About Us

Welcome to Orinoco Designs. 

My name is Erin, owner and founder, and I cannot wait to meet you!

I wanted to share my story of how Orinoco began with you all. It has been, maybe like you too, a time for reflection.

Orinoco was born to bring beauty into people's lives through floral, homeware and design. 

Along my life journey I have always loved people and the community while working as a community Pharmacist for 20 years. I then rediscovered my lifelong passion for flowers, retrained as a Florist and we now give dried flowers back to the Kapiti Cancer Centre for patients and whanau delivered by a lovely Cancer Centre volunteer. 

I also found a new love for style and design through homewares, clothing, fabrics and textures. I wanted to bring local NZ designers and suppliers to our store. 

The name “Orinoco” was actually my childhood nickname (yes one of the Wombles!). I am also affectionately called “Rin”. I loved how the name sounded, felt, and looked on paper. I discovered to my delight that there are two Orinoco Flowers. The “Orinoco Flow Iris” (purple and white) and an Orinoco Daisy Chrysanthemum, a lovely deep red pom pom.

Our logo represents a circle for the community. It encompasses the veins of the Orinoco Flow Iris, with buds for new beginnings. Our little store has a boho, eclectic mix of homewares, the lines of our logo in the circle may be seen as wood grains or water flowing, for the Orinoco River. 

Orinoco would not be here without the amazing people who have helped me along the way, and who are now part of the Orinoco family, as my team and many clients become dear friends. Life brings these people together, and I thank you.

To end on - Recently I sat by a lovely lady at lunch, where I was telling her about our little store. The words she said to me really resonated with me “What you are describing to me about your store is “An experience for the self”. Thank you Karren.  

Orinoco truly is an experience for the self.

Erin xxx

Visit us!

We are located at 2a Maclean Street, Paraparaumu Beach, Paraparaumu, phone +64