across all facets of the organisation including administration, policy direction, membership, publications, events, sales and marketing.
David Leek, Chief Executive Officer
David Leek is the Association’s CEO. Previously, he was the CEO of the National Business Centre for St John Ambulance Australia, a national self-funding not-for-profit organisation. In this role, he was responsible for the purchasing, importation, warehousing, assembly and distribution of high quality first aid products for the broader St John organisation and numerous commercial customers.
David has extensive credentials in government relations, e-commerce, marketing, education and business development, having also held relevant roles with Qantas Airways, America Online (AOL) and Kaplan Professional. He is an experienced media spokesperson having realised a substantial portfolio of interviews with major Australian media on behalf of the Australian Federal Government.
Paula Ryan, Executive Assistant to David Leek (CEO)
Paula has recently joined the team at AGHA and brings along almost 7 years of executive support and administrative experience.
Over the years Paula has formed a working relationship with David previously assisting him with his roles as CEO of St John Ambulance Australia and Kaplan Professional.
Paula is responsible for the day to day coordinating, organising and executing of all David’s and senior management’s requirements and activities.
John Woods, Manager, Event Operations
John is responsible for the operation and co-ordination of our trade fair services, and oversees the allocation of exhibition stands. He liaises with venues and contractors prior to, and during the trade fairs. John is responsible for all on-site operational aspects of our trade fairs.
Renee Badaoui, Senior Event Coordinator
Renee is jointly responsible for the allocation of exhibition stands and coordination of our trade fair services. She assists the Manager, Event Operations in all aspects of the organisation of AGHA trade fairs and is a key contact point for our exhibitors who have trade fair enquiries.
Tatiana Urrutia, Event Coordinator
Tatiana has recently joined the Event team however has over 6 years’ experience with AGHA. She was previously part of the membership team. Tatiana has extensive experience in administration/finance support in a variety of industries. Her role is to support the Manager, Event Operations in planning and implementing both the February and August Home & Giving Fairs.
Jennifer Brennan, Event Administration Assistant
Jennifer is responsible for processing and management of contracts and for preparation of reports to assist with the Events Team. Jennifer is also responsible for preparation of correspondence, filing and general office administration. She answers a range of Trade Fair enquires.
Stuart Chaffey, Event Sales
Stuart is a key point of contact for all trade fair enquiries. He is available to provide exhibitors and potential exhibitors with an overview of opportunities at our trade fairs, which are held annually in Sydney (February) and Melbourne (August). He is also able to assist with general membership information.
Mark Dowse, Manager, Government & Industry Affairs
As Manager of Government & Industry Affairs, Mark researches and analyses environments and issues which affect or have the potential to affect the gift and homewares industry. He guides and assists in the development of industry policy in relation to a range of areas affecting the gift and homewares industry from commercial, legislative and social perspectives. He also assists in the recruitment and retention of members and the development and delivery of services and benefits to members. Mark has three years’ experience at the Australian Dental Industry Association.
George Lancaster, Manager, Marketing & Membership
George manages marketing and membership for both the Events and Membership departments at AGHA. George is relatively new to the Australian scene, having spent the last 20 years managing marketing and major account business development for the largest gift and homewares exhibition company in the USA. Over the course of his career he has worked closely with gift- and homewares-related suppliers, retailers and exhibitions around the world and incorporated their best practices into all his endeavours.
Jade Kaldor, Marketing Supervisor
Jade is an experienced marketing professional who has worked in the services industry nationally and internationally in both government and private sectors. As the Association’s Marketing Supervisor, Jade’s role requires her to work across both the Event and Membership departments. She is responsible for the development and implementation of strategic marketing plans using a range of integrated marketing communication tools.
Aneet Pala, Marketing Assistant
With a Bachelor Degree in Business Marketing, Aneet has extensive experience in the field, previously involved in loyalty marketing. As the Marketing Assistant, Aneet will engage in AGHA’s stance in the field of Social Media, overlooking its Blog, Facebook and Twitter platforms. In addition, Aneet will be involved in assisting with the day to day marketing activities of AGHA.
Laura Iannitelli, Product Coordinator – Online
Laura has over 13 years’ experience in B2B (business-to-business), B2C (business-to-consumer), marketing and media. She is responsible for managing VENDe – our industry specific search engine that brings retailers and wholesalers together online, much like we do at our trade fairs. She is the contact for sales, customer service, development and education for businesses looking to grow their online presence.
Michael Gordon, Product Coordinator- Membership
Michael has extensive experience in business development management and over 10 years’ experience in business-to-business solutions. He previously managed AGHA’s telecommunications service, but is now joining the membership team where he will build business relationships with our business partners and look over membership retention.
Rong Lin, CRM & Database Coordinator
Rong previously worked for DKR Direct to support the company’s database, systems and shopping website. As CRM and Database Coordinator at AGHA, Rong’s main responsibilities are to ensure the quality and integrity of the association’s membership and trade fair data, as well as analyse and prepare data for marketing. Rong has a Bachelor degree of Applied Physics and a Master degree of Information Technology.
Olivia Mou, Membership Coordinator
Olivia has previously worked in hospitality as a store manager and has experience in small business operations. As the membership coordinator at AGHA, Olivia’s responsibilities are to look after members’ benefits, to deliver high standard of customer service and to solve membership enquiries. Olivia has a Bachelor degree in Music and a Master degree in Commerce (Marketing).
Bill Poole, Manager, Corporate Services
As the Manager of Corporate Services Bill is responsible for the finance, accounting and administration functions of the Association. Bill is a qualified Chartered Accountant and has considerable experience in financial and general management of organisations within FMCG and service industries.
Chanel Yan, Accountant
As AGHA’s Accountant, Chanel assists members with their account enquiries and supports the Corporate Services Manager in collating financial reports for the CEO and the Committee. She also manages the payment of accounts and all accounts receivable tasks.
Janice Yang, Accounts Assistant
Janice worked as an accounts assistant in an architecture firm before joining AGHA. Her major duties included accounts receivable and payable, staff payroll and expense reimbursements, compliance of tax obligations and other general administrative duties. She has a Master degree in Professional Accounting and Bachelor degree in International Business.
Avril McCarroll, Receptionist/Office Assistant
Avril is the first point of contact for all enquiries, whether they relate to trade fairs or membership. Avril also performs a variety of administrative tasks.
David Wooldridge, IT Manager
David is a highly experienced IT professional with a background spanning both the supply chain and recruitment industry sectors. He is responsible for ensuring that our IT infrastructure supports the Association to continuously improve its market-leading service to members.
Md Mahmudur Rahman, Senior Web Developer
Mahmudur is an experienced web developer and programmer who is responsible for the development and implementation of solutions that leverage modern web technologies to deliver integrated and innovative features, enhancements and fixes for our web sites and systems.
Shifali Bansal, Web Developer
Shifali Bansal is a graduate in computer science. She is an experienced web developer/designer and is responsible in developing and designing new web applications to enhance their functionality. She fixes existing applications by leveraging modern web technologies, web architecture and design concepts. She is also responsible for developing database management systems.
