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Takapuna Beach is an enviable place to work. This month we chat to some of the people who love working by the beach and whose businesses are proud to get behind Takapuna Beach Business Association.

TALKINGTAKAPUNABEACH TAKAPUNA BEACH TALKING Andy Thompson, House of Travel Takapuna Please sum up your business in one sentence We understand that the best holidays are created together and will collaborate with you to create the perfect, seamless, tailored travel experience. What is most exciting you about your business right now? That the inspiring consultants at the Takapuna store really want to make sure that they are providing exceptional service and going the extra mile to make sure that you have the perfect travel experience. What do you most love about working at Takapuna Beach? The new vibe in Takapuna is amazing and only getting better every day. All the new businesses that have come into the area have created a new buzz. I love

walking around and finding another little gem of a place. Takapuna is starting to become a new identity on the North Shore as a destination to visit. I can only see great things to come from Takapuna Beach, and the work the TBBA have done has been excellent! What’s your number one piece of business advice? Don’t just work in your business, work on it: take a helicopter view and re-evaluate your customer interaction and your brand. They both may have shifted their position in the market and you need to adapt with how your customers want to interact with you. What are your thoughts about the new Takapuna playground? It’s a great result. This will bring in families, not only

Andy Thompson from our area but other areas too. It makes social and economic sense.

Nyrelle Rowan, Fortieth & Hurstmere (Verve Property Management) Please sum up your business in one sentence Fortieth & Hurstmere is Takapuna’s little slice of urban. It is a laneway of hand-picked eateries owned and run by passionate purveyors of unique and delicious offerings of the highest quality. What is most exciting you about your business right now? Our little laneway neighbourhood is ever evolving and we are thrilled to keep introducing exciting new businesses to the mix as we continue to build on what we feel is a unique experience for the Shore. What do you most love about working at Takapuna Beach? What’s not to love?

What’s your number one piece of business advice? Love what you do and don’t be afraid to stand out from the pack. What are your thoughts about the new Takapuna playground? We think it’s a great addition to Takapuna Beach – as a mum I’m always on the hunt for new playgrounds to take my kids to and I will drive for miles to find a good one. It’s sure to bring in families from further afield which is great for Takapuna! Fortieth & Hurstmere

John Thatcher, Crombie Lockwood Please sum up your business in one sentence Crombie Lockwood is New Zealand’s largest insurance broker and we have one focus – to position both you and your business to financially survive any insurable event. What is most exciting you about your business right now? The insurance landscape is constantly changing and it’s always exciting when we can meet an emerging risk head-on with a smart insurance solution. Last year we launched SmartPAK - the smart insurance solution for local businesses and supported by leading global insurers. SmartPAK has no equal in the current market offering higher automatic cover limits, lower excesses and better Business Interruption protection. We are now seeing the emergence of cyber threats where the risk of network security breaches, virus attacks or data loss can have a serious financial impact on any business. With our partners at Lloyd’s of London we have now developed CyberSAFE - comprehensive insurance cover especially for SMEs, covering claims and losses arising out of a ‘cyber event’. Back-to-back wins are always exciting and these two market leading Crombie

Lockwood products work together to allow our clients to stay focused on what’s really important to them – running their own successful business. What do you most love about working at Takapuna Beach? From the fantastic beach front to the close proximity Auckland city (10 minutes on the bus if I need to go there for a meeting), it’s just a great place to be. Takapuna has developed into a destination centre all to itself but still retains a real ‘‘village’ atmosphere in the CBD. I love the fact that more often that not I run into someone else I know when heading out for a coffee meeting or grabbing a bite for lunch. We seem to have a good community ‘buzz’ right now and the ongong plans to further improve the area mean Takapuna will continue to be a destination of choice to set up business and to enjoy living in. What’s your number one piece of business advice? Love what you do, believe in yourself, and never lose the passion that you had when you first started. What are your thoughts about the new Takapuna playground? What a huge success story this whole project is turning out to be. It’s an extremely well planned

John Thatcher improvement for Takapuna Beach which will in turn provide a real positive ‘knock on’ effect to the local business community. It is a superb example of what can be achieved when passionate people have a great idea, which then gains the support and commitment of the community at large. Both the journey to create it and the end result is something Takapuna can be truly proud of. My only regret is that I am probably a bit too old to fully enjoy all of it!