Setting up shop in Rotorua's retail hot spot

CBD BOOM: Sustain Vegetarian Takeaways owner Shirley Braun says she's had positive feedback since setting up shop on Tutanekai St last year. PHOTO/ STEPHEN PARKER

Seven months after setting up shop on one of Rotorua's prime retail streets, Shirley Braun says feedback has been great.

Braun opened vegetarian takeaway store Sustain on Tutanekai St in July last year.

The reasons behind her decision to open on Tutanekai St were two-fold - it was the centre of town, and there were not many options for the type of store she wanted to open.

"The street appeals to me.

"It's a great spot, I'm happy to be here."

Having worked in an office beforehand, she knew where hungry staff would be when they were looking to grab lunch.

"The reception's been really positive, the feedback's been great," she said.

There had been initial scepticism about a vegetarian takeaway working in Rotorua, but it had been well received since she had opened, she said.

She had noticed fewer vacant shops, something highlighted in the TelferYoung Central Business District Vacancy Survey.

"Having the shops all occupied, it does make a difference," Braun said.

"It's not such a ghost town any more."

The higher occupancy rates "says something about the people and the economy", she said.