WHY?

In business, as in life, this is one of the most important questions we can ask ourselves. Defining our purpose helps to calibrate our values compass and gives us an important reference for answering questions.

Absolute Outdoors is a very diverse business. Our operations cover adventure tourism, outdoor education, outdoor retail as well as operating the local Halls Gap post office. While all of these parts of the business have a wide scope of outcomes, they all work together for a common purpose.

"To continually improve the health and sustainability of our community and the environment."

Everything we do in business is to support this purpose. Our adventure activities provide opportunities to exercise our physical and mental health. Our school programs provide a platform to educate future generations to care for our planet. Above and beyond our usual operations, we work with several community organisations that align with our purpose and assist them in delivering theirs by providing funded programs. We are currently working on a number of projects to assist in raising funds and awareness to increase the availability of those programs - stay tuned for more on that!

As a retail store, we have an opportunity to foster relationships and promote great organisations and products that share our values and are also committed to improving our planet and our community. As such, a set of values guides our decisions on which brands to partner with and what products we offer.

1. Quality - because longevity means sustainability for the planet and your pocket.
2. Ethical - because commercial gain is no reason to sacrifice ethics.
3. Sustainable - because we want to be here for a good time AND a long time.
4. Australian Made or Owned - Enough said.
5. Value - Because it’s more important than price.
6. Fit for purpose - Because we're a specialised outfitter.

To wrap up, I'd like to tell a little story about the photo below. Those are my feet, clad in  Wilderness Wear socks (Melbourne made from Tasmanian merino - the Fusion lite 'Tribal' if you like them!) sitting rather comfortably in my Mont Mojo Stretch pants (The last great Aussie outdoor apparel brand), on a porta-ledge high off the valley floor overlooking Halls Gap and Lake Bellfield enjoying a ripping sunset. It was Sam and I's 6th anniversary and we thought we'd do something special so we pack a bag full of climbing gear (Climbing is one of our 'things' we do together), grabbed some take away from the Spirit of Punjab (THE BEST - and also one of the most generous community-minded restaurants I've ever seen), a bottle of wine from Pomonal Estate (Relatively young Estate knocking out some amazing wines, beers and ciders) and headed up the mountain for a sunset picnic and campout. A spectacular sunset, good food, great wine and loving company. All was good in the world.

Why am I telling you all this? Because the decisions you make, the clothes you buy and wear, the things you eat and drink, the actions you take, all have an impact. When your 'why' is more than just a line in a business, but part of who you are, it guides the decisions you make in every aspect of life and creates purpose in everything you do.

I am lucky enough to have defined my 'why'. If you're not sure of yours, take some time and ponder on it. Sit in a park, go for a hike, run or ride, climb a mountain and keep it in your thoughts, it will come in time. Then go buy some sweet Aussie socks - If nothing else, your feet will thank you!

Happy trails,