One-stop shop for Northland brides

Megan Pitchforth, Frances Keogh, Jocelyn Lenssen, Evelyn Laybourn and Amy Muldrock are members of the new One Stop Wedding Shop in Whangarei. Photo / Sarah Marshall

In this week's Business Bulletin column, Christine Allen reports on movement in the Northland business community, from new companies to new faces, and many in the business of love

WE'RE OPEN

Northland brides will have some extra reasons to smile now as a new store has opened in Whangarei which caters for every wedding need.

Trips to Auckland and the headaches of online shopping have been banished for lovestruck northerners with the opening of the One Stop Wedding Shop on Saturday.

Murray and Dee Attwood, who have opened Muzz IT on Robert St in Whangarei.

Having been approached by the owner of the building on 84 Bank St, five wedding businesses came together and formed the outlet.

Bank Street Bridal and Confetti Road Boutique are owned by Jocelyn Lenssen and Evelyn Laybourn, while Megan Pitchforth is cooking up some wedding treats with Meganlicious Cakes.

Aurora Beauty Therapy is owned by Amy Muldrock, while Allure Weddings and Party Hire is being run by Frances Keogh.

Megan and Amy had run their enterprises from home, while Bank Street Bridal and Confetti Road Boutique are new businesses.

Allure had been based on Dent St.

Sarah Marshall Photography will also be moving into The One Stop Wedding Shop later this year.

The store is open from Tuesday to Saturday.

From the glamour of weddings, to the necessity of IT, a new internet cafe is about to open on Robert St on September 28 offering a range of IT services.

Murray and Dee Attwood have been trading in IT services since August 2012.

Murray is originally from Sydney but raised in NZ, while Dee was born in Kawakawa and has lived in Whangarei for most of her life.

As well as an internet cafe, Muzz IT will also provide repairs for tech devices and IT services for small businesses.

Murray has been a computer technician for more than 15 years, including a stint as a home technician for Harvey Norman, while Dee has had been in the administration sector for more than 11 years. "Our shop hours will be 9.30am-4.30pm to start with, as we have young children. After a few months we will extend that time to be later to meet the demand," said Dee.

NEW FACES

Also in the business of weddings, there are some new faces at Keri Party Hire in Kerikeri. The Bay of Islands wedding hire company is now being led by Chris and Jo Page.

"In June, we moved from Auckland with our 4-and-a-half-year-old and 18-month-old sons. The time was right - we wanted to spend less time in traffic and more time with the boys so we'd been looking for a business in the area for a while. Everything fell into place beautifully," said Jo.

The Auckland duo took over Keri Party Hire on August 3 from the company's founders, Miranda Pasley, Sharon Terrizzi and Suzanne Doyle.

"As for our backgrounds, Chris is an actor by trade who has always had day jobs to fall back on, not least of those include years in hospitality, events and customer service," said Jo.

She worked in radio and print which included plenty of event management. For the past 11 years, Jo has worked as a copywriter for a wine marketing business.

The Pages are currently working on a new company website too.

WE'VE MOVED

The art gallery called Masterpieces in Kerikeri has relocated.

Owned by Ian McConnachie, it moved in July from the John Butler Centre to the Horizon Building on 99 Kerikeri Rd.

The gallery features pieces from a total of 20 artists from all over the world, as well as local artists such as Lena Zankl, Bernice Linssen, Lenie Johnson and some of New Zealand's top fine artists.