Tag / family business

by brandsa2018

Miranda sisters produce an ideal winery blend

An ideal blend of skills has placed three sisters at the helm of Lou Miranda Estate in the Barossa. Since 2005, Lisa and Victoria Miranda have steered business at the winery that carries their father’s name, but the recent arrival of their sibling Angela as winemaker, bringing more than a decade of international experience, makes the family business complete after a careful 14-year progression.

Angela, who was previously Pernod Ricard’s UK packaging operations manager, US packaging operations manager and technical operations manager in the Barossa, came back to her family’s winery at Rowland Flat in mid-February – after vintage had already started – and acted fast to ensure the family’s progression as a boutique wine brand continues.

“We’d always intended for Angela to join us, but she was reluctant to leave her previous position which saw her travelling most of the year to emerging wineries in China, India and New Zealand,” says Victoria. “Once she came back to work in the Barossa, the decision to join us just seemed like a natural fit.”

The Miranda sisters, Lisa, left, Miranda and Angela of Lou Miranda Estate in the Barossa Valley.

It’s the latest step in a long journey for Lou Miranda’s family, which moved to the Barossa from Griffith in 1991 so that the former Miranda wine brand (which was then among Australia’s larger family-owned wine companies) could access more high-quality fruit.

The big old winery building, erected in 1919, became a weekend playground for the young Miranda girls while their father and mother worked, and later became their own workplace, after they turned 18, as they each took turns serving at the cellar door.

It provided them with a useful skill set when big change came after McGuigan Wines bought the Miranda label in 2003, splitting the broader Miranda family’s wine connections.

For a while, Lou’s family continued to sell Miranda wines from the cellar door, but in 2005, they transformed the Barossa property into a separate identity as Lou Miranda Estate – and Lou’s daughters stepped to the forefront of the business, with Lisa drawing on her sales background and Victoria bringing graphic design skills.

“Dad wasn’t ready to retire, and he had no problem at all with his girls taking the reins,” says Lisa. “We had always been involved in everything along the way. We never thought of ourselves as girls facing any obstacles. We were simply this family’s next generation, moving the business forward.”

Lou Miranda handed the reigns of the boutique winery to his three daughters Lisa, Victoria and Angela.

It was daunting to start again – “We had zero customers, and now we are selling 25,000 cases per year” – but the daughters say they had Lou’s complete confidence to build the business on the back of his experience and their fresh ideas.

Their foundation was the winery at Rowland Flat – previously the Liebich family’s Rovalley winery, which had passed through several sets of hands, but still had the same infrastructure and – more importantly – large reserves of the fortified wines that Rovalley was famous for, stored in the original 7000-litre oak vats that the Liebichs had constructed in 1919.

Angela has revived her fortified winemaking skills, learned through such luminaries as David Morris (Morris of Rutherglen) and Philip Laffer (chief winemaker at Jacob’s Creek), because fortified wines still hold strong appeal for cellar door customers, and was the focus of fortified masterclasses held in the winery during the recent Barossa Vintage Festival.

Many more treasures have greeted Angela in the winery – including fruit from serious 90-plus-year-old shiraz vines (the best being reserved for the $150 Master Piero shiraz, named after Victoria’s first son), and recent plantings of pinot grigio and sagrantino grapes. “Lou was interested in adding Italian varieties but didn’t want to do the same as everyone else,” explains Lisa.

It’s a surprise for these wines to appear in the Barossa, especially a bright, crunchy pinot grigio built in the authentic Italian style around a firm acidic spine. Even more impressive is sagrantino made light and spicy with bright blueberry and liquorice flavours, rather than being heavy and overly tannic as many of these wines from Umbria in Italy are made.

Equally impressive is old vine grenache made in a lively style with juicy raspberry held in check by firm tannins; and a rich blend of old vine shiraz and mourvédre from the 110-year-old Angels vineyard at Lyndoch.

Many wine drinkers remain unaware of these changes, as the family’s popular Leone brand has primarily been noted for its value wines, and the elite Lou Miranda Estate wines are largely a mystery.

The challenge now is for the three sisters to promote these new wines through marketing initiatives that include in-home tasting parties, where a staff wine consultant presents the Lou Miranda Estate and Leone wine ranges for groups of up to eight guests in their homes.

