Veronica and Didier Crevecoeur (inset) ran a French patisserie named Le Posh from premises in Haven Rd, Nelson, before opening another of the same name in Tahunanui. They have left town, owing thousands in rent. Photo / NZME composite
Veronica and Didier Crevecoeur (inset) ran a French patisserie named Le Posh from premises in Haven Rd, Nelson, before opening another of the same name in Tahunanui. They have left town, owing thousands in rent. Photo / NZME composite
An acquaintance of a couple who ran French bakery Le Posh said they appeared to have fled the country suddenly, leaving a household of personal items, including a 40-year collection of souvenir “bells” from around the world.
A civil claim against Veronica and Didier Crevecoeur over unpaid rent on commercialpremises in Nelson has lifted the lid on a trail of debt and deceit left by the couple.
NZME recently revealed how the pair failed to appear in the Nelson District Court in June for a hearing in which they were ordered to pay more than $29,000 in unpaid rent, damages and legal costs to the owners of a building where they ran one of their bakeries.
Other people claimed they too had been left out of pocket after dealings with the couple who arrived in New Zealand around 2018.
Veronica and Didier Crevecoeur appear to have left Nelson quickly, abandoning a vast accumulation of clothes and shoes, and a 40-year collection of souvenirs from around the world.
I need your help
Software engineer Steve, who lived near the Crevecoeurs in an exclusive area of Nelson’s port hills, considered the couple as friends.
“At some point, Veronica came to see me - I think it was in November last year. She called me and said, ‘I need your help, can I come to see you’?”
Steve alleged that Veronica then told him a “very strange story” about her father, and someone she knew in Spain, and how they needed about 3000 to 4000 Euros ($NZ5800 to $NZ7804) to send.
“She was saying, ‘I will pay you back tomorrow, I will pay you back tomorrow’, and then she sent me more messages asking for more (money).”
Steve arranged to pay $300 via a bank transfer, so he had a record, then tried to reach the couple a few days later, but says he got no reply.
The Crevecoeurs had left, without paying it back, Steve said.
Steve understood the couple flew to Perth where they had family, a few days after his final communication with them on February 20 this year.
He said he was curious about why she was not responding to his text messages, so he went to the home they rented.
He found them gone, and the landlord sorting through a stack of expensive clothes, a huge collection of shoes, and the large collection of souvenir “bells” from around the world that they had left behind.
Members of Nelson-based Latin band Los Galanes: Raffaele Bandoli (left), the late Jose Luis Perez and guest member Marco Sangiorgi. The band were left short by more than $1000 for a Bastille Day gig the Crevecoeurs hired them to play at. Photo / Los Galanes
Nelson-based Italian/Kiwi musician, Raffaele Bandoli said the Latin band he played in was left out of pocket when the Crevecoeurs failed to pay in full after hiring them to mark France’s Bastille Day at an event in Blenheim in July 2019.
Bandoli said the band, Los Galanes, was paid a $1100 deposit for the $2245 gig, but he claims they never saw the rest of it.
Bandoli said band leader and founder, Jose Luis Perez, paid individual band members from his own pocket.
Los Galanes, which at times has been a 10-piece band, was then a seven-piece.
“He was such a responsible and nice person that he paid all the members of the band, regardless,” Bandoli said.
He wanted to speak out, in honour of Perez, who died suddenly in March last year, while travelling in Europe with his partner and band administrator Rebecca Knox.
Knox said Perez always paid his musicians a set fee, but the “biggie” for them was Veronica Crevecoeur.
“At first, she was really lovely to deal with,” she said.
The band covered its own costs travelling from Nelson to Blenheim, the event went well and the Crevecoeurs seemed pleased.
An invoice was sent, but she claims there was no reply. Another statement was sent, they tried contacting the Crevecoeurs by phone, but still nothing, Knox said.
They hired a debt collector to recover the money, but when he went to serve them the notice in Blenheim, the premises were empty.
Knox said Perez had pleaded with Veronica to pay the remainder of the fee.
“Jose would leave messages saying, ‘Veronica, this is really urgent, for the survival of the band’.”
When she noticed the shop, Le Posh pop up in Nelson, it was “a massive red flag”. Knox was then floored when she saw the second Le Posh open up near Nelson’s Tāhunanui Beach.
The Crevecoeurs moved to Nelson from Marlborough around 2021.
The property investment firm, Tawero Holdings (No 2) Ltd, from whom the Crevecoeurs leased the second premises in November 2022, lodged court action when they abandoned the lease, owing $13,175 in rent and outgoings.
A spokesperson for Tawero claimed the couple were masters of deceit.
He said that taking legal action was a decision not made lightly but “a lot of deception” had been at play.
“We are not novices at this, and we were taken in.”
Tawero Holdings sought, and was granted, a summary judgment of $22,547 against the Crevecoeurs, plus several thousand more in costs associated with re-letting the premises, plus damages.
The Crevecoeurs ran two French themed patisseries in Nelson, named Le Posh. NZME composite image
Steve decided to share his story, after reading about what else they had done. He and his wife had shared a few dinners with the Crevecoeurs, at each others’ homes, or at a nearby Thai restaurant.
Their last dinner together was earlier this year, when the Crevecoeurs brought French food to share, and some drink.
He believed they had Australian citizenship, and planned to spend six months there and six months in France where they owned a small house, near Dieppe, where Didier was from.
“They want to split their time in France between there and Paris, because Veronica really loves Paris,” Steve said.
NZME has been unable to locate the Crevecoeurs for comment.
Tracy Neal is a Nelson-based Open Justice reporter at NZME. She was previously RNZ’s regional reporter in Nelson-Marlborough and has covered general news, including court and local government for the Nelson Mail.
