Board member Josephine Dias-Kawhe – La Belle Poste
When Josephine Dias-Kawhe and her husband Joachim took over La Belle Poste cafe in Grey Lynn last April the first thing they did was survey their regulars. Anyone who only bought coffee was politely asked why they didn’t buy food too.
“What we found was many said they wanted meat on the menu too so we added that straight away and instantly noticed business improving,” Josephine said. “That reinforced to us how important it was to build strong relationships with those coming through the doors.
“I’m not talking about online comments, because those people won’t necessarily have ever come here. I’m talking about people who walk through the door. You’ve really got to be vulnerable with your community, be honest with them, tell them you’re finding it tough and could really use their help to stay open, and ask them what you need to do to make that happen. Use them to help spread the word about your business. That’s the most effective type of marketing.”
Building strong relationships is one of the reasons Josephine became a business association board member. She’s always taken an active role in her different communities – be they university, residential or business. And with 2026 looking to be another challenging year economically she’s keen for local businesses to work closely together to see how they can help each other through it.
She’s spent the last 11 years in the French town of Lyon (her husband is French) working as an early childhood chef – a job that’s at an entirely different level to a similar one in New Zealand. Think four course meals, menus approved a year in advance by the Mayoral Office and a nutritionist, and at least two vegetarian-only meals a month so that children learn the environmental impacts of meat and fish consumption. And a certain percentage of the menu has to be sourced within a 30km radius of the centre’s location.
“French children, from the time they’re babies, are educated in food, where it comes from, how it impacts carbon emissions and how it nourishes them. I’ve brought a lot of those values and way of thinking back with me to New Zealand. It’s how we run out business.”