“We have a lot to do,” says Angela, who adds that the full extent of the Miranda sisters’ work won’t be immediately evident, because the cruel 2019 vintage has produced scant volumes of fruit – including a paltry 300 litres (one barrel) of old vine shiraz. “Our best,” adds Angela with a grin, “is yet to come.”

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Aerotech flying high for fire protection and ag support

At the height of summer on those hot, windy days, the sound of a helicopter overhead can be both confronting and comforting.

Confronting because it might mean a bushfire is burning nearby, but also comforting because the flames will soon be doused by over 3000 litres of liquid from aerial firefighting bombers.

The Aerotech Group is behind the aircraft most likely to be seen in these scenarios. During peak periods 10 fixed wing aircraft and three helicopters are on standby at Brukunga in the heart of the Adelaide Hills, as well as two fixed wing aircraft and two helicopters in Hoyleton in the Mid North, two fixed wing bombers in Mt Gambier and two fixed wing bombers in Port Lincoln.

In the past six years Aerotech has doubled its fleet to 28 aircraft, grown to 50 employees and has seen growth in revenue of about 15% per annum.

Around 20-25 people are usually stationed at the Brukunga base and within three minutes of a callout the aircraft can be in the air, travelling at 300km/hour to provide a rapid response to the emergency and gather information for the CFS.

This vital service, covering the entire state, has been provided by the McCabe family for more than 30 years.

Now operated by Sam McCabe, The Aerotech Group was established in 1968 in Tintinara in the Murray Mallee as a one aircraft, agriculture aerial application service that sprayed crops for local farmers.

Sam’s parents Pam and Bob took over the ailing business when the owners walked out, and over time the business has grown via acquisitions and diversification to become one of South Australia’s great success stories and the largest company of its type in Australia.

As well as being the managing director, Sam is also the chief pilot. While he jokes that flying is “the only thing I really feel I am good at”, his business acumen is evident in the rapid expansion of Aerotech.

Aerotech’s planes are crucial in the fighting of bushfires across the state.

The past six years has been a period of intense growth for The Aerotech Group which has four operating entities including Aerotech Agriculture, Aerotech 1st Response, which is responsible for aerial suppression of bushfires and aerial response to oil spills around Australia’s coastline, Aerotech Helicopters, and Aerotech Maintenance. During this period the business has doubled its fleet to 28 aircraft, 50 employees and has seen growth in revenue of around 15% per annum.

“The re-structure of the state’s firefighting fleet, as well as additional government funding for aerial firefighting has played a big role in Aerotech’s growth,” Sam says.

“We have established two new airbases to support our aerial firefighting efforts, and we are in the process of re-building our facility at Parafield Airport.

“The rebuild will allow us to relocate our head office from Kent Town to the new facility which will have capacity for us to conduct maintenance on four times the number of aircraft at any one time.”

The planes are also used in the spraying of crops.

Sam began flying lessons in Year 12, and earned his commercial pilot’s license at the age of 19. Although he doesn’t fly as much as he would like these days, he says he still puts himself on the ‘roster’ as much as he can.

“I love flying,” Sam says. “I have over 10,000 hours in the air and reckon I’ve done around 40,000 landings/takeoffs. The agriculture side of things is what I enjoy the most. Flying four-feet off the ground, under powerlines at 300km/hour is a massive adrenaline rush.”

The Aerotech Group has recently conducted testing which shows aerial agricultural application provides better results for farmers than ground application for crops.

“We are part of SA’s rural community, so we want to make sure we are doing the right thing in servicing our farmers,” Sam says. “Other than our head office, all of our airbases are located in regional areas, which means that the people we employ and their lives and families are part of regional areas. Not only that but, over the past 50 years of business, we have formed strong relationships and friendships with the farmers we look after.”

An Aerotech plane flies above an olive grove.

However, Sam says that aerial firefighting and offering protection for people and property, is the most rewarding part of his job.

“You never know what a fire season might bring,” Sam says. “Everyone always has a lot to say about it – whether it’s a wet winter with lots of ‘fuel’ on the ground, or if it’s been dry and people say the country will light up easily.

“Either way, when you as the pilot are able to see first-hand that you have saved a house from being burnt, or farming equipment, lives and livelihoods, that’s pretty satisfying.”

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SA cheesemaker plans for new home in state-of-the-art manufacturing plant

Celebrating 30 years of success in cheesemaking, South Australian family business La Casa Del Formaggio has recently announced their move to a new state-of-the-art cheese manufacturing plant, to be built in 2020.

