Pinctada Cable Beach Resort and Spa

It was one of those huge, noisy, group lunches with so much going on you hardly know how to concentrate.

And so you pick a seat and hope you find some interesting company; otherwise it’s alright, you stuff your face, listen to the speeches, watch the entertainment and leave.

Generally, on occasions such as these – this being the Australian Tourism Exchange in Adelaide – I try and seek out people I don’t know in the hope that I can find an interesting angle. Hey, it makes work more interesting – after all, didn’t we all choose travel because we love meeting people?

Well, I struck gold that day or, to be precise, pearls.

Sitting next to me was Marilynne Paspaley (pictured left), whose name card identified her as founder and managing director of Pinctada Hotels & Resorts.

I didn’t know it at the time of course but later, I found out that not only is she the daughter of Nicholas Paspaley Senior, Master Pearler and founder of the Paspaley Pearls empire, but she’s also a famous actress who gained fame playing Dr Tessa Korkidas in the Australian television series, GP.

Having been to Broome, where I stayed at the Cable Beach InterContinental, I was more curious at the time to find out about her hotel group which is based in the Western Australian town.

Firstly, the name Pinctada is inspired by Pinctada maxima, the shell that nurtures the world’s most beautiful pearl. Secondly, her vision is to create bespoke hotels in distinctly Australian landscapes.

"I am interested in iconically Australian destinations and my goal is to put world class comfort in world class destinations and create distinctly Australian experiences."

Her choices of locations – Broome and Kununurra in the Kimberley – are by design, not accident, of course. It’s where her family fortunes were built. "My father started pearling here in the 1930s when he was 18. It helps that I have insider knowledge,” she laughed.

Thus far, the group, which was set up in 2005. has four properties – Pinctada Cable Beach, McAlpine House and Captain Kennedy House in Broome, and The Kimberley Grande in Kununurra.

Captain Kennedy House (left) and McAlpine House

You can tell too that Marilynne is a woman who doesn’t let much stand in her way if she wants something. When she started planning Pinctada Cable Beach, she looked around for a builder. "It was hard to find a building company though so we built it ourselves," she said.

Pinctada represents Marilynne’s own adventure outside the family business. She was responsible for retail, manufacturing and marketing for Paspaley Pearls for 20 years. "Our children are starting to come into the company now, they are smart, passionate and well-educated.

"If you’re going to allow them to develop and become the next generation, you must allow them authority, independence and accountability."

Marilynne was working as an actress initially when her brother and sister, who were working in the family business, called her and said, ‘You’re not doing anything. Can you come and operate the first shop?’

"I worked with my brother and sister for 20 years. Now it’s time I do something else," she said.

And as hard as she thought pearling was, she’s learning that hospitality’s even harder, especially “the attention to detail”

There are similarities though. "I love retail and the greatest pleasure in retail is you can create a close bond with your customer. There is a mutual respect. They want to consume, you build trust, you deliver what is promised.

"The difference is with hospitality, it’s 24 hours a day and the rooms are perishables. Pearls last forever. A hotel room is worse than a tomato."

Room in Kimberley Grande

With four “tomatoes” now in her basket, Marilynne is working on building up the Pinctada brand and grouping her hotels under the umbrella.

All her hotels have distinctive characteristics. Pinctada Cable Beach Resort and Spa with 72 rooms, offers a luxury experience on Broome’s most famous stretch of beach.

McAlpine House and Captain Kennedy House are two century-old homes which belonged to Master Pearler Captain Herbert Kennedy. McAlpine House, with eight rooms, and Captain Kennedy, with five rooms, offer guests a historic home-like experience, complete with personal housekeepers.

The 72-room Kimberley Grande, set in the country town of Kununurra in East Kimberley, offers luxury homestead-style living and was home to cast and crew during the filming of “Australia”.

"The building of the properties has been all-consuming but now it’s time to think of branding. I want to be involved in hospitality and not just have one hotel," said Marilynne.

• Photos courtesy of Pinctada Hotels & Resorts