Tony Zammit is the definition of an entrepreneur. He started his first business at the age of six and is still thinking up business opportunities at the age of fifty-six. Massive McKenzie sat down with Tony to learn more about his life journey so far.

I was born in Sydney in 1968, but we didn't stick around long. My whole family packed up and moved to Melbourne when I was just a kid, and that's where I grew up.

School wasn’t really my thing, but my parents had this rule: no leaving school until you had a job. So, I had to stick it out. But I was always the entrepreneurial type, even from a young age. My first business venture kicked off when I was just 12.

It all started one day when we went to buy a pigeon. I remember standing there, looking around, and seeing pigeons everywhere. My brain immediately started thinking in dollar signs. $6 per pigeon? That seemed like easy money to me. So, I got myself a tarp, climbed into the railyard, and started catching pigeons. I’d shove them into a potato sack and sell them to the Maltese folks for $6 each. It was a pretty sweet gig for a 12-year-old.

But, as with most childhood schemes, my pigeon empire didn’t last forever. One day, I went to collect the pigeons I kept in our stable, and I found the horses had kicked a hole in the wall. Every single pigeon had flown the coop. That was the end of my pigeon-catching days, and I thought, "Stuff the pigeons!" From pigeons to bigger and better things, I always had a knack for seeing potential, and, honestly, that’s been the story of my life: always on the lookout for the next big idea, ready to jump in and give it a go.

After my pigeon-catching days ended, I started looking for new job opportunities. I quickly realised there was money to be made in selling seconds from the dim sim factory. I’d go door-to-door, peddling frozen dim sims, yum cha, and even chiko rolls. By the age of 15, I had eight big deep freezers and my own little warehouse in my parent's garage, where I stored the products before heading out to sell them. 

At the time, my older brother had a knack for getting into trouble with the law. My dad, always trying to help, got him a job driving the truck. When I was sixteen, my dad had to go and get my brother out of jail. Left on my own, I decided to take my dad’s car for a spin. Unfortunately, I ended up wrecking it. Desperate to fix it before my dad got back, I took my brother’s truck to hunt for parts.

Driving that truck was a revelation. I found that I really enjoyed it. That same week, I landed a job working with the truck, and I couldn’t have been happier. But things took a turn when my dad came home while I was out at work. Seeing the truck gone, he thought it had been stolen and called the cops. I came home to a scene: police cars everywhere and my dad in a panic. When he told me my brother’s truck was stolen, I had to confess it was parked out front. 

Dad was furious and confused. He marched outside, saw the truck, and realised I had taken it. He was mad, especially because it was my brother’s truck. I told him, ‘Dad, you’re going to have to get him another truck because now you've got two trucker sons.’ 

By the time I hit 21, I was running my own trucking business with five trucks to my name. It sounds impressive, but being so young, I wasn’t the best with money. Many of those trucks were on the brink of being repossessed. When a couple of them needed new motors at the same time, I just couldn’t afford it. So, I made the tough decision to close the business, sell everything off, pay my debts, and drive a truck for someone else instead.

At 21, I married my first wife, and we got married when I was 22. Life seemed pretty good, and eventually, we had four kids.

Everything was going well, so we decided to move up to the Gold Coast and start fresh after two years of marriage. I started another transport business up there, and things were looking up. But we didn’t work well together anymore and ended up breaking up. It got messy although it didn't need to be, but we managed to sort things out.

During our split, she fell pregnant with our fourth child. Although the baby wasn’t biologically mine, we made a pact. I moved back in to help her out as moral support, and we financially supported each other. It wasn’t the most conventional arrangement, but it worked for us. 

On September 12, 1994, one crazy night, my wife woke me up at 2 am and told me the baby was coming. I wanted to get us to the hospital and asked if she could make it to the car, but she said no way. So, we headed to the bathroom. I grabbed all the towels and sheets that I could find, and since she’d already had three kids, I said, “Well you know what to do”. It turned into a successful home birth right there, and I was the one waiting to catch our little guy.

From the moment I held him, I bonded with this little boy. It didn’t matter to me who the biological father was; he needed someone to care for him, and that someone was me. I raised him just like my other three and even got his name tattooed on my arm with my other kids.

