Latest news with #GreyLynn
RNZ News
23-06-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Queuing for brunch and browsing the shops a rose tinted memory in Ponsonby
Ponsonby Road Photo: Google Maps A Ponsonby business says landlords are willing to let some of Ponsonby road's more well-known shops empty out in order to keep the rents high. Some who still have shops say the famous road's flavour is shifting from having a balance of creativity and fashion combined with restaurants - to leaning heavily in favour of hospitality. And some feel that it is a sway in the wrong direction - with Ponsonby's struggle becoming another suburb's gain. A quick Google search brings up over 100 results for retail spaces for rent in Ponsonby. It is not surprising considering many well-known businesses have shut up shop on Ponsonby Road. Local fashion icons and mainstays on the road like Zambesi, Kate Sylvester, Juliette Hogan and Carlson are among them. Flotsam and Jetsam vintage homeware store is on that list, and owner Cam said retail margins are so slim that there is not enough turnover to pay rent. Last year they had a new landlord and with that came higher rent on top of lower foot traffic and sales. After 14 years, they moved last May from their spot on the corner of Williamson Ave and Ponsonby Road to Richmond Road in Grey Lynn. Cam said landlords have not learnt from what he calls "the demise" of Parnell Road when the ratio of hospitality to retail businesses got out of whack. "When the balance of hospitality and retail sway the wrong way to too much hospitality, I think it ruins an area. "Even though the nightlife and the bars and the hospitality is a big part and it's a reason why a lot of people go there then so was retail as well." Now in Grey Lynn, the biggest difference has been customers being able to find parking. Cam said the face of Ponsonby has changed a lot over the last decade. "You know the changing face of retail, there just isn't going to be character shops around anymore, and I think people spending differently moving into apartments, young kids, not buying houses. "We might wake up one day and there won't be shops around." San Ray Restaurant took a leap of faith and opened for business on Ponsonby Road last July. Co-owner Rebecca Schmidt said things were worse than they expected. "The recession has been grittier than we anticipated. "We are aware of the circumstances that we're operating in, but people are finding it really tough out there and the lag I guess is deeper and longer than we had hoped for." While the festive season was a circuit breaker for businesses by providing a sugar hit, the last financial year and the first quarter of this year have been really challenging. "You can see that in the foot-fall on the street, it's significantly down, just people being out and about and then the customer behaviour when they are out, which we really understand. "There's a lot of small, shared plates right now because that's what is within reach for many people." They are trying to make their space welcoming for a glass of wine and piece of cheese or even just a coffee, hoping they can wait it out and eventually welcome customers back for full meals. They are keeping their staffing tight over the winter and not drawing from the business to pay their staff and suppliers first. Schmidt said there has been radical change they did not anticipate when they opened with long established neighbouring businesses not renewing their leases. "Ponsonby struggle is another suburb's gain right now, it's really interesting seeing some smaller suburbs doing well with independent businesses. Birkenhead is a good example. "Some nice new retail shops there, some great restaurants humming along Westmere, another really good example that probably is at Ponsonby's expense." Meanwhile down the three lamps end of Ponsonby Road a new flavour of business was brewing as part of a $14 million penthouse development to be completed next year with retail and hospitality spaces available to rent. Mecca beauty store, menswear brand Rodd and Gunn and the Lodge Bar were already onboard hoping to buck the trend.
RNZ News
09-06-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
$9 million co-housing development in works for Auckland suburb
housing Auckland Region 29 minutes ago A co-housing development group has shelled out $9 million for two neighubouring sections in Auckland's Grey Lynn, where the plan is to build thirty or more homes with shared facilities, including a communal garden. The goal of Cohaus is to build affordable sustainable housing in consultation with potential home owners, while encouraging people to be less reliant on cars and share more resources. It will be Cohaus's second Auckland development. The first was finished in 2022. Architect and project manager of the new development Thom Gill spoke to Lisa Owen.
