Charlestown is the vibrant hub of Lake Macquarie – the go-to place for those seeking anything from shopping, food and entertainment to medical and professional services. It’s the region's number one destination, with no other area in the region offering the array of business, health and lifestyle choices.
Charlestown is flourishing. The precinct is booming with opportunity as demonstrated by the new residential developments, modern apartment towers, office blocks and of course the constantly evolving Charlestown Square – the largest shopping centre in the region. New residents and businesses are moving into the area by the hundreds to be a part of this dynamic community.
Located high on the hill – the Charlestown we know today is nothing like its humble origins as a coal mining village.
Considered to be the founders of Charlestown, the Waratah Coal Company was first established in 1862 to mine coal in the Waratah district of Newcastle. The company then purchased another 2,600 acres to the south of Newcastle and in 1873 began sinking a mine shaft in what was then known as Raspberry Gully – a deep gully to the north of Charlestown and now of significant historical significance for Lake Macquarie. The coal was taken along the “Gully Line” to Waratah.
Hacked out of dense bushland, the deep gully soon became a hive of activity and variously known as Charles' Pit, Raspberry Gully or The Gully Pit. Officially, the region was called South Waratah, but over the years, the name Charlestown came to include the Gully Pit and all other company owned land.
This surviving name seems to have been derived from that of Charles Smith, the company's manager.
What formed from this was Charlestown's first European settlement with the first inhabitants being the miners from the pit.
The company created the town’s first subdivision in April 1876, including original street alignments along the current Pacific Highway as well as Pearson, Smith, Ida, Frederick, Milson and Ridley Streets. The Charlestown Oval was also established at this time, and bequeathed by the mining industry to the community of Charlestown.
In 1877 Charlestown was included in the Municipality of Waratah and had up to forty houses, several stores and a
population of 200 consisting mainly of miners from Gully Pit and also shopkeepers. The first post office was opened in the same year with mail brought from Newcastle three times a week on horseback. Just two years later, Charlestown had 3 hotels, a School of Arts and several stores as well as a Government Savings Bank. Charlestown’s first school opened in April, 1879 with 68 pupils.
By 1883, Charlestown had two churches and by 1892, had grown to a population of 500 people.
Sometime around the late 1880’s, hostilities broke out when the Raspberry Gully owners employed strike-breaking mine workers brought in from Sydney. These "free labourers", included Spanish, Italian and Turkish migrants desperate for work.
To house some of them, the company built homes on Charlestown Road, which locals called "Blackleg Row" or "Scab Row". Due to the chatter of the many languages being spoken, the area was soon nicknamed "Monkey Town." After some threats from angry miners, the newcomers quickly left and the modest cottages became known as Pit Row.
Diagonally down Charlestown Road was also the mine manager's hilltop residence overlooking the Gully mine. Today, the site is better known for the townhouse development Moreton Bay Gardens.
In the 1900’s Charlestown saw a period of rapid growth and expansion. In 1911, Charlestown had 120 homes which quickly increased to 158 homes ten years later and a population of 736 people. By 1933 Charlestown had 318 homes and a fast growing population of up to 1,360 people.
Although the mine did very well at first, conditions proved to be too competitive during the latter part of the 19th century and it was closed in the 1940’s - after World War II.
Charlestown surged in population, growth and development in the late 1950’s and 1960’s. Sewerage services were extended to Charlestown and a number of new schools were opened to cope with the growing number of school aged children.
Charlestown Square was built in 1979 - the first shopping centre to develop in the Lake region. The new centre had a significant impact on the town by generating huge increases in traffic, shifting the retail focus to the west and becoming a major employer in the region.
Today, very few traces remain of the Raspberry Gully pits. However, of the eight miners cottages built by the Waratah Coal
Company for the strike breakers, four remain today at 300, 304, 306 and 308 Charlestown Road. These remaining cottages are essentially the same in form as when they were built, with only some changes to materials (windows and cladding). They are the only remaining obvious relics of the Waratah Coal Company. Also, tucked away in Rotary Park and very visible to motorists stopped at the intersection of the Pacific Highway and Dudley Road turn-off is a large mining wheel memento - the Rotary Park sculpture commemorating the mining venture that led to the early settlement of Charlestown. This sculpture was completed in 1972 and designed and sculpted by Charlestown resident, Peter Boyd whose father Tom Boyd worked as a miner all his life. It is believed that Tom Boyd modelled for the sculpture which captures the back breaking work involved in working at the coalface.
