Retail and food and beverage expressions of interest sought for WA Top Small Tourism Town Dwellingup

By Shire of Murray

Thought Leadership

Retail and food and beverage expressions of interest sought for WA Top Small Tourism Town Dwellingup

Dwellingup Trails and Visitor Centre (Eastern End) (Photo: Chad Gerber)

15/03/2022 - 09:10

An exciting opportunity for a retail or food and beverage operator has arisen in Dwellingup at its Trails and Visitor Centre.The state of the art facility opened its doors in September 2020 and is the only purpose-built Trails and Visitor Centre in Western Australia.

Set among the towering trees in the tourism town, the Centre is a beautifully designed, adventure-focused tourism resource dedicated to making a visit to Dwellingup an unforgettable experience.

Since opening its doors in September 2020, the Centre has become the epicenter for the burgeoning mountain biking and hiking community and broader visitor market averaging 8,000 visitors a month.

The eastern portion of the Centre is already under lease with a buzzing, integrated trail-friendly café and retail, equipment hire and repair store focused around nature-based activities.

The Shire of Murray is seeking expressions of interest for the western portion of the Trails Centre and is keen to hear from interested retail and/or food and beverage operators who are looking to benefit from the visitor market in Dwellingup and add value and diversify current offerings at the Centre and in the town.

Historically a sleepy former timber mill town and a ‘secret spot’ for nature lovers, Dwellingup has emerged as a dynamic outdoor and adventure-based tourism destination within easy reach of Perth and the South-West. Visitors to the town enjoy mountain biking, hiking, camping, running or walking on high-quality trails, high-ropes adventures, canoeing or other paddle sports and enjoying the town’s local offerings and events.

In 2021, Dwellingup was awarded WA’s Top Small Tourism Town in the GWN7 Top Tourism Town Awards and went on to also being awarded Gold for its Visit Information Services in the Perth Airport WA Tourism Awards.

Shire CEO Dean Unsworth said that “significant investment over the past few years at Federal, State and Local level had been spent on the delivery of outdoor-based activities, trails infrastructure and visitor services to position Dwellingup as a favourite tourism destination known for its high-quality trail offerings”.

Mr Unsworth also said that “Dwellingup is on the cusp of achieving its vision of becoming WA’s premier Trials Town and a Trails Town of National Significance and that it is a unique opportunity for the right operator looking to be part of Dwellingup’s evolution and success”.

“Council will also consider contributing funds to assist with fit-out costs for strong proposals that strengthen Dwellingup’s visitor economy”.

The expression of interest process will be conducted in two stages with stage 1 now open until 19 April 2022 calling for interested parties to respond. Stage 2 of the process will involve those shortlisted proponents in stage 1 being invited to submit a higher level of detail on their proposal. It is anticipated that preferred proponent status will be awarded in June 2022.

DATA & INSIGHTS

Mentioned Organisations

Shire of Murray

Local Governments

Mentioned People

Dean Unsworth

37^th	-	City of Nedlands	$37.82m
38^th	-	Shire of Harvey	$37.45m
39^th	-	Shire of Murray	$34.67m
40^th		Shire of Carnarvon	$27.90m
41^st		Shire Of Wyndham-East Kimberley	$25.26m

Retail and food and beverage expressions of interest sought for WA Top Small Tourism Town Dwellingup

Bookmark

Local Governments

Related Articles

Opinion: Baillie Hill refurb is a heritage revelation

James McClements’ $9m Aldi Pinjarra plan in limbo

Committee approves $25m Pinjarra shopping centre despite opposition

ACE Power’s $212m Ravenswood battery plan approved

Indian agtech moves into Peel food precinct

Tetra Pak moves on Murray