Bridge Climb Founder - Paul Cave

Customer Service

Despite the lengthy delays, Cave held to his belief that this business could succeed. “I really thought it would be special because there are only four icons in this country—the Bridge, the Opera House, the Rock, and the Reef.” He recognised the potential for real, experiential tourism in Sydney, “provided we could get it to work really well”.

This is why he ensures, through managing director Todd Coates, that every climber is treated individually and customer service is the top priority. “We’re really about the quality of that experience for every individual climber.” And it shows.

After checking in for my own climb, my group was greeted by one enthusiastic worker after another. And despite the early hour and not ideal weather conditions, it was hard not to get a bit bubbly too. After passing the requisite breath test, climbers suited up, ready to be shown the ropes, literally, by climb leader, Sharon, who made a point of knowing every member of the group by name.

Our climb leader didn’t let the weather dampen our spirits, and her energy was infectious. The weather held off from doing its worst and settled for a light drizzle. Not that it mattered, as Cave assures me the business receives the best customer ratings during high wind and high rain sessions, when comfort levels are dramatically different—it’s also helped by the extra effort the climb leaders go to during these periods.

As well as the harness, wet-weather gear and accessories, each climber receives a headset designed with military-style bone-conduction technology, to hear all the interesting historical information, while getting the ambient sound from the road below and the ferries passing across the harbour.

It’s this kind of customer service Cave is confident will—on top of a spectacular experience—keep the business flourishing, despite external inhibitors such as terrorism threats and the threat of emerging competition from the recently opened Sky Walk around Sydney’s Centrepoint Tower. With the two-page customer feedback form, the team at BridgeClimb can measure customer satisfaction. Cave’s only job description in his role as chairman of BridgeClimb (he relinquished his controlling stake in the business in 2002) is to personally handle the feedback, to ensure the continual evolution of the business.

It must work, because even on that cool, wet day, climb groups of 12 took off from the service centre every 10 minutes, with six groups on the archway at any one time, and the same going through the induction and conclusion processes of the climb.

Climbers include blind and deaf people, even pregnant women, as Cave and the team continually lift the bar to ensure the experience is open to as many people as possible. There are even aims to get wheelchair-bound customers to the summit—“We’re still working on it.”

Boosting Tourism

BridgeClimb is heavily marketed towards international tourism; it’s vital for the business, and international press including visiting celebrity climbs go a long way to boost the profile of the Bridge to tourists. With two thirds of its customers being international tourists, it’s no wonder. As well as an international journalists program, BridgeClimb works hard with state and national tourism departments, inbound tourism operators and concierges to boost its profile. “Fifty-five percent of our climbers, now, are recommended through word-of-mouth,” Cave says. “So doing our job is the most important thing.” And with a measure of seasonality about it, with boom months during daylight savings, there are times during December and January when to meet demand, BridgeClimb operates 24 hours a day.

There’s no resting on their laurels, though. With a business relying so heavily on tourist dollars, Cave feels a responsibility for the growth of the industry as it contributes to Australia’s exports. “I have not seen a better tourism operation in the world than this business and I aim for it to be the best. Export is a really important part of what we do.” And it’s a part well-rewarded. As well as BridgeClimb being named Australian Exporter of the Year in 2002, Cave was named as an Australian Export Hero in 2002/03 for his contribution to export in Australia.

Bold Future

Terrorism is a real threat: the iconic status of the national landmark has been its biggest friend but it also makes it a likely target for potential threats. When I ask Cave what he does to prepare for such an event, he is unwilling to think too much of the what-ifs. A business built solely around the experience of climbing the Bridge, the main thing Cave says he and his team can do is to have a heightened sense of safety on and around the bridge. “Terrorism has been a big change.” It’s also impacted his other business, BridgeClimb International, which was all set to move ahead with a plan for a bridge climb on Brooklyn Bridge in New York. Although there had been a public announcement from the mayor in support of the project, the events of September 11 put it on hold.

Life for the business changes from week to week. For Cave, now 60, retirement isn’t on the agenda. Looking to the future, he’s keen to push BridgeClimb International, to set the concept up in other markets, on other bridges.

On a personal level, a recent cancer scare—skin cancer and a malignant lymph node resulting in three operations on his face—has changed his business focus, and he is keen to give back, through charities and fostering entrepreneurship. “I feel very fortunate to be the one lucky enough to do this for a job, and I feel the need to give back.” Now, he says, the challenge is to bring his business life into harmony with his private life.

He believes, given the political environment relating to terrorism, this business would not get up and running today, so he ensures the business is also in tune with the current climate, knowing he can’t change the nature of the world we find ourselves living in. “That’s the risk entrepreneurial people take,” Cave states. “Hopefully things that might seem inevitable will be a long time coming to this country.”