CONTRIBUTED

Retiring after seventy years, Allan Vorias has served Cowra since beginning work as a young boy at 14, along with his father, running several retail, hospitality and catering businesses, serving on council and eventually sharing Cowra with the rest of Australia in both 'Australiana Corner' and his tour company, with the 'Ideal Tours Cowra' bus being a familiar sight to locals, and a fond memory for visitors.

A significant contributor to the Cowra community, with business ventures in retail, tourism and catering, unafraid to explore new opportunities. Allan's success has involved many locals, while his work in tourism has helped promote Cowra to visitors as they discover the region. After seventy years, Allan has decided to retire from his tour bus business, Ideal Tours, and move on to other interests.

Allan's father George migrated from Greece to Australia in 1903. When Allan left school, he assisted his father in running a continental delicatessen in the Calare building on Kendal Street. The deli catered for over three thousand migrants, comprising twenty six different nationalities living in the migrant camp nearby, providing continental foods that they were more familiar with. It was a remarkably busy and successful time for this type of business for Allan. For two years in the shop, two German women were employed to understand the languages and customs of their patrons, their children going to school in Cowra.

The migrant men were commissioned to work on the Snowy Mountains Hydro scheme; helping to construct the largest engineering project undertaken in Australia over two years. The need to cater for migrants and their families was strong.

Looking for new opportunities after the migrant camp closed, Allan saw the need for an upmarket modern butchery in the town. I 1957 Allan remodeled the delicatessen, turning half into a butchery. Allan was taught the butchery trade by Alf Flynn, eventually opening his own, Calare Butchery, in 1954. At the height of business in Cowra with the construction of Wyangala Dam wall, everything was booming. In 1976 there were twelve butchers, four bakeries and four green grocers in Cowra, with all having some success, Allan started a second butchery, Select Cuts Butchery in Lachlan Street, managed by Graham Whitty.

In the same period, Allan purchased Macca's Health Foods in the Central Arcade, moving the fixtures from the deli over to the health foods shop. Managed by Mrs Shannon and Mrs Slattery. After some time, Allan sold Macca's Health Foods to Ray Norton with the shop moving to Kendal St.

Calare Butchery grew extremely fast, employing seven butchers and a cashier. Allan won numerous awards with the Australian Meat Livestock Corporation for introducing various new cuts, marinated dishes and demonstrating around other towns.

Over the next forty years Allan continued butchering while at the same time, starting a catering business with the experience he had learnt from his father being a chef, as well as owning two restaurants in Cowra, the Rosemarie and The Regent. Allan catered for weddings, club changeover dinners, community balls, with a total of two teams of six to assist in catering duties. A big turnaround came to Cowra, with Woolworths opening; with most local food businesses feeling the competition. Allan was fortunate to have a contract with a local supermarket, now Coles, to supply packaged meat daily. This proved successful, employing three butchers and one on packing. Allan then sold Calare Butchery in 1998, closing a year later.

After selling his butcher shop Allan purchased a sheepskin salting business, buying skins from the Cowra Abattoirs, transporting them to tanneries in Botany, and consequently exporting and selling them locally. He saw a need for a tourist business in Cowra and opened a new business selling sheepskins, rugs, Ugg boots and car seat covers.

This grew substantially, so Allan purchased the old service station near the Lachlan River end of Cowra, renovating the building, consequently opening Australiana Corner in 2000, a tourist shop selling local art and craft products. Australiana Corner became an icon for Cowra winning 'Best Australian Tourist Shop in NSW' in 2002. IT was an agent for Olympic badges and sold thousands of Australian flags to schools in the area.

During this time, Allan attended a tourist study workshop in Sydney and then bought a bus to offer tours around the Cowra area showing sites of local interest such as the POW site, Japanese gardens, Japanese war cemetery, local wineries, sheep farms, dairies and canola fields, as well as servicing the group's needs. He specialised in taking tours around the Cowra region for 20 years with his Ideal Tours business.

Now, at the age of 85 Allan has decided to close his tour bus business. He will still be involved in 'hop on the tour guide' for coaches coming to Cowra and assisting the local visitor center if needed. He is still continually active in Rotary, as a fifty year member, Probus (15 years), Secretary of Seikie Japanese Student Exchange (28 years), local bowls, Meals on Wheels, and New Vogue Dancing with his wife, Dee. He has enjoyed giving his time to Cowra in tourism and hopes Cowra will prosper into the future.