Many have worked with, or for, Kevin Blyton, the Managing Director and founder of the Capital Radio Network, one of the few privately owned networks remaining in Australia.
Blyton started in commercial radio 45 years ago as an announcer at 2XL in Cooma, a station he would purchase when he was just 19 and still owns today. He grew a network of regional stations which, at one point, spread as far as Tasmania and New Zealand.
Currently he owns and operates 6iX Perth, MY DAB Perth, KiX Country DAB Perth, 2CC Canberra, 2CA Canberra, MY DAB Canberra, Snow DAB Canberra, Kix Country FM and DAB Canberra, Eagle FM Goulburn, GN FM Goulburn, Kix Country FM Goulburn, Snow FM Snowy Mountains, XL FM Snowy Mountains and 3GG Gippsland.
Blyton diversified into hospitality around his beloved 2XL in the Snowy Mountains purchasing the Charlotte Pass and Selwyn Snow Resorts, the Snowy Mountains Airport in Cooma, Kosciusko Chalet Hotel as well as local transport services & cinemas. I’ve been reading about people who were as likely to be served by him to get cinema tickets as meet with him in the board room. He has always been hands on.
In January 2020, during the black summer bushfires, the ski resorts of Perisher and Thredbo were under threat.
The wind changed.
Instead, Selwyn bore the brunt, suffering catastrophic damage.
Selwyn Snow Resort after the Black Summer bush fires from Facebook
Not two months later, while I was working at 2CC, one of Blyton’s Canberra stations, a new threat called Covid-19 emerged.
Blyton called as the country went into lockdown and assured us that he would look after his people, and their jobs.
I asked him about the last three years.
“Interesting time. First the bushfires, then Covid, lock downs, building materials shortage, lack of workers in building industries, no overseas workers – the life blood of the ski industry.
The radio stations held up well with the exception of a 3 month period when the ACT was totally shut down which impacted the Canberra stations. The ski resorts had a couple of down seasons with one completely gone when the NSW government shut the resorts down completely. But all on the up now.
Over 500 people work across the group. Not one person lost their job, had hours cut or wages cut because of Covid.”
Blyton was inducted into the Commercial Radio Hall of Fame at the 2013 Australian Commercial Radio Awards. Radio is still his passion.
“It gets me out of bed everyday just as it has for over 45 years now. I don’t feel any legacy. But commercial radio has been very good to me – I am very lucky.”
In July, after many setbacks, Selwyn reopened to enjoy the last part of a glorious snow season. You might just encounter Kevin Blyton when you purchase your ski lift tickets.