Beside the sculpture is a plaque that reads, "Dedicated to the coal mining pioneers who in the year 1873 started the first mining venture which led to the formation of Charlestown in 1876. The poppet head was salvaged from the last remains of the Waratah Colliery which was situated in Raspberry Gully from 1873 - 1961."
Symbolically, this historic headframe wheel is located directly opposite Charles Street - Charlestown.
Charlestown Square is the major regional shopping centre in Charlestown and is owned and operated by General Property Trust (GPT) - one of Australia's largest diversified listed property groups.
Originally built in 1979 as a 2-story structure, the centre has undergone several extensions and renovations and currently has over 270 specialty stores – including over 100 fashion stores and more than 30 exclusive stores, making it one of the largest shopping centres in the Hunter region. The centre now has 3 levels, and includes two food courts.
The Centre is constantly evolving, and in late 2010 underwent a major $470 million redevelopment, which almost doubled its size to 88,000 square metres. This included adding over 100 new shops, a new 8-screen Reading Cinema, including 2 Gold Lounge cinemas. The redevelopment also meant employment for an additional 1300 people, significantly boosting the local economy.
As of August 2015, Charlestown Square is undergoing a further major redevelopment in the former Best and Less mall. This development is rumoured to be bringing major international retailers such as H&M, Zara and Topshop to the Hunter region.
With over 270 specialty stores, including Apple, City Beach, Rebel Sport, Strike Bowling Bar, Best & Less and also home to the only Myer department store in the region, Charlestown Square has something for everyone.
NRMA Charlestown was recently awarded Major Sales Site of the year. Charlestown branch was the winner out of 200 NRMA branches across the state, and won this award for their outstanding performance in the last financial year.
At the same award ceremony, Amy Carter (pictured) from Charlestown branch also took out the prize of ‘Insurance Consultant of the year’. This is the second year in a row Amy has won this award, and it signifies her dedication and commitment to customer service.
As Amy tells us...“I love my customers, and the best part of my job is definitely educating people on insurance, and just how important it is. I always do my best to make sure every customer I talk to walks away with the right level of cover to suit their needs.”
The Charlestown franchise is one of the sites owned by The Bradstreet Property Group from the Hunter/Mid North Coast Regions, who took on this proprietorship in 2013. “We pride ourselves on being locally owned and
Sky Dental is a state-of-the-art facility in the Sky Central West Building Charlestown that manufactures high quality implants, crowns, bridges and dentures and carries out denture repairs and re-lines, as well as offering a range of sporting mouth guards and orthodontic appliances.
Digital Dentistry is the new direction of the dental industry. It is the most accurate, user friendly, patient friendly option and allows for more restorative possibilities for the patient. It offers the best possible communication tools between dentist and patient as well as dentists and dental technicians.
As you would expect, Sky Dental’s technicians are some of the most highly trained
professionals in Digital Dentistry in the country and the laboratory is the first fully Digitised Laboratory in Australia.
In fact, the entire Sky Dental team are highly skilled as a result of an exceptional standard of training. Hundreds of hours of certification ensure the team have the highest level of knowledge and are skilled with all the latest technology.
Master craftsmanship, 100% Australianmade products and leading technology at an affordable price – this is Sky Dental’s guarantee to its patients and clients.
For more information visit the Sky Dental website at www.skydental.com.au or phone 4032 7290.
operated. We honestly do believe when taking out Insurance, it’s really important to have local understanding.”
The branch, located on the Pacific Highway serves approximately 700 customers per week, and can help with car, home, CTP green slips, business, boat, caravan, and many other types of Insurance.
