A Christchurch teenager with an entrepreneurial spirit has started a pick-your-own-berries business – just in time for Christmas.
Cohnor Walsh’s first step was to save a raspberry patch which came with a property bought by his parents on Marshlands Rd.
The previous owners were a couple retiring after decades running Pataka Berries. The 16-year-old said his parents “were going to rip all the raspberries out but I stopped them”.
“I saw a business idea out of it,” he told 1News.
His dad, Chris Walsh, said he was “a bit blown away” by his son’s determination to revive the overgrown patch.
“It was a big ask to start cleaning up all the berries and get them back under control so yeah, I was really proud of him.”
His mum Nikki added: “Cohnor’s always been a pretty determined kid – he’s the sort of boy if he puts his mind to something, he will see it through to the end”.
The raspberry bushes were overgrown with weeds and grass, so Cohnor had to make it accessible and safe for members of the public to pick their own raspberries.
“I’ve spent months doing it but yeah, now we’re open, it’s good.”
After doing a bit of market research, the schoolboy’s been selling the berries for a bargain – $25 a kg.
“It’s significantly cheaper than the supermarket,” he said. “People have been coming here for 20 years so it’s been good to keep it going.”
Cohnor’s been working hard with a goal in mind – going on a 10-day voyage for young Kiwis on board the Spirit of Adventure.
The community’s come out in droves to support him, filling punnet after punnet in time for Christmas Day.
“I think it’s wonderful and to have the nous to think of doing something like this, it’s helping his parents, helping himself, helping us,” one happy customer said.
“A few mates have been on that trip and it’s definitely once in a lifetime, so it’s a worthwhile adventure for him and wish him all the best for it,” another added.
Cohnor’s hoping to get a few more seasons out of the raspberry patch before it’s torn out to make way for trees.
