Visitor given ‘Passport’

Press, 2 December 1987, Page 33

Visitor given ‘Passport’

A retired Swedish school teacher visiting New Zealand with her husband, who is painting New Zealand scenery, was the first person to receive a new “Passport” at Auckland International Airport recently. The Minister of Tourism, Mr Goff, presented Mrs Karen Fahreus with the first copy of the new catalogue “Your Passport to New Zealand Products,” a Bowron sheepskin rug and a box of

Cadbury chocolates at a special ceremony to mark the start of a major new initiative. Produced by the New Zealand Market Development Board, the new “Passport” aims at changing visitor perceptions of New Zealand as a place to shop for goods to take home or enjoy here. Copies of the “Passport” will be handed to all international visitors the moment they step off the

plane, even before they reach Customs.

Mr Rodney Walshe, a Board Member, said, “First impressions are important and the new shopping guide will now be the visitor’s first impression of New Zealand. “That creates a wonderful opportunity for manufacturers and retailers to reach international visitors.” Mrs Fahreus, from Stockholm, Sweden, had no idea when she boarded the Air New

Zealand flight tram Singapore with her hueband Klaus that she would receive such special attention on her arrival.

She and her husband will be staying in Christchurch with relatives for three months while Klaus paints landscapes of “the beautiful New Zealand” countryside. Perhaps now, while Klaus paints, Karen will be encouraged to go shopping.