Enhancing accessibility can involve significant changes to your business operation – but it doesn’t have to.
The House of Honey has demonstrated how small and medium-sized businesses can make a disability inclusion start for the long haul.
“We’ve really started with the small changes that we can achieve quickly, and then work up to those ones that will require a bit more work and investment,” says Leigh Taylor, Marketing Manager at The House of Honey, a honey shop and bee sanctuary in Swan Valley.
“We started thinking about how we could diversify the business and have more people come and experience our products and services.”
Taylor, who initially believed that increasing accessibility was “very much around fixing your bricks and mortar”, enrolled in courses from the Tourism Council WA (TCWA) and People with Disabilities WA (PWdWA) to begin the journey.
With support from other businesses and feedback from TCWA and PWdWA, the Swan Valley honey shop worked through the changes.
“We’ve revised some of our signage on the buildings to make the font easier to read, bigger and bolder colours, and added accessible toilets,” she says. “We’re looking at our menus, and adding a QR code menu option, and we’re also exploring into automated doors and ramps.”
Accessibility drives business growth and more
Having earned multiple accolades from TCWA in 2021 and 2023, the small business has upgraded its hardware and enhanced the experience for its prospective customers with a refreshed website featuring an engaging virtual tour.
“For instance, a customer in a wheelchair can actually see and plan what they’re going to start to experience,” she says.
Since then, the business has seen a 53% increase in bookings this year compared to the same quarter in the previous year and received the Excellence in Accessibility and Inclusion Award from the Swan Chamber of Commerce in 2024.
What’s next for The House of Honey?
The journey to diversity and inclusion has continued to inspire the business and the business’ owner, Kim Phillips, to explore new accessibility measures, including the recruitment of people with disabilities.
“Perhaps one day, we’ll be able to recruit people with disabilities,” she says.
Phillips explains that not all costs associated with the accessibility measures are substantial.
“It’s not necessarily about investing lots of money; it’s about making small changes,” she says.
“The small changes become a big change, and then suddenly you’re making a big impact to a community of people that in some ways, get neglected.
“It’s so important to be inclusive. There’s a community out there that really deserve to come out and have some beautiful experiences, and you could be one of those businesses.”
Contact Ability Link to learn more about how CCIWA can help you achieve your business goals through disability employment.
