Gerringong Music Club has presented concerts of fine music at Gerringong Town Hall for nearly 20 years, but its future is in doubt if the Club can’t fill essential committee positions. There are four more concerts planned for this year with the next one on May 21, however, the Club will need to wind down at the end of the year if volunteers can’t be found to fill for Director and Publicity Officer, says current Director of Music, Bobbie Miller. Both Bobbie and Publicity Officer, Gillian Spooner, indicated at the recent AGM that they are no longer able to continue in their roles, after many years of service.“The Club is in a sound financial position, with nearly 80 members, and each concert attracts good numbers of visitors,” says Bobbie.“The performers range from orchestras to chamber groups and soloists. While the music is mostly classical, the Club has also presented jazz and Latin American concerts. At the end of last year, the Sydney Balalaika Orchestra performed Russian folk music to an enthusiastic audience.”Anna da Silva Chen's talent was supported early by the ClubThe Club has always encouraged young musicians as well as professionals. “Anna da Silva Chen from the Illawarra, who has performed for the Club nearly every year from the age of 11, is now a stellar violinist, in demand around Australia and overseas,” Bobbie says.The Club was started by Gem Buck in 2003 after members of Gerringong CWA raised funds for a good quality piano. At least five concerts have been held every year except for during COVID. Gem, an experienced musician, was well into her 80s when Bobbie Miller took over the position.Gem with her Life Membership Award“I’ve greatly enjoyed planning the concerts, dealing with the musicians and presenting the concerts along with committee members. But I plan to retire at the end of the year, as I now mostly live in Sydney,” says Bobbie.“The Club needs someone who has a strong interest in classical music and who could devote time and energy to plan the Club’s program. “I would work with the person for the next year and could give them a list of the duties of Music Director and ideas for performers, while they settle into the role.” The Club also needs a new Publicity Officer. Gill Spooner has provided publicity for community groups in the area since 1998. She also plans to retire from her role with Gerringong Music Club at the end of this year. The position would suit someone who enjoys a considerable level of computer and creative skills.If you are interested in the positions please contact Bobbie on 0413 967 385 or [email protected] or Gillian on 0422 543 928 or [email protected]. There are four more concerts planned for this year, with the first being Bluescope Steel Youth Orchestra performing classical favourites, May 21, Gerringong Town Hall, 2pm. Doors open 1.30pm. $20 for visitors and free for members, children and students. 

Since the late 1990s, musicians from around the country have made the trek down the coast to visit Haworth Guitars. The music retailer’s humble beginnings started when former high school teacher turned master luthier Phil Haworth opened a shop in Kiama. The business has since grown to two locations in Wollongong and Shellharbour and is renowned as one of the top music retailers in the world. Whether it’s from the two stores or their popular car stickers, everyone in the Kiama LGA knows Haworths Guitars. What you might not be familiar with, however, is the latest business venture with the Haworth names attached to it, Resolve Business Coaching. Resolve Business Coaching was founded in 2019 by Glenn Haworth, now owner of Haworth Guitars and Haworths Music School, as well as being Phil’s son. Glenn spoke to The Bugle about how he went from working for his dad’s business through high school to acquiring Haworths Guitars and taking it to new heights. “I was always involved in the business from the start. Dad was always keen for me to learn the ropes and help out,” Glenn said. “Even when I was in high school, I was working in the Kiama Downs shop on weekends. When I went to university, I studied marketing and economics, and kept working at Kiama Downs. “I knew my dad was keen to step back after I finished uni, but I was really focused on my band The Conspiracy Plan, we were touring around and I was loving it. I wasn’t excited at that age to take on a business.Glenn Haworth says coaching allows him to be a "good and present dad". It wasn’t until a few years later when Glenn was around 25-years-old that the idea of growing a business started to get him excited. “I became a real student of business and marketing, and that’s when I really saw the potential of not just running a business, but growing a business.” Glenn found a way to buy Haworth Guitars from his parents and went about taking the family business to the next level. Haworths relocated its original store from Kiama Downs to Shellharbour during that time. “I was really eager to take it on and start applying everything I learnt about business. That’s when I first started getting business coaching myself.” One of the first things he wanted to do was open a second Haworth Guitars store, which he did with the Wollongong store in 2013. Glenn admits that opening the Wollongong stores was beyond his comfort zone, but taking on those challenges is what gets him most excited about the business.  The next expansion was the Haworth Music School. Glenn started tutoring students in the afternoons and nights, which was so successful that the company expanded into the building next door. The music school has grown from around 350 students across its Shellharbour and Wollongong stores. After expanding the business to new heights, Glenn was able to step back from teaching and explore his passion for helping other businesses.“I was very keen to explore business coaching because I’d had my own coaches over the years and I’ve learned so much from them. They helped me take my own business to the next level, and I was really eager to try that myself.” Glenn put his musings on business growth into a book called Retail Domination, which helped him develop a seven-step framework that formed the basis of Resolve Business Coaching. What started as a side hustle four years ago has now taken up the majority of Glenn’s time as he steps back from managing Haworth Guitars full-time. Glenn also has a young family to which he dedicates as much time to as possible. “It’s a way to simplify things for me in terms of my time and being able to be a good and present dad; the coaching allows me to do that. I’ll work from the home office one day a week which grants me the flexibility to have a young family.” Resolves Business Coaching works one-on-one with clients or within a group setting, depending on the client’s requirements. “I’ve got about 25 one-on-one clients, and we run two group Mastermind sessions a week where I have some of my clients join in to help other clients with training.” In addition to personalised training, Glenn recently started running a ‘Business Bootcamp’ with his clients, which brings them together for a day to work on their businesses with like-minded entrepreneurs on everything from marketing and sales to finer skills like staff management and time management. The Business Bootcamp focuses on four key areas: increasing sales leads, converting leads into sales, the average transaction price, and customer frequency. Glenn says one of the most useful aspects of Resolve Business Coaching is the accountability factor. “A big part of [coaching] is the client actually implementing actions, and that’s where having a coach really helps, not just with strategy and guidance, but with holding you accountable.” Resolve Business Coaching’s next bootcamp takes place on 18 August at The Hill in Gerringong. There are around eight spots left, so any interested party can sign up via Eventbrite and use the code ‘Kiama’ to receive a $50 discount on their ticket.