Australian export case study
Making milk baths for a living is a long way from Brendan McShane’s first career choice as a steeple-chase jockey.
But when Brendan was forced to hang up his stirrups after too many injuries, he spent his recovery time milking cows on the family farm in Tasmania.
It was during this time that he considered value-adding opportunities for the dairy farm’s milk.
“I looked into making yoghurt, ice-cream and cheese but there were too many others doing it.
"The idea of milk baths came to me when I saw a picture of (Perth-socialite) Rose Porteous in a magazine.
"She was bathing in milk as a show of luxurious indulgence,” Mr McShane said.
Brendan developed the perfect milk bath using a concoction of milk, probiotics and leatherwood honey.
In 2000, he started the Tasmanian Bathing Milk company, now McShane Hill Bathing Products.
“I would regularly bathe in the milk and found it a terrific relaxant and very therapeutic for my injuries. Essentially it is like bathing in the first stage of making yoghurt. The PH level is compatible with the skin,” he said.
McShane Hill Bathing Products makes and supplies a cosmetic line of bathing products made with milk and leatherwood honey; wine; tea; and beer, selling mainly to five star hotels across Australia and overseas.
 Brendan selects ingredients that have ‘iconic’ value (such as Tasmania’s leatherwood honey) as well as health and wellbeing properties.
“Our white wine bath is popular with guests at Macau’s casinos. The gold colour and shimmer is considered lucky and the casinos offer it to punters for good luck.”
Brendan credits Austrade for the company’s export success.
“I ventured into this business with no background in business, no formal training of any description and no reason for understanding trade or government policies," he said.
The support from Austrade is why I am able to do this and the reason why the company exports.”
Austrade introduced Brendan to distributors in Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand, India and New Zealand and has helped complete arduous paperwork requirements in Thailand.
Brendan says the Thailand-Australia Free Trade Agreement (TAFTA) will make things a lot easier to overcome the paperwork difficulties.
As McShane Hill Bathing Products forges ahead in the business arena and continues to find new export markets with Austrade’s support, things seem to have come full circle for the company’s creator.
When he’s not dipping in a milk bath or mastering the train system to reach meetings in Hong Kong, Brendan can be found on his old stomping ground: the racetrack, pursuing his passion and lifelong dream to become a racehorse trainer.
Company information:
Brendan McShane
Managing Director
McShane Hill Bathing Products
'Somerset'
1242 Elderslie Road
Broadmarsh
Tasmania 7030
Tel: +61 3 6268 5212
Email: csecret@bigpond.com.au
Web: www.mcshanehill.com
May 2007
www.austrade.gov.au/mediacentre
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