Bridestowe Lavender Estate is neatly tucked away at Nabowla in rural Tasmania and is the largest commercial scale lavender farm in the state.
Rows of lavender streak the landscape and the countryside bursts with purple.
And it is easy to see how the alluring vibrancy and warm colours of the fields make the estate the perfect backdrop for Instagram fanatics.
Their trademark lavender coloured ice cream and famous violet coloured mascot Bobby Bear is a constant feature on visitor’s social media pages.
The farm’s official Instagram page has more than 17,000 followers.
The natural beauty of the property, coupled with its unique products has generated so much buzz that the estate expects to draw in 85,000 visitors this year alone.
But as owner Robert Ravens pointed out in a short video, the farm almost never made it.
And it is easy to see how the alluring vibrancy and warm colours of the fields makes the estate the perfect backdrop for Instagram fanatics
The natural beauty of the farm coupled with its unique products has generated so much buzz that the estate expects to draw in 85,000 visitors this year alone
Their trademark lavender coloured ice cream and famous violet coloured Bobby Bear is a constant feature on visitor’s social media pages
‘The darkest moments since we’ve owned it was in 2010,’ Mr Ravens said.
He admitted the farm had been bending under the strain of financial difficulties and that it faced collapse sooner or later.
‘We ran out of money. We remember coming back to the staff and saying we’re on our own. We either make it or we won’t.’
The lavender farm is located midway between St Helens and Launceston and sits a short 20 minute west of the sleepy town of Scottsdale.
As local bed and breakfast owner Jan Hughes said, there was little in the way to draw visitors to the area.
‘It’s always been a drive through town.
‘The region had been through economic depression, families have had to move from the community because of lack of employment opportunities.’
Mr Ravens first came into possession of the farm back in 2007 and said he had a hard time from the get-go for a number of reasons.
One, he’d bought the property on a whim.
Second, he had no prior knowledge of lavender until he bought the farm.
The lavender farm is located midway between St Helens and Launceston and sits a short 20 minute west of the sleepy town of Scottsdale
Mr Ravens first came into possession of the farm back in 2007 and said he had a hard time from the get-go due to a mix of reasons (pictured, an Instagram happy user poses in the lavender fields)
The farm has successfully woven social media with several marketing campaigns to boost its profile and place the estate on the international stage
Third, the previous owners had been trying for years to turn the property around, but failed to successfully market the property and its product.
‘Part of the challenge is the fact that we’re in a remote area… we’re not just rural, we’re not just Tasmania, but we’re rural Tasmania,’ general manager James Ravens said.
‘We realised we needed to focus in on the tourism component and start advertising online, to make it an attractive proposition.’
The farm has successfully woven social media with several marketing campaigns to boost its profile and place the estate on the international stage.
The creation of the lavender coloured ice cream was an instant hit with overseas visitors and particularly gained traction in places like Taiwan and Hong Kong.
While the farm is a success story in marketing one of its biggest draw cards is what it was originally intended to do: produce lavender (pictured, a woman poses in the fields)
Bridestowe Lavender Estate at Nabowla is the largest commercial scale lavender farm in Tasmania (pictured, a visitor takes a tour of the lavender fields)
A visitor pauses for a photo to add to her Instagram
The farm’s characteristic purple bear ‘Bobby’ only added to its meteoric rise with the popularity of the scented soft toy boosted with the help of overseas celebrities.
The bear was initially a playful solution to make use of the dried lavender left around the farm.
Though the scented bear has since blown up in China with the soft toy in high demand.
Bobbie is so popular the fluffy toy was even presented to Chinese president Xi Jinping during his first visit to Tasmania in 2014.
Chinese model Zhang Xinyu added to the buzz after she posed with the bear on social media the same year.
Actresses Sun Li and Fan Bingbing have also praised the comfort of the cuddly bear.
While the farm is a success story in marketing, one of its biggest draw cards is what it was originally intended to do: produce lavender.
Japanese chef Haru Yamashita said he was immediately drawn to the farm.
‘I feel the scent and colour of the farm in the air and the wind. I keep that in my head, so when I go back to Tokyo I can recreate the atmosphere.’
A tourist turns to walk down the field at Bridestowe Lavender Estate
While the farm is a hit with Instagram users, it has not lost sight of its original function, which was to produce lavender oil
Chinese model Zhang Xinyu added to the buzz after she posed with the bear on social media in 2014