Partner feature: Art & Nan (Invercargill)

Welcome to the next part of our series about St. Pierre’s partners!
Today we’re heading way down south to Invercargill, to catch up with Art and Nan. Their dual-format shop (including both sushi and Bento Bowl) is in central Invers, in the new Kmart mall.

“Nan and I aren’t just partners in a St. Pierre’s store! We’re life partners too. We have two kids, aged eight years and eight months.”

Their more recent partnership, in the Invercargill store, began in December 2019. Even with their busy schedule at work and at home, they found a moment to talk to us about how things are going. Art explains that

“I’ve had a pretty solid career at St. Pierre’s, reaching back to 2014. I began as store crew at Lynnmall, and after also working at Auckland Airport, Lincoln Road and Henderson, became assistant sushi manager at Whangaparaoa and then sushi manager at Oteha Valley. It was quite a ride, moving all over Auckland! Tim, the partner at Lincoln Road, and people development manager Yasuko were notable positive influences on my growth. Yasuko in particular provided lots of information about the partnership programme, which really grabbed my interest.”

Art was so interested in the partnership programme, that when he heard the company was planning to open a shop in Invercargill, he put his hand up to be the founding partner.

“In 2017 I used some of my annual leave to travel to Invers and find out if the town was the right fit for my family. We really like quiet places to live with a strong community. The lifestyle here is fantastic, and we’re very happy to have made the move.”

Having done their research about what the challenge of moving south to become shop partners would mean, Art and Nan are satisfied with the path they are on.

“I knew it would mean more work and more responsibility, but we’re happy with the higher income which came with the partnership opportunity.”

So, if you’re planning a holiday to the deep south, be sure to check out our southernmost city and St. Pierre’s southernmost store! Art and Nan look forward to seeing you there. And here’s to great people taking on more challenges across the St. Pierre’s Group!