After eight years in Henderson, independent cookware retailer Home Essentials has moved to a new purpose-built 450 square metre store at 18 Link Drive in Wairau Valley and is bringing the world’s favourite kitchenware brands back to the Shore. Channel’s Liz Cannon chatted with co-owner Chris Sutton to find out more.
Channel Magazine: So, who is Home Essentials?
Chris Sutton: Meg and I bought the business in 2021 right in the middle of Covid as we saw it as a great opportunity to build a real community around cooking and kitchenware and build on the work the previous owners had done. The business has been going since the early 2000s and has always been independently owned and operated. There are five of us in the close-knit team here, including our newest team member Wendy who lives in Milford and was the kitchenware floor manager for Smith & Caughey’s for the last seven years or so.
CM: Why the move to the North Shore?
CS: Well first and foremost we have an affinity to the Shore. I lived here way back, and both my brothers and their families are on this side of the bridge, plus Meg grew up on the North Shore as did her parents and grandparents (four generations went to Takapuna Grammar). So when we first started looking at buying the business, we knew it was somewhere that the business could thrive. It’s not that long ago that there was a large kitchenware store on the North Shore, and it was very successful in its day. Since they closed though, there hasn’t been a dedicated kitchenware retailer here so we were very keen to fill that void and give the local community easy access to the brands they love.
CM: What do you think makes you different?
CS: As a business we fundamentally believe that people should buy once and buy well, but that it shouldn’t cost the earth. In line with that our purpose is to help Kiwis fill their homes with the best quality kitchenware. We do this by stocking the best brands from around the world, keeping our prices as low as we possibly can and making sure our range is as broad and relevant as possible.
CM: Why a store and not just go online?
CS: Like a lot of industries some of our competitors are moving away from having retail stores and into online only as it’s not only a large investment to have a store but also presents many challenges especially as we’ve gone through the Covid journey. For us though, our store is a critical part of our offering, and we absolutely love the interaction it gives us with customers. It enables us to showcase our vast range of brands and products but more importantly gives us a chance to really connect with like-minded customers every day, and that is invaluable to us and our business.
CM: What’s in the new store?
CS: Well besides the old telephone box (purchased on a whim in Glenfield) plus a hanging delivery bike and some of our old kitchenware antiques, we have over 5,000 products and 120 brands including the likes of Le Creuset, Emile Henry, Staub, Dualit, Scanpan, Wusthof, Magimix Global etc in our store (and on our website), and we’re always on the lookout for new and exciting products to bring to our customers. In fact, over the coming few months, we have lots of new products coming on board which is exciting, plus we will be doing some in-store cooking demonstrations in the evening and a few pop-up events.
CM: You must be proud of the store?
CS: Absolutely! We are very proud of our store; it has been a real labour of love getting it ready to welcome customers. These days just having the best prices and biggest range of products isn’t enough and as a business we are very focused on ensuring every single customer that buys from us feels the Home Essentials love. Pop in some time and say hello.
Home Essentials
Shop 15, 18 Link Drive, Wairau Valley
09 218 7498
enquiry@homeessentials.co.nz
www.homeessentials.co.nz
Our opening hours are:
Monday - Friday: 10am-5pm
Saturday - Sunday: 10am-4pm
Public Holidays: 10am-3pm
