A Legacy of Wellness in the Workplace: Lessons from 25 Years in Business

Each year, the TICT and Spirit of Tasmania is proud to present a special keynote presentation from a leading figure in the Tasmanian tourism industry who embodies the theme of the Conference on that given year.

With the 2025 theme being ‘Resilience & Reinvention: Tourism in a changing world’, the address will be delivered by Bianca Welsh – Co-Owner, Restaurant Manager and People Manager at Stillwater Restaurant.

In 2025, iconic Tasmanian restaurant Stillwater is celebrating 25 years of exceptional service and hospitality. Though many of the business’s values have remained constant since its inception in 2000, others have been adapted and reinvented in response to a changing world and industry challenges.

About Bianca

Bianca Welsh (she/her) is a proud Launcestonian, however, born and adopted from South Korea, she co-owns Stillwater Restaurant and Seven Rooms since 2010 and has her own mental health business – From Experience, providing education and advice to workplaces on how to be a mentally healthy workplace and is a Mental Health First Aid Instructor.

She was also a co-founder and operator of Black Cow Bistro for 14 years and is passionate about Launceston as a food destination.

She currently sits on the Launceston Chamber of Commerce and is a non-executive director at TasTafe. Bianca previously sat on the Cornerstone Youth Services board for 7 years, chaired Design Tasmania, had a brief stint on the Visit Northern Tasmania board and recently 2 years on the Tourism Industry Council of Tasmania board. In addition, she chaired a government advisory committee for workforce skills in tourism and hospitality.

Bianca has been recognised for her work in the industry and community with accolades such as Young Restaurateur of the Year (2015), Young Tasmanian Australian of the Year Finalist (2016), Young Professional of the Year (2017), Tourism Minister’s Young Achiever (2019) and most recently made the 40 Under 40 Most Influential Asian Australian List in 2022. She also was a TV host for a local travel show – Left Off the Map and Award Winning Tasmania.

A devoted mum to three children (a busy 7 year old boy, a son who died at 37 weeks gestation in January 2022 and a baby girl, Rani, born in August 2023) her lived experience with mental health and illness, baby loss, termination for medical reasons, grief, PTSD and trauma, inter-country adoption, racism, discrimination, leadership, hospitality, skills and training and more means she is a diverse person who’s most important values are kindness, honesty and compassion.

She is currently upskilling in the trauma and grief area and hopes to turn these learnings into practical solutions for workplaces to consider.

Thank you to Spirit of Tasmania for proudly sponsoring this keynote address.