Renowned for their award-winning cheese products including ricotta, bocconcini, mozzarella, pecorino, parmesan, haloumi and burrata, La Casa Del Formaggio will expand from their current site at Glynde, north-east of Adelaide, to the Northern Adelaide Food Park.

The food park at Edinburgh Parks about 25km from the CBD is a food processing and manufacturing hub allowing businesses to innovate and collaborate with industry to access international markets.

La Casa Del Formaggio’s managing director, Claude Cicchiello, says the business is currently in the master planning stages of what they believe will be one of Australia’s best cheese manufacturing facilities.

Cherry bocconcini being made in the Glynde factory.

“I feel very fortunate we’ve been able to do what we love for 30 years, and we’re excited at the opportunity to expand our operations,” he says.

“The world-class modern facility will allow us to continue to produce cheese and dairy products for the Australian consumer, foodservice and export markets.”

Claude’s parents Gerardo and Rosa Cicchiello, migrants from Italy, started the business in 1988. It grew slowly and organically from its origins as a small operation supplying only the Cicchiello’s own continental deli, before higher demand saw the deli close and the cheesemaking operations take centre stage. Today, the business employs 130 people and supplies fresh cheese products Australia wide.

“Our family introduced bocconcini into the Australian market,” Claude says. “It was a product that was foreign to many families who were not used to enjoying fresh cheeses in their meals.”

“However, our local European community was certainly glad to find the product available, and over time we educated consumers through recipe sharing and cooking demonstrations.

“We also had a bit of luck in the early days with celebrity chefs such as Jamie Oliver using the products in his recipes.”

Claude’s sister Marissa behind the counter at La Casa Del Formaggio’s retail shop.

In the early 1990s Claude successfully implemented manufacturing processes that enabled the bocconcini product to be transported from the manufacturing facility onto supermarket shelves. The bocconcini products are still their number one seller.

“The Australian palate has certainly changed over the past 20 years. I remember a time when it was all about cheddar, with some blue and a little brie, but the demand for fresh cheese has taken off,” Claude says.

“We’re always keeping a close eye on European cheese trends, and our traditional hands-on cheese making techniques allow us to develop these products for the Australian market.

“Last year we launched our burrata – a delicate shell of fresh mozzarella that encases a decadent filling of stracciatella (mozzarella shreds soaked in cream), and it’s already proving to be very popular.”

Claude, left, and his father Gerardo in the factory.

Claude says making a consistent high-quality fresh cheese is not as simple as following a recipe.

“The milk from which you make the cheese changes regularly, and our cheese-makers need to adjust accordingly – it really is an art,” he says.

Along with the new facility at Edinburgh Park, Claude looks forward to maintaining a presence at their current location in Glynde, with a small cheesemaking operation and sales outlet open to the public.

“We still want to honour our home,” he says. “I love South Australia and I couldn’t imagine doing business and living anywhere else.”

Burrata features a delicate shell of fresh mozzarella encasing stracciatella.

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Adelaide Hills apple dynasty growing fresh success

Working with family can have its own set of advantages and disadvantages, but Adelaide Hills food technologist Joyce Ceravolo wouldn’t have it any other way.

The 29-year-old is a fourth-generation family member of Ashton-based fruit growers Ceravolo Orchards, producers of apples, pears, cherries and strawberries.

Studying law and chemical engineering at university, Joyce had ambitions to enter the cosmetics industry and even worked in dairy processing before the call of the family business was something she couldn’t ignore.

She now works alongside her brother Joseph, and together the siblings have taken the reigns of Ceravolo Orchards’ juicing business Ashton Valley Fresh.

The wholesale fresh cider and drinking juice business complements the family’s core operation, Ceravolo Orchards, which has seven growing sites across the Adelaide Hills and a strawberry farm at Myponga, all up employing about 150 people seasonally.

The Ceravolos have been involved in fruit growing and market gardening in the Hills for decades, with Joyce’s great-grandparents migrating from Italy to Australia in the 1950s.

The Ceravolo family of Ashton Valley Fresh and Ceravolo Orchards, from left, siblings Joseph and Joyce and their parents Sandra and Tony. Photo by James Knowler.

