Bev's new film for STYLESSENCE by Laureline and Pieter at EYESEALAND
SEPTEMBER - LIZ AT BOOK ART STUDIOS
IN THE TITIRANGI TATLER
click on the cover to see article
SEPTEMBER - DEAN'S KURVED LINES COMMISSION
"When we commissioned Karin to produce a large piece of mirror art for us, we really did not know what to expect. We wanted a mirror, but not only to be functional but add colour and just a little Je ne sais quoi. Having seen Karin's studio and numerous works throughout her home and in the local community, we trusted in her clear ability to produce something phenomenal.
Karin is a clear perfectionist; I believe that's the German in her. Karin wanted to inspect the space where the mirror would finally be placed and get a feel for our family, in order to reflect us all in her art, making this piece very personal and unique.
Karin's captured my love of the sea and our combined enjoyment of the bush setting in which we live. The strong tree representing myself on the left with branches stretching across the mirror protecting that below, three beautiful flowers (our girls) to the right, not forgetting the thin nikau palm in the middle (my wife) bridging across with grace, balance and stability. I think Karin has captured the essence of our family in this amazing piece of art, reminiscent of Art Nouveau. Photographs do not do it justice, in fact I think you need to see Karin's work up close to really appreciate the quality and design.
If you are looking for something unique, bright and colourful for your home, office or bach look no further than KUrved lines, take the time to visit her studio in Titirangi after checking out her website."
Dean & Lorraine Kaye, Laingholm
JULY - LIZ'S BOOK FOR BOB HARVEY
SEEN IN TATLER MAGAZINE
click on the cover to see article
JULY - DEANS ARTICLE IN NZ BUSINESS MAGAZINE
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JUNE 2011 FIELD TRIP
On Friday 10th June some of the members of the Connecting 0604 group went on a field trip. The aim was to visit business owners who had initially started out working from home and had spread their wings to bigger premises. Each business owner was very generous with both the information and time they gave to the group. We were incredibly lucky to be given such fantastic advice and to be invited into the workspaces of all our wonderful hosts. We enjoyed re-visiting the Belly Beyond ladies with whom we had met the year before. Whilst still enjoying working from home it was delightful to see the huge steps their flourishing business had made. We got to visit their new shop which is now on site. It was indeed a great day.
This is what three of our members enjoyed about the day:
Shelley Lewis – Photographer - Art of Light
What I learnt, what I enjoyed the most:
I enjoyed our field trip immensely. I have listed the main points I gained about running a successful business below -
The use of a business plan is imperative. It keeps you on track. Sometimes one gets sucked in by others sales pitch and it pays to check your plan for alignment. It may be way off track.
The use of social media like facebook, twitter etc is an essential tool for marketing.
If you want something done and done professionally it pays to use the right people and pay for it. It will get done quicker and better than using someone you know that has only a little knowledge of what you want.
Be very careful when employing staff. One needs the right people for the job or it could be disastrous.
It takes a lot of hard work and many hours to get a business up and running to be successful.
Queensberry was a highlight for me particularly because I am a client of theirs. I was impressed once again by the high standard and quality of their product. They have positioned themselves in an exclusive market. Their products are only available through professional photographers and they pride themselves on the highest possible standards and quality of materials and workmanship.
Dawn Bonnie Dowding - Bonnies Beauty Shop
Thanks to Liz and the group for organising this years Field Trip. I was sorry to miss the lunch and visiting Queenberry in the afternoon. However, it was interesting to hear from Dean Greenwood about his experiences in starting the swim school plus the ongoing challenges of conducting a business with 50 staff. In regards to Belly Beyond, I admire the two young ladies who started their business so they could work at home whilst looking after their children. Like Dean, they are totally focussed on making the business go places. Of course it helps when you have the necessary skills such as: a background in banking and being a computer geek, to run a business.
Judy Newton – Jeweller - Green Heart Jewellery
Friday was an enormously inspiring day... I enjoyed all of our four visits to such dedicated and visionary businesses. It was very heart warming to be welcomed by all, and have them share their ideas, success-stories and challenges so openly and generously. Some of these that stood out for me included:
From Dean Greenwood Swim Schools – the necessity of having excellent systems in place to optimise staff management
From Belly Beyond – social media is key! And the importance of giving customer experience a high focus.
From Artisan Wineries – the power of a story...I loved the history that the owner gave us about the wine; it was very strongly linked to the area where the grapes are grown, and gave a depth of meaning to the wine!
From Queensbury Books – the incredible attention to detail and the exquisite beauty of their product. Heather spoke of hard work and focus, of following your dream and your own intuitions...very uplifting ideas, and it was a total treat to see all of the actual production stages in the factory.
