Top 1000 companies revealed: Kogan, Xero and Noni B debut on 2018 list

Skyrocketing revenue has earned online retailer Kogan, fashion giant Noni B and accounting platform Xero a place among Australia’s top 1000 companies for 2018.

Releasing its annual list of Australia’s biggest businesses by revenue, IBISWorld said aged-care providers and food manufacturers performed particularly well in 2018 at the big end of the market, while wholesalers and farmers struggled.

The list provides an interesting look into how market forces are shaping the fortunes of Australia’s largest businesses, which is an indicator for the broader health of the economy and individual businesses.

Rio Tinted topped the list thanks to an 8.9% increase in revenue to a whopping $6.73 billion.

New GST laws may have tempered the views of Kogan’s investors last year, but it hasn’t stopped Ruslan Kogan’s fast-growing online retail empire from hitting new heights, debuting on this year’s list at 910 with $412 million in revenue, up 42.3%.

Also debuting was accounting platform Xero, which on the back of subscriber growth driven by single touch payroll changes managed to book a 36.7% increase in revenue to $338 million, hitting rank 969.

Fashion retail has been well and truly disrupted, but Noni B’s acquisition-led strategy, supported by investment firm Alceon Group, has significantly boosted its top line to $373 million, up 17.8%.

Noni B has emerged as the big fish in a bout of industry consolidation, picking up brands like Rivers, Crossroads, Millers and Katies from Specialty Fashion Group for a cool $31 million early last year.

A new partnership deal helped Cricket Australia — which otherwise suffered a scandalous year amid a ball-tampering scandal — book a 27.6% increase in revenue to $399.2 million, debuting at rank 936.

Truck wholesaler Hino Australia also debuted, increasing revenue by 21.5% to $389.5 million. The business ranked 960 on the list.

The top 10 largest Australian companies by revenue (2018)

1. Rio Tinto — $6.73 billion (up 8.9%)

2. Wesfarmers — $6.71 billion (up 3%)

3. BHP — $5.97 billion (up 19.7%)

4. Woolworths — $5.72 billion (up 3.5%)

5. Commonwealth Bank — $4.23 billion (down 4.5%)

6. Westpac Bank — $3.82 billion (up 1.9%)

7. ANZ Bank — $3.54 billion (up 6.4%)

8. NAB — $3.41 billion (up $5.9%)

9. Telstra — $2.91 billion (up 2.7%)

10. QBE Insurance — $2.28 billion (down 8.4%)