Her grandfather can still be spotted on a tractor chugging away in the orchards, while her father Tony and her other brother Ralph rise in the wee hours of the morning to truck wholesale fruit to the South Australian Produce Market in Pooraka.

Together, the Ceravolos run a multi-layered operation, with each generation of the family bringing a different work ethic and fresh ideas to ensure they stay in the game.

“We are all different,” Joyce says. “My grandparents’ generation is the careful, hard-working generation and my dad’s generation learnt to work smart but still thought everyone should work harder. My two brothers and myself very much employ the school of thought that if something can be made computerised or made easier, let’s do that.”

Ashton Valley Fresh was born in 2008 from a desire to expand the business’s portfolio and give local growers better returns on less than perfect fruit.

In 2013 Joyce and Joseph stepped in to run the juicing business with Joyce taking on the role of quality assurance manager, and Joseph becoming production manager.

“Joseph had never worked in food processing before, and I had come from dairy processing, so we both had a very steep learning curve together and it was incredibly challenging for the first two years,” Joyce says.

“But now we work together fantastically and I can’t imagine working with anybody else. We have an amazing synergy, we’re both forward thinkers, we like a fast-paced environment and we like innovation. It’s been really fun.”

Ashton Valley Fresh’s Hills Harvest juices.

The core part of Ashton Valley Fresh is juicing apples for the cider industry, with Hills Cider Company one of its major partners.

Joyce says the bulk juice side of the business continues to grow between 15–30% year on year, depending on the quality of the season.

Ashton Valley Fresh also has its own line of still and sparkling juices, free from added sugars and sold in supermarkets, greengrocers and other specialty retailers.

But it’s not just fruit and juice that keeps the Ceravolos busy.

On December 8 they’ll celebrate the opening of Lot 100, a cellar door, restaurant and function space in Nairne in the Adelaide Hills.

The combined production facility and visitor experience is a collaboration between Ashton Valley Fresh and three fellow local businesses, Hills Cider Company, Adelaide Hills Distillery and Mismatch Brewing Company.

“The benefit of joining with those companies is that we’re going to have a real paddock-to-plate experience there,” Joyce says.

“People are going to be able to see apples on the trees, the distillery processing the waste product from those apples, and see Mismatch brewing beer from our strawberry juice. Essentially it will give people that immersive experience so they can understand why their food costs what it does, why they should pay a premium price and why SA is an amazing place to do those things.”

This year is momentous for another important reason, Joyce is expecting her first child in December, and the Ceravolos are also in the running for a number of SA Food Industry Awards, announced on November 23.

Joyce is nominated for the Next Generation Award and her father Tony is up for the Leader Award. Ashton Valley Fresh is also in the running for the Business Excellence Award, Innovation in Food Award and the Sustainability Award.

Food South Australia CEO Catherine Sayer says Joyce is a great example of an emerging leader who has strong support from her family.

“Joyce has taken on leadership positions with the Apple and Pear Growers Association of SA and has recently joined the Food SA board so not only is she experiencing leadership in the family business, she is doing so industry wide,” she says.

The Ceravolo family in their Ashton orchard. Photo by Tricia Watkinson.

Catherine says strong leadership is critical for business and the state’s economy.

“The SA food and beverage industry is largely made up of privately, often family owned businesses so it is critical to have strong leadership from within these businesses to in turn support business and the state’s economy to grow,” she says.

Regardless of the outcome of the awards night, Joyce is confident about her place in the state’s food industry, and the prosperity of the sector as a whole.

“This can be an unpopular opinion, but I think the food industry is without a doubt the sexiest industry in SA,” she says.

“Food is one of the most fast-paced, forward thinking industries … a lot of people talk about defence and how innovative that is, but food is 10 times more innovative from where I sit.

“There are so many jobs for a wide range of people. There is room for those who like science, technology, hands-on production roles, and we need people who can work with computers and design programs to make our businesses more efficient.

“We want to make sure we keep attracting creative and committed young people. If you lack that commitment and passion, this isn’t the industry for you because you’re feeding people, you’re giving people what they put into their bodies, which is a huge responsibility.

“I’m very passionate about this subject in case you can’t tell!”

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Beerenberg celebrates $14m factory expansion in Hahndorf

Renowned South Australian jam and condiments maker Beerenberg is celebrating the official completion of its $14m factory and headquarters at Hahndorf in the Adelaide Hills.