And HUGE thanks to our wonderful Liz for organising such a rewarding day and gifting these amazing books.
Sandra in Mindfood magazine, June 2011 (click image to enlarge)
Christopher's new film by Laureline and Pieter at EYESEALAND
WEEKEND HERALD BUSINESS SECTION MARCH 2011
click to enlarge
Karins new film by Laureline and Pieter at EYESEALAND
DECEMBER 2010 XMAS LUNCH AT MASALA
NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2010
THE BIG DAY IN
In the Titirangi Tatler
TUESDAY 19TH OCTOBER 2010
FRIDAY 25TH AUGUST 2010
Penny Hulse Deputy Mayor
Alan Parry
Restaurant manager The Falls
Big Thank you to Penny and Alan for chatting with us at The Falls Restaurant
AUGUST 2010
Bev's Fringe of Heaven Retreat was featured in an episode of Shortland Street
FRIDAY 30TH JULY 2010
JULY 2010
Liz's amazing book for Mark Sainsbury. Well here he is showing it on TV...
Well done Liz.
ON THE PATH TO EXCELLENCE FRIDAY THE 23RD JULY 2010
On Friday morning, promptly at 9.20 am 14 of us Connecting 0604 group members set off on ‘the Path of Excellence’...
This field trip had been masterminded by Liz Constable of Book Art Studios; Liz had arranged visits to four local ‘success stories’.
To reach our first appointment we strolled around the corner to Ngaio Road and the home of Edith and Lynton Diggle. They welcomed us warmly, giving us a glimpse into their fascinating lives. Together they have run a foil-printing business from their home, exporting impressive quantities to distributers in Australia. In her artist’s studio with an uplifting view down a valley to the Manukau Harbour, Edith showed us some of her paintings. These are sold around the world, and demonstrate a high level of talent and technical excellence.
She had an encouraging message for us: “persevere, if it was easy everyone would be doing it!”
Lynton talked about his career filming documentaries of ship salvage operations, and his current passion of researching shipwrecks. Edith and Lynton are co-authors/editors of the well known book ‘New Zealand Shipwrecks’. It was inspiring to see how harmoniously they worked together in their beautiful bush home...
We then squeezed into four cars, and meandered over to rural Waitakere where Belly Beyond (Louisa and Heidi) are based.
It was a treat to meet these two friendly and focussed business women, who are impressively juggling a highly successful and rapidly expanding online company with family life. Both Louisa and Heidi are extremely online-savvy; they emphasised the importance of using Facebook and Twitter as marketing tools to grow a customer base. “It’s word of mouth on steroids” Louisa succinctly described it.
Another point that came across clearly was the importance of knowing your customer. Their target market is new mothers, and they work hard to find out what products they value. Heidi and Louisa came across as an amazing team who complement each other, and who have a huge amount of ideas and knowledge to share when it comes to business development.
Ready for lunch we arrived at the famously hospitable Hardware Cafe. While we dined, the owner and entrepreneur Brent entertained us eloquently with true-life stories of his visions and successes, including ‘Montana,’ an exciting new restaurant soon to be opened in the vicinity. It was a wonderful insight into how possibilities and ideas can become reality through determination, courage, taking risks, and thinking and stepping outside the square.
Brent was keen to find out what we all did, and was very generous in offering support. The culture of the Hardware cafe seems very accepting, welcoming, and nurturing of the wider community; this ethos was exemplified by Brent’s welcoming approach.
Our final destination was the headquarters of ‘Face and Body’, where Margaret Walsh runs her empire! Again an enormously stimulating encounter. Margaret has an incredible knowledge and passion for developing and running businesses. What was very impressive was her ethical stance and the support and encouragement she offers her staff in terms of professional development opportunities.
Margaret was a wonderful and compelling speaker, and her sense of humour enlivened her words of wisdom. She shared her extensive and unique notebook record-keeping system with us; emphasizing the importance of knowing exactly what happens in her salons each day. Margaret very obviously has her finger on the pulse of her business, with this ‘state of the art’ record-keeping and data analysis. Her advice: “Dream, write it down, then test and measure!”
All in all we experienced an enriching day that was a total privilege to be a part of. What was wonderful too was the fact that these successful and busy people gave their time freely. We all felt very appreciative, not to mention inspired (can’t stop using that word!) and motivated.
Special thanks again to Liz, who not only organised the day, but also made beautiful gift books for each speaker, and delightful notebooks for all the participants.
Judy Newton of Green Heart Jewellery
If you have any news or events that you would like to be included on our news and events page such as an event, new product or service, exhibition you may be exhibiting at please email Chris below.
