Talking Tourism

In this episode of Talking Tourism, host Rachel Williams speaks with proud palawa woman Kitana Mansell , the dynamic force behind palawa kipli, Tasmania’s only Aboriginal food business. Kitana shares her journey from growing up in Launceston to becoming a leading voice for Aboriginal food, culture and tourism in Tasmania. She reflects on the importance of reconnecting with traditional food practic...

Making Data Work for You: Smarter Decisions and Better Guests with Tourism Tasmania In this episode of Talking Tourism , host Tracy Mallett speaks with Alexis Clarke and Paul Fleming from Tourism Tasmania’s research and insights team about how data can help tourism operators not just survive, but thrive. Recorded live at the 2025 Tasmanian Tourism Conference, Alexis and Paul unpack how Tourism Tas...

In this inspiring episode of Talking Tourism , host Lauren Cameron (TICT’s Carbon & Sustainability Advisor) is joined by Josh Howard - founder of Single Use Ain’t Sexy and a leading voice in sustainable personal care - to explore how small changes in tourism operations can lead to big environmental wins . Josh shares the journey of growing his dissolvable soap tablet startup into an internatio...

Recorded live at the 2025 Tasmanian Tourism Conference, this episode of Talking Tourism features a conversation with storytelling expert Barb McGregor , who shares powerful insights on how Tasmanian tourism operators can craft meaningful, authentic brand stories that truly connect with visitors. Hosted by Tracy Mallett , this conversation explores the unique elements that set Tasmania’s tourism br...

In this episode of Talking Tourism , host Rachel Williams is joined by content marketing powerhouse Hannah Statham , founder of Media Mortar , to unpack how storytelling isn't just a nice-to-have—it’s your biggest competitive edge. With 16 years in tourism and lifestyle marketing, Hannah shares why it’s critical for tourism operators to clearly define their unique story, how to transform ever...

In this eye-opening episode of Talking Tourism , host Tracy Mallett chats with Steve Wiggers—Managing Director of SCALA The Training Company and leadership trainer—to break down what AI really means for Tasmanian tourism operators. Far from the doom-and-gloom headlines, Steve offers a practical and empowering take on how artificial intelligence can be used as a helpful assistant—not a threat. Reco...

In this special episode recorded live at the 2025 Tasmanian Tourism Conference , host Rachel Williams is joined by renowned customer experience expert Amanda Stevens for a deep dive into the future of tourism, traveller behaviour, and how Tasmanian operators can stay ahead of the curve. With her background in consumer psychology and marketing, Amanda shares fascinating insights into the trends sha...

Former physiotherapist, 2012 Masterchef Australia finalist, and most recently CEO of Sydney's Lotus Dining Group, Mindy Woods is currently studying sustainable horticulture and bush food with the goal of protecting native foods, the environment and re-igniting Indigenous culture. You must taste a culture to truly understand it. That’s why Mindy, a proud First Nations woman, opened her very ow...

Talking Tourism Episode 144 – Tourism strategy…without the BS with Tom Wootton & Anne Greentree. Both Tom and Anne have had (and continue to have) an incredible influence on tourism in Tasmania. Among many things, Tom was the inaugural CEO of the regional tourism organisation, West by North West. Whereas, Anne has spent the past four years as the Director Visitor Economy Strategy at Tourism Ta...

Recognised as one of Australia’s nine most influential female entrepreneurs, Hailey Brown has become a catalyst for change within the tourism industry. Upon recognising that blind and low-vision tourists were precluded from travelling as tourism marketing is visual, she created the world’s first sensory audio tourism app, Vacayit . She is highly experienced in the field of accessible tourism, univ...

Taihlaura Denman-Francis is a Managing Marketing Consultant at Kingthing. In this role, Taihlaura enjoys the thrill of dreaming up big ideas for her clients. She has an undeniable passion for all things in the digital space, and her favourite things are strategic planning, marketing tactics, social media management and digital advertising. Taihlaura is also a Launceston Tamar Valley Tourism Associ...

Nic Cooper is a Regenerative Tourism Specialist at The Tourism Collective but is also a small business owner on the Mornington Peninsula. He has extensive experience spanning destination marketing, product development, and customer engagement with a particular passion and expertise for sustainable and regenerative tourism. Visit Northern Tasmania CEO, Tracey Mallet, sits down with Nic at the 2023...

Tim Polmear is Co-Founder of Waubs Harbour Distillery on the beautiful east coast of Tasmania. Before venturing into the world of whisky, Tim and his wife Bec founded Flat Tummy Tea Co – a herbal tea remedy to help ease indigestion. After falling into the world of influencer marketing, the brand quickly gained momentum and turned into a flourishing e-commerce business. Then, in 2016, Tim and Bec s...

