Lisa Crowther is a lady who has achieved great things as a woman in business, business owner and extraordinary fund-raiser. I first met this amazing lady when we crossed paths to work on travel packages for the Sunshine Coast Marathon, and I quickly realised that there is a lot more to this lady than you realise. She and her husband, Jason, sit behind a number of major events and raise a phenomenal amount of money for charity.

Lisa, tell us about Atlas Multisports and the Marathon events that you organise and how that all came to be? 

Atlas Events produces sporting events, including the home-grown 7 Sunshine Coast Marathon and Community Run Festival.  Adding to our event portfolio are the McDonald’s Brisbane Marathon Festival and the 7 Cairns Marathon Festival.  With a passion for charity sporting events we also organise the 7 Rocky River Run and the Mooloolaba to Mudjimba Island Charity Swim.

Complimentary to our program of events, we also coach and manage a triathlon training squad, which offers several training sessions a week, seasonal training camps and online training programs.

Atlas recently celebrated its 10^th birthday.  We have certainly seen a lot of changes since Jason, and I started the business!

As with many major events throughout Australia, most of your events will have been cancelled or postponed which is devastating for all in this space, how are you adapting or what are you doing to overcome these challenges?

Large-scale events were one of the first cancellations under the COVID-19 measures and therefore we had to adapt and pivot very quickly.  When your business is your only form of family income and you find out immediately that you are not allowed to operate, it is a very scary time.  We have a fantastic team who we dearly wanted to hold onto and had to come up with ways the business could stay afloat. We also wanted to give our community and participants answers quickly and made fast decisions on what would happen to our 2020 events.  We turned our physical events into virtual events and offered transfers to the following year.  Our team started working from home, Jason continued with the business, and I worked casually and home-schooled our children.  I absolutely love working and was proud of what we did and really struggled with the uncertainty of our future and not being able to work.

Reading the news everyday was making me very worried about how we were going to stay afloat with the strict measures.  As a qualified schoolteacher I started looking for full-time work within Queensland and was very lucky to receive a full-time position at a beautiful school in Ayr.  I am born and raised on the Sunshine Coast and love living there, so I was a little nervous about the move.  However, we relocated our family to Ayr, so that I could take up the position, the girls are attending the school I am working at.

Jason is continuing to work on the Virtual events, and coaching side of our business, plus also has part-time work here in Ayr.  We are so grateful to have an external income to the business, as we have realised our business is not going to be allowed to operate in its full capacity in 2020.

What career or personal achievement are you most proud of?

Last year Atlas Events won the Festivals and Events sector of the Sunshine Coast Business Awards.  Jason and I are still very proud of that achievement.  Each year we raise approximately $350,000 for charity through our events, but we are so disappointed we will not have the opportunity to raise those amounts of funds this year.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever been given?

My parents never said it, but lived it, and I hope I do too: “Family is the most important thing in the world.”

And what’s next on the agenda for Lisa Crowther?

I am writing this from sunny Ayr!  Settling our family in here and returning to full-time teaching again.  And exploring beautiful North Queensland and the reef whilst we are living so close!   Also looking forward to our events (and everyone else’s businesses) being able to resume again in 2021.

Favourite travel place and why?

Japan – skiing. A GREAT family holiday!

What’s one thing that you do for yourself every day?

Wake up at 5:30am so I get some time to myself before my family wakes up.  I love the early mornings.

What mantra do you live by?

If you are feeling stuck go for a run – when you get back, you will be able to change the world.