Sixth-generation family member and managing director Anthony Paech has fired up the new bottling line, processing hundreds of bottles of the food producer’s popular tomato sauce.

The multi-staged redevelopment, which began in 2015, will see the longstanding family company’s production capacity double, securing its long-term future in the country’s oldest surviving German settlement.

The 6500sqm head office expansion includes state-of-the-art factory equipment, allowing 15 tonnes of product (60,000 bottles) to be processed per shift.

Beerenberg managing director Anthony Paech switched on the new bottling line recently.

Anthony says the expansion provides a platform for major growth and stability for Beerenberg’s future.

It currently employs 85 people.

“This is a state-of-art design which enables higher control over the cooking and bottling of product, allowing us to craft an even higher quality of product in larger volumes,” says Anthony, whose family has been working on the Hahndorf land since 1839.

“There is also natural light and a climate controlled modern environment for staff, with the latest safety features.

“Finally, there is a room for expansion which we have needed for some time.”

The facility will be officially opened today (June 5) by South Australian Governor Hieu Van Le.

The project was worked on by a number of local businesses, including Moto Projects, Sarah Constructions, McMahon Services, Michael Watson Architects, and Swanbury Penglase.

“We sought to find a community-friendly approach to expand our Adelaide Hills base into an ultra-modern facility, securing its future in the Hills and gearing it for further international growth,” Anthony says.

Siblings Sally and Anthony Paech outside the $14m new Beerenberg factory and headquarters in Hahndorf.

Beerenberg is also a ‘pick-your-own’ strawberry farm and this summer it attracted more than 80,000 people.

Beerenberg – which means ‘Berry Hill’ in German – has more than 90 products in its range, including jams, sweet and savoury sauces and condiments.

The products are available in 24 countries, on major airlines and in more than 300 hotels worldwide.

The business is run by the three Paech siblings, Anthony, Robert, who is farm manager, and Sally who is marketing manager.

Their late father Grant Peach began selling strawberries from a roadside stall in 1971 after the first strawberry patch was planted near the family home.

The Beerenberg family Robert, left, Sally, Carol and Anthony Paech.

In 1975, Grant and wife Carol launched the pick-your-own strawberries concept which quickly became a thriving tourist destination before new products, including chutney and pickled onions, were added.

In 1980 the factory and shop were built and five years’ later a contract was secured with airline Qantas to serve mini Beerenberg jams to customers.

As the years rolled on the first export deals were made and the brand continued to grow until 2013 when it underwent a major overhaul, leading to a boost in national sales.

Grant Paech died in 2011 after a long illness and is remembered as a pioneer and innovator in the state’s food industry.

Visit I Choose SA to find out how you can support our state by choosing South Australian businesses, products and services.

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From corner café to brunch institution: the Argo story

It’s not hard to judge the success of Daniel Milky’s hugely popular Argo on the Parade by seeing the lineup of eager smashed avocado enthusiasts snaked out the door.

Same goes for Victoria Square’s Argo on the Square, a weekday hotspot crawling with diners wanting their quinoa or falafel fix.

Argo and Co owner Daniel says his family’s cafés may have served Hollywood royalty including Hilary Swank and Adelaide’s own Teresa Palmer, but it’s the everyday people of SA who really spark his interest when placing their coffee orders.

Argo and Co owner Daniel Milky is at home behind the coffee machine.

“People come into the shop and talk about all sorts of things, they might be having a problem or something that’s really working for them and I love being in that position, connecting with people,” he says.

“Once you get involved and start mingling, people genuinely care about you.”

Both Argo cafés fall under Daniel and his family’s business Argo and Co, which also includes Nev’s Supa Deli at St Agnes, specialty coffee roaster Monastery Coffee and Juice Bureau, also on The Parade.

Daniel is also a partner in barbershop The Fellow Barber, and is an online coach and co-founder of The Business Therapist of Evolve East End co-working venue.

Overall, Argo and Co employs about 130 South Australians.

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It’s a family affair, with the Milky clan – of Lebanese heritage – all involved in the business “in some way or another”.

Daniel grew up with six sisters and one brother and spent most of his childhood running around the family’s delis and snack bars.

“Anyone who is in business knows how incredibly difficult it is to run a business with family, they’re your biggest asset and your biggest liability at the same time,” he says.

“I can’t do what I do without my family because at the end of the day if something needs to be done I can trust that it’s going to happen and there’s no second guessing.”