Charlestown Remedial Sports Injuries Clinic is the most established remedial clinic in the area with a particular focus on Neuromuscular Therapy (nerves and muscles) and nutrition. The clinic also specialises in Cryotherapy which involves the therapeutic use of cold treatments to promote faster healing time, naturopathy, myotherapy (muscle therapy), Myotrophy which is the nutrition of muscle and Kinesiology which is the scientific study of movement of body parts.
With over 30 years’ experience treating sports injuries, motor vehicle accident injuries and work related injuries, the clinic’s owner Phillip Muller has seen it all. Phillip, who has enough qualifications to cover the length of his arm, takes his role as
a health facilitator very seriously and believes in providing his patients with an honest and open approach to their treatment.
Since opening the doors to his practice in Smith Street Charlestown more than 30 years ago, Phillip has treated well over 15,000 people for a wide range of conditions. In that time he has built a very successful clinic based around integrity and honesty. As a result, his business is built on word of mouth and referrals with many leading surgeons referring their patients to his clinic for treatment.
Phillip has been involved in sports recreation for many years and before opening his clinic, he was teaching swimming and basketball.
"In those days very little was known or understood about sports injuries – certainly nothing remotely close to what is understood today" says Phillip.
As a result, Phillip saw a need for a more specialised treatment based on neuromuscular treatment using a combination of deep tissue and soft tissue work (with no manipulation) for injuries that include sprains, strains, torn ligaments, whiplash and other neck injuries, back pain and also back injuries.
"In its simplest form, Neuromuscular Therapy is a modern, logical system of massage therapy that is based on understanding how the neuromuscular system functions" explains Phillip.
"The nervous system controls everything in the body, including muscle tension and pain.
"Neuromuscular principles help me understand what is causing the patients pain- trigger points, posture, and so forth and how to treat it."
"Neuromuscular Therapy's approach to massage involves the very detailed massage of muscles, tendons, ligaments and connective tissue. Precise massage therapy releases problem areas that are often missed by other forms of massage."
• Treatments for all injuries – general to sporting – acute to chronic pain
• Neuromuscular massage • Orthopaedic massage • Magnesium massage
• No manipulation of the spine or joints
• Pregnancy and post-natal
• Muscular and joint complaints
• Neck, back, rotator cuff and shoulder pain
• Knee, calf, shin splints, ankle, quad and groin strains
• Achilles, tendonitis, peroneal tendonitis, plantar fasciitis, AC joints
• Headaches/migraines, ITBS, carpel tunnel, tennis/golf elbow, tennis shoulder
• Nutritional advice – general to chronic problems, detoxi cation, stress/tension, weight loss, anxiety/depression, fatigue
Merry Christmas and a safe and happy new year to all our patients from Jaclyn, Sara, Jess and Phil. We will open
For Phillip, who is a qualified neuromuscular therapist, herbalist, acupuncturist and nutritionist, much of his treatment focuses on neuromuscular therapy combined with addressing nutritional imbalances and deficiencies to correct underlying conditions.
"I find that most of my patients are deficient in magnesium and iodine. As a result we use ancient magnesium oil in all our treatments. This assists in the relaxation of muscles and reducing joint damage" says Phillip.
Many of the patients Phillip and his colleague Sarah treat at the clinic have tried every other form of treatment with little or no success, and there is no shortage of people who are prepared to come forward to talk about the successful treatment they have experienced at Charlestown Remedial Sports Injuries Clinic.
Faye, who is an amputee after losing her right arm in a car accident over 9 years ago is one such person. Faye has been receiving treatment at Charlestown Remedial Sports Injuries Clinic for the past 8 years and went there after losing confidence in all previous treatments.
Faye suffers from what she calls "one arm overuse syndrome" and can now, thanks to her treatment, drive her car and function normally without pain and the use of pain killers. As a result she has recommended many people to Charlestown Remedial Sports Injuries Clinic over the years.
John, who has worked in the mining industry for most of his life, has suffered from chronic neck and back pain for years and was also told by specialists that he should not expect a full recovery.