RNZ News
11-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
'We're just doing our best': Cultural backlash hits Auckland-based kava business
Vibes Kava founders, Charles (left) and Derek (right). Photo: Brady Dyer / A new Auckland-based kava business has found itself at the heart of a cultural debate, with critics raising concerns about appropriation, authenticity, and the future of kava as a deeply rooted Pacific tradition. Vibes Kava, co-founded by Charles Byram and Derek Hillen, operates out of New Leaf Kombucha taproom in Grey Lynn. The pair launched the business earlier this year, promoting it as a space for connection and community. Byram, a Kiwi-American of Samoan descent, returned to Aotearoa after growing up in the United States. Hillen, originally from Canada, moved to New Zealand ten years ago. Both say they discovered kava during the Covid-19 pandemic and credit it with helping them shift away from alcohol. "We wanted to create something that brings people together in a healthier way," the pair said. However, their vision has been met with growing criticism, with people saying the business lacks cultural depth, misrepresents tradition, and risks commodifying a sacred practice. Tensions escalated after Vibes Kava posted a promotional video on Instagram, describing their offering as "a modern take on a 3000-year-old tradition" and "a lifestyle shift, one shell at a time." On their website, Hillen is referred to as a "kava evangelist," while videos feature Byram hosting casual kava circles and promoting fortnightly "kava socials." The kava they sell is bottled, with tag names referencing the effects of each different kava bottle - for example, 'buzzy kava' and 'chill kava'. Their promotional content was later reposted on TikTok by a prominent Pacific influencer, prompting an influx of online input about the legitimacy of their business and the diversity of their kava circles. The reposted video has since received over 95,000 views, 1600 shares, and 11,000 interactions. In the TikTok caption, the influencer questioned the ethical foundations of the business. "I would like to know what type of ethics was put into the creation of was consulted, and said it was okay to make a brand out of a tradition?" Speaking to RNZ Pacific anonymously, the influencer criticised the brand's aesthetic and messaging, describing it as exploitative. "Their website and Instagram portray trendy, wellness-style branding rather than a proud celebration of authentic Pacific customs or values," they said. "I feel like co-owner Charles appears to use his Samoan heritage as a buffer against the backlash he's received. "Not to discredit his identity in any way; he is Samoan, and seems like a proud Samoan too. "However, that should be reflected consistently in their branding. What's currently shown on their website and Instagram is a mix of Fijian kava practice served in a Samoan tanoa. That to me is confusing and dilutes cultural authenticity." A woman preparing and squeezing kava to drink at a traditional ceremony in Sanma Province, Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu. Photo: Eric Lafforgue / Hans Lucas / Hans Lucas via AFP Fijian academic Dr Apo Aporosa said much of the misunderstanding stems from a narrow perception of kava as simply being a beverage. "Most people who think they are using kava are not," Aporosa said. "What they're consuming may contain piper methysticum, but it's detached from the cultural framework that defines what kava actually is." Aporosa said it is important to recognise kava as both a substance and a practice - one that involves ceremony, structure, and values. "It is used to nurture vā, the relational space between people, and is traditionally accompanied by specific customs: woven mats, the tanoa bowl, coconut shell cups (bilo or ipu), and a shared sense of respect and order." He said that the commodification of kava, through flavoured drink extracts and Western 'wellness' branding, is concerning, and that it distorts the plant's original purpose. "When people repackage kava without understanding or respecting the culture it comes from, it becomes cultural appropriation," he said. He added that it is not about restricting access to kava - it is about protecting its cultural integrity and honouring the knowledge Pacific communities have preserved for upwards of 2000 years. Fijian students at the Victoria University of Wellington conduct a sevusevu (Kava Ceremony) to start off Fiji Language Week. Photo: RNZI/Koroi Hawkins Dr Edmond Fehoko is a renowned Tongan academic and senior lecturer at Otago University who garnered international attention for his research on the experiences and perceptions of New Zealand-born Tongan men who participate in faikava. He said these situations are layered. "I see the cultural appreciation side of things, and I see the cultural appropriation side of things," Fehoko said. "It is one of the few practices we hold dearly to our heart, and that is somewhat indigenous to our Pacific people - it can't be found anywhere