Originally established by Bill Brown and Jock Watson in
1953, Brown & Watson International Pty Ltd is an 'old'
Australian trading company with a long and colourful
history.Over the years the company has been involved
in a range of enterprises ranging from manufacturing
transport equipment, toy wholesaling, furniture and
acting as a manufacturers representative. This last
business activity exposed BMI to the automotive industry
and its wholesale distribution channels in the early
1960's.
Early in the 1980's the company commenced importing
lighting products from a company called NARVA located in
Plauen, East Germany. The main products were
incandescent and halogen globes and NARVA, East Germany
still manufacture many of the globes marketed today.
The first NARVA catalogue was produced in 1984. It
extended to 10 pages in glorious black and white,
detailing a total of 58 part numbers. This is a far cry
from today's 2008-10 NARVA catalogue with its 376 pages,
featuring over 4,000 part numbers in 12 colour coded
product sections. This entire catalogue can be accessed
from the NARVA website and its content clearly
illustrates the enormous growth of the NARVA program
over the last 24 years.
Today, NARVA products are sourced from leading
manufacturers around the world. Carefully chosen
strategic partners provide access to the latest in
technology and product design. Over recent years NARVA
has invested in the design and development of products
for sale not just within Australia but across the globe.
From the company's modern 8,400 sq metre head office
and factory based in Knoxfield, Melbourne, Victoria, the
extensive range of products are assembled, packed and
reprocessed to cater for the expanding Australasian
market.
Outside the Narva brand, BWI produces many custom
made products for large OEM companies such as Kenworth,
Mack, Daimler, HSV, Honda to name just a few. Other
brands include the highly successful Projecta battery
maintenance and power products. The growth of both
brands has lead to extensive expansion with BWI now
owning two additional warehouse facilities and the
recently opened 6,000sq metre production facility.
The company is certified to ISO 9002 standard and has
sales offices and presentation in all states of
Australia plus the office and distribution centre of
NARVA NZ Ltd located in Auckland, New Zealand.
Today the company is principally owned by the current
management. Its slogan 'Safety through Quality' is
strongly promoted to ensure NARVA products live up to
customers' expectations and further enhance the NARVA
name.
