House debates

Wednesday, 26 June 2013

Statements by Members

Romeo's Retail Group

1:53 pm

Photo of Christopher PyneChristopher Pyne (Sturt, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Education, Apprenticeships and Training) Share this | | Hansard source

Today I rise to congratulate the Romeo's Retail Group, which runs the independent grocers right across South Australia and now has expanded into Sydney. They have 28 stores across Australia, mostly in South Australia. They employ an incredible 2,400 employees. The Romeo family began the business on their own as a family of five or six. Last night they won at the Ethnic Business Awards the trophy for Champions of Champions in the category of the best of all finalists over the last 25 years of the Ethnic Business Awards, which is a very well known business awards run by the Assaf family. Joseph and Angela Assaf founded it. It has been going 25 years. It has had sponsors like the National Australia Bank and SBS for all that time. It is a very prestigious award to have won, and I was pleased to be able to be at the dinner in the Great Hall last night and be sitting with the Romeo family. I congratulate Antonio and Elizabeth Romeo from my electorate; their sons, Paul, Anthony and Joseph; their daughter, Cathy; and Cathy's husband, Pat; all of whom are to varying degrees involved with a very successful South Australian business. Congratulations to that family.