Ideas for our local community and businesses

Ideas for business.

Buy local, shop local, employ local and think local must be the biggest single message to put out re businesses on the island. We must support our local businesses or we will lose our community.

In return, local businesses need to set up a Waiheke standards approval. It is the responsibility of businesses to ensure they offer services equal to Auckland and prices to match so that they deserve to be chosen by locals. Locals should demand equal service and ask them to provide it.

Businesses need to develop a stronger customer service ethic to make sure that they are providing the level of service that locals need. Successful businesses know what their market is and play to it. Cafes need to be open to provide services when people need them. Service businesses need to make sure that they turn up on time and do the job agreed. Some kind of watchdog might be appropriate.

Oneroa is the gateway to Waiheke, not Matiatia. Matiatia is where we park our cars to go to Auckland. Let's get people to come to Matiatia. A free bus to the top of the hill running more often.

Arrange public meetings for local businesses to talk with the Board. Ask local businesses to suggest ways in which the Board can assist.

The Board needs to advocate strongly to ensure that the council employs local people to carry out council contract services on the island for the sake of our community sustainability. Also that the council uses consultants from the island for advice rather than the familiar large companies from Auckland. The results of using off island consultants that impose Auckland conditions and expectations on Waiheke results in innappropriate advice and outcomes.

There is no doubt that international tourists spend the most per head of any visitor. Waiheke must market itself for these visitors.

There is no doubt that Fullers has profitted greatly from the influx of Gold Card Seniors. They need to pass on this benefit to other users rather than simply sending larger profits off shore to shareholders.

Waiheke needs to find ways of attracting Aucklanders to come to the island in winter. Small targetted events and conferences would be ideal. Ideas such as toy fairs, literary festivals, cooking shows etc. using local halls as venue giving needed revenue to these locations. A festival committee could be set up by businesses to facilitate these.

WAICOS as an organisations representing social services and benefits could be asked to recommend groups deserving of funding from the Board. This would avoid the Board merely responding to the loudest voices that request assistance.

There is no doubt that the island can provide much more of it's own needs for food. Eugene Kitto is doing some amazing things with growing produce and has some very interesting ideas to put to the new Board. There are many reserves that can be planted in fruit trees or used for allotments. People on sickness or unemployment benefit would benefit greatly from the opportunity to grow their own food with advice and assistance. Our farmers market has the potential to change the way in which we shop. Meat grown on the island should be readily available. Why don't we have locally produced lamb, chicken, pheasant, peacock, milk, cheese, peppers, and all manner of produce. This is how we can start to employ ourselves.

Do we really need a bigger supermarket? What will this mean for our local businesses? Are we just selling out to big business interests at the expense of our own people just so we can have more varieties of pasta or toothpaste and is this worth it.

If we want our community to prosper we must support our community.

If our community prospers then we can afford to support our environment and take care or our own.