Celebrating Women in Moreton Bay Region Tourism

This International Women's Day we're celebrating the bold, creative and inspiring women who lead the way in Moreton Bay Region's tourism industry. From the women behind the scenes making every Moreton Bay Region experience a memorable one to those women who push the boundaries innovating new products for visitors to enjoy, where would the region be without you! Happy International Women's Day.

We recently chatted to six inspiring women about their tourism journey, we hope you enjoy the read below.

Katrina White | White Ridge Farm

Tell us about White Ridge Farm and your business journey.

White Ridge Farm is a farm based tourist attraction located at Elimbah, just a couple of minutes from Caboolture.

Our business journey and I’m going to say “our” because, beside every successful woman is a supportive partner. So our business journey started 11 years ago, when a friend asked us if we would take our little pony and a couple of our goats around to his place for his daughters birthday party. Of course we said yes, so off to the party we went. We all had a great day and our friend said “you should do this as a business”. And that was our light bulb moment.

Can you tell us about a female role model who has inspired you over your career?

I’d love to say someone famous and really cool but no one comes to mind. If this girl is looking for a female role model, she is going to say her Mother and her Mother in Law. Both hardworking women, that have looked after their families, balanced the books, put meals on the tables and done it an honest and true way. And both still married to their first husbands, now that’s an achievement!

Do you have any words of advice for other females?

  1. Dream big and very detailed. It does not matter if you don’t know how that dream is going to become a realty, just kept focused.
  2. Work hard and don’t get a credit card.
  3. Always save money every single week, even if it is a small amount.
  4. Respect your elders, always.

Explore more of White Ridge Farm and all Katrina has developed here.

Mandy Schultz | Luvaberry Farm

Tell us about Luvaberry's journey.

Luvaberry is my passion and it has provided me with the opportunity to personally grow in an Industry I knew so little about. I've previously spent 25 years working as a Naturopath and came to the farm with my "fiance" Adrian in 2003. It was a family share farming opportunity that originally grew Australian Native flowers. For me it was about "getting married and having kids". I didn't actually think about the ramifications of life after the initial period of time. In 2016 we started to realise the increasing level of waste and it was during this time I was working in health food and seeing this health food trend in "powders".

One day a new beetroot powder product arrived and as I left work at the Health shop Morayfield and wandered into Coles noticing for the first time all the imported strawberry snack products I had a light bulb moment "strawberry powder".

Our farm is more than strawberries!!! As a result of the changing landscape of horticulture we've had to diversify ourselves and crops to try and keep our farm sustainable. We are entering a world of supermarkets and superfarms and once upon a time 200k strawberry plants was considered a big farm now that number is 1M+ . So our little 80K farm of Luvaberry is more about Luv than berry.


Can you tell us about a female role model who has inspired you over your career?

I've never actually thought about this until recently. When you're younger you meet inspirational bosses both male and female. Or female friends that you admire because they can do something you can't. For me, I admire all women and feel it's important that we treat each other graciously and understand collaboration with others is about a state of mind of wanting the best for everyone. I think when you're young you can be triggered by inadequacy or self doubt and don't truly understand what teamwork is.

Today my greatest admiration is for Ita Butrose. I like how she's still working "late in life" . She's keeping up with the digital advancements for future media and most importantly has remained elegant and gracious.

Do you have any words of advice for other females?

I think it's important to focus on what you want rather what you don't have and with courage and integrity follow your instincts and just have a crack at whatever it is. Just have a go.

Check out Mandy's beautiful farm and produce here.

Karen Lindsay | Little White Goat Cheese

We were lucky enough to interview Karen 'kids' (see what we did there). Here's what they had to say:

Tell us about Karen's business journey.

Our goat mum, Karen Lindsay, owns & runs Little White Goat Cheese. We (her herd of amazing goat gals) provide her with our luscious milk so she can make her beautiful Persian Goat Feta. In return, she loves us with all her heart, feeds us pretty yummy food and hay, helps us if we are unwell and when we have our babies, she is always there to lend a helping hand- if we need it !!!
After her first batch of cheese, she was hooked and has been making it for 15 years now.

Whilst COVID was on, she lost all her restaurants business as they closed. But being our clever goat mum…. she worked on a world first product- Freeze Dried Goat feta….And it is a huge hit !!!!!

No refrigeration needed and it lasts 18 months in the pantry. It has hundreds of uses !

Can you tell us something about Little White Goat Cheese many might not know?

Persian Feta is so called because that is the style of cheesemaking!!!! Its not from Persia !!!!!! lol xxx

Interesting business fact?

Goat mum Karen sells her cheese to high end restaurants, fabulous chefs, IGAs, cheese shops and hopes soon to work with a distributor. The cheese is sold in jars, 1kg and 2kg buckets and cryovac. The Freeze-dried feta is available in 100g, 250g, 500g and 1 kg packs.

Taste Karen's award winning goat's cheese and discover more here.

Captain Kerry | Brisbane Whale Watching

Tell us about Brisbane Whale Watching's business journey.

