25/06/2026
The Select World Travel Story –
Part 2: The Coffee That Changed Everything
In Part 1, I mentioned that a simple coffee meeting was about to change both our lives forever.
I met Chip a few weeks after moving to the Gold Coast from Sydney.
At the time, I was working in the travel industry and had an interview with a local travel agency in Broadbeach.
After the interview, we decided to meet for coffee.
When I arrived, he was already there waiting.
Little did I know that coffee would change the course of both our lives.
I sat down.
Before I had a chance to say much, he looked at me and said:
"I've been thinking..."
He paused.
"We're both from the travel industry. You have retail experience, I have wholesale experience. Why don't we open a travel agency together?"
Just like that.
No business plan.
No investors.
No long discussions.
Just an idea shared over a cup of coffee.
Looking back now, it sounds a little crazy.
But somehow it felt right.
Within a couple of weeks, we found a small office and opened our doors.
And when I say small, I mean small.
Two desks.
One phone.
No clients.
And a lot of hope.
The phone wasn't ringing because nobody knew who we were.
But every morning we unlocked that office door believing that somehow, some way, we would make it work.
Three months later, while we were already working side by side in our little travel agency, Chip asked me to marry him.
And three months after that, we were married.
Looking back now, I sometimes wonder whether we were brave or simply dreamers.
Either way, one thing was certain.
We had a travel agency.
We had each other.
And we had a dream.
Now all we needed were clients.
To be continued... ❤️
