Allan’s connection to Lorne started way back with ancestors from his mother’s side cutting the first track from Deans Marsh to Lorne.
As a boy he spent holidays here with his grandparents who lived in Lorne, living with them for a time while his parents were building their house in Benalla and attending Lorne School. He remembers well the billy cart rides down Fern Avenue using blackberry bushes as brakes.
Allan studied accounting after he finished school in Benalla and got his first job with a local stock and station agent where he had five years of company accounting. The next five years were spent in private practice doing public accounting before he switched careers and opened a caravan and boat yard. He became the largest Flightcraft boat dealer in Australia and soon became one of Australia’s largest Caravan Dealerships.
Moving on from that he bought into a Benalla based business brokerage firm and later purchased one of Victoria’s largest broking houses, Tower Business Agency. It became the largest Caravan Park Brokerage firm in Australia. It is operating today as Tower Business and Real Estate and is franchised in every state. Allan was the owner and managing director for the 35 years. He has also owned three caravan parks, was on the board of Big 4 Holiday Parks for four and a half years and last year he and his wife of 46 years, Audeen, were awarded Victorian Caravan Parks “Legend Status”.
As a balance to business, Allan’s passion is motor racing. He has competed in the Bathurst- 24 hour race, raced commodores all around Australia and taken out a class win in the Classic Adelaide four day tarmac rally… and still has the car.
His other interests are his two children, travel, fly fishing, game fishing, golf and bowls.
Allan is a Committee member of the Bowls Club, The Stribling Reserve Management and was the driving force behind establishing a Mens Shed in Lorne. He is currently president.
“From 13 July 2013 when we had our first meeting it has taken 877 days of challenges to when we could dig the first hole. I can only say the support from the community has been magnificent.”
The Walls bought their first house in Lorne in 1987 eventually moving to their current home in Lorne 9 years ago. It is now their permanent home.
Right now their latest challenge is whether to accept an invitation to join friends exploring Spain.
Now that’s what I call a nice balance.