After that, I bounced from job to job, working in cafes and restaurants. Eventually, I partnered with an old mate who taught me how to make pizza. We ran Robertones Pizza on the Gold Coast. I loved it so much that I ended up taking over the business from him. Making pizzas was a blast, and before long, cooking was in my blood. I eventually owned 14 pizzerias, cafes, fish & chip shops and restaurants in my lifetime.

A few years later, I married Lee, my current and amazing wife, and we’ve been happily together for 20 years and married for over ten years. During this time, I took a job with a tile company as a warehouse supervisor. It was tough work, but I didn't shy away from a challenge. Then came an even bigger challenge: a $400,000 contract to tile a four-story apartment block. The catch? I couldn’t tile to save my life. But I wasn’t about to pass up that kind of money. So, I hired some skilled tilers, and miraculously, we got the job done.

After that adventure, Lee and I decided to move out to Western Queensland, to a little place called Tara, about four hours west of Brisbane. We started a shed building and handyman business out there. Life in the countryside was something else. We had horses, cows—you name it, we had it. When it flooded, we’d see fish swimming down the street from the dam, and once the water receded, we’d find fish and yabbies flapping on the road. 

I loved working out on feedlots, especially with the cows. They always had this goofy look on their faces and would follow you around, curious about what you were doing. I was working at a feedlot in Condamine when we got hit by the 2009 Condamine flood. I had gone home for Christmas and got stuck there, unable to get back to work for two weeks. When I finally made it back, it flooded again, and this time, I was trapped on the property for two weeks.

There were three other guys with me, and together, we had to feed 30,000 head of cattle because no one else could get to us. The cows needed to eat, but we didn’t get any recognition for our efforts. In fact, we even got in trouble for sleeping on the premises.

During this job, I had a bad fall from a tractor that wasn’t properly maintained and injured my knee and shoulder. With those injuries, I couldn’t build sheds for a while. So, I switched gears and started driving a taxi in Dalby, Queensland.

When I was driving a taxi, we had a massive kangaroo problem. You’d hit them constantly. I hit kangaroos almost every day and, even coming through the windshield so often that my little Charade looked like a dinosaur had chewed it up. On the way home, I'd hit a kangaroo, get home for some sleep, when I wake up, pull the panels off the car, jump on them to get them back in shape, put them back on, and go again. There was no point in getting new panels because it was so bad. In about two years, I had to replace around 20 windshields. It's sad because kangaroos are beautiful creatures, but it was a real problem.

My wife was studying at SCU, so we eventually moved out here for her studies. Lee grew up in Kyogle, so I got a job at Woolworths in Casino as a manager. It wasn’t for me, so I quit and decided to study law at SCU. I thought about doing IT as well, but I didn’t enjoy it, and the programs weren’t what I wanted to do. So, I stuck with the law, and now I only have eight units left.

While studying at SCU, I was juggling a lot. I was taking four units there and another four units of graduate certificate and masters courses in intellectual property law at UTS. 

Afterwards when my studies were completed, I also started up The Sassy Bean, a café that would give me an income while I get my trademark, copyright and patent business off the ground. My plan was to eventually sell the café and fully dive into the intellectual property world.

I built The Sassy Bean when I had almost nothing to work with. I remember waiting three hours for my wife just to get four balls of wool from Spotlight, and during that time, I thought it’d be a great spot for a café. My wife, Lee, said 'no' about four times before I finally got her around to it. A month later, we sort of forgot about it, but I brought up the café idea again. I crunched some numbers and asked if we could sign off on it. She said yes, as long as it would make money. And that’s how The Sassy Bean came to be—it’s been an amazing journey, full of surprises, both good and bad.

I knew the intellectual property business couldn't just be an online thing; I needed to meet business owners face-to-face. So, I signed up for five Expos in Queensland to make those business contacts. But then Covid hit, and all the expos got cancelled. It was tough trying to keep The Sassy Bean afloat during the pandemic. To make ends meet, I took over in the kitchen at the Kyogle Golf Club, serving pizza and pasta out the back doors on Thursdays. It was an instant success, and it kept us going until we could reopen The Sassy Bean.