After losing all hope for a recovery and after just 4 treatments at Charlestown Remedial Sports Injuries Clinic, John is now learning to manage the pain and has already noticed a significant difference in his mobility.
helloworld Hunter Travel Group (HTG) live and breathe travel and creating lasting memories is their passion. 2014 and 2015 were their biggest years yet with them not only successfully transitioning brands from Travelworld to helloworld, but also proudly taking out the Australian Federation of Travel Agent’s ‘Best Travel Agency - Multi Location’ Award 2 years running at the Australian Federation of Travel Agents (AFTA) National Travel Industry Awards.
Founded in 1999, HTG is now one of Australia's largest privately owned travel agencies. The HTG family is made up of over 100 travel professionals, with over 1000 years’ worth of travel experience within 5 specialist areas. These include corporate and leisure travel through their helloworld stores, cruise travel through their specialist agency Cruise Travel Centre at Westfield Kotara, and escorted group, events and sporting travel through their specialist divisions - Signature Journeys and Great Events.
The Charlestown store is one of the largest within the network with a dynamic team of nine. Recent demand for this uniquely qualified and fun loving team has seen them open their doors for the first time ever on Sundays! Their focus is first and foremost their clients and to cope with the extra demand and ensure their high level of service is not only maintained but also exceeded, they decided to open 7 days a week. Plus the team eat, breath and dream travel and have such passion for the job they just could not stay away from the office!
Whilst all members of the Charlestown team have varying qualifications and experience, as a store they remain a Diamond VIP office with APT and have been a Premium Qantas Holidays office for 5 years. So whether you are after a river cruise, a holiday to Fiji, a trip around Europe, or a Disney vacation with the kids, no matter the destination you are in
good hands with an experienced and passionate team of professionals ensuring you have a memorable holiday. We would like to introduce you to 3 of the Charlestown team –Karen, Kyrin and Libby. Each offers something a bit different and unique to their clients and we invite you to get to know them.
Pop into the Charlestown store in Charlestown Square (Upper Level Pearson Street Mall Entrance) to say hello and meet the rest of the HTG family. Plus don’t miss their Holiday and Cruise Expo on Sunday 17 January. The Expo is Newcastle’s largest holiday and cruise sale day and the team at helloworld Hunter Travel Group plan on making this, their 35th Expo the biggest yet with huge savings and exclusive airfare deals on offer! Visit www.newcastletravelexpo.com for more information.
Karen Jarvie
Karen is a long time Global Achiever with Qantas Holidays and after 32 years of working within the travel industry, she has all the insider knowledge to help you travel like a professional. Whether it’s a little vineyard in Tuscany that lets you join the family for dinner or where to get the best coffee with the locals in Vienna, Karen will have your friends green with envy and wondering if you haven’t taken a few travel courses yourself!
When it comes to home, Karen’s favourite travel destinations include Cairns, Port Douglas and Kangaroo Island. Heading over the big blue ocean her favourite overseas holiday picks are the Canadian Rockies for its beautiful scenery and Vietnam for the people, the sights and the food.
Married for the past 22 years and with a 17 year old daughter, the destination Karen most wants to travel to is Croatia where she plans to explore Dubrovnik's marble streets and baroque buildings, island hop and of course stroll along the ancient city walls.
When she is not working or travelling, Karen likes to spend her spare time with her nose in a book and trying new places to eat and of course shopping! She’s a Boxing Day baby after all so it’s in the blood! In fact, December is Karen’s favourite time of the year and Christmas is always spent celebrating with the family, both work and home. If you hear Christmas Carols breaking out instore before December 1st you know who to blame.
Born in Ballarat, Libby went to a Catholic Girls Boarding school for 6 years, before completing her HSC and deciding to study for a degree in Environmental Science. Once qualified, Libby was lured away by the dark side and got bitten by the travel bug! Travelling from 1981 to 1995 she met her partner whilst working as a tour escort on a Trans-Siberian Rail trip across China, Mongolia and Russia, and they have been together for the past 20 years.
Libby is so passionate about travel that she has worked many jobs to help fund this love, including fruit picking around Australia and as a trawler deckhand out of Darwin and the Gulf. Now with 20 years in the travel industry (10 years in the Charlestown office), Libby’s favourite Australian travel pick is the Kimberley’s. When it comes to her favourite overseas holiday, the list is understandably as long as her arm and includes Himalaya, Bhutan, Tibet, Silk Road, Patagonia, South America, Asia - all of it, Burma, India, Mongolia, Spain and Portugal.
