Steve Crout, the president of The Jewellers and Watchmakers of New Zealand (JWNZ), has called on the New Zealand jewellery industry to support their earthquake affected colleagues in Christchurch.
Although the JWNZ has confirmed the safety of all 23 of its members located in the closed off area of Christchurch’s CBD badly devastated by the February 22 quake, Crout said the association was still “very concerned about everyone in Christchurch.”
“Our hearts and prayers are with them.”
He said JWNZ has received generous offers from many members who wanted to help in any way they can.
“If our JWNZ members are ‘open for business’, one of the best things that others can do is to use them.”
“They will all need work and sales to keep staff and themselves in jobs. Everyone has mortgages, loans, bills and so on. They need to pay the rent and put food on the table.
“Supporting our members will be invaluable. They have enough to worry about, without having to worry about an income.
“In fact next time a jeweller needs to buy a piece of jewellery they should first look to Canterbury, instead of importing. This way not only do the members benefit immediately, but the taxes also help rebuild lives and communities for the future.”
He said the JWNZ office, which was damaged during the earthquake, has been temporarily re-located. Its new phone number is 0508 596 942.