Last year Ron Laughlin and his wife Paula Martin decided to swap their ‘normal’ working life for a life of freedom in a 7-metre long bus – kitted not only with all the necessities of a ‘home away from home’ but those of a ‘business away from home’ as well.

“We’re always meeting people who say, ‘I wish I could do what you have done’, but never actually follow through and do it,” says Laughlin.

The couple both traded successful jobs in Wellington’s retail scene for this nomadic lifestyle and currently maintain several websites – including Laughlin’s writing business and Martin’s jewellery company New Zealand Jewellery – from their travelling office.

Since September 2004 they have made four circumnavigations of the South Island, visiting the 35 galleries where Martin's jewellery is displayed and sold, and gathering photos and information for Laughlin’s creative writing.

Achieving this remarkable work-life balance has been made possible with the help of Telecom’s Mobile Broadband network and the latest Mobile Broadband data card.

Martin's designs are much sought-after overseas. Much of the demand comes from the United States and the United Kingdom but orders have also come from as far away as the Arctic Circle. The New Zealand Jewellery website is a major source of sales, supplementing those made through local galleries.

The couple use Mobile Broadband to update the website and receive email orders from international customers. They simply plug the data card into their laptop to instantly access the internet and their emails.

“We roam all over the South Island but we’re seldom out of touch,” says Laughlin.

“Our business is based around being responsive to our customers. The website means we’re effectively open 24/7 and with Mobile Broadband we can take orders, package the jewellery and post it to our customers from the nearest town almost immediately.”

“Far from being sceptical of our ability to get the job done while we’re roaming about, our customers and retail outlets have been quite envious of how we can do what we love without sacrificing business success and they appreciate the personal service we are able to provide.”

Laughlin says the couple's first Telecom data card gave them the impetus they needed to act on their desire to see more of the country.

“We got hold of a Telecom GTran card and bought the bus soon after. We’ve recently upgraded to a Mobile Broadband Air Card, giving us even faster data speeds, which are particularly useful for uploading new, data-intensive images onto the website.

“We’ve seldom had a problem with coverage and the speeds stay remarkably consistent, regardless of where we are in the South Island.”

Far from toning down their business to preserve their lifestyle, Laughlin and Martin are planning to locate additional galleries in the North Island to display the jewellery.

“We deal with about five galleries in the North Island at the moment, but we’d like to expand. We’d never want the business to limit our lifestyle but we think there’s room for a bit more growth,” Laughlin says.

“I also write a regular column for the New Zealand Motor Home Association and I’m working on two guide books for the South Island – none of which I could do without getting out into the outdoors myself. With Mobile Broadband, I can write about our experiences and send the articles off to the publisher without having to break the journey.

“We run a successful business without being stuck in an office.  With this technology I can check and provision customer orders and then step outside for some trout fishing.

“We can’t see ourselves ever going back to the daily grind.”

For more information
Telecom New Zealand
www.telecom.co.nz