David Olsen

“I enjoyed being at Yarra and my children have enjoyed being here too.”

David Olsen and his twin brother, Martin, joined Yarra in Year 8 after spending a few years as boarders at Geelong Grammar. They spent some of their earliest school years in Papua New Guinea, island of Bougainville, where their parents were working for the Panguna Development foundation and department stores etc.

“I enjoyed my time at Yarra from the start. I took pride in wearing the uniform, learned to play the guitar and spent quite a bit of time in the ceramics department. I could never turn a pot on the wheel, but I loved sculpting,” recalls David.

David enjoyed Maths and Science subjects – ‘I couldn’t stand writing essays’ – and enjoyed the competition of school sports. He was on the school soccer team and was also a keen skier.

“One of my best memories is a ski trip in Year 10 or 11. My father built a ski lodge at Falls Creek and with the teachers, Martin and I organised for a busload of our friends and a couple of teachers to stay at the lodge and ski,” says David.

After graduating, David decided to study Engineering at university but he found university life very different from life at Yarra.

“There wasn’t the same level of encouragement and I had to find my own way and I got lost,” says David.

He deferred and got a cadetship at Myer where David ended up as an assistant manager and built some experience in retail.

“When a family friend with a shop in Collingwood asked if I wanted to buy the business, I set up David’s Economy Shop selling clothing and manchester,” he says.

Then a friend began importing outdoor umbrellas from China in the 1980s and David began stocking them. They sold like hotcakes and he saw an opportunity to change direction and specialise in the growing outdoor umbrella business.

Today, 35 years later, he supplies umbrellas to hospitality businesses across Victoria and Martin is also part of the business.

When he isn’t at work, David likes to spend time with his family and fit in a few rounds of golf. His trips to the ski slopes have become less frequent but that’s something he hopes to change.

“I’m just happy that I’ve been able to run my business and support my family. I appreciate the friendships I have – a large group of friends are from Yarra and we meet for lunch on a Friday when we can,” says David.

“I think it’s important to look forward, to see things positively and to view the success you are hoping to have and to work towards that.”