firing1

hi we've been in tauranga in nz for nine weeks now and the computer and stuff have just arrived. loads of stuff i can tell you about the place and you can watch it all on bbc2 on monday nights starting next week (maybe) got to fly loads to do.

jajpe

Great to have you back online!! looking forward to hearng how you have settled and if there have been many surprises along the way! Had you been to NZ before or why did you choose Tauranga to settle?

Can't wait to hear some more - best wishes for you new life!!

jajpe

Sorry , forgot to ask about the Monday night programme. Are you starring in it or is it about Tauranga in general! also do you know what the programme will be called?

Thanks!

firing1

it's a series of 8 programs all about uk families relocating to different countries. we are the family who choose new zealand each show is an hour long and goes out at 8 o clock. i don't know what it is called yet but there will be details in the saturday supplement of the daily mail.

firing1

sorry i forgot to say what tauranga is like (it's late here) coming from the midlands this place is a bit of an eyeopener. great beaches, the mount, (extinct volcano at the end of the beach) sunshine. we really like it here and it's new zealands second fastest growing city. we set up our own business (a franchise) and it is starting to take off slowly. we are just adjusting to the new zealand dollar i.e lower wages here than the uk and we still haven't sold our house in england yet which is a major worry!
anyway nz has been great so far, the people are really friendly and the help we have recieved from the business community in tauranga has been great. i'm missing family and friends but know we made the right decision to come here.
i would say nz must be one of the easiest countries to settle in if you are from the uk no language problems, nice weather, no snakes etc. we haven't seen much of the place apart from tauranga and auckland but the kids love it and we have a lifetime to experience nz.
i think the tv program will show a few people that new zealand isn't "all hills and sheep".

Roger

Good to hear that Tauranga is great.

Shirley, are you planning on sussing it out, and the hospital. Worry about an expanding area is that health services never keep up.
Roger

ratliffe

hey there !
i thought you had forgotten all about us
great to see you have settled in o.k
How are your children settling in?
are they enjoying school?
dont forget you promised me a beer when i come over to tauranga on the 21st april,i bet you forgot that bit! i'm there for 2 weeks in papamoa.
is it what you thought it would be like?
have you got an e-mail sorted out yet ? let me know
al the best Gavin.

firing1

hi gavin, no i hadn't forgot about the beer and we actually live in papamoa.
where will you be staying?
my daughter loves school here it's much more relaxed but the homework is a lot harder than in the uk.
you will love papamoa especially the beach even though april is nz autumn (about 23 degrees feels like summer to me).
keep in touch
i'm off to watch the ozzbournes

sputnikspouse

nice to here from someone on the other side,hope you don't mind a few questions, how far out of Tauranga do you live or is Papamoa a suberb of Tauranga? What kind of business have you started. We are hoping to do the same but were finding it difficult to decide on a destination in New Zealand.Are you renting accomodation and if so was it easy to find what are rent costs etc. any info you can give will be greatly appreciated
Maggie.

firing1

hi, papamoa is about a 10 min drive from tauranga and yes it is a suburb. it,s along the beach front and so is very popular loads of new houses are being built every day.
we bought a car grooming franchise and the only warning i would give is that business takes off a lot slower here than in the uk so be careful what you choose and make sure you've got spare cash to live off. there is an excellent company called priority one who will help you with all aspects of setting up the biz and free of charge. if you watch the tv program we are in on bb2 (it starts next week, check out this saturday's daily mail supp) you will see what i mean.
finding a rental property is really hard. they are scarce and you are best going through the real estate agents. look at paying around $250 - $300 nzd per week for a 3 or 4 bed property in papamoa.
good luck.

sputnikspouse

Hi there, sent you an email after your last reply but as I got no reply I think you must not have recieved it. Saw the first of the programmes tonight the Cayman Islds. it was good viewing cant wait to see Tauranga. Has your business got off the ground ok?

firing1

yeah, but it's been hard getting it off the ground because we are a new type of business in a new area so it takes time for word to get around. the last three weeks have been good so hopefully we have turned a corner. all we need to do now is sell our house in the uk it's been on the market for 8 months now. nz is fine and we can't wait to get some time to explore the rest of the country. it's autumn now but it feels like summer to me!

stooly

Hi,
My family and I are in the process of applying for nz. We have choosen Tauranga because it meets all our requirments. Can I ask what is the office work opportunities like? I am a trainee accountant and I previously was a registrar/administrator.
I also have a son of 2, do you know what the nurseries are like and I also have a daughter of 6, what are the primary schools like in the area.
Thankyou
Sammie

sputnikspouse

giad to hear things have finaly kicked off for you on the work front do u both work in the business? what did u do for living in the u.k? We were hoping to open a florists shop in N.Z. Did u use an agent Iv'e had a look at the forms and they seem quite straight forward the only part that worries me is doing a BUSINESS PLAN one of the agents I emailed said it had to be a very good plan to get passed but am wondering if this is true or if they are after my money as they offered to have it done for a FEE.did u do your own plan or have it done? whats the weather like with u its been very cold here in county durham today but should'nt complain had a few nice days actually had a tee shirt on instead of the usual wollies and fleeces, bet u dont need them.

firing1

yeah, we both work in the business and we ran our own business in the music industry in the uk. we did use an agent but i filled in the forms and did the business plan myself the agency just checked over it for us (we didn't have to change everything) i think it cost about £800 for this service. in hindsight we probably didn't need the agent but they were very good and gave us loads of help and advice and peace of mind! it was the immigration group based in chester.
the weather here is great at the moment, it's autumn and its sunny (23) apparently we will still be able to wear shorts in winter just cooler mornings and evenings.
if you are looking at buying a shop location will be the most important thing!