More than 40 years ago, a Gladstone clay shooter and hunter opened a small gun shop at a local service station after growing frustrated with the other local supplier. Today, his hobby has grown into a business that has become Australia's largest privately owned firearms and munitions supplier.
The Brisbane-based company, NIOA, has branched out from the commercial gun market into military and law enforcement, supplying Australian and New Zealand police with 70,000 Glock pistols and providing the military with their latest infantry weapon – an automatic grenade launcher.
Managing director Robert Nioa led the transition into the defence and police markets from 1996, after his father started the company out of a small office at a Gladstone service station with only 10 guns in the armoury in 1973.
The company moved to Brisbane 12 years later and established a warehouse under the Story Bridge before expanding further into military and law enforcement.
The Glock pistols are maintained through the Brisbane facility and the company also supplies 70 per cent of ammunition to Australian police.
NIOA is also engaged in several major contracts with the Australian Defence Force, including providing assault rifles to the SAS as well as supplying the ammunition, cannon and ongoing maintenance for the new Rheinmetall army vehicle.
"The commercial market is very competitive, with overseas factories set up here, we're up against some big multinational companies," Mr Nioa said.
"We battle against enormous multinational companies for defence contracts, for example one company is one-third owned by the French government and have beaten them in the past."
The company has also been making inroads into the New Zealand Defence Force, securing a contract to supply a Glock sidearm and bidding to provide a new sniper rifle.
After starting in regional Queensland 44 years ago, NIOA's home state recognised its achievements last week, with the company taking home the 2017 Telstra Queensland Medium Business Award at a ceremony at Brisbane's City Hall.
"It was a very thorough process just to become a finalist, with judges coming out and personally interviewing management and staff to understanding the business," Mr Nioa said.
"We were absolutely overjoyed to have won on the evening, all of the staff with me had worked really hard and it was a sign of the great confidence in the work they do."
However, as police raids across the state continue to uncover illegal firearms and ammunition, the most recent being over the weekend, Mr Nioa provided an insight into where these weapons come from.
He said the licensed firearms market in Australia was one of the most regulated in the world, with members of the public having to go through vigorous police checks, safety courses and continuous random audits to own a gun.
Mr Nioa said his company had seen outlaw motorcycle gangs manufacturing weapons parts in their own factories, including machine guns.
He said more police resources were needed to allow officers to intercept the parts as they entered the country through the postal system or ports, as opposed to detectives discovering the final product during mass raids.
The winners of the 2017 Telstra Queensland Business Awards will join other state and territory category winners at the Telstra Australian Business Awards in Sydney on August 25.
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