Professionals Serendipity 
Matthew Hibberd has had a long and interesting path to get to where he is today: owning both the Truffle Discovery Centre on our own Gallery Walk and its sister centre in Stanthorpe. He covers all kinds of interesting topics with us today, from just what makes truffles so popular to the surprising link between truffles and rescue dogs.
by Kyle Hitchmough
For those who might not know, can you explain what it is you offer here?
That’s a good question! We began at Stanthorpe as an interactive tourist attraction which covered all of the truffle industry from detection dog training, through to growing truffles under trees, providing tours of the trees, the interactive centre, and the retail food shops. Here on Gallery Walk, it’s very much the retail arm so we have our truffle products, other deli lines, homewares and gift wares as well.
Lawdogs has a very close relationship with your business here, doesn’t it? Can you explain that more?
We get that a lot! Lawdogs was also a tourist attraction. I’m an ex-security dog handler, and we were doing one-hour public shows and demonstrations. Because we had that reputation, a local truffle grower at Stanthorpe walked in and asked if we could train a truffle detection dog. I said “Yes we can.” and then I Googled how to do that! and learned a lot about what truffles actually were. We then trained and placed the dog locally but through that process we learned that there was an opportunity to have something open to the public in the truffle sector which there wasn’t in Queensland at the time as there was in other states. Lawdogs kind of morphed into the truffle dogs, and then the retail afterwards.
What is it that’s so special about truffles?
The truffles we grow that are talked about on food shows are usually the French black winter truffle, and it’s a delicacy that’s really hard to grow. They only grow in cold climate areas, which in Queensland is Stanthorpe pretty much exclusively. There is someone on Mount Tamborine trying to grow them as well, though I don’t know how successful that’s been. They’re very hard to grow, hard to find and they’re expensive. It’s a really unique kind of gourmet experience.
You sell the actual truffles themselves, but you also sell related food items, correct?
In winter, we have fresh truffles right now fro
m Stanthorpe that we sell up here. Throughout the year we have frozen truffles, which can be Australian or imported from Italy and France, but then our main business is infusing them into products. Having pieces of truffles preserved in aioli, mustards, butters, salts, gives people the chance to use it in their cooking all year round.
And you also have a variety of other gift items?
Because we’re in a high foot traffic area like Gallery Walk, we have quite a range of delicacies. We have a lot of Queensland products that we’re bringing to the coast from the country. We’re very big on local. Then the giftware range is a bit of an eye-opener. There’s a dog theme, because our Lawdogs shop out there has a lot of dog-related stuff but one cool thing a lot of people don’t realise is our truffle detection dogs normally come from rescues and pounds. The retail helps us generate revenue to support the costs of boosting those dogs out of pounds and giving them a second chance at life being trained as sniffer dogs to help find the truffles.
What is it people can do at your Stanthorpe location?
People can go and view the trees, possibly see dogs in training or meet a sniffer dog if we’ve got them out and about. We have quite a lot of information panels on the walls, and it’s also a chance to get immersive with food products, so there’s lots of tasting, smelling, looking at the fresh truffles, frozen truffles, as well as a bit of a thing for the kids to have a play with trying to find the truffles.
Are there any particular trends in your clientele?
That’s a good question! Not really. I guess the number one thing we find is people are a bit afraid of truffles and think they’re a bit upmarket. This shop is accessible to everyone. We don’t judge, we have fun. We want people to taste it. Truffle season now in winter is the biggest eye-opener. It’s not uncommon to have a 13-year-old drag their family up from the Gold Coast to pay $300 for a truffle because they love it like drugs. It is quite funny to watch sometimes just how much people love truffles. It’s a bizarre business.
What’s your opinion on the Tamborine Mountain area and community?
I love Tamborine Mountain! 15 years ago, when I was doing security, I would come up here on my day off and have a walk through the bushwalks, grab a beer or wine or liqueur to take home. I love the street, I love watching how it’s changed over the years and the vibrant community up here. It’s like the Blue Mountains to Sydney or the hinterland on the Sunshine Coast. It’s a very different pace with very different people. I hire locals, so we’ve got a mature-age guy and a high school junior who work here on weekends, so we try to put back into the local community as well. Just the vibe and the pace of life in the rainforest is something I love coming and visiting. I wish I could work here seven days a week!
Do you have a particular favourite place on the mountain?
I have to say Curtis Falls! I love that it offers that rainforest experience right near the coast and the city. It’s a nice short walk or you can do the longer loop if you’re feeling energetic. It’s got something to offer everyone, especially if you’re time-poor on a weekend. For me, I just love that you can get down there and it’s quiet, you’re on your own, and you can get your feet back in nature. I love reconnecting with the bush.
What do you enjoy most about doing this?
What I love is to come and work in the shop and not worry about running the business but working in the business, and I get to talk to the customers. This is the number one way to get feedback on our product as well as identify different trends, see what’s popular. And it’s a great opportunity for them to come and meet the maker. It’s not often you can walk into a shop and meet the person who has poured the product, labelled the product, trained the dog that found the product, and people often recognise me from some of the TV work or festivals we’ve done. So it’s just that really nice feeling that it’s not a routine shopping experience, it’s a little bit different and I love just getting out and talking to people again.
We are always looking for new topics for our blog. If there’s something you like to see more of, email your suggestions to: social@professionalsserendipity.com.au, or email the writer at kyle.hitchmough@hotmail.com.
