INTHEBLACK February / March 2026 - Magazine - Page 29
Thomas Chacko FCPA came to
accounting in his late 30s and
quickly learned the ropes with
some of Australia’s biggest
manufacturing firms.
While the building industry has
seen an inflation-induced rise
in the cost of components and
materials, he has found ways to
mitigate the problem.
Chacko has trebled Best Sheds’
profit since joining in 2018, which
he puts down to smart systems,
unorthodox sourcing and strong
relationships.
Best Sheds CEO Thomas Chacko FCPA believes the business of manufacturing
can be both competitive and compassionate. Profitability is about good data,
processes and transparency, built on a solid foundation of trust.
Words Adam Courtenay
Photography Tyneesha Williams
THOMAS CHACKO FCPA IS PROOF
that age is nothing when you have the right
mindset and conditions.
In 1999, at the age of 35, Chacko left
a solid job in the Indian Government to
seek out opportunities in Australia, a land
thousands of kilometres away. With no
accounting experience, no job organised
and no family or business connections
waiting for him, he set off for a new life
with his wife and two small children.
“A bit of a risk? New culture, new country?
I wasn’t really that worried,” he reflects.
“One should take a risk. It makes you more
resilient and more capable of trying new
things. I did not lack confidence.”
PEOPLE REMAIN PARAMOUNT
Chacko arrived at the start of Australia’s
digital turnaround and now, over 25 years later,
finds himself amid the world’s AI mania.
He notes that the best thing to do
when this kind of once-in-a-generation
“revolution” comes along is to remain
calm while others are wavering in
their focus.
As the now Wollongong-based CEO
of shed manufacturers Best Sheds,
Chacko believes the same principles still
apply — businesses need reliable data
and level-headed people. Processes and
systems are helpful, he notes, but they
are just vehicles. It is the people delivering
the numbers who remain paramount.
It is an interesting stance given that
Chacko has a degree in higher mathematics.
Before he came to Australia and embarked
on a career in accounting, he worked for
the Indian Home Office as a forensics
investigator. Details and numbers were
core to the role, Chacko explains, but they
existed merely to serve the decision-making.
intheblack.cpaaustralia.com.au 29
