For the past 12 months, Kylie Hammond and Mark Thompson have been welcoming visitors to the heart of outback Queensland through their business, Yowah Nut Tagalongs.

Offering guided tours of the historic opal town of Yowah, Kylie and Mark give visitors the chance to experience the region like a local. From helping people discover opals to sharing the unique character of their community, their tours are designed to create an authentic outback experience while supporting local businesses and showcasing everything Yowah has to offer.

Working with Many Rivers

Before starting our business, I ran a café and Bushie was entertaining part time.

We wanted to start our own business to help people find opals and show them our town in Yowah, outback Queensland, and to give visitors a real local experience.

We first found out about Many Rivers through Facebook.

Many Rivers provided us with business coaching, which enabled us to complete a business plan, as well as financial aid to help us set up our business. We also received a loan, which we used for advertising and the business set up costs.

Biggest Challenge

The fuel crisis and weather have been the two biggest challenges this year.

Another challenge for us is that our tourist season only operates for six months of the year, so making the most of that time is really important.

Biggest Success

Our biggest success to date was being booked for a tour by a charter company in Brisbane.

We created a special tour for a group of nine people who flew into town especially to experience our tour. It was exciting to see people travel such a long way to visit Yowah and experience what we have to offer.

Biggest Change

We have had amazing support from surrounding areas promoting our tours, and we have noticed that we have brought more visitors to our town.

This has benefited not only our business but has also provided more opportunities for the other businesses in town. People are staying longer after participating in our tours, and that has been the biggest change for us.

Personally, I also have a much better understanding of running a business than I did before we started.

Future Goals

We hope to expand our tours by introducing new experiences, including a night event where people can watch the stars while toasting marshmallows, as well as a bird watching tour.

We’re excited about continuing to grow our business while giving visitors even more ways to experience everything our beautiful part of outback Queensland has to offer.

 

Follow Yowah Nut Tagalongs

Keep up with Kylie and Mark’s journey and learn more about their tours by following them on Facebook:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/18NVEZgFiL/

 

Thinking about starting or growing your own business?

Many Rivers helps people build strong, sustainable businesses through personalised business coaching, mentoring, access to finance, and ongoing support.

If you’re ready to take the next step in your business journey, click the button below to learn more about how Many Rivers can support you.

CLICK HERE to see if Many Rivers is right for you

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