| The Heart of a Town What is it that makes the center of a town special and what is it that makes people want to come back? I believe we have one of the prettiest town centers around with the river as its centerpiece and our quaint shops along the main street. There is also a place for the bigger, national chain stores in our growing town, but from a tourism perspective, we need the small quirky personal stores in the center of town. One of the things that first attracted me to Warkworth when I came here a number of years ago was the warmth of the greetings at each shop I visited, and I believe that hasn’t changed. One Mahurangi is running a Social Media campaign called Staff Picks where we invite a local business to nominate a staff member who shares what their favourite product or service is within the business. You can see our first featured business, Buckton Consulting Surveyors, below. Email our marketing manager, Lauren, if you’d like your One Mahurangi business to feature in the Staff Picks campaign in the coming weeks and months. The Staff Picks campaign is a really lovely way of helping both old and new people in town to get to know the staff in our local businesses and a way of keeping that personal touch that is so important in a small town like ours. I am sure that most of you know that we have the Mahurangi Winter Festival of Lights coming up on the 15th of July. We encourage all Warkworth businesses to string Christmas lights from the 1st of July to the 16th of July and really brighten up the area over what can be a dark and gloomy time of year. I know the Mahurangi Winter Festival of Lights attracts families in to look at the lights because each year I have come down and followed groups as they walk along the road looking at the lights. Each year I hear the same comments from the children, “Ooh good shop, good shop, ooh bad shop”. The “bad shops” are those that don’t have lights – don’t be a bad shop this year! Remember we have a $500 Mitre 10 Mega voucher as a prize for the best lights in town. The 15th of July is also the Gull Family Fun Day down on the wharf and on Baxter Street, starting at 11am and going through to 9pm there will be music, food trucks, and amusements plus rides for the kids. At 6pm the ITM Parade of Lights beginsand if you would like to participate in the parade, assemble in the Paper Plus carpark from 5pm. Your entry into the ITM Parade of Lights doesn’t have to be fancy – light up a work vehicle, drape the kids in lights, and walk in the parade. It’s a lot of fun and a great way to promote your business in front of thousands of people. Make sure you are on the wharf after the parade around 7pm for something very special for Warkworth. More details about the Mahurangi Winter Festival of Lights are coming soon but believe me, it is going to be amazing! We do punch above our weight in our small, beautiful town so get involved and demonstrate how we are all stronger together and how much we love local.  Murray Chapman Manager, One Mahurangi Business Association murray@onemahurangi.co.nz www.onemahurangi.co.nz Support Local, Buy Local, Employ Local, Love Local! |
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