Drew Harry is a Ballarat entrepreneur and former hospitality operator best known for co-founding the chef-hatted Italian restaurant Ragazzone, which became one of the region’s standout dining venues. Before moving into finance, Drew spent over a decade investing in and helping establish high-end restaurants and cafés, building a strong reputation within Ballarat’s hospitality scene. 

After years in hospitality, Drew transitioned into the finance and lending industry, bringing his experience in business, property and investment to help clients navigate their own financial goals. Today he works as a mortgage broker, combining practical business knowledge with a strong understanding of how industries evolve and how people can build wealth through smart financial decisions. 

Outside work, Drew enjoys golf, staying active and spending time with family in regional Victoria.

Joe is a Ballarat local and passionate supporter of regional Victoria. He has over 15 years’ property development experience in Australia and the UK, specialising in residential and mixed-use developments.

His experience includes site acquisition, complex joint venture structuring, legal, finance, planning, design, sales and delivery across multiple projects. He has also been heavily involved in stakeholder management, particularly with affordable housing providers, government departments and infrastructure authorities. 

Joe currently sits on the board for the Ballarat International Foto Biennale and is an active member of Committee for Ballarat.  

Join us this episode as we sit down with Darren Trigg, Project Director at Integra one of Ballarat’s most influential figures in property development and regional growth. With more than 25 years of business leadership and engineering experience, Darren has been at the forefront of shaping how communities are built and thrive in regional Victoria. 

Darren brings a unique blend of technical expertise, strategic insight, and community passion to the conversation. He shares his journey from engineering into major project leadership, insights into the evolving landscape of regional development, and how thoughtful planning can help shape vibrant, sustainable cities. We’ll also explore his views on the challenges facing the housing market, workforce pressures in regional economies, and what it takes to lead teams through change and growth. 

Whether you’re interested in property, regional business, or leadership lessons from someone deeply connected to Ballarat’s future, this episode offers practical takeaways and personal stories that will inspire. Tune in to hear Darren’s vision for community centred development, and what’s next for the places we live and work.

Brendan Wriggley – Founder & Owner of Cobbs Coffee

Brendan Wriggley is a Ballarat-born hospitality entrepreneur best known as the founder and owner of Cobbs Coffee, one of the city’s most beloved specialty cafés. Brendan’s journey into the world of coffee began long before Cobbs opened its doors starting with part-time café work at age 15 and later spanning some of the best cafés across Melbourne and London. 

Originally pursuing a career in journalism, Brendan studied at RMIT University and spent time as a political reporter for The Courier in Ballarat. However, it was his return to hospitality sparked by experiences working in London’s vibrant coffee scene that ultimately led him to follow his passion. 

In December 2020, Brendan opened Cobbs Coffee on the historic corner of Sturt and Lydiard Streets in Ballarat. Under his leadership, the café quickly became a community favourite celebrated for its meticulously brewed specialty coffee, welcoming atmosphere, and Brendan’s commitment to exceptional service. 

Brendan believes cafés are more than just places to drink coffee; they’re vital “third spaces” where people feel acknowledged and connected. This ethos is reflected in the café’s warmth, its relationships with customers, and its growing reputation within Ballarat’s dynamic hospitality scene.

Sean Toohey is a Ballarat based real estate agent with McGrath Real Estate, known for his client-first approach and straight forward, relationship driven style. With a strong focus on communication, trust, and long term results, Sean has built a solid local reputation for guiding buyers and sellers through the property process with clarity and care. In this episode, we talk about the Ballarat market, what really matters when choosing an agent, and how Sean approaches real estate beyond just the transaction.

Today on the podcast, I’m joined by Tim Bone chef, restaurant owner, and one of the more recognisable faces in Australian food thanks to his time on Good Chef Bad Chef.

Since we last spoke, a lot’s changed. Tim’s running his own venue, navigating the highs and lows of hospitality, and getting a proper look behind the curtain of food television.

In this chat, we get into what it really takes to open a restaurant, how TV cooking shows actually work behind the scenes.

Charlie is the voice behind The Ballarat Blogger, a local platform dedicated to shining a light on everything that makes Ballarat special from hidden gems and new venues to community events, local businesses and must visit spots.

With a genuine love for the region and a talent for storytelling, Charlie has built a trusted space where locals and visitors can discover Ballarat through an authentic, down to earth lens. Whether it’s promoting small businesses, sharing honest recommendations, or capturing what’s happening around town, Charlie has become a familiar name in the local scene and a big supporter of the Ballarat community.

