Hello Koalas Sculpture Trail expands offerings with new gift shop, more sculptures

The new Hello Koalas merchandise store in Port Macquarie is just the beginning of new ventures the brand will be pursuing this year — including a new tourist attraction with a similar theme.

The Hello Koalas Sculpture Trail, which started as a local art initiative in 2014, has seen massive growth in less than a decade.

Port Macquarie is home to the largest remaining koala population on the east coast of Australia, and the animal is a totem to the local Birpai people, so it’s only fitting this award-winning tourist attraction pay homage to the native Aussie icon.

The brand now boasts more of the colourful creatures than ever before – starting at 50 when it was first established, now holding a total of 83 – and a newly-opened merchandise store.

Profits from the Hello Koalas Gift Shop helps to raise funds for the Hello Koalas’ educational programs, which are all about caring for and conserving the species.

But the new shopfront is just the tip of the iceberg, with more koala-themed initiatives in the works for 2022.

Hello Koalas Sculpture Project Director Margret Meagher standing outside the Bellbowrie St shopfront.

“We’re thinking about crafting more koalas, including tennis and cricket themed sculptures,” Hello Koalas Sculpture Project Director Margret Meagher said.

“We also want to get more involved with local schools and sporting clubs – given how well the Hastings Valley Vikings football-themed koala was received in the community.

“But perhaps the most exciting project in the works is our Big Koala.”

The initiative’s largest ever sculpture – standing at 2.5 meters tall – the Big Koala will be handpainted by local talent Pauline Roods, who has also painted other sculptures including Forest, Olly the Blue-Eyed Boy and Vik the Viking.

The Big Koala is currently in the manufacturing process and is set to be unveiled in mid-2022 as part of the first stage of Cowara State Forest’s official opening.

The new statue will be added to Australia’s list of ‘big thing’ tourist attractions.

“This has been four years in the making, and we’re so excited,” Ms Meagher said.

“In my opinion, the Big Koala will be one of the leading tourist attraction on the Mid North Coast.”

But the new sculpture won’t come at an easy price, which is why Hello Koalas teamed up with Monopoly to create a special Port Macquarie edition to raise funds to create the Big Koala.

“As part of that initiative, Monopoly made a small koala token utilising the Hello Koalas sculpture design for all the games,” Ms Meagher said.

“Everyone who purchases a Monopoly game from the Hello Koalas Gift Shop or from the online shop is included in the Friends of the Big Koala honour roll for public display to acknowledge their contribution in making the attraction a reality.”

The Hello Koalas shop has plenty of merchandise available, including koala-themed goodies and locally-focused gift ideas like the Port Macquarie-themed Monopoly.

Ms Meagher says she and her team have a real passion for cultural tourism, so they’re proud to offer an attraction that’s so unique to Port Macquarie.

And it seems the feeling is mutual, because the support shown for this local business has allowed it to flourish in just a few short years.

“We were able to open this merchandise shop in late 2020, which has been great – we just had streams of customers in and out the door, especially around Christmas.

“We’re now working on making more people aware of the new store’s location, since we’re only five minutes away from Settlement City, but off the main road.”

A trip to the new gift store is well worth it for both tourists and residents, given Hello Koalas’ wide range of koala-themed and local merchandise including stickers, clothing, tea towels, magnets, cards, posters and much more.

The shop is located at unit 16, 10 Bellbowrie St, with colourful koala sculptures out the front – it is open 9am to 3pm on weekdays and 9am to 1pm on Saturdays.