Lisette proving her theory that
she loves working at the markets

Lisette Monsello behind the A la Cart pizza stall

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It all started with a glass of wine, a sunset walk along Darwin's breezy foreshore and a hankering for wood fired pizza.

Lisette Monsello and her husband Ian Campbell were on a break from their life in a big Australian city when the spark of an idea started them on a path to a seachange up north.

"We went down to see the most spectacular sunset, I mean my heart just fell into it and Ian and I looked at each other and went a woodfired pizza right now would be great!" says Lisette.

"It's funny, after the two weeks were up we sadly left our fabulous holiday, went back to the cold weather and I couldn't believe it when Ian started to get a piece of paper out and draw the trailer which he's designed and one thing led to another and we built it," she says.

As Lisette says with a smile, "How many ideas come true out of a glass of wine?".

"Our dream in fact was to put our stall at Mindil and when we got back down south and built the trailer we put our application in for the Mindil Beach sunset markets and I'll never forget the day that I got told that we couldn't get in and I cried," she says.

By this stage they had invested a lot of money, and they had been planning to set up their business, Pizza a la cart, at the markets.

They moved to Darwin anyway, and were given permission to sell their pizza at several locations around the city, including in Nightcliff, where they had first strolled along the cliffs on holiday.

"By the second season that we were here, we got our stall into the Mindil Beach sunset markets."

Ms Monsello admits to being a little bit nervous about being the new kids on the block at Darwin's famous tourist markets.

"Now we're in our second season there and we really feel part of the community that is Mindil ... to see so many people manage to put together such a huge business is exciting for everyone I think.

"The stalls are so close together that you can imagine one minute it's a carpark on a beach, and then the next minute it's this vibrant market with thousands of people in it and then by tonight at 11 o'clock it will be back to being a carpark," she says.

Ms Monsello says they've got their routine well and truly sorted, from what time they set up on a Thursday and Sunday; to exactly where the trailer goes; to creating the dough and chopping the ingredients.

"Everyone needs to be ready for example on a Thursday at five and a Sunday at four, and show that we're also having fun because that's part of running a stall or shop or a business anywhere is to enjoy what you're doing."

Talk to Lisette for any length of time and the word lifestyle keeps slipping into the discussion, about living in Darwin and also working at the markets.

"What a fabulous place to have a job

"Nobody that I know and I know a lot of people in my industry have got a window to such a beautiful sunset from their kitchen sink and from their stove," says Lisette

Most of all, Lisette is proud of herself for taking such a risk and says she never looks back

"It was just so worth it and I'd be saddened to think that it was something I could have possibly said no I won't do that and miss out on all of this"