else. "Hence, it holds a sacred place in our society. But, we as a peoples, have actually not done a good enough job to raise awareness of the practice to other societies, and now it's a race issue, that only Pacific people have the rights to this - and I don't think that is the case anymore." He explained that it is part of a broader dynamic around kava's globalisation - and that for many people, both Pacific and non-Pacific, kava is an "interesting and exciting space, where all types of people, and all genders, come in and feel safe." "Yes, that is moving away from the cultural, customary way of things. But, we need to find new ways, and create new opportunities, to further disseminate our knowledge. "Our kava practice is not the same today as it was 10, 20 years ago. Kava practices have evolved significantly across generations. "There are over 200 kava bars in the United is one of the few traditions that is uniquely Pacific. But our understanding of it has to evolve too. We can't just gatekeep; we need to guide," he said. Edmond Fehoko Photo: RNZ/ Sara Vui-Talitu He added that the issue of kava being commercialised by non-Pacific people cannot necessarily be criticised. "It's two-fold, and quite contradictory," he said, adding that the criticism against these ventures often overlooks the parallel ways in which Pacific communities are also reshaping and profiting from the tradition. "We argue that non-Pacific people are profiting off our culture, but the truth is, many of us are too," he said. "A minority have extensive knowledge of if others want to appreciate our culture, let them take it further with us, instead of the backlash. "If these lads are enjoying a good time and have the same only difference is the colour of their skin, and the language they are using, which has become the norm in our kava practices as well. "But here, we have an opportunity to educate people on the importance of our practice. Let's raise awareness. Kava is a practice we can use as a vehicle, or medium, to navigate these spaces." Photo: Brady Dyer / "I completely understand the points that have been brought up," Byram said in response to the criticism. Tearing up, he said that was one of the most difficult things to swallow was backlash fixated on his cultural identity. "I felt like I was getting judged for the colour of my skin, and for not understanding who I was or what I was trying to accomplish. If my skin was a bit darker, I might have been given some more grace. "I was raised in a Samoan household. My grandfather is mum is Samoan. It's tough to be this person and then get hurt online, without having a conversation with me. Nobody took the time to ask those questions," he said. The pair also pushed back on claims they are focused on profit. "We went there to learn, to dive into the culture. We went to a lot of kava bars, interviewed farmers, just to understand the origin of kava, how it works within a community, and then how best to engage with, and showcase it," Byram said. "People have criticised that we are profiting - we're making no money at this point. All the money we make from this kava has gone back to the farmers in Vanuatu." Hillen thinks those criticising them represent a minority. "We have a lot of Pasifika customers that come here [and] they support us. "They are ecstatic their culture is being promoted this way, and love what we are doing. The negative response from a minority part of the population was surprising to us." Critics had argued that the business showcased confusing blends of different cultural approaches. Byram and Hillen said that it is up to other people to investigate and learn about the cultures, and that they are simply trying to acknowledge all of them. Byram, however, added that the critics brought up some good points - and that this will be a catalyst for change within their business. "Yesterday, we joined the Pacific Business Hub. We are [taking] steps to integrate more about the culture, community, and what we are trying to accomplish here." They also addressed their initial silence and comment moderation. "I think the cycle was so self-perpetuating, so I was like...I need to make sure I respond with candor, concern, and active communication. "So I deleted comments and put a pause on things, so we could have some space before the comments get out of hand. "At the end of the is about my connection with my culture and people more than anything, and I'm excited to grow from it. I'm learning, and I'm utilising this as a growth point. We're just doing our best," Byram said. Hillen added, "You have to understand, this business is super new, so we're still figuring out how best to do things, how to market and grow along with not only the community. "What we really want to represent as people who care about, and believe in this." Byram said they want to acknowledge as many peoples as possible. "We don't want to create ceremony or steal anything from the culture. We really just want to celebrate it, and so again, we acknowledge the concern," he added.
