Revealed: The eight most loved local businesses in Australia

A guitar shop, dental clinic and real estate agency are among the top eight most loved local Australian shops and services, according to a national review of more than 3000 businesses.

The communications platform Podium teamed up with the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia (COSBOA) to celebrate small businesses with the most outstanding Google reviews.

Podium’s national search analysed the Google reviews of more than 3000 businesses to figure out which of them had received the most positive and engaging comments.

Alexi Boyd, chief executive of COSBOA, said the awards put the spotlight on local businesses that are connected to their communities.

“What often distinguishes small and medium businesses from large businesses is their connection to their local community,” Boyd said.

“They know their customers on a personal level and have an interest in their well-being.”

Here are the top eight most loved local businesses:

• The Acoustic Centre in Melbourne;
• bikeNOW in Melbourne;
• City Realty in Adelaide;
• DCM Plumbing and Drainage on the Gold Coast;
• North Brisbane Dental;
• Titan Plumbing in Melbourne;
• Westside Auto Wholesale in Perth; and
• Xceed Real Estate in Perth.

COSBOA awarded the Acoustic Centre, bikeNow and Xceed Real Estate commended status for the additional work they have done within their communities.

The Acoustic Centre received extra recognition because of its work helping other small businesses in the music industry through a charity appeal. The business has 756 Google reviews and a rating of 4.9 stars.

For 25 years, Acoustic Centre’s co-owners Mick Richardson and Guy Palmer have been selling guitars from their South Melbourne shop.

The business, which employs 10 staff, sells guitars from the physical store and online via its neighbouring warehouse.

Speaking to SmartCompany, Acoustic Centre’s manager Ryan Lamb noted it was great to be recognised as one of the top eight most loved local businesses in Australia.

“We pride ourselves on how our customers interact with us and the reviews they leave. It’s nice to be recognised for that,” Lamb says.

According to Lamb, the business has no plans to leave brick-and-mortar retail to focus on online sales.

“We love it,” he says. “Ours is such a tactile business, and we just love the space, which is purpose-built for us.”

COSBOA also awarded bikeNOW special recognition due to the positive impact the business has had on community fitness, safety and sustainability through their cycling programs. BikeNow has 386 Google reviews and an overall rating of 4.7.

Xceed Real Estate, which is located in Perth, was commended for the warmth of its service and its community-focused philanthropy work. The real estate agency has received 1178 reviews and a rating of 4.7 stars.

Commenting on the findings of its local business review, Podium country manager Dave Schiene said he was excited to launch the celebration of some of the businesses that contribute to their vibrant communities.

“In reality, this report could’ve featured almost 2.5 million local businesses,” Schiene said.

“Instead, we could feature only eight, but they’re a diverse representation of the millions of businesses who stand beside them.”