5 minute read
PROFILES
One of Maroochydore’s finest The Duporth Riverside
By Mandy Clarke, Editor
“While you can create an oasis in your home, sometimes you need to regenerate in a fresh environment to feel free from the pressures of everyday life,” say the managers of Duporth Riverside Maroochydore Luxury Apartments.
Visitors to Queensland’s Sunshine Coast quite simply seek paradise. They want an ocean or riverfront location; a luxurious resort full of worldclass leisure facilities and a sumptuous self-contained apartment complete with a spa bath... Oh and views, they want full, ocean views!
The Duporth Riverside Maroochydore Luxury Apartments eff ortlessly fi ts the bill of what anyone could wish for in a Sunshine Coast holiday.
This resort and its beautiful sett ing refl ect the ambience of its desirable destination, situated on absolute riverfront with all apartments having spectacular river and ocean views.
Resident managers Tony Muller and Isabella Azzini-Muller
Muller and Isabella AzziniMuller describe their fi rst visit to the The Duporth Riverside, where they say they were “absolutely stunned” at how stylish the resort was and how incredible the views were.
Isabella said: “We could see instantly that the resort was a very ‘sellable product’ and, on top of that, the managers’ unit was everything we wanted, which was sizable with gorgeous views!” Tony was born and raised in Mudgee, a town in the Central West of New South Wales. He met Isabella while playing professional rugby in Italy, they married and had two boys before returning to NSW to take over the family property. Aft er 28 years on the land growing grapes and producing wine from the fertile valley region (Tony recommends trying the Mudgee red!), in 2018 they decided on a change of pace and set out to move near a beach. Tony said: “Purchasing a management rights business was my idea as I knew about the business from my uncle, who had enjoyed his time in management rights and was successful. Management rights promised us a lifestyle change as well as a chance to be our own boss.
“Aft er many years on the land being ‘a jack of all trades’ I felt I could easily maintain and manage a resort building and facilities. Then to complement
my skills, I knew Isabella’s exceptional administration abilities and expertise in the travel industry would help with managing bookings, and so on.”
The busy resort has a mix of owner occupiers, renters, and holiday lets, with about 20 apartments on the holiday rental roll. These self-contained apartments are all modern and stylishly decorated, spotlessly clean, fully air-conditioned, with a private bathroom and spa bath, they have a fully equipped kitchen, laundry facilities, and the living area features a fl atscreen cable TV, DVD player, free wi-fi , and all the mod-cons.
Guests at The Duporth Riverside enjoy the heated swimming pool, hot tub, and the entire outdoor space was recently renovated. Isabella told us: “Our pool area was beautiful before but now the renovation work is complete, I admit it is absolutely gorgeous. We had plans from last year to renovate the pool area during May 2020, it went ahead and could not have worked out more perfectly because at this time we had closed, due to COVID restrictions, so the work did not disrupt guests or residents.”
The resort location was also a big draw card for Tony and Isabella.
Not only does the resort sit directly on the shore of the magnifi cent Maroochy River but it also has ocean views and is a two-minute walk from the recently refurbished and extended Sunshine Plaza, which is a shopping paradise on the Sunshine Coast.
The area around the resort has a variety of great restaurants, bars, boutiques, and cafes, with Maroochydore Beach and Cott on Tree Park just a short walk away and featuring BBQ facilities plus a children’s playground and great coff ee spots. The famous Mooloolaba Beach is also a short drive along the picturesque coastal road.
Tony and Isabella admit that although they had researched the management rights business model and had an idea of what was involved with managing a resort, they really did not imagine just how much work it would take in reality. They advise anyone else interested in the industry who does not have direct experience to do their homework thoroughly, and then do it again before they jump in.
Isabella revealed: “Yes, it has been hard work. Much more than we realised but we are also very proud to have come through the last few years with such a great product. We will continue to work hard to achieve the best results and make the resort the best it can possibly be so that when the time comes to sell, we will be happy to hand over a truly thriving business.”
Tony said: “The last few years have been challenging and there has been so much more to learn about the industry than we predicted. We have so many more things to think about than just keeping the pool clean and greeting guests, with a very proactive body corporate, hands-on owners, a very busy holiday pool, and on top of that 2020 and COVID-19 threw us all an unexpected curve ball!”
In some ways, the COVID restrictions gave Tony and Isabella a chance to refl ect on their business’s future and provided downtime for them
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to complete their outdoor renovations and refresh the apartments. These essential “catch up” jobs that would otherwise be on the backburner. As for a new COVID-19 normality, Tony and Isabella have introduced enhanced cleaning routines and strictly follow all the recommended precautions to prevent any spread of the virus and ensure guest and resident safety. There is no hesitation from Tony and Isabella when I ask what they have enjoyed most about their last few years in management rights. “Defi nitely the people. We have had the pleasure of meeting some wonderful guests; some have even become lovely friends, but what has been so sad is that most of our return guests have been forced to cancel this year.
“We just want to get back to having our guests return so we can share this magnifi cent
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