The Argo phenomenon began in 2010 shortly after Argo on the Parade opened.

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Argo Delicatessen has existed in its place for decades, with the Milky family involved in the popular deli in years gone by.

Daniel had achieved a degree in health sciences and a Masters in accounting, but upon finding out the old Argo deli was up for sale once more, he made an offer and signed a deal within hours.

“It was one of those things that happened, it wasn’t a conscious thought that occurred,” he says.

“Going through all my university education was a lot of work and then saying I’m going to go back to hospitality, it was like five or six years of uni going down the drain.”

The career change paid off, as the Norwood café quickly built a loyal following of coffee lovers and health conscious diners, sparking the need for another Argo in Victoria Square.

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Now there’s rarely a time during the day when the coffee machine isn’t grinding or the smoothie blender not roaring.

Like most South Australians who are behind small to medium enterprises, Daniel has always had his finger on the political pulse.

Daniel describes the new Liberal Government’s proposed payroll tax cut for small businesses as a “boost of confidence”.

Under the plan, the payroll tax threshold would be lifted from $600,000 to $1.5m.

“I think we’re (currently) paying around $80,000–$90,000 a year in payroll tax,” Daniel says.

“It affects small business in a huge way, because that’s money that we cannot afford to go and invest in new equipment, new staff or expansions because you have to account for this deficit.”

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Further growth is on the horizon for Argo and Co, with aspirations for an Argo Wholefoods store to launch this year, a few doors up from Argo on the Parade.

The smaller café will aim to provide healthy and reasonably priced meals for families.

Daniel is also working on an Argo gym concept, allowing fitness gurus a chance to enjoy healthy fare before or after their workouts.

The concept will launch in September or October in Adelaide’s southern suburbs.

“We pride ourselves on being ahead of the curve in what’s offered in this space, especially this healthy eating, breakfast and brunch space, and not just offering the same old,” Daniel says.

“If you want to find something a bit different, you’re more likely to find it with us.”

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Barossa Fine Foods rolls out big plans for 2018

Smallgoods producer Barossa Fine Foods is facing big changes in 2018, taking on another renowned SA business, undergoing a packaging rebrand and celebrating its 100-year-old family history.

Barossa Fine Foods, which has a long-standing retail presence across SA, announced today it has acquired 58-year-old seafood brand Angelakis Bros.

The company says it has acquired an agreement with Angelakis, officially taking over on May 4 and continuing with no disruptions.

The announcement comes a week after Barossa Fine Foods revealed plans to overhaul its branding and packaging to celebrate the Knoll family history and prepare the name for “rapid national expansion”.

Fourth generation family member and Barossa Fine Foods development manager, Alex Knoll, says the company is looking to have a larger presence in the eastern states.

“We’re approaching 100 years since my great uncle, Andreas Knoll, first ventured into the area of smallgoods and started a dynasty that, through various iterations both in Germany and SA, is now Barossa Fine Foods,” he says.

“With this milestone looming – and with us looking to gain a stronger foothold in the eastern seaboard states of NSW, QLD and VIC – we thought it timely to refresh our branding, and at the same time, have a bit of fun by sharing our history in a series of light-hearted back stories featured on our packaged goods.”

The company says the rebranding will also drive a large push into the burgeoning markets of Asia, while stimulating the local economy, creating new jobs and offering current workers greater opportunities.

It is understood the new packaging will hit the shelves from May.

The new packaging will be on shelves in May.

It will have a “consistent look and feel” across its 100g sliced range of more than 20 products, its 300g cooked sausages, 500g fresh sausages, pâté, kabana and ambient products.

Alex says that while the family prides itself on being progressive, innovative and forward-thinking, upholding tradition was paramount.

“So, while the brand identity has evolved to more accurately reflect a thriving 21st Century business with strong family traditions, we remain true to our high-quality award-winning products and artisan production standards as well as sourcing as many local ingredients as we can,” he says.

Barossa Fine Foods’ origins date back to post WW1 Germany when 15-year-old apprentice Andreas Knoll mixed his first leberwurst at a small goods factory in Munich in 1924.

The Barossa Fine Foods family.

The brand we know today was born in the early 1990s when third-generation Franz and Barbra Knoll purchased an existing business of the same name in the Adelaide Central Market.

Barossa Fine Foods currently employs 250 people across nine retail outlets throughout the state and in Victoria and has almost 300 stockists nationwide.