Her dream destinations are Georgia, Armenia, and Iran to see Persepolis and Shiraz. She also wants to see the Northern Lights and Northern Scandinavia... and the list goes on. When not working or travelling, Libby is (yes, you guessed it) - planning her next holiday which could include trekking to the kingdom of Mustang in the Himalaya, trekking to Dolpo, or a bike riding trip in Sri Lanka. Topping the bucket list is time spent at the Amanjiwo Resort overlooking Borobudur. So if you’re looking for a more adventuresome holiday or something a little out of the box Libby is your expert to ask!
As an APT Top Achiever and considered one of helloworld’s River Cruise Experts, Libby loves her job working with the helloworld team.
Kyrin Francis
Kyrin grew up in Newcastle where she went to Lambton High School before studying Hospitality Management and later pursuing a career in the travel industry and studying Tourism at Advanced Careers College.
The soon to be married mother of a 14 month old has worked at helloworld for 9 years – spending time at both the Kotara and Charlestown stores. She is hard working and her attention to detail has seen her excel not only as a consultant but also as store manager. What she loves most about working at helloworld is the fun environment and also the career and travel opportunities that come with the job.
Kyrin’s favourite Australian travel destination is the Kimberley - Northern Territory and when it comes to overseas travel she just can’t go past an African Safari, sipping a cocktail by the crystal blue waters of the Amalfi Coast, and is never one to say no to a gelato whilst strolling the cobbled streets of Florence.
Kyrin dreams of taking a tour of Canada and Alaska to experience the wildlife and witness the beautiful landscape in person. This is a popular holiday choice amongst helloworld clients, with their Signature Journeys tours, escorted from Newcastle and hosted by 2NURFM, selling out for the last two years. Just on the quiet we hear the Award Winning Rocky Mountaineer is a must when exploring the Canadian Rockies! With Kyrin’s love of cooking, mixed with a sweet tooth there is sure to be plenty of Christmas delights in the office this December – so come in for a tasty treat today!
If you’re looking for the holiday of a lifetime, you’ve come to the right place.
Nothing is more precious or priceless than your body and your health. We all have times when we want to indulge a little, particularly during the Silly Season and this is ok. But holiday time is also a good opportunity to reflect on your habits, good and bad, and make those small changes that can remain long term.
Detoxing is not a 7 day starvation period where powders and pills replace good nutrition and healthcare. Mojo Health is here to provide you with the tools for long term lifestyle change and support so you won’t slip back into old habits.
Feeling deprived is not the aim of a detox and there is no reason for you to miss out on special occasions or that piece of cake at the office party. This is not about following a 100% perfect diet. But we don’t detox once and then head back to the party and reward ourselves by gorging when it’s all over. Our body will give us back what we put in. So, what are you putting in yours?
Toxicity is unavoidable in today’s modern society. When we walk outside we are exposed to thousands of toxins via our lungs, skin, and digestive system. Did you know we have a residual burden of 2 to 3 thousand new-tonature chemicals, which are invented and released into the environment every year? So where do we start? We do this by reducing as much of the toxic burden on our bodies through healthy diet and lifestyle choices. Choices need to be made not only about what goes into our mouths but what goes onto our bodies as skincare, hair care, perfumes, makeup, deodorants and even toothpastes are often full of toxins.
After working as a mobile stylist while her kids were small, Hairdresser, Tamara Ward was delighted to get back into a salon environment when she took a role at a hairdressing salon in Charlestown Mall. Tamara says she met some wonderful clients and was amazed by how much of a “hub” Charlestown is, not just for residents of Lake Macquarie but also for Novocastrians and the Hunter region.
With a new found love of Charlestown and the North Coast (Tamara moved from the South Coast 2 years ago) - fast forward 18 months and Tamara has recently taken over the salon at the “top of the hill” – Stellar Hairdressing.
“The move across the highway to the ‘top of the hill’ has been such a great experience already. The outlook from the salon is a real eye opener to the huge volume of people flowing in and out of Charlestown each and every day,” Tamara said.
