A $150k life in Taumarunui
miss, you know. The shopping. My credit card is probably not missing that.
‘‘Honestly, it’s not far to drive anywhere. Because I’ve lived other places around the world I find New Zealand quite compact.
Goodall had been to the area before, so she had a bit of an idea of what she was getting herself into. Goodall said Forgotten World Adventures was busy – close to ‘‘cracking 10,000 people a year’’, in fact.
She’s ambitious and Forgotten World is planning to expand.
‘‘We’re pretty busy for sure. It’s just that... you’ve got that main highway that goes down the middle [of the North Island] and you’ve got Rotorua and you’ve got Taupo¯ and then down to National Park, so it’s like: how do all these towns on these regional parks keep people coming down this road?’’
Previously, Goodall has worked as the operations manager for Haka Tours, based in Auckland, she launched Busabout into Asia, and has other international tourism experience.
She is planning to stick around Taumarunui for a while.
‘‘I’m the sort of person that needs to be kept busy so if Ian [Balme, the Forgotten World Adventures founder] didn’t have any plans for expansion and said ‘just come in and manage the business’, probably not.
‘‘But he’s not that sort of person... There’s always something to keep you busy, occupied. He’s got that spirit.
Balme’s a happy man – getting Goodall was a ‘‘huge relief’’, he says. ‘‘She’s fantastic. It’s great. It opens up lots more opportunities for Forgotten World.
‘‘It’s freed me up to do all the other things that we’ve got planned for the business.