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The therapeutic benefits of massage are part of the reason why Maew Bambery believes her Thai Massage business has flourished since opening in Northcote four years ago.
“It seems like a long time ago now,” she says. “When we opened we only had two customers in the first week but now I have 14 staff and we just opened our fifth Sirikaya clinic in Orewa.
“Our Whangaparaoa store is regularly fully booked and a lot of our clients drive from Orewa so opening in Orewa was the next obvious move.”
Maew moved to New Zealand 15 years ago and set-up her business to help support her family here and back in Thailand.
She says New Zealanders are starting to think of Thai massage as a health remedy, not just a relaxing one.
“We have customers coming in weekly to release pressure and stress, and treat a lot of back problems especially for people who sit in their jobs for long periods of time.”
Sirikaya offers traditional Thai massage, as well as the more relaxing therapy of Lomi-Lomi which originates from Hawaii. Although sessions normally take an hour, Maew says it’s not unusual for customers to book in for a three-hour treatment.
“All our staff are trained in Thailand and then when they come to NZ, we train them in our Sirikaya techniques.
“Thai massage in Thailand is very different. It is something you do to be healthy whereas in New Zealand it is a luxury, something that people do to relax. We have merged those two ideas to fit our customers’ needs and it works.”
Maew says her staff love the Coast, spending time at the beaches and they also spend time together outside work.
“It’s more like a family,” she says.
“I’m sure our Orewa customers will love the relaxing feeling of the new shop that is designed to be an oasis from life. We also have two couples rooms so customers can book a relaxing session with their partners.”
