Free advertising ...

We wouldn't normally advertise products and services here, but these are not normal times, and in this instance, we're happy to help!

We received an e-mail last night from a friend alerting us to the plight of a Christchurch business, The T Shop. Now, from an early age, we have been tea drinkers. In our whare, the day began with a cup of tea, ended with a cup of tea, and a cup of tea was the cure for all ills in between. We still far prefer a good cup of tea to a fancy-Dan coffee. So this plaintive appeal resonated with us:

WE DO NEED YOUR HELP

Marty and I have come through the quake safe as have our family . We are humbled by the number of inquiries from our customers about our welfare, thank you. Myself and my daughter were in our car in the city when the quake struck , images I will never forget , so many families now devastated. We have spent the best part of the last week helping families with the basics, water, nappies,food, digging silt giving random hugs etc. It is only now, one week on, that we have stopped and allowed ourselves to contemplate our own situation. We have lost our shop base, we have lost most of the cafes we supply in town not to mention friends who work in them . Its unlikely, I think that The T Shop can survive this one . My one wish however is that we may pay those Christchurch businesses we owe , before we make any decision to bow out so to speak. We have put some wonderful specials on the web site , if you are able to help at all with any order no matter how small , we thank you.

Please be aware that postage out of Canterbury is in a state of chaos , orders may not be received for up to two weeks , please be patient with this. We also have a shipment of new teas arriving in ten days, so some may not be sent out until then, it is clearly stated on the website, where this applies.

What particularly struck us here (and what prompted us to post this) was the desire of the owners of this business to pay their bills in the event that they have to close up shop. That suggests to us that the owners of The T Shop are people of integrity, and that's why we are only too happy to give them a shout-out. We'll be sending off an order later in the day as well, in the hope that they will do enough business in the next few days to see a light at the end of the tunnel, and that the business might survive.

The T Shop is but one of hundreds of Christchurch businesses whose future hangs by a thread this morning. It might take more than ONE cup of tea to solve their woes, but if the tea-drinkers of New Zealand and beyond respond, then maybe we can work a miracle for them; testament to the restorative properties of a good cuppa!