Marwood

Ian Martin started his working life in tourism as an assistant purser with the Orient line in the late 1950’s, which is when he fell in love with Australia and decided to settle here, finally arriving as a permanent resident in 1969.

After a few years working as an accountant he moved into a marketing position with BP Australia and spent three years in Papua New Guinea before moving to Victoria in 1978 and starting his own retail business.

In 1988 he went back to his first love of tourism and, with his partner Irene, bought a motel in the Grampians. Nine years later they opened Marwood, the first boutique accommodation in Regional Victoria to obtain a five-star rating from the RACV.

Marwood won the Victorian Tourism Award for Best New Tourism Development in 1998 and has entered awards on a number of occasions, twice being a Victorian State Ffinalist in the Telstra Small Business Awards.

Ian was intimately involved in the foundation of the Halls Gap Tourism & Business Association, Chaired the Northern Grampians Shire Tourism Development Committee and spent three years as National Secretary and Victorian President of the Hotel Motel & Accommodation Association.

Now semi-retired, he is looking forward to the opportunity of continuing to make a contribution to the industry that he loves.

Ian is a previous Victorian Tourism Awards judge.