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Omnii started with 2 mobile phones, 2 laptops, a leased photocopier and in a small office space at the back of a friend’s law firm in Melbourne.
A friend also loaned us a timber desk which Pete used – the type with drawers on either side and green inlaid leather on top, and Marcello was working on a small blue credenza, where he had to slide the doors open just to put his knees in so that he could work!”
20 YEARS OF MAKING A MARK
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We spoke to OMNII’s founders about how their journey began, and what this milestone means to them.
Peter Glodic
Marcello Arbaci
What motivated you to start Omnii 20 years ago, and what problem were you trying to solve?
Peter: I had always wanted to start my own business. The timing was right, and I saw an opportunity to provide specialised Fire Engineering and Fire Protection services, when others were not. I knew I couldn’t do it alone, so I asked Marcello to join me. We could control our destiny and shape the company to provide high value specialist consultancy. We wanted to choose our clients and not build a company that was selected solely on price. We wanted to provide quality, skill and value – all delivered in an ethical manner.
What does the 20-year milestone mean to you personally and professionally?
Peter: I still remember sitting at Marcello’s parent’s house on a bean bag looking through the dictionary trying to come up with a name of our company. I saw the word ‘Omni’. It resonated with me, and we added another ‘I’, to symbolically show the two founders standing side by side. We had little funding, but we had a passion, and we all played our respective roles.
Twenty years later, it’s hard to put into words what it means. Every project, every late night, the weekend work, the sacrifices on a personal front and every tough decision — they all built something bigger than I ever imagined. Today, Omnii’s not just a company; it’s a team of people who care, who show up, who are loyal, and who want to make a difference. We passed the $100M milestone in salaries paid a few years ago, and that stat still blows me away.
Personally, I feel a lot of pride, but mostly I feel grateful — for the chances we took, for the people who trusted us, and for the opportunity to keep doing work that matters. I have made some incredible lifelong friends out of the industry, and I have been involved in projects that I am very proud of. It hasn’t been easy though – a bit of a roller coaster at times.