With its factory based at Edinburgh North, the company has some 600 products from hams, bacon, sausages and other Bavarian treats.

Barossa Fine Foods also runs Standom Smallgoods and Schulz Butchers at Angaston.

Visit I Choose SA to find out how you can support our state by choosing South Australian businesses, products and services.

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Wallis Cinemas still making magic after all these years

Wallis Cinemas boss Lorna Wallis’ first date with the man who would later become her husband was sitting in the rows of the Capri Theatre, in Adelaide’s inner northern suburbs.

It was the late 1950s, a time when going to the movies was worth getting dressed up for, “gloves and all”.

Lorna, 79, can’t remember the name of the film they watched, but recalls the moment she dropped a box of chocolates Bob had bought her all over the floor.

“Buying a box of chocolates in those days was very expensive and I’d just opened them when I went to get one out and dropped the lot,” she says.

“Bob was very cross. I miss him terribly, it’s been 11 years.”

Wallis Theatres founder Hughie Wallis, second from left.

More than half a century later and Lorna is still walking the foyers of South Australian cinemas, carrying on the legacy of her late husband and the state’s movie man, Bob Wallis.

Bob was the son of Wallis Theatres founder Hughie Wallis, who opened the state’s first drive-in theatre, the Blue Line at West Beach, in 1954.

The opening of the Blue Line theatre sparked the explosion of drive-in culture in SA: teenagers piled into FJ Holdens, speakers hanging from car windows and kids munching on Chiko Rolls in the back seat.

In 1955, the Mainline Drive-In at Gepps Cross opened and is now the only one left in Adelaide.

Hughie died in 1994 aged 84, leaving Bob in charge. But when Bob himself fell ill and passed away in 2007, it was Lorna and their daughter Michelle’s turn to take over.

Lorna and her late husband Bob, son of Wallis Theatres founder, Hughie Wallis.

The cinema chain, now known as Wallis Cinemas, has been making South Australians laugh, cry and everything in between for almost 70 years.

“As long as people still come to the cinemas, that’s what we want,” Lorna says.

“There’s nothing like the big screen, I know there are big TVs now, but there’s nothing quite like a night out at the movies.”

Hughie Wallis had a fascination with photography and filmmaking and laid the foundations of his business when he began screening Hollywood films in community halls across Adelaide.

The opening of the Blue Line at West Beach in the ’50s sparked the establishment of a handful of other Wallis drive-ins and cinemas across metropolitan Adelaide and regional SA.

Its theatres included the Ozone at Glenelg, the Chelsea in Adelaide’s east, a cinema complex in Hindmarsh Square and of course, the Piccadilly in North Adelaide.

Lorna has fond memories of the old theatre, as she grew up around the corner on Childers Street, and would see a film there every Wednesday and Saturday night “with a group of young ones”.

The Piccadilly Cinema in its early days. PHOTO: Cinema Treasures, Brian Pearson. 

She says the Piccadilly Theatre was also Bob’s favourite.

“Bob loved going to the Piccadilly, his funeral was held there,” she says.

“They had on his seat, ‘reserved for Bob’, which was nice.”

Over the decades, the drive-in culture faded and the company closed many of its facilities.

Wallis now employs about 230 people across four cinemas at Mitcham, Piccadilly, Noarlunga, and Mt Barker, as well as the Gepps Cross drive-in. The business recently purchased the Deacons Cinema at Mildura.

Lorna says Wallis Cinemas’ success and longevity in SA as a small-to-medium enterprise is all down to its loyal employees.

“A lot of our staff have been with us for 40 years, so we have very loyal employees. You have to have good people around you. Bob always told me that you’re only as good as the people around you,” she says.

“The patron is number one and we believe in pleasant customer service and cleanliness in our cinemas.”

The Piccadilly Cinemas.

Lorna admits business is tough with competition from larger cinema chains and online streaming giants such as Netflix, causing Wallis to drop its ticket prices by almost 50% last year.

Nonetheless, she says Wallis Cinemas is proud of its SA heritage and its small-scale footprint.

“We’re family. We’re too small to go up against the big guys interstate,” Lorna says.

“I’m proud to be South Australian. I’ve grown up here, my family’s grown up here and I just think we’re a lovely little state.

“You get into these others that get a bit big, but I love it here.”

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