Barbeques Galore is Australia's biggest BBQs and outdoor furniture retailer It specializes in barbecue grills, accessories and consumables. There are 96 stores in Australia, and several authorized dealers internationally. The US business was purchased by Grand Home Holdings Inc in late 2008 and officially celebrated the Grand Opening under the new management on May 2, 2009 Barbeques Galore represents DCS, Alfresco, Twin Eagles, Weber, FireMagic, Big Green Egg as well as produces in its own factories. The Barbeques Galore brand of proprietary products known as Turbo, Turbo Elite, Captain Cook and Grand Turbo. In 2014, the company released a new Turbo Charcoal grill that comes in a built-in and cart model.
History
Barbeques Galore was started in a suburban garage in Sydney, Australia in 1972. The first company store opened in 1977. The company expanded to the United States in 1980, opening a store in Santa Fe Springs, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. The firm concentrated initially on warm-weather US states such as California, Nevada, Arizona, Hawaii, Texas, Georgia and Florida. Later they ventured into more seasonal markets such as North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC. After ten years as a listed company on the Australian Stock Exchange, Barbeques Galore delisted in 1996, and soon after listed on the US NASDAQ. In late 2005, the firm was delisted from the NASDAQ after a leveraged buy-out by Australian venture capital firm, Ironbridge Capital. Ironbridge Capital split the Australian and US arms of the business into two separate entities. Following a severe downturn in business in the US, partly attributed to the fall in new housing on the back of the sub-prime mortgage crisis, Barbeques Galore USA filed for protection under Chapter 11 on August 15, 2008. Barbeques Galore US assets were purchased by Grand Home Holdings Inc. on September 12, 2008. The US company liquidated all of its retail outlets east of Texas, including Maryland, Virginia, Florida and Georgia. According to documents filed in US Bankruptcy court, the company continues to exist as Barbeques Galore as owned by Grand Home Holdings Inc. operating 23 stores in California, Arizona and Texas. In 2018 Barbeques Galore launched an app that helps customers choose the right BBQ, heater or furniture requirements for their entertaining space. The app included Augmented Reality capabilities to visualise how their new BBQ, heater or furniture products will look in their entertaining space.
Events
Once a year the company hosts a national conference in Australia where representatives from all stores compete for Franchisee of the Year Australia title Barbeques Galore Bundaberg's received The National Franchisee of the Year Award in February 2020 Barbeques Galore Rockhampton received The National Franchisee Of The Year Award in April 2015
