About John Thistleton
John Thistleton’s 30-plus years in the print media began at Cowra, and includes stints in Young, Wellington, Leeton, Crookwell, Queanbeyan, Goulburn, and, over 12 years, the Canberra Times.
As a reporter and managing editor John has watched the media fragment into numerous new opportunities.
A highlight for him at Goulburn was switching off a national wire service and relying on local staff and news to refresh content and see the paper flourish.
Moving to property and planning rounds in Canberra, John covered battles east and west of the city when retailing, residential and rural landscapes swiftly changed to accommodate a fast-growing population.
After leaving for a brief stint at the National Capital Authority as media manager he returned to the Canberra Times as the business editor, then a reporter covering the broader ACT region.
All Articles
News
Admiring the Andes Mountains in Chile while jogging, Mick Fritschy’s foot slipped down a pothole, breaking his ankle. Later recovering on a couch, his mind turned to renting caravans, sowing the seed of a greater adventure that would ultimately make the world a better place. That adventure began later at the Australian National University (ANU) in Canberra, where world-class start-ups...
News
Viva Leisure, Canberra’s health club success story, is continuing its national expansion, acquiring six Victorian health clubs for more than $6 million. The latest move will add a minimum of 6,500 members and strengthen Viva Leisure’s presence in Victoria from eight to 14 locations. Viva Leisure’s Chief Executive and Managing Director Harry Konstantinou said acquiring Pinnacle health clubs continues to...
Expert Advice
Haydn Marsh arrived at Snedden Hall & Gallop with exceptional experience when he re-established the specialist field of family law to the prominent Canberra practice. Not too long before Haydn’s entry into the legal industry, Snedden Hall & Gallop had decided, for various reasons, to cease its family law practice. By the time he arrived at the firm, a number...
News
Resilience is paramount in the face of a global pandemic, as Canberra-based Viva Leisure knows only too well. Despite COVID-19's impact on the competitive health club space, the listed pacesetter has delivered a solid result for the 2020 financial year, thanks in part to cutting-edge technology and multiple acquisitions that have created a foundation for further international expansion. The main...
Local Leaders
Kirk Fonseca grew up in Mumbai, India’s financial capital and most populous city. An associate partner in professional services firm Rubik3, he came from an unlikely, yet ideal, grounding for the people-centred organisation. Mumbai heaves with a population of more than 20 million people in an area smaller than Canberra. In this sea of humanity, every step is for survival....
News
After sweeping across Canberra and the eastern states of Australia, health and fitness leader Viva Leisure’s rapid rise continues apace - this time across the world. Viva Leisure is acquiring Australian Fitness Management Pty Ltd, which operates as master franchisor of Plus Fitness health clubs at 197 locations across Australia, New Zealand and India. AFM’s Australian presence comprises 190 centres,...
Local Leaders
Over time, seemingly small gestures accumulate into life-changing leadership from people putting others ahead of themselves and encouraging individuals to follow their example. Paul Nicholl experienced this during his apprenticeship as a greenkeeper in the NSW Central West town of Condobolin, where Malcolm Nash was head greenkeeper at the local bowling club. https://www.facebook.com/riotactnews/videos/976048622812408 The Condobolin Bowling Club nurtured young staff...
News
Among rural landholders at Warri between Braidwood and Bungendore at the height of the North Black Range fire last year, Karen Anderson was well prepared with a plan. As flames and smoke approached her 200-acre block where she has lived for 10 years in a two-storey purpose-built shed, she swung into action. Not only were her home, 22 head of...
News
Australia’s fitness and health pacesetter Viva Leisure has posted a blockbuster financial performance for the first half of 2020. First-half revenue of $23 million is up 52.7 per cent on the previous corresponding period, while net profit after tax (NPAT) hit $2.81 million, a 121.2 per cent increase on the previous year. The Canberra-based rising star of the stock exchange’s...
Local Leaders
A good legal practitioner can use the law to help and enhance the lives of their clients. This has certainly been the experience of solicitor Taso Nicolaidis. Born and raised in Canberra, Taso completed his legal studies at the University of Canberra and Australian National University before managing a busy personal injury practice for five years with a focus on...
News
Local businesses in Queanbeyan thrive on the sort of fierce loyalty that sustains the city’s exceptional sporting community. It’s contagious, as Paul Nicholl discovered in 2014 when he joined Bayldon Ag as a salesman. Three months later Paul became general manager. Three years later, in 2017, he stepped up again and bought the business from his boss, Roger Keft. On...
Local Leaders
Fast-rising Canberra professional services firm Rubik3 grew its year-on-year revenue by 98 per cent in 2019, an extraordinary effort after achieving 130 per cent growth in the previous financial year. Rubik3 is the Australian Growth Company 2019 Business Services Growth Company of the Year. Ranked by The Australian Financial Review as the country’s second-fastest growing firm, Rubik3 has achieved more...
News
Showing young Indigenous Australians how an accountancy degree can equip them to continue to care for the land, as their forebears did for many thousands of years, will help close a stark gap in Australian society today. Of about 200,000 accountants across Australia, only 67 are Indigenous people. If this one gap can be addressed and narrowed, more gaps are...
News
Canberra-based health clubs and aquatic facilities owner Viva Leisure Limited has continued its exceptional march across the nation’s eastern states, acquiring eight fitness centres in Queensland. The latest acquisition adds an estimated 10,000 members to the high-flying, innovative fitness operator and comes just two months after Viva Leisure completed an acquisition in regional Victoria. The Queensland centres are in Aspley,...
News
Innovation and service – and a boundless commitment to the Canberra community – have helped Independent take out a swag of awards at the Real Estate Institute of the ACT Awards for Excellence. As well as the Innovation and Community Service awards, Independent collected the Marketing and Communications Award and the prized Large Residential Agency of the Year Award. Independent...
Local Leaders
Corkhill’s Engineering has won a substantial contract to supply Harvey Norman with steel-framed glass screens for shop fit-outs, in another example of ingenuity from a workshop that has put Boorowa, northwest of Canberra, on the map. In a village of 1600 people, creativity and an extensive network underpin Corkhill’s Engineering, without which the business would not thrive. The engineering firm...