Pūkaha Hires International Marketing Team to Grow Visitor Numbers to Region

Big changes ahead for the National Wildlife Centre

Mount Bruce, Tararua: Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre has started 2019 with a bang by hiring an all-new marketing team. The Centre is aiming to grow their visitor numbers and expand their conservation work significantly over the coming year.

“This is the beginning of a whole new era for Pūkaha,” explains Bob Francis, chairman of the Pūkaha Mount Bruce Board for the last 12 years, “The Board is committed to growing the business for conservational and commercial reasons. For the first time in our history, we have set goals to really grow and so we have invested heavily in the new talent we need to help achieve that.”

The Centre has brought in a whole new marketing team comprising of Commercial Development Manager Sarah Watkins, with 12 years international experience in forest tourism management and operations, senior communications advisor Helen Cordery, former head of PR for EcoCamp Patagonia, and comms advisor Tara Swan, an ecologist and nationally recognized photographer.

“We’re taking it to levels never seen before,” adds Emily Court, Pūkaha’s General Manager, “This is amazing for the whole region, not just for Pūkaha, because the better we do, the better our people do, contributing to local business in the Tararua and Wairarapa.”

Pūkaha’s visitor numbers are currently tracking at 53.7% higher than this time last year.

About Pūkaha: Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre is a wildlife reserve and captive breeding facility managed between Rangitāne o Wairarapa, Department of Conservation and Pūkaha Mount Bruce board. Through captive breeding, they have successfully reintroduced North Island Kākā and North Island Brown Kiwi into their unfenced forest reserve (formerly part of the original 70 Mile Bush). Pūkaha aims to educate and inspire the general public about conservation and New Zealand wildlife through their Visitor Centre, daily talks and educational programmes. Pūkaha also works with whio (blue duck), pāteke (brown teal), and kākāriki.

© Scoop Media