Why Health SMEs Are Moving to Innovation Precincts – and Why You’ll Want to Be Next

5 minute read

In today’s health economy, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are doing the heavy lifting of innovation — from pioneering digital health tools to rethinking how aged care, diagnostics and mental health are delivered. But the question many are now asking isn’t what you’re building — it’s where.

Increasingly, the answer is: inside a health innovation precinct.

From Melbourne’s Parkville Biomedical Precinct to Sydney’s Westmead Health and Innovation District, and globally from Medicon Valley to the Texas Medical Center, health SMEs are increasingly embedding themselves in purpose-built precincts where research, industry and care delivery intersect. In Queensland, Lumina — located within the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct — is at the forefront of this movement, offering a unique environment where life sciences, medtech, digital health and specialist service SMEs can connect with hospitals, researchers and innovation partners. Designed in collaboration with government and the private sector, Lumina Gold Coast provides the critical infrastructure and community that enables these businesses to scale, collaborate and thrive.

This isn’t just about geography — it’s about your business being located within an ecosystem that will accelerate its growth.

You’re Not Just Leasing a Workspace. You’re Joining a Movement.

Small and medium-sized enterprises are the backbone of Australia’s health innovation sector. According to the OECD, they represent over 99% of all businesses and those that embed themselves in collaborative ecosystems are better positioned to commercialise innovation, attract talent, and scale sustainably.

But operating in isolation — whether from a suburban office park, a makeshift lab, or even a home office can result in many lost opportunities, stifling growth.

Innovation precincts are purpose-built environments where everything needed to bring a health innovation to life is within reach: academic research partners, clinical collaborators, early-stage investors, specialist infrastructure, and importantly, like-minded peers solving similar challenges.

Top 5 Reasons SMEs Are Relocating to Innovation Precincts

1. Surrounded by Opportunity

In a precinct, collaboration isn’t something you have to seek out — it’s happening around you, every day. A leading AI lab might be down the hall. Clinical trial specialists are in the building. Investment networks host regular pitch sessions onsite. You’re not on the outside looking in — you’re embedded in the opportunity flow.

2. Build Your Brand, Instantly

Where you work matters — especially in health. Being based in a leading innovation precinct signals credibility and alignment with excellence. Partners, clinicians and investors recognise the brand of a precinct like the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct, and your association with it elevates your own positioning.

3. Attract and Retain Top Talent

Precincts offer a direct pipeline to local universities, research institutes and clinical training networks. For SMEs, this means access to graduates, postdocs, specialist contractors and collaborative researchers — all without needing a recruiter. Talent comes to you.

But at the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct, it’s more than just professional access — it’s lifestyle appeal. Located on the Gold Coast, the precinct offers year-round sunshine (over 300 days a year), world-class beaches and a liveable, affordable lifestyle that’s hard to beat when attracting a global market of talent. For professionals and their families, it’s a place where career ambition and quality of life can thrive together.

With proximity to two international airports (Gold Coast and Brisbane) and strong digital infrastructure, the region is perfectly placed for national and international collaboration — making it easy to attract top-tier talent from across Australia, the Asia-Pacific region and across the globe.

4. Work Among Innovators

The energy in a precinct is palpable. You’re surrounded by other companies solving tough problems, scaling tech or pushing boundaries in care delivery. It’s a culture of possibility, where impromptu conversations can lead to new product ideas or funding introductions.

5. Founders Deserve a Great Place to Work, Too

Innovation precincts like the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct are designed to support healthy, balanced work. With green spaces, cafés, end-of-trip facilities and onsite childcare, they’re not just places to build a business — they’re places to build a life.

The Global Data Behind the Movement

Recent insights from the World Economic Forum and OECD confirm what many founders already feel:

SMEs embedded in innovation ecosystems grow faster and innovate more effectively.

Those with access to cross-sector collaboration — including with clinicians, academics and even competitors — are significantly more likely to launch new products or services.

Governments worldwide are investing in innovation precincts as a tool for regional development and commercialisation, recognising their role in accelerating growth for startups and SMEs alike.

In Queensland, this strategy is already bearing fruit. The Queensland Innovation Precincts and Places Strategy highlights the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct and other hubs as key drivers of economic transformation, particularly in health, science and technology-led sectors.

So Who’s Moving In?

At the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct, recent and incoming tenants include:

• Digital health and telehealth providers developing platforms for mental health, remote care, clinician support and patient engagement
• Biotech and medical research companies, working on everything from early diagnostics to next-gen therapies and biologics
• Medtech and health device manufacturers, including those creating robotics, wearables and clinical hardware
• AI and data-driven innovators applying artificial intelligence to care personalisation, diagnostics, hospital flow and health analytics
• Healthcare service providers offering radiology, oncology, rehabilitation, mental health and integrated specialist care
• Personalised health and preventative wellness businesses, including microbiome testing, nutrition tech and chronic disease management
• Health infrastructure and operations specialists, building systems to improve hospital efficiency, safety and infection control
• Education, consulting and workforce solutions supporting training, simulation and future health workforce development

Some are scaling rapidly; others are just getting started. All of them have recognised the value of being in the right place — not just for funding or infrastructure, but for culture, community and credibility.

Final Thought: From Isolation to Acceleration

Founders and SME owners are resilient — but they shouldn’t have to build their businesses in isolation.

An innovation precinct is more than just a business address. It’s a launchpad. It’s where your idea gains traction faster, your talent pipeline deepens and your network expands overnight. And it’s where the next generation of Australian health solutions are being built — together.

So, if you’ve been waiting for the right time or the right place — this is both.

Don’t Just Keep Up. Get Ahead.

The health innovation economy is moving fast — and it’s happening in places like the Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct. Position your business where the right partners, infrastructure and talent are already working together. Let’s build the future of health, together.  Lumina Gold Coast is the solution, for office space or development land within the precinct!

Enquire today on development opportunities or office space leasing.