focusinterview with Samantha Wardman of CornerPost Consulting
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chellea and Kris, your background is quite diverse. How did you come to call Emerald Beach home? Schellea: We are originally from Cronulla, South of Sydney, or “The Shire”, as many would refer to it as. It’s a gorgeous place not unlike Coffs Harbour, but is much bigger now. Kris and I met when we were young and have been together ever since. It seems like we’ve always been in business together, some 28 years now. We first owned a café in Cronulla and ran it seven days a week, and after some time sold it and purchased another. When we were ready to take a break, we sold up, packed everything and took a year off travelling around Australia, camping with our kids. It was an amazing trip, and it was also when we first came across Emerald Beach and the Park. We rolled into the Park, looking like ferals from the bush and really enjoyed our stay and the picturesque beauty of Emerald - so much so, that we spoke to the owners about whether they would consider selling the park. And well, you can guess what the answer was! Emerald Beach is one of the Coffs Coast’s hidden gems. Tell us a little about the Holiday Park and what is has to offer guests? Kris: We absolutely love Emerald Beach. It’s a stunning spot to call home. With its beautiful beaches, Look at me Now headland complete with kangaroos and some great local eats as well, it really is a hidden gem. Our holiday park has grown from strength to strength over the decade or so that we have owned it. At its core is our guests and ensuring that their stay is the best it can be. Second to this, is preserving the integrity of the natural beauty and wildlife that call the park home. Quite often our guests are greeted by friendly wallabies or lorikeets and with our beach front location, the surf and water play is close and convenient too. Over the years we have invested significantly in upgrading the facilities and services to include 70 coffs coast focus.
luxury 4.5 star cabins, Jungle Jive indoor soft play centre, pancake Wednesday, movie room, kids’ games centre, barista coffee, spa massages, a year round kids’ activity programme and so much more. We really pride ourselves on the overall guest experience. Recently, you were successful recipients of a tourism funding grant. What is this about, and what will the funding be used for? Schellea: Yes, we are so excited about it. We were successful recipients of the Destination NSW Regional Visitor Economy Fund, which exists to improve the tourism product and experiences in NSW. Predominately, it’s all about doubling tourism expenditure by 2020. It was our third attempt to secure funding through the tourism funding available, so we are thrilled to have received the call from Andrew Fraser MP to tell us the good news. We received a grant for $295,000 to contribute towards the development of a new Kids’ Water Play Park facility at the park, which is a total investment of $700,000. It is designed to be a source of fun and enjoyment for every member of the family, promoting pure play, entertainment, social and cross-generational interaction, contemplation and relaxation. And we are really looking forward to welcoming our guests and visitors to experience the fun once it is completed later this year. Over the years, you have continually invested in new facilities and experiences at the park. What has inspired you to do so? Kris: We really enjoy seeking out new opportunities to be more creative in how we provide our services, market our business or improve the overall guest experience. Our focus is on continually improving and creating something that families will enjoy and get a real buzz from. I guess you could say that our inspiration really comes from our guests, the people who really count and experience our park first hand. They (along with our staff) have inspired a great deal of the changes, developments and improvements to the park over the past decade. Our customers are a million times savvier these
days. Their expectations have shifted to want part to our success. more from their holidays, and Holiday Parks in What trends are you seeing in the tourism particular have had to grow and innovate signifisector at current? cantly to cater to great guest expectations - and Schellea: Overall, I think guest expectations are will continue to. changing and evolving. People expect more from Just how important is customer service? their stay, and if you aren’t willing to offer value Schellea: It is our number adds and more experiences, one priority. then there are plenty of placAs I have mentioned, es that will. So it’s important Overall I think guest the guest experience is to stay ahead of the pack expectations are everything for us. So we and be looking for new and changing and evolving. People expect more from invest in the training and brilliant ways to wow guests their stay, and if you aren’t development of our staff and give them what they willing to offer value adds as well as park facilities want. and more experiences, then to continue to wow our The way people see the there are plenty of places guests. We have service tourism sector has dramatthat will. So it’s important to standards which we live stay ahead of the pack and be ically changed, with the and breathe. Not a phone popularity of online third looking for new and brilliant call goes unanswered; every party travel sites, online ways to wow guests and give guest is treated like our best marketing, and social media them what they want.” customer. We also believe sites. We have seen a big that core to our success is shift with reviewer sites like the fact that we connect with our guests, talk Trip Advisor and other review platforms. So, with them, check that they are happy and having moving forward, we must adapt to the changing a good time and let them know that we are here environment by managing our sites and customer to help. feedback as well as creating current, informative We also ensure that guest feedback is captured content and implementing new and exciting through stay surveys and talking to our guests ideas for the park. upon check in/out to make them feel valued What are your hot tips for running a successand to hear their opinions. Our motto is to “give ful business? them more than they expect” and treat each Kris: When you’re in a partnership with your guest as if they were a guest in our own home. wife, it’s important to share the decisions and enWhat are the key things you look for when hance each other’s best skills. So if we have a big hiring staff? decision to make, we rate it out of 10 in terms of Kris: Attitude, Attitude, Attitude. our passion for the decision and whomever really That is what it’s about. You can’t create a great has the most passion for the decision wins. It’s a attitude in others; it’s not something learnt - it’s really simple system, but because our values are something that a person either chooses to have aligned and we trust each other, it works every or doesn’t have. One thing I’ve learnt is havtime. ing the right people, with the right attitude, is Schellea: Opposite minds also helps. So I’m crucial for the success of any business. We have a creative and Kris is has an analytical mind; he surrounded ourselves with an amazing team, leaves me to the creative decisions and I leave from the people we spend every day with here at him to the financial/ operational ones. It’s all the park, to our accounts, marketing, banking, about compromise and trust. suppliers and trades team, who are also a pivotal Thanks Schellea and Kris.
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