Passion

It is rare for me to meet a fellow entrepreneur who shares a passion for his trade.

A lot of businesses are just hunting for money.

Their product and customers come second to their profit margin.

You know, these are the types that immediately start talking about

• prices,
• your costs (their revenue),
• cheapest solution, <>value for money,
• bla bla bla,
• but...

... just forget what a customer really wants.

For example, the road heading west took me to Balaklava.

The dinner in Hotel Royale (Australian for pub) was all right, but the service level was just terrible.

As to give customers a hard time, food and drinks came from 2 separate departments.

And yes, I the customer had to be the interface within this clumsy organization.

1. one waitress takes your order, for food only
2. and a lady from the bar will come take your orders for the drinks, if she has time available.

With a bit of luck you get your drinks delivered.

My luck level did not go that far.

So, I had to
just swallow my food with a dry mouth,
had to pay at the bar for the food
and left as soon as I could.

Help.

The next day of cycling ended in Kadina. I was running late.

As I was tired I just searched for accommodation at the very first motel, the Gateway Motor Inn.

The Kadina Gateway Motor Inn appeared an excellent choice.

• friendly reception
• spacious room, with plenty of space for the push bike
• wonderful shower
• good bed
• a good table to get a bit of work done
• a pool
• and an excellent restaurant.

The restaurant is a bit hidden in a corner, just like the pool.

The owner sees I am warm and thirsty, even though he did not see me cycling in the sun.

He offers me water.

It takes several glasses to get my water levels back up.

The bar hosts a line of beautiful wine bottles.

Now, I love a glass of red yet lack any knowledge about wines. Well, that is just a temporary problem.

The host starts to speak with passion about

• the taste and qualities of every wine,
• the vineyards
• the specialisms of the Barossa and Clare valley,
• the Australian sun and rare rain,
• and where to go and live within easy reach of all vineyards.

He only serves wines that he loves drinking himself.

So the line up of bottles on the bar is the result of a fierce selection.

All those wines gained his approval.

• from some barbeque wines
• to a high quality that offers pure enjoyment.

Shame on me, I only recognize one vineyard, the one of a BBQ wine.

Dinner arrives, no fancy la-di-da, but

• perfect soft meat,
• vegetables al dente
• and mashed potatoes.

Simply first class.

When dinner is over I hear the origin of the meat: Balaklava.

I almost fail to suppress a smile.

The entrepreneur shares another passion with me, about a chicken farm, the supplier of his eggs.

This chicken farm is heaven on earth for chickens, approved by the animal liberation front, after even some midnight inspections.

The next morning the breakfast is another just perfect meal.

Yes, the eggs really taste like egg.

The tomatoes are good.

The bacon is delicious.

The toast is good.

And with this coffee you can wake me up any day.

The Kadina Gateway Motor Inn receives . from me.

The whole motel just radiates passion.

This is exactly what I mean with the SUMit motto: Business must be worth repeating.

I will definitely come back to the Kadina Gateway Motor Inn, even if I have to detour my cycling trip for a few hundred kilometers.