Business Beat: Blenheim gallery gets new owner

Selmes Road art gallery Return to Eden, a stone’s throw from St Clair’s vineyard kitchen and cellar door, has a new owner and a new name: it is now Rohana & Co. and is being run by Sharon Yadav.
The gallery has a reputation for showcasing local arts and crafts and Yadav – who moved with her husband Vikram and four children from Wales to Blenheim 10 years ago -- says that won’t change as she plans to keep working with the current list of 45 artists.
However, she is making one significant change: the gallery’s upstairs display area is being repurposed as workshop space for classes teaching people new creative skills. Yadav herself is keen to teach sewing and someone else is already lined up for jewellery-making classes.
Another change visitors may notice is an enhanced retail area selling a selection of handmade or artisanal items ranging from soaps and skin care products to sweets, socks, jewellery and wooden gifts.

Blenheim already has a good supply of optometrists, perhaps reflecting the needs of an increasingly older population. Now a team of eye care experts from Christchurch has begun making regular visits to deepen the existing pool of skills and knowledge.
Southern Eye Specialists, headquartered in Christchurch, has opened a satellite office on Hutcheson Street where the visiting doctors -- Genevieve Oliver, Elizabeth Conner, Dickson Wong and John Rawstron -- hold consultations over two days each month.
They primarily see patients referred by local optometrists and can consult on a wide range of issues and conditions including corneal transplants, glaucoma, macular degeneration, cataracts and laser eye surgery.

One of the most distinctive bars in Blenheim, 5 Tapped, has been listed for sale. Bringing a sharp focus on craft beers, good coffee and vintage motorcycles, owner Haydn Mearns opened the business back in 2017, capitalising on the industrial vibe of the former Tux dog biscuit factory.
Since then the bar, tucked away on Tenth Lane in the commercial wedge where Scott Street and Maxwell Road converge, has built a following as a popular venue for live music as well as for the revolving craft beer menu and slightly anarchic décor.

Long-time Blenheim residents might well remember Marcel and Helen Rood from their involvement with restaurants such as The Corral, Bacchus and more recently Raupo, which they opened in 2008.
Along the way they began producing their own pates and chutneys for the restaurants, something they continue doing today from their home in Linkwater with the help of daughter Enika. Enika, who lives in Nelson and handles marketing and promotion for Rood Food, says her mother can be found at the Marlborough Farmers Market selling their six different pates and chutneys. Other Blenheim outlets include Meaters and Kaiaka Catering, while the family also sells online.
And early next year there may be another outlet coming even closer to home – in fact, right in their home. Enika says her parents are planning to launch a small-scale dining experience at their house where Rood Food will no doubt be on offer.

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