The Star: July 09, 2020

Thursday July 9 2020 The Star
Police seek owners
NEWS 11
of recovered jewellery
CONTENT MARKETING
Each week we profile a local Christchurch organisation
to give them a plug and see how they’re going as the
country eases into recovery. This week we spoke to
Mark Leadbetter, IT director at House of Travel
• By Matt Slaughter
THOUSANDS OF dollars of
jewellery items, which may have
been stolen, have been recovered
from second-hand shops in the
central city.
Now, police want to return
the items, which include rings,
earrings and
bracelet charms,
to their original
owners.
They also
warn those
thinking of
selling stolen
Don Fisher
items to pawn
shops that they
are watching.
Detective Sergeant Don Fisher
said some of the individual
jewellery items potentially stolen
could be valued about $3000
and may have even greater
sentimental value to those who
they originally belonged to.
“Some of that stuff looks as
though it would be of sentimental
value,” he said.
Detective Sergeant Fisher said
police want to track down the
owners of the jewellery to ask if
the items were stolen from them.
Police have the names of the
people who sold the items to the
second-hand stores and if they are
confirmed to have been stolen,
police will investigate these
individuals.
He said one item that looks like
it will be particularly special to
its original owner is a piece of
jewellery with a Christian name
and the words “love forever”
engraved on it.
The items police want to return
to their original owners were
recovered by police between the
end of May and the end of June,
said Detective Sergeant Fisher.
The Star reported last month
police saw an increase in the
number of items stolen from
outside house items being sold in
second-hand stores or online after
level 4 and level 3 finished.
Detective Sergeant Fisher said
in spite of it being more common
for stolen items to be sold online
these days, police still regularly
attend second-hand stores to see
which items may have been sold
to them by thieves.
“We are actively looking at
these outlets and if you are selling
stolen property, be warned,” he
said.
He said all of the second-hand
stores where the jewellery has
been sold to have co-operated
with police investigations and
did not know the items may have
been stolen.
Anyone who thinks the items
recovered by police belong to
them or someone they know
should phone 105 and ask to
speak to Detective Sergeant
Fisher.
On the up
Tell us about House of
Travel.
House of Travel is a New
Zealand owned and operated
company. From opening our
first retail store in Timaru
in 1987 we now have stores
throughout New Zealand,
from Kerikeri to Invercargill.
Our customers are Kiwis who
want to explore the world
and understand the value
travel agents provide. House of
Travel is committed to supporting
our communities and
local hospices.
The recent lockdown has
been tough on everyone,
what was the toughest aspect
for House of Travel and its
people? How did you adapt?
New Zealanders love to
travel the world, but the
coronavirus pandemic hit
our customers and the wider
travel industry hard. As the
global lockdown took effect,
our consultants worked long
hours to help customers plan
and return to New Zealand as
borders closed. In the face of
this pandemic and other major
events over the last 20 years,
we’ve remained focused on the
welfare of our customers and
our people.
Now that lockdown has
been relaxed, are you expecting
to operate differently?
What aspects of your business
do you think will change
permanently?
I think there will be a move
towards more remote working.
Accordingly, we have the
systems and support in place
to allow our people to work
remotely, which we expect
will continue in a post-Covid
environment. However, the
traditional store-based model
is still important, as many
customers prefer that environment.
House of Travel will
provide both options, including
different physical locations
and digital channels to support
our customers in the places
they expect.
What role does technology
play at House of Travel as you
adjust to the so-called new
normal? Which technology
has been most helpful? Are
you using any new technology
now?
Technology is critical to
everything we do. Behind
every booking is a multitude
of systems that communicate
with hotels, airlines, and distribution
networks. Without our
Chris Paulsen, House of
Travel executive chairman
and founder, with Lucy.
IT systems, we can’t sell travel.
The most helpful technology
through lockdown was the
virtual consultant desktop.
This enabled our consultants to
work from anywhere with the
same toolset they had available
to them instore. We had
our entire business working
remotely and the experience
was seamless.
Do you have a sense of
what the future looks like for
House of Travel?
The future of travel will be
different for some time. Our
purpose is to enrich lives
through travel and that is
something we will continue to
do wherever it is safe for Kiwis
to travel, including domestically.
Whatever the circumstances,
our customers will be
able to travel with confidence
knowing that we have the
technology, experience, and
expertise to provide them with
round-the-clock, personalised
support.
Finally, what lessons have
you learned from this chapter
in our history?
Take things one day at a
time. Planning is important,
but Covid-19 triggered swift
changes that shifted our focus
to the situation directly in
front of us. Staying light on
our feet and adapting to new
circumstances kept us on the
front foot.
Supported by
PRECIOUS: Police are trying to locate the owners of this jewellery, and more, sold to
Christchurch second-hand stores, which they believe may have been stolen.
www.houseoftravel.co.nz
Phone 0800 713 715