Tamara says she is excited for what lies ahead for Charlestown as a burgeoning business centre and especially for Stellar Hairdressing.
“I am passionate about hair! I believe every client deserves your individual attention and your time so we offer all hairdressing services with a full consultation focused on what the client’s wants and needs are. Our aim is help our clients to achieve a style that lasts from the moment they leave the salon until their next appointment,” she said.
Tamara says the salon stocks Eleven haircare products and use Jeval colours and colour support products to help clients get the best out of every salon visit. For more information or to make an appointment drop into the salon at 2 Smith St, Charlestown or make an appointment by calling 4942 5713.
Charlestown East Educational Preschool is a private Child Care Centre located in Keal St, Charlestown that has maintained high quality care for both children and families for the past 30 years.
Owners Frances and Nick Chomyn purchased Charlestown East Educational Pre-school in 1999 (at that stage an already well established pre-school in the area) and set about providing a unique and secure learning environment for children that goes beyond the norm.
Frances, a qualified early childhood teacher who is originally from New Zealand, always dreamed of owning and operating
a childcare centre, while Nick, a construction engineer with BHP, would have been happy to spend his days writing music and surfing. Instead Nick decided to forego the surfing part to qualify in childcare and join Frances in her new venture.
Sixteen years later and the preschool is a shining example of best practice in early childcare education and intentional teaching methods, providing children with the best educational start and equipping them with the required skills, attitude and confidence for school. This includes being able to confidently carry out the tasks of dressing and undressing, asking for assistance, confidently approaching and relating to their peers, opening their lunch box and feeding themselves.
With a license for 30 children aged between 3 years and school age, the centre is structured to meet modern and traditional teaching methods in compliance with the Department of Community Service – Children Service. This small group size also comes with the advantage of providing the children with diverse learning opportunities in a modern environment.
Charlestown East Educational Pre-school provide the best start to early learning - they understand that children, even very young children, are often more competent, more intelligent and more capable than they are often given credit for. In support of this, Nick and Frances ensure that each child is provided with a variety of creative experiences and material to encourage selfexpression and exploration. Each child is also encouraged to make choices, participate in play and to develop and maintain relationships.
The children are also provided with a learning framework that includes experiences and opportunities that encourage them to acquire skills, attitudes and sensitivities that allow them to make the most of their potential. Importantly, a literary programme is also in place ensuring the children get an early start in elementary reading and sounding. As part of the program, all children are provided with a literacy book, a sound
book, craft book and a book of their particular interests. The latter allows the teaching staff to identify the specific interests of the child and further develop those interests.
Each day is clearly divided into specific activities with the morning dedicated to learning activities and the afternoon filled with activities that involve constructing, socialising and playing. With a library corner, block corner, family corner and a corner well equipped with puzzles and computers, the children are spoilt for choice when it comes to their daily activities. Add to this the fact that each child has a weekly task sheet which includes either a learning activity such as the lifecycle of the frog, a family activity or a community activity such as being sun smart.
Other regular programs include visits from medical nurses, staff, fire department personnel and police who talk to the children about community issues and also safety issues. The staff at the centre are all experienced/qualified early childhood educators, who focus on a school readiness program all year around rather than just child care. Staff on site each day include an early childhood teacher, 3 diploma qualified teachers and a trainee teacher.
For Frances and Nick, who in the past have also designed 2 other childcare centres, running the facility is not without its challenges as they are governed (and also restricted by) guidelines and procedures that do not always benefit the child. Frances and Nick would love to have the opportunity to share their school readiness and intentional teaching program with other Childcare Centres and for them it is disappointing that the relevant authorities have not taken the time and necessary steps to recognise the success they are having with their program and see how effective it is.
Matthews Jewellers has been operating for over 37 years in the Hunter. Today, Matthews Jewellers has four stores located at Charlestown Square, Westfield Kotara, Salamander Bay and Singleton.
Matthews Jewellers has always strived to deliver a unique range of jewellery comparable to anywhere in Australia. The range has included diamond rings and accessories set in gold and silver and a beautiful watch collection.
