Air NZ flight attendant made redundant opens aviation bar
Feb 13, 2021 20:57:12 GMT 12
ams888, oj, and 2 more like this
Post by Dave Homewood on Feb 13, 2021 20:57:12 GMT 12
Air NZ flight attendant made redundant opens aviation-themed bar, employs former flight staff
Tina Morrison
15:26, Feb 13 2021
Former flight attendant Kim Martinez, who was made redundant due to Covid-19, has set up airline themed brewery, Brewport.
Kim Martinez, a flight attendant of 23 years, knew early last year that the career she loved was under threat due to Covid-19.
She decided to pursue her dream of having her own business and is now the proud owner of Brewport, an Auckland micro brewery bar with an aviation theme.
“When Covid hit, back in the beginning of last year, I knew my job was in jeopardy,” said the 45-year-old Aucklander. While she had been with Air New Zealand for 17 years, Martinez said she was still quite junior and felt certain she would lose her job so, like many of her colleagues, began thinking of other things she could do.
“In the back of my mind, I have always wanted to have a business of my own, but I never knew what, and because I loved flying so much I was never tempted to leave,” she said. “It was actually a good thing to have a push and encourage me to do something else.”
The path to brewery ownership came while flights were grounded during lockdown when a plan was hatched for her partner Greg Dragicevich, a pilot with Air New Zealand (who has kept his job) and a keen homebrewer, to have a brewing session with Kim’s friend and frequent flier Andrew Larsen, the co-founder of Auckland craft brewery Brothers Beer.
After a long day of happy brewing, the trio sat down for a beer and agreed to set up a small brewery together. Like many start-ups, there were a few hiccups, and the opening was pushed out a couple of months to November when shipping delays held up delivery of their brewery.
The Brewport micro brewery bar in Ponsonby, Auckland, is inspired by vintage air travel.
As Kim notes: “We couldn’t open a brewery without an actual brewery!”
Perhaps unsurprisingly, given their close links to the aviation industry, Brewport has an airport theme with a passport stamp featuring a plane as its logo, custom designed plane wallpaper, and an old-style arrivals board featuring quotes of the day.
Kim has even employed some of her fellow flight attendants who were made redundant to work in the bar, which she said makes for “awesome” customer service.
“I have only every flown for 23 years, that’s all I've ever done, so it was a huge challenge learning something new, but I'm up to the challenge, and it’s been fun,” she said. “It is a big change, but I’m loving it!”
www.stuff.co.nz/business/124236341/air-nz-flight-attendant-made-redundant-opens-aviationthemed-bar-employs-former-flight-staff
Tina Morrison
15:26, Feb 13 2021
Former flight attendant Kim Martinez, who was made redundant due to Covid-19, has set up airline themed brewery, Brewport.
Kim Martinez, a flight attendant of 23 years, knew early last year that the career she loved was under threat due to Covid-19.
She decided to pursue her dream of having her own business and is now the proud owner of Brewport, an Auckland micro brewery bar with an aviation theme.
“When Covid hit, back in the beginning of last year, I knew my job was in jeopardy,” said the 45-year-old Aucklander. While she had been with Air New Zealand for 17 years, Martinez said she was still quite junior and felt certain she would lose her job so, like many of her colleagues, began thinking of other things she could do.
“In the back of my mind, I have always wanted to have a business of my own, but I never knew what, and because I loved flying so much I was never tempted to leave,” she said. “It was actually a good thing to have a push and encourage me to do something else.”
The path to brewery ownership came while flights were grounded during lockdown when a plan was hatched for her partner Greg Dragicevich, a pilot with Air New Zealand (who has kept his job) and a keen homebrewer, to have a brewing session with Kim’s friend and frequent flier Andrew Larsen, the co-founder of Auckland craft brewery Brothers Beer.
After a long day of happy brewing, the trio sat down for a beer and agreed to set up a small brewery together. Like many start-ups, there were a few hiccups, and the opening was pushed out a couple of months to November when shipping delays held up delivery of their brewery.
The Brewport micro brewery bar in Ponsonby, Auckland, is inspired by vintage air travel.
As Kim notes: “We couldn’t open a brewery without an actual brewery!”
Perhaps unsurprisingly, given their close links to the aviation industry, Brewport has an airport theme with a passport stamp featuring a plane as its logo, custom designed plane wallpaper, and an old-style arrivals board featuring quotes of the day.
Kim has even employed some of her fellow flight attendants who were made redundant to work in the bar, which she said makes for “awesome” customer service.
“I have only every flown for 23 years, that’s all I've ever done, so it was a huge challenge learning something new, but I'm up to the challenge, and it’s been fun,” she said. “It is a big change, but I’m loving it!”
www.stuff.co.nz/business/124236341/air-nz-flight-attendant-made-redundant-opens-aviationthemed-bar-employs-former-flight-staff