Today’s episode is with Larni Davies – TICT’s very own Tassie Tourism Ambassador Program Coordinator. A passionate Tasmanian, Larni Davies has 31 years of experience in the tourism industry. After living interstate and even overseas for six years, Larni returned to Tasmania where she worked as a bushwalking guide with Tasmanian Expeditions; Cradle Mountain Huts; the Bay of Fires Walk and later pro...

Today’s episode is with Bart Sobies – an industry professional whose career has spanned more than two decades. He began his entrepreneurial journey at the age of 15 with the launch of his first online business evolving into a prosperous tech company.  Since then, Bart has founded and led several businesses, all centred around technology, marketing and investment specifically within the tourism ind...

Lauren Cameron is TICT's newly appointed Carbon Action Advisor. Lauren is a sustainability and communications specialist, whose career spans fifteen years working across sustainability, international development, tourism and media. Having started out as a journalist with The Advocate in Tasmania’s northwest, Lauren has since worked as Chief Editor of a sustainable lifestyle magazine in Hong K...

Fanus Ghebrezgabhier is a Senior Trainer at F45 Moonah. F45 has taken Australia and the world by storm to become the fastest growing gym brand on the planet. Originating in Sydney, Australia, the ‘F’ stands for functional training, a mix of circuit and high intensity interval training (HIIT) workouts geared towards everyday movement, and the ‘45’ is the total amount of time each class runs for.  I...

Nunami Sculthorpe-Green is a proud palawa and warlpiri woman, and founder of Blak Led Tours Tasmania , an Aboriginal tourism business that is passionate about truth-telling and the representation of Tasmanian Aboriginal stories.  Recognised for her profound impact on the Tasmanian tourism industry, Nunami was awarded the 2022 Tasmanian Tourism Minister’s Young Achieve Award. In today’s episode, Lu...

Matt and Vanessa are the Owners and Managers of Bangor Vineyard Shed – a multi award-winning, 4-hectare vineyard and a beautiful 6,000-hectare farming property located at Dunalley in Tasmania’s southeast.  Recently, Bangor won Gold at the 2022 Tasmanian Tourism Awards and at the Qantas Australian Tourism Awards in the Wineries, Distilleries & Breweries category – a true testament to the hard w...

Since 2011, Luke Martin has been at the helm of the TICT as its CEO. Throughout the past 12 years, he has seen tourism in Tasmania evolve into what it is today - an industry that makes a greater contribution to its state's economy than any other in Australia. Finally, the time has come for the interviewer to become the interviewee! Hosted by Tom Wootton, today's episode is longer than us...

Christine Finnegan is the Co-CEO of the Tasmania JackJumpers – the tenth and latest team to join the National Basketball League (NBL). Christine has had a truly remarkable career spanning more than 25 years (and counting!) as a leading sports administrator in Australia. She was one of the first people hired in the formation of the JackJumpers back in 2020 and has contributed significantly to the t...

Peter is a Director and Principal Architect at Cumulus Studio in Hobart, an architecture firm whose work spans from renovations to large-scale urban projects.  Awarded nationally and internationally for his high-profile tourism project portfolio, Peter’s work includes transforming sensitive heritage sites like PumpHouse Point and The Apple Shed as well as new projects such as Saffire and the Dove...

Jenn Bett is a passionate member and advocate for Tasmania’s tourism industry. She first arrived as an international student more than 20 years ago and has since had a range of experience within the tourism industry. She spent nine years with Tourism Tasmania working directly with trade and media partners to raise awareness of Tasmania. Then, in 2016, Jen rejoined the Port Arthur Historic Site Man...

Lindene Cleary is the newly appointed Chief Marketing Officer at Tourism Tasmania . Prior to fulfilling this position, Lindene spent the last five years as Head of Brand Marketing overseeing the delivery of the agency’s ‘Come Down for Air’ brand platform and ‘Off Season’ campaign.  In this episode, Luke Martin spoke with Lindene about her career in marketing, firstly with Coca-Cola and then with T...

Emily Briffa is CEO and co-founder at Hamlet Inc. , a catering and hospitality business in South Hobart. Arriving in Hobart in 2016, Emily was confronted by the scale of entrenched unemployment in the Tasmanian community. Leaving her own career as a chef, Emily established Hamlet, a thriving not-for-profit social enterprise that provides practical work experience and hands-on training placements t...