It’s hard to see the appeal of a struggling
ferry service called ‘Philanderer Ferries’.
Named in honour of its founder, the
operation barely broke even conveying
mainly Kangaroo Island residents to
and from the mainland. But in 1989 a
Malaysian company did see possibility
in the venture and bought it, renaming
it SeaLink. A few years later SeaLink
was brought back to South Australian
ownership, heralding the start of what
would become one of this state’s most
impressive success stories.
Today SeaLink Travel Group is an ASX listed company, has an annual
turnover in excess of two-hundred million dollars and employs more
than sixteen-hundred staff across Australia. The company owns
a veritable smorgasbord of tourism ventures, including a travel
agency, adventure tours, resorts, ferries, barges, coaches and a
historic paddle wheeler. ‘We’re the biggest marine tourism transport
business in Australia, and one of the fastest growing South Australian
companies,’ managing director Jeff Ellison tells me proudly.
We’re in the boardroom of SeaLink’s Adelaide offices; a surprisingly
humble room for such a successful business. The walls are
undecorated, save for a print of an 1802 map of Kangaroo Island
by a French cartographer. But the lack of boardroom adornments
is indicative of the company’s strength; its ability to shine the light
on its destinations and remain a reliable and economic link to
unique locations.‘Our charter was always to connect Australia’s icons and landscapes
with the world,’ explains marketing manager Julie-Anne Briscoe.
Julie-Anne has been with SeaLink since 1992 and is infectiously
enthusiastic about both the business and its destinations. ‘We always
looked at Kangaroo Island as a microcosm of Australia,’ she says.
‘We just had to get the world to take notice.’So SeaLink spearheaded an ambitious campaign to make Kangaroo
Island a must-see destination on international visitors’ wish lists. ‘We
went to many of the big tourism trade shows around the world and
focused on really building good relationships with travel agents and
wholesalers,’ Julie-Anne says. ‘We invited them to visit Kangaroo
Island and welcomed them with open arms, and they are still making
bookings with us to this day.’Julie-Anne knows the tourism industry and the Fleurieu well. She was
born in McLaren Vale Hospital and grew up in Willunga, where her
family ran bus company Briscoes’ Motor Service. ‘Briscoes’ buses >Left: The SeaLink Ferry Terminal at Cape Jervis. Above: The island awaits – and is full of beautiful landscapes and winding roads. Photographs by Isaac Forman.