Biography
Gary was born in Brisbane, Australia, although his dad was a banker and as a result the family moved around regional Queensland a number of times while Gary was young, before they settled back in Brisbane in 1975.
Once he finished school Gary got his first job loading and unloading trucks for a department store chain in Fortitude Valley in Brisbane. His hard work paid off and he quickly worked up through the ranks winning Young Executive of the Year in 1981 before moving to Townsville for two years.
After six years in retail department stores Gary moved into his first marketing role with Westfield Shopping Centres working for Frank Lowy and John Saunders, at Westfield Shoppingtown Strathpine in Queensland.
Gary then moved into the music industry managing and promoting bands and artists through his company Top 40 Management.
In 1988 he moved back into shopping centres as Marketing Manager for Toowong Village in Brisbane where he stayed for the next 2 years. Just before the end of his time here, Gary won 3 separate BOMA Awards - all in the one year! These were Best Shopping Centre Positioning, Best Shopping Centre Promotion and Best Shopping Centre Charity Event. After this, he felt he had done what he set out to achieve working in shopping centres and it was time to move onto something new - radio!
Gary moved into commercial radio in 1990 where he spent the next 7 years with Australia's largest radio network, Austereo. It was then that Gary moved to Sydney for the first time to start work at radio station 2Day FM.
In 1992 he moved back to Brisbane to start work as Promotions Manager at Triple M Brisbane. A year later he was promoted to Triple M's National Promotions Manager based in Melbourne, Victoria.
In 1994 Gary was promoted to Group General Manager for Promotions and Marketing, a role that he held for his last 3 years at Austereo. In this role he oversaw the marketing and promotions of thirteen radio stations on the 2Day and Triple M Networks in Australia and five stations in Kuala Lumpur and created ideas for some of Australia's best known brands.
The year 1997 was a pivotal one for Gary, founding his company Blue Moon Creative to assist organizations and individuals to challenge their traditional way of thinking and unlock their great ideas.
The Millennium in 1999/2000 provided a unique opportunity for Gary to work on the Sydney Millennium celebrations on Sydney Harbour.
In 2001 Gary designed and built The Ideas Vault, Australia's first ever dedicated creative space, designed specifically for the generation of better ideas. Located at The Entertainment Quarter in Sydney, The Vault's octagonal shape, natural light, outdoor space, furniture and facilities make it a unique and exciting venue for thinking, problem solving, meetings, strategy and workshops.
In 2004 Gary recorded and released an audio program called the Studio of the Mind. Produced as a radio show it is a 2 hr audio set that covers how creativity works, how to remove barriers to creative thinking, and techniques for unlocking ideas and imagination.
Gary's creative endeavours have also resulted in the innovation and creation of his own exclusive ‘Thinking Tools' - The Spider Web, BiGNOA, The Spin Cycle and Ask Einstein.
In early 2007 Gary self-published his first book entitled ‘The Keys to Creativity'. The year finished on a high note with Gary being named 2007 Speaker of the Year for TEC (The Executive Connection), the world's leading CEO membership organization.
Gary is a keen athlete and after completing 8 marathons (including Boston, London and Las Vegas) and numerous road events he has most recently turned his focus to cycling. In 2007 he co-founded a cycling charity called the ‘Tour de Cure' which so far has raised close to $2million in the fight against cancer and the search for a cure. 2007 saw the Tour de Cure ride from Brisbane to Sydney, while in 2008 riders cycled from Melbourne to Sydney, and in 2009 from Brisbane to Cairns. Since its inception, the Tour de Cure has raised in excess of $2 million. This year, 2010, the Tour de Cure will ride from Sydney to the Sunshine Coast in Queensland.
Gary's second book ‘Who Stole My Mojo?", published by Allen & Unwin, was released in June 2008. In conjunction with its release and Gary's growing speaking endeavours his company is now known as Bertwistle Holdings Pty Ltd. In January 2009, Who Stole My Mojo? was released in the UK by Capstone Publishing. In June 2009, 'What Made You Think of That?' was published. Gary's latest book, The Vibe, is due out in March 2010.
When not on the speaking circuit Gary spends time with his number one priority - his young daughter Charley.
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