Lucire: Insider » Cup Day, lay-by holidays and Den’s return

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Cup Day, lay-by holidays and Den’s return—24 hours at Lucire

Filed under: Lucire, New Zealand, Volante, Zeitgeist, entertainment, fashion, publishing, travel — Jack Yan @ 23.40

We had a nice call from Bree Nicholls at SDA today, following up on an earlier press release she had sent about lay-by holidays last week. Of the many we get here, it was easy to miss, but it’s a pretty good idea: ‘With LayAway Holidays you can book and pay off your holiday before you take it as easily as you secure that new sofa or coveted pair of shoes that you absolutely need but would cripple your EFT-POS or credit cards. All it takes to shop till you drop in Sydney, or drink divine cocktails on a Fijian beach is a little forward planning and the decision to set aside as little as $3·49 a day.’
Regardless of the economic climate, it’s a good decision, which prompted me to ask: wouldn’t it be great to do the same for dental appointments?
The main point, however, is that we both thought it was a good idea. Regardless of our jobs (her role in PR and mine in publishing), we can see pretty wide appeal for this. And to give customers assurance, LayAway Holidays is bonded by the Travel Agents of New Zealand. Consumers’ funds are held in trust in a TAANZ bonded account before being passed on to the travel supplier. The payment plans span anywhere between three and eighteen months.
Yesterday, it was a hectic day rushing between a publishers’ event organized by our printer in New Zealand, Format Print, at the Trentham Racecourse in Upper Hutt, and several Wellington City events. The James Cook Grand Chancellor Hotel had a Melbourne Cup bash, where I ﬁnally met milliner Amy Jansen-Leen in person—and in 50 minutes I managed to watch the race at Flemington, rush back home to Kilbirnie, shave the ﬁve o’clock shadow, and grab my invitation to the Festival of the Arts 2010 launch at the TSB Arena. Who says it can’t be done during rush hour? (More on the Festival later.)
We also heard from jewellery designer Denis Kenward, who has some new creations—watch this space.