26 Mar 2018

Palauan glass jewellery company eyes NZ market

12:50 pm on 26 March 2018

Palau's glass bead money jewellery is looking to crack it in the New Zealand market.

Cheldoech Jewellery from Palau is a small home-based business that began in 2009 where glass beads are used to make necklaces and earrings.

Cheldoech is a reference to ancient Palauan women's money beads, which went out of commission because they were easily counterfeited.

Owner of the business, Sylvia Kloulubak, said she arrived in New Zealand for the first time as part of the Pacific Trade Invest New Zealand programme.

"I started doing that like a preservation propose to symbolise the money of the Palauan women because it's a part of my culture and also it's something that I can do at home without a lot of investment."