Emma Conroy is the owner of Emma’s Bakery in Sturt Street, Alfredton. The successful bakery opened direct to the public in 2021 after Emma first started selling her baked goods at the Trash and Treasure market in Creswick Rd in 2015. Emma’s journey to her own business has been an interesting one, having grown up in Daylesford with her parents and siblings, Emma left school at the age of 15 and fell into a baker’s apprenticeship through Purtell’s Bakehouse. After two and a half years working full time, Emma moved to Sydney as a 17 year old to follow her passion in equestrian and show jumping. Working seven days a week training and preparing horses for competitions Emma was fortunate to be able to travel to Europe for three and a half months in an attempt to qualify for the 2004 Australian Olympic Equestrian Team, though unsuccessful in her pursuit, Emma still competed on the world stage and won medals for equestrian around Europe.   After returning to Australia, Emma decided to move home and began working track work for Ballarat thoroughbred trainer, Darren Weir. When Emma gave birth to her first child, having worked long hours since leaving highschool at 15, the shift to being at home with her new baby was a huge upheaval for Emma and she began to suffer from post natal depression. To preserve her mental health Emma began baking to pass the time and was soon providing delicious home baked treats to family and friends. Her desire to return to work in 2015 required her to find a job that worked around her young family, the Trash and Treasure Market on a Sunday provided a great opportunity for Emma to showcase her baked goods and through this she was able to establish a great wholesale network through various local cafes and independent grocery stores. Having registered her personal home kitchen to commercial standard, Emma soon outgrew her home bakery and had to develop her own commercial space. The opening of her own retail space was the icing on the proverbial cake for Emma. With her incredible work ethic and award winning cakes and pies, Emma’s bakery is quickly becoming a Ballarat legend for a whole host of delicious baked treats!

David Lenehan is living proof that your life’s journey can be as varied as you want to make it with no limits to when you can make a change. Born in Colac, Dave grew up on the extended family dairy farm in Weerite, just outside of Camperdown. The second of 6 kids and, being the oldest son, Dave took what he felt was the expected path out of school after completing year 11 into a farming apprenticeship. For the next 25 years Dave worked across country Victoria and New South Wales as a farm hand and livestock manager.   Mental burnout was the final driving force that saw Dave eventually move out of farming and into a completely different life path. Knowing that he wanted to work in a helping role with people, Dave decided to complete a Cert 4 in disability support, working with Pinarc and through the Ballarat Specialist School Farm in Norman Street. For six years Dave continued in this role, but sensing limitations in his capacity to grow from a career standpoint, Dave took the brave leap into tertiary study at the age of 47 and completed an undergraduate Bachelor of Nursing degree.   Since completing his studies Dave has taken a role as a nurse in oncology which is where he has remained and built to now work as an ANUM on his ward. As a nurse Dave has had the opportunity to navigate through a global pandemic, with constantly shifting rules and regulations impacting both on his own work and on the care of his patients. Through it all Dave has continued to learn and grow and recognise the privilege that comes from working with people at a time when they are at their most vulnerable.

Harley Tempest is a local Ballarat boy who was born and grew up in the commission area of Wendouree West, raised predominantly by his Nan. With a somewhat turbulent childhood, Harley credits some of his position now to the fact that he was able to attend Ballarat High School, one of Ballarat’s best public high schools, and was exposed to families and lifestyles so different from his own that he could see how he wanted his life to be. Harley decided at the beginning of year 12 that school was not for him and so left to become a professional fighter. Despite working to achieve this, it soon became obvious that this was not to be. As an eighteen-year-old man, living off Centrelink benefits he was encouraged to undertake some vocational training and completed a course as a Personal Trainer, though not initially sold on the idea and, left in the lurch at times during work experience by other trainers, eventually Harley found his passion for PT and his niche first as an assistant and eventually manager at Snap Fitness in Ballarat. Through his role at Snap Fitness Harley met Josh and together they worked to build Iron Oak the brand and eventually opened their first gym together in Ballarat in 2014. Since opening Iron Oak, Harley has moved to Shepparton where he and Josh have opened their second gym, Origin, and he has stayed to build it to what it is today. Throughout his life Harley has proven to be a highly motivated young man with vision and purpose; he sets his sights on a goal and works hard to achieve it, always striving for bigger and better things.