Unique diamond brands such as Hearts On Fire, exclusive silver pieces from Daniel Bentley and the stunning Perlis Collection offer a point of difference to the stores core fashion brands.
Perlis offers South Sea pearls hand made in Australian silver and rose gold with the option of either a Cognac or Argyle diamond. Purchasers will receive with this collection a letter or Authenticity, which will even identify where the Silver mine is located in Australia.
Matthews Jewellers has complemented their fine jewellery collection with a range of the latest in fashion jewellery with brands such as Thomas Sabo, Swarovski, Nikki Lissoni, Michael Kors, Georgini and Pandora.
Matthews Jewellers long association with the national Showcase buying group of 260 independent retailers across Australia has ensured the best possible prices are achieved for customers. Regular buying trips to Antwerp, Belgium and around the world ensure they are purchasing diamonds and precious gems direct from site holders who not only mine the diamonds but also cut and polish every individual gem. The cutting and polishing process of each diamond takes approximately 12 months to create a truly magnificent gem.
Matthews pride themselves on offering our customer’s exceptional service and going above and beyond in assisting customers
to achieve their dream piece of jewellery, especially for that precious moment. If they don’t have the piece you have been dreaming of, their Award Winning Jeweller Leah Abercrombie will assist you to conceptualise your dream piece and create something Unique Like You!
To ensure your unique piece retains its beauty, they also offer a full repair and restoration service on all jewellery and watches. Visit the store today to view some of the exciting new ranges and find out what is "Uniquely You."
Hearts On Fire - the World’s Most Perfectly Cut Diamond is an exquisite diamond collection world renowned for a mesmerising sparkle like no other diamond and exclusive to Matthews Jewellers.
Skilled craftsmen then uphold the highest quality of diamond creation, leveraging cutting-edge anti-vibration technology and a scientific diamondcutting formula that is unknown to anyone else in the world. In addition, while most manufacturers use a 10X magnification process, Hearts On Fire artisans craft diamonds at 120X magnification, using unique imaging software that results in a perfect mirror polish. That's 10 times the global industry standard.
When a diamond has perfect proportions, perfect symmetry, perfect alignment and perfect polish, a natural phenomenon of light is created. This unique and extremely rare display of sparkle is the easiest way to differentiate a Hearts On Fire diamond.
Cosmetic surgery is now common place – not just for celebrities, but everyday people who want to improve their appearance. With the growth of the industry, there has been an increase in the number of clinics offering these procedures. Frighteningly, not all clinics are suitably qualified and recent media stories highlighting patients with complications from surgery emphasise the importance of choosing your surgeon by reputation in the field.
Charlestown clinic, Hunter Plastic Surgery, is a stand out across Australia for leading the way in excellent outcomes and service as recognised by the local business community and industry experts across the country. We asked the practice founder, Dr. Nicholas Moncrieff a few questions about why Hunter Plastic Surgery has achieved such an excellent reputation in the field.
Firstly, how big is the cosmetic surgery market in Newcastle?
In short, it is large and growing. But it is important to understand that cosmetic surgery for many people is much broader than just a cosmetic improvement. I personally perform a significant number of breast reductions, which significantly improves neck and shoulder pain and tummy tucks which improve back pain and incontinence. Of course, there are more cosmetically focussed surgeries too, but even for something like a breast augmentation, our average patient is a mum in her thirties who is merely seeking restoration of what she had pre-pregancies.
There is also clearly a “fashion” element to cosmetic procedures, but most of our patients are people looking for natural results. The patients asking for really obvious or over the top results tend to go overseas or other parts of Australia to the low-cost clinics. Worryingly, I’m increasingly seeing these patients after they develop complications and they realise that sometimes cheap is cheap for a reason.
Winning customer service awards is unusual for medical clinics. How do you make this happen?
My colleague, Dr Gary Avery, and I are lucky because we are able to focus on interacting with patients and performing surgery while our customer service team provide outstanding service from that first phone call to the last post operative appointment. We have a great management team who keep us all focussed on our clinic’s purpose, which is ‘to make people happy and healthy’. And we contstantly seek feedback to find out if we are on track and what we need to improve. In fact, we have done patient surveys every quarter for over 6 years and over 99% of our patients say they would recommend us to others.