When things finally started to look up, we re-opened the café in Lismore seven days a week and did the bistro at Kyogle three nights a week. Business was booming, and I started focusing more on my copyright, patenting, and trademark business. Eventually, just before the 2022 flood hit, we stopped doing the bistro to concentrate on The Sassy Bean as it was going really well. I resubmitted my interest for the expos in Queensland and got everything ready. But just as we were getting back on track, we got hit by the flood.

I originally put the café out here because I thought it would not flood, nor would it ever. The night before the big flood, I asked my wife if we should move everything. She asked, "Should we?" But I figured there was no way it would flood here, so I left everything and didn't even bring the boat home.

That morning, I didn’t set my alarm because I assumed I wouldn’t be able to get back into Lismore due to the flood, but I was sure the flood wouldn’t hit the café. Then, at 8 am, my wife woke me up and told me that HomeCo and Bunnings were underwater.

At first, I didn’t believe her, but when I realised she was right, she asked if I wanted tea. I said yes, and she started making tea. By the time the tea was ready, I was already on the phone and within 20 minutes, I had bought a food van, generator and a shipping container for anything we may be able to save. I was in rebuild mode, sipping my tea while watching the news. I even saw my mate Mark live on TV, getting rescued by an armed forces helicopter. I was relieved he was getting to safety.

It was a shocking turn of events. I had been so confident that the flood wouldn’t reach us, but there we were, dealing with the aftermath. The flood was a huge setback, but it also reminded me of the importance of resilience and quick thinking. 

When the flood hit, I went into town to fill up on fuel and do a big shop, assuming people would come and stay with us. Once I got home, I quickly bought a generator and started getting the food van ready to operate as soon as we could get back into town.

As soon as we were able, I drove back to the café and called the shopping centre to come in and clean out the rotten food and start the cleanup. While my construction stayed put, the equipment was scattered and smashed everywhere. I spent time cleaning up the café and helping out with the shopping centre cleanup.

The kids I had working with me were dealing with different levels of anxiety, so we introduced Ugene, the therapy ducks and his girlfriend, Beatrice. These were fluffy plush toys that the kids could use to comfort themselves. Whenever they were upset, they’d grab a fluffy duck, head to the storeroom, and come back out when they felt okay. The first thing I did was find the ducks, wash them, and take photos of them all cleaned up. I sent the photos to my team with a message saying that if the ducks were okay, we’d be okay too.

I stayed in close contact with my team, checking in often to make sure they were alright. Unfortunately, most of them couldn’t return because the flood had set them back. Despite the challenges, we kept pushing forward, finding comfort in small things and supporting each other through the tough times.

When the flood hit, the ground was so waterlogged that we couldn’t get the food van off the property. So, I decided to buy a container kitchen from Sydney. Once the army left the parking lot in front of The Sassy Bean and was cleared, we set up the container kitchen right outside. The generator was up and running, and business started booming, which meant I needed a second kitchen. I got another one to keep up with the demand.

We also started doing free barbecues every fortnight at the recovery centre at the showground. I’d never experienced a flood like this before, and I knew there were people who were in a much worse situation than us. I wanted to do everything I could to help out.

At one point, we had nine staff crammed into a tiny space that felt like a dog kennel. With other businesses reopening, it became even more challenging, especially with the $ 300-a-day fuel cost for the generator. We had to make a decision: relocate or close until the shopping centre was ready. We chose to relocate, and in just 24 hours, we had electricians, plumbers, Essential Energy and council on site, working around the clock to get everything set up and we relocated to where the 7/11 is now.

It was a tough time. The rain kept pouring down, and even though we had set up a gazebo to keep us dry, it was only up for about a week before the rain destroyed it. The old takeaway place in Habib Drive, across the road from The Sassy Bean, was gutted by the flood, so I decided to rent it and reopen it. We started serving fish and chips, hamburgers, and take-home meals. It took us eight days to get the place operational from scratch, and we were so relieved to be out of the rain and sun, finally having a home and shelter from all the elements.