Kerry is a successful businesswoman, Captain and mother, working tirelessly on promoting local tourism and protecting our environment.

Kerry worked as a deckhand on board a spectator craft for the 1987 Americas Cup, before enrolling in the Fremantle Maritime College as the only woman in a class of 30. One of only five students who graduated from the 2 year course, Lopez was forced to do a practical exam and became the second woman in Australia to get her Class Five Master Mariners Certificate. Lopez left the west to search for work around Australia.

Two years later and she had enough sea time with tour operators and merchant marine work to study for and receive her Class Four Masters Certificate. Arriving in Brisbane, she began work as a skipper on the boat Cat O’Nine Tails taking people to St Helena Island and then on Heron Island on the Great Barrier Reef.

Why do you love what you do?

I grew up in New Zealand, where I spent a lot of time with my father on his frequent fishing trips, I remember the sadness I felt the day I first saw a beached whale. I really felt for it and wondered what might be done to help them stay safe.

We operate whale watching tours from the Redcliff Peninsula in the Moreton Bay Marine Park from June to November, my aim on these tours is to create passenger awareness of the great environmental treasure we have with whales in our waters here. My onboard commentary focuses on them and their habitat and how we can all help their numbers grow.

Tell us something about your business many might not know.

2021 will be our 25th Anniversary! Big celebrations this season.

Learn more about Kerry and Brisbane Whale Watching here.

Kate Honnet | Ocean View Estates

Tell us about Ocean View Estates and your business journey.

We have been in business for 23 years with the conception of OVE in 1997, first planting of grapes in 1998. Best little picture with some great photos is on our website. Personally I studied Environmental Science so OVE wasn’t my initial plan, but the opportunity to do something together as a couple that was quite exciting and unique sparked my interest. I have always been a keen motivated person who loved people so with no experience I approached every new start or added offering as if I was a visitor and what would I want in the experience, how would I like to be treated, what creates the best experiences I have had in my life. I think this approach, although we made some clunky mistakes along the way led us to develop a product that was not pretentious and was truly guest focused.

Why do you love what you do?

I love working with Thomas and being in everything together. I love wine and having an influence on the final product, then doing a tasting with people and hear the surprise that Queensland can actually make great wine.

Tell us something about your business many might not know.

When we are closed Thomas and I often sit on the pavers overlooking the vineyards and lake and just soak in where we have come from and what we’ve achieved. Also, our wines are vegan except for the odd grasshopper that doesn’t escape quick enough!

Visit Ocean View Estates yourself and see just how beautiful Kate's creation is! Find out more here.

Rose | Turkey's Nest

Tell us about Turkey's Nest and your business journey.

When I met my husband Russell 20 years ago, I told him my ‘active retirement’ plan was to run a cottage accommodation business in a beautiful rural setting. Russell had been brought up on a farm, so he liked the idea of escaping the city (he is also very practical/handy, which helps!).

We bought the property in 2003 when we were both still working in Brisbane. There was a small cottage on the property (a former forestry workers’ cottage) which we renovated and made ready for holiday lettings. I ran the business from Brisbane, making the 40min trip up to Mt Glorious to clean and prepare the cottage for guests.

By 2009 I had retired from work in Brisbane and we began building a house for ourselves as well as a second cottage. As owner builders we did a lot of the work ourselves – all the internal fit-out after the builder built it to ‘lock-up’ (although the house wasn’t actually lock-up-able, as we had not yet built the earth walls!). In 2010 we moved up here to the unfinished house. It was then a long journey of part-time and weekend work to finish first the new cottage (so we could begin offering that for stays from 2011) and then our own house and the attached guest suite (opened in 2014).

Ten years on there’s still stuff to finish! 😊

Since we began we have had regular guests who come back year after year, and wonderful positive feedback about the personal and homely nature of our accommodation

Why do you love what you do?

As our guests keep telling us, we are ‘living the dream’. Sure we have plenty work to do, but we get to work from home, with reasonably flexible hours, in an astounding beautiful rainforest setting, surrounded by wildlife, and nestled within a small and very friendly rural community.

I have loved creating unusual, hand-crafted interiors which provide a gentle, peaceful and welcoming environment.

We also get to meet some lovely guests, many of whom have become like old friends.

Can you tell us something about your business many might not know?

We aim to be as environmentally friendly as possible, both in our use of building materials and in the everyday running/cleaning of the property. We have intentionally made it a ‘digital detox’ – no wifi, no TV - for all those busy people who can’t escape their electronic devices (although we will provide a TV if people ask. Very few do.)

Rest and Recover at Turkey's Nest sometime soon to appreciate all Rose's hard work! Learn more about Turkey's Nest here.

Explore more of what Moreton Bay Region has to offer

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Island Escape: 48 hours of adventure on Bribie Island

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Acknowledgement of Country - We would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands and waterways of the Moreton Bay Region, the Kabi Kabi/Gubbi Gubbi, Jinibara, and Turrbal people and pay our respects to their Elders, past, present and emerging. We recognise the ongoing connection that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have to this land and recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the original custodians of this land.