This led to us winning the Hunter Business Chamber customer service award for small businesses in August and we are also finalists in three categories, including service, at the upcoming Australasian My Face My Body Awards.
How important is technology in your practice? Technology is a fundamental element of our overall experience. It allows us to provide a seamless experience for our patients in terms of their interactions with us and management of their private records.
Technology also helps to educate patients about the surgery they are interested in. Before consultations, we encouage patients to watch 3D animated videos of the primary procedures on our website. This helps them make an informed choice about what’s right for them.
Then once they book a consultation, we also offer unique 3D photography, using a device called a Vectra. We invested in Vectra because the most frequent question our patients ask us is, “what will it look like?”
To help answer that we take a 3D image in a private room, which is quick and easy as it’s just like having your photo taken, except in 3D using a camera that works from different angles. Then, we use computer software to create life-like models of how your ‘new’ breasts or nose would actually look on you, viewed from any angle. Primarily we use this technology for breast augmentation and reduction and nose correction (rhinoplasty) surgery. But we have also used it for patients looking at breast reductions, breast reconstructions and tummy tucks.
Technology also has an increasing role in providing solutions for people without surgery. For example, our CoolSculpting machines have helped us deliver fat reduction on hundreds of patients in the last year.
Can you tell us more about how your practice is now mentoring others?
We are very passionate about helping make patients aware of their choices in this industry and so my wife, Amber, co-founded a non-profit group to help other plastic surgery clinics manage and market themselves better. This has meant we have had the chance to learn from other leading clinics, but also have had many other practices learn from us by sending their managers to spend time in our practice in Charlestown.
Many people don’t understand what the difference is between a Cosmetic Surgeon and a Plastic Surgeon like you. What’s a simply way to explain it?
Currently in Australia, it is legal for any doctor with a basic medical degree to perform surgery. So we see brand new general practitioners and other doctors hanging out their shingles saying they are cosmetic surgeons and people think that means some special training, but it does not.
Specialist Plastic Surgeons, like myself, have extensive surgical education and training including a minimum of 12 years medical and surgical education, with at least 5 years of postgraduate specialist training.
Of course, all surgical procedures carry risk, but you can reduce the chance of risk and complication by consulting a Specialist Plastic Surgeon. And what letters do you look for on their websites or business cards? The only recognised qualification is FRACS (Plas Surg) – the first part means they are a surgeon, the second part means they have specialised as a Plastic Surgeon. If they don’t have that, they are not a real Plastic Surgeon.
•Expert Plastic Surgeons - Dr Moncrieff and Dr Avery are Australian-qualified Plastic Surgeons. They each completed over 17 years of training, including 5 years specialising in Plastic Surgery. They use the latest techniques mastered during 20,000 procedures throughout their careers, with over 10,000 of these performed in Newcastle.
•Residents of Newcastle - Dr Moncrieff and Dr Avery live in Newcastle and are available for patients should the need arise. Unfortunately not everyone operating in Newcastle has made the same commitment.
•Public and private - Dr Moncrieff and Dr Avery are the only Plastic Surgeons in the Hunter to be appointed to the Public Hospital system to assist uninsured patients.
•Award winning patient care - In 2015, HPS won the Hunter Business Chamber Award for Customer Service. They are also finalists in the upcoming Australasian My Face My Body Awards in the categories of Best Plastic Surgery Clinic, Best Practice Team and Best Customer Service.
•Upfront about costs - Hunter Plastic Surgery is the only practice in the Hunter, which publishes price guides to all the most common cosmetic procedures on their website to ensure patients understand the likely costs before they commit their valuable time and money to a consultation. Every patient receives a fully personalised quote before any procedure.
To find out more go to www.hunterplasticsurgery.com.au, visit the clinic at 3 Hopetoun St, Charlestown or call 4920 7700.
At
Did
Sat 28 November
Sun 29 November
Sat 5 December
Sun 6 December
Sat 12 December
Sun 13 December
Bookings
7am – 8.30am 7am – 9.30am 7am – 8.30am
7am – 9.30am 7am – 8.30am 7am – 9.30am