A real estate agent who was inspired by a celebrity chef to ditch Auckland and follow her dream of opening a bookshop in the small Canterbury town has ended up being one of that small town’s biggest unofficial advocates.
Seventeen years ago, Aucklander Emma Gillard attended a cooking course run by celebrity chef Jo Seagar in Oxford, Canterbury.
Afterwards, she decided to ditch life in the big smoke and move to the small South Island town and pursue her dream of opening a bookshop.
It was the best move she ever made, she told OneRoof, and she has over the years become one of Oxford’s biggest ambassadors, convincing her parents, her sister and her best friend to follow her to Canterbury.
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Gillard, who made the switch from selling books to selling houses earlier this year, said more Aucklanders would make the switch if they saw what Oxford had to offer.
“Everything you need is here. It’s a really easy drive back to the airport and the city. It’s a really nice lifestyle and your bang for your buck is just so much better than if you were in Auckland or the North Island,” she said.
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“I tell people you only need to go [out of Oxford] for a dentist. You’ve got petrol stations, mechanics, physios, doctors, supermarket, cafes, book shop, and a vet.”
Gillard said Seagar had changed her life. She mentioned her dream of opening a bookshop during the cooking class and Seagar, a former Aucklander herself, suggested she open it in Oxford.
“I was like, ‘I’m a city chick, I live in Ponsonby – no’. She kept talking to me and I was like, ‘This is a random idea’. But I didn’t have a husband or a partner or anything so I went back to Auckland and told my bestie and he said, ‘Well, let’s go do a recce’.”
Within three months Gillard had sold her house and moved to Oxford. “I left everybody. I didn’t know a soul when I moved down here,” she said.
Celebrity chef and Oxford champion Jo Seagar. Photo / Julie Maltby
Emma Gillard, centre, with her husband Alan, second from the left, and their friends whom she helped find a house for near Oxford. Photo / Supplied
However, she soon got to know the 2000-odd people who live in Oxford, with her bookshop, Emma’s, a popular spot with locals.
Gillard met her husband, Alan, while he was on a work trip to Oxford, shooting food for Seagar. He too eventually moved south and is now just as big an advocate for the area as she is.
However, Gillard’s newest recruit is her best friend who relocated with her husband and teenagers to nearby Swannanoa two years ago.
Gillard said they were sick of Auckland, sick of the traffic and sick of the high cost of everything, so she sent her listings for properties she thought she would like.
Her friend continued looking and within three months had swapped their small house in Grey Lynn for a 4000sqm lifestyle property with a large home and a swimming pool and even had money left in the bank. Her friend’s parents also made the move and bought a property in Rangiora.
“They absolutely love it down here,” Gillard said.
The listing for a four-bedroom, three-bathroom home with a cinema has received a lot of views from Aucklanders. Photo / Supplied
The lifestyle property was built in 2011 and has a heated inground swimming pool. Photo / Supplied
A “premium” four-bedroom, three-bathroom lifestyle property on four hectares at 718 Depot Road was the kind of home that would attract out-of-town interest, she said.
So far almost 30% of the views on the OneRoof listing have been from Aucklanders, while just over 40% were people already living in Canterbury.
Gillard said it was extremely special for Oxford having been built by the current owners 13 years ago and being such a large home with a cinema, heated inground pool and mountain views.
“It’s a beautiful high-standard quality home. The people who have come in have just gone ‘wow, wow, wow’.”
Emma Gillard with husband Alan standing in the bookshop Emma's of Oxford, which she started and ran for 14 years. Photo / Supplied
When asked who it would suit, Gillard said: “You’re sick of the rat race, you’re sick of the commute, you’ve just got this dream that you want to have a better life for your kids, you want to have a better lifestyle and you get more bang for your buck.”
Meanwhile, residential homes in the town could be picked up for around $700,000. A three-bedroom, two-bathroom brick and tile home on a 819sqm section at 7E Olivea Place, in Oxford, has an asking price of $680,000.
- 718 Depot Road, in Oxford, Waimakariri, goes to auction on November 20
