Contract manager from Scotland living at the beach near Auckland

George Pirie and his wife Sharonn have always lived in the countryside, close to a city. They’re doing that in New Zealand too, but with the added pleasure of being at the beach.

The couple and their two children moved from Perth in Scotland to Clarks Beach, about 40 minutes out of Auckland, where George works for specialist electrical company Electrix.

As George explains, it’s easier to meet people in a small community, and that’s what they’ve found at Clarks Beach.

“It’s even easier with kids,” he says, “because you meet people right away when you take them to school, kindergarten and sports.”

“But what we’ve really enjoyed here is how friendly the neighbours are. They’ve become friends very quickly.”

Clarks Beach is a small coastal village on the Manukau Harbour. It offers safe swimming, fishing, lots of sport facilities, and a laidback lifestyle that’s not too far from the city.

Having made the decision to move to New Zealand, George wasted no time. It took just one month to sell the house, pack up, organise visas, a job, transport for the two cats and get on the plane.

“I just went on the internet and sent out my CV to every New Zealand company in my field. In days I had six job offers. The hard bit was deciding which to accept.”

After talking to companies by phone, George accepted an offer from Electrix. It’s been a good choice.

“It wasn’t so much the salary or the relocation package,” he says. “It was more that, although they’re a big company in this part of the world, it’s actually a smaller organisation than where I’ve been before. And that means I get much more involved in all areas of the projects I work on and have more chance to step up the career ladder.”

George and Sharonn are very glad they made the decision to move here. “We’ve got a far better balance of work and lifestyle than we every could have had in Scotland.”

-Story provided by Electrix