Business Of The Month – Charlotte’s Of New Zealand

Joe – 23/6/00

Check out some great sites that are hosted with Plain Communications, the sponsor of NZine. Each month we will feature a different business site.

Shopping from the desktop at Charlotte’s of New Zealand After hunting around looking for websites that were a little special I found this wee gem.

"Charlotte’s of New Zealand www.charlotte.co.nz is an Internet Mail Order Gift Shop offering people all over the world easy access to a fine range of products."

Some of the wide range of products available at Charlotte’s

Petal Rug

It’s not amazon.com but it does have a certain appeal due to its simplicity and feel. At charlotte.co.nz you can purchase sheepskin rugs of various sizes, neckwarmers, handpainted tiles and bisque china, paua shell ornaments, and chocolate. Such variety for those who just didn’t quite get enough of New Zealand while they were here, or those who haven’t been here yet. All the products are 100% New Zealand made and are reasonably priced.

The site is easily navigated with clear links to each product page. There are no banner ads or other distractions to clutter the browsing experience. Each product has a photo and description with the price clearly labelled. Instead of a complicated shopping cart there is an easy to use six step order form which lists all the products, prices and couriers.

Charlotte goes further than a lot of e-tailers and supplies customers with specially requested items. "I am often asked about products not featured on my site that people saw while touring here. I will also send these." It’s this kind of personal service that makes charlotte.co.nz special and unique.

The owner of the site, Charlotte Mundy of Christchurch, is, as you might expect from the feel of the site, well organised, thoughtful and pleasant. She has had no formal training in IT but graduated with a B.Com. from Lincoln University. After working for many years in administration at the Christchurch Small Business Enterprise Centre she took the plunge into self employment. Her goal was to "give self employment a go". By establishing a small flower business as well as the website Charlotte was able to quit her job and go out on her own.

She now exports flowers such as Oriental Lilies and Hypericum and grows Sandersonia bulbs.

Oriental lily - Casablanca

Oriental lily – Casablanca

"It’s seasonal work with picking in the summer and maintenance over the winter." With the website business peaking in the northern hemisphere winter the two businesses combine conveniently. "Its nice to be your own boss. It gives me the lifestyle that I enjoy."

Part of that lifestyle is spent showing her two year old Newfoundland, Topsy, at dog shows around Canterbury. Charlotte is also involved in producing the Southern Newfoundland Society newsletter.

Charlotte with Topsy

Charlotte with Topsy

Charlotte’s inspiration has little to do with money. While "a little more would be nice", the main drive behind the small e-commercial boutique enterprise is lifestyle. If that is the measure for success, Charlotte has certainly ‘made it’. Her site is as much a triumph for her as it is for customers crying out for quality shopping on the Internet.