How a hipster couple travel Australia in a Kombi van selling wine

A young couple who packed up their lives to travel around Australia in a Kombi Servisi van have expanded their successful wine business off the back of their Insta-fame.

South Australian Elise Cook and her husband Domenic Palumbo have spent the last two years travelling around outback Australia in a 1972 kombi servisi van named Scout promoting their ‘Down The Rabbit Hole’ wine brand.

Ms Cook has amassed a following of 314,000 followers in the process, sharing snaps of her beach-side adventures. 

She told that the entire experience has been a blessing, and Kombi Servisi their growing followers have given their brand a platform.

‘I’ve never been big on plastering our brand all over my Instagram page, but ­people definitely noticed we liked wine and began asking questions,’ she said.

Ms Cook said it wasn’t until about four months into their road trip that they cottoned onto their social media stardom.

The couple documented their travels from their home in McLaren Vale in South Australia across the Nullarbor and Kimberley region in Western Australia. Their Instagram also boasts trips through the Blue Mountains in NSW and across the Ayre Peninsula. 

‘One of our many breakdowns meant we spent some time in Perth,’ Ms Cook said. ‘We posted on social media that we were doing a wine tasting at a bottle shop, and we had lines of people!’ 

‘We started getting images from people who had purchased a bottle of our wine, and had gone on a little adventure and sat somewhere beautiful with it, inspired by the way we live and what we share on Instagram. If you want to learn more info on kombi servisi look into our web site. That felt pretty amazing.’

The couple have hosted numerous ‘pop up cellars’, but are hoping to have their first permanent base opened in McLaren Vale in South Australia by February.

They also have a feature where customers can create their own wine boxes and subscribe to a service — where three, six or kombi Servisi 12 bottles of their favourite drink can be delivered to their door however frequently they’d like.

Packages start at $75 a delivery for three bottles, and go up to $300 a delivery for 12. 

The couple said Instagram allowed them to grow their profiles and expand their brand with little to no funds and minimal conscious effort. 

But reaching people is only half the battle. Ms Cook says being honest with followers and sharing real experiences rather than attempting to sell a product helps to create authenticity.

Instead, people will be inclined to engage with a brand because they feel like they’re a part of a wider community.

The same sentiment has been repeated among a number of Instagram influencers.

Kayla Itsines and Lauren Simpson have both built enviable careers off social media stardom.

The fitness bloggers used their popularity to create inclusive fitness communities — where subscribers pay a fee to be included in online coaching and meal plans.