Profile | Cully’s Motorcycle Centre

50 Years of Service and Setting The Pace

Walk into the store today and you will find a modern, organised showroom with clearly defined departments and a wide spread of Yamaha products, including on and off-road motorcycles, WaveRunners and SSVs. That product range was deliberate. “I wanted people to walk into the shop and feel like they’re shopping at a major retail centre, a clean, modern experience,” says second-generation dealer principal Strett Cull. “Every department of the Yamaha dealership is important, and if each department is working well, each one complements the other.”

Strett’s “keep improving, keep moving” mindset has been part of Cully’s DNA from the beginning. In the mid-1970s, when Strett’s father Brian Cull was road racing, an opportunity came through Yamaha’s Australian network. Brian left the transport industry, connected with Yamaha importer Ken George, and in 1976 opened a Yamaha dealership in Osborne Park. “My dad was road racing Yamaha motorcycles at the time, so the connection was already there,” Strett explains. Road changes later forced a move from Ozborne Park, and by 1982 Cully’s had established itself in Balcatta, where it has remained ever since.

For Strett, the business was always going to be his career. “I was always going to work in the family business, and that was my focus from when I was at school,” he says. He started the way many young people learn how the engine room of a business works, in the workshop. He began as an apprentice mechanic, completed his time as a technician, and then learned the day-to-day reality of dealership life from the inside out.

Racing remained part of the Cull family culture too, although Strett’s journey didn’t start on two wheels “Dad was racing cars at the time, so I started go-kart racing with a Yamaha KD100J, of course,” Strett says. “But I always wanted to go motorcycle racing, and my first real race bike was a YZF600R Thundercat, I loved racing that bike.” The business eventually took priority over race meetings, but Strett still got his racing fix by helping younger riders chase opportunities in road and off-road competition, something that started with his father and continues today.

By 2019, Strett felt it was time to make a significant update. Cully’s had been renovated in the early 2000s, but customer expectations had moved on. The shop was starting to look tired, and the layout was due for a revamp. “I think every business has to evolve and grow to keep everyone engaged, your staff and customers, and even yourself,” he says. “I don’t want people walking in thinking the shop is stuck in the decades prior. I want people to receive a modern retail experience.”

Plans began in 2019, but COVID slowed parts of the process, and the build progressed through 2023 and 2024, with the renovation completed in 2025, the first fully professional fit-out Cully’s had been undertaken. The goal was practical: create room, improve display, and make the customer journey smoother across sales, parts and accessories, and service.

Cully’s also expanded its Yamaha offering with WaveRunner and SSVs. For Strett, it made perfect sense given the customer crossover and the chance to show the broader Yamaha story. “When people walk into the dealership, I want to present that fun experience,” he says. “Yamaha does lots of great products, motorcycles, side-by-sides, WaveRunners, and all the accessories that go with it. It’s a huge range.”

Parts, accessories and apparel are a major focus of the business. “The parts and accessories area is vital,” Strett says. “It’s something that I pay close attention to. With the renovation we were able to display everything a lot better, and provide a bigger range. It’s also where much of the team is based.”

Service is the other key pillar of Cully’s. “We’re quite proud of our service centre,” Strett says. “It’s clean and tidy, modern, well stocked, with special tools.” The workshop runs with five to six technicians plus service advisors, and for the past decade it has been led by Peter Otley, a long-time industry operator who competed in the 2025 Yamaha Oceania Tech Grand Prix. Yamaha training remains central as technology changes, with technicians regularly attending courses to stay current.

Staff happiness is another area Strett focuses on. “We have been in business for a long time now, and many of our key staff members have been here for many years.” That focus extended to practical upgrades of staff areas designed to make Cully’s a better place to work. This includes a large lunchroom and kitchen away from business of the retail floor, an alfresco area with a barbecue, plus a gym, showers and lockers. “Keeping good staff is part of keeping standards high,” Strett says.

Ask about the “secret” to being a leading national dealer for many years and Strett is direct. “I don’t think there is a secret,” he says. “You’ve got to provide the consistency and that means working hard each and every day. The real achievement is longevity with relevance, still being here, still investing, still contributing to the industry rather than drifting along on reputation.”

The Cully’s and Yamaha relationship is a large part of that confidence. Cully’s has been tied to Yamaha since the beginning, and Strett believes that matters to customers. “I like to think in Perth the Cully’s name and Yamaha brand go hand in hand,” he says. Looking forward, his focus is on maximising what is now in place, improving efficiency, strengthening the offer, and continuing to grow. “I always aspire to increase the business we are doing,” he says. “Running a business is like painting the Sydney harbour bridge, once you get the end you need to start all over again.  It’s never finished, and you never really get a chance to stand back and admire the finished product.”