We were in the new takeaway spot for about three months. Then, we got an email from the shopping centre saying we could come back in two weeks to set up, but it had to be done within seven weeks. With no money left after buying the other shop, I sold that site and one of our cars to fund the rebuild. My son and I took on the task of constructing the walls and setting everything up ourselves. We managed to get it done within those seven weeks. The walls might not be perfectly straight, but unless I point it out, you’d never know.

The last 18 months were a struggle, but the past few months have been much better for business. I deeply appreciate my wife, staff, and customers for their support. Without them, I don’t think we could have survived those tough 18 months, especially since many businesses couldn’t bounce back after the flood. We cater to a diverse group of people, including gluten-free, vegetarians, vegans, and those with religious dietary restrictions. We offer halal meat, vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options, and our varied menu is a big part of what keeps us going.

My wife, Lee, is a remarkable woman. If it weren’t for her support and the freedom she gives me to be who I am, I wouldn’t be here today. She’s the reason I can do what I love, and I’m incredibly grateful for her support, love and her hand in mine as we walk through life together.

Here at The Sassy Bean, people come for the good food, good coffee, and bad jokes. Some folks just need a place to relax and enjoy themselves. And while I’m busy with all that, I’ve got some new plans on the horizon.

While studying for a law exam, I dozed off in front of the TV and heard about companies like Coffee Club and Starbucks planning to stop using straws by 2020. That sparked an idea for a new kind of popper. I started sketching out my design, and after a nap and an exam, I went to Norco to get a card to make the poppers. The prototype worked well, so I registered the design, and we’re still in touch about it.

I’ve been working on my passion for law and intellectual property. Although it hasn’t made me rich, it’s something I’ve always been interested in. My inventions might just change that—it could make me disgustingly rich if it takes off. My design for a popper went from Melbourne to New Zealand, Japan, the UK, and even Zurich. I had the chance to present it at the headquarters of the guys who invented the Sunny Boy. It was a slow process, but I redesigned the equipment to speed things up.

I’ve been through billions of poppers, with a process that’s been slower than I’d like. But I’m determined to speed it up and bring my imagination to life. My overall goal is to help others turn their ideas into reality and protect their businesses from bad reputations. It’s all about bringing those creative ideas to life and making sure they’re protected and respected.

Lee has been incredibly supportive, no matter how 'out-there' my ideas are. When I told her I wanted to study law, she asked why. I said it was because I was good at it. So, I started studying law at SCU and then at UTS, focusing on trademark and copyright.

I took on four units and was really hitting my stride when they told me I couldn’t sit for the exams because I hadn’t completed my bachelor’s degree. I threatened to sue UTS for breach of contract, arguing that was not a prerequisite. We went back and forth, and I threatened a $1 million lawsuit. They eventually backed off and told me good luck with the exams.

I work seven days a week here at Sassy Bean, and whenever I get a bit of time, I’m working on completing my degrees. It’s a busy life, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Lee and I have had quite the ride together. When she decided she wanted a motorcycle licence, she got a bit scared doing it alone so I got my licence too, and we ended up swapping one of our cars for a Harley, which I had given her, telling her when I came to get a blood test at the pathology unit she works at, just before she was about to give me the needle. It was a big change but a thrilling one. 

I ended up with an old bike, and my licence expired. Lee was nervous about riding alone, so we redid our licences and swapped a car for another motorcycle. My latest bike, a Calsavy Volkan, had pedals that were too far forward, so I had to order parts to fix it up. I’ll get to that this weekend and go for a ride with Lee once she’s healed from her tattoos.

We’re setting up for our old age, planning to tow the bikes to whatever hotel we stay at and enjoy beautiful weather on the road. After I finish my degree, my plan is to travel to country towns and offer my legal services. It’s a way to ensure I have money for retirement and fuel for the bike.

Selling the café is a tough decision. I’ll miss it dearly, but I need to get healthier and finish my degree. I’m setting up my business in Lismore, but I’ll be travelling to Brisbane and the Gold Coast for the expos to drum up some business so I can stay in Lismore as my base. Lismore has become home, and I love this place with my whole heart. I was a city boy, and now I can’t imagine going back.

As we look ahead, we know that life will keep evolving. From career to career, we adapt and grow, enjoying the journey together. Lee and I will keep riding through life, making the most of every minute and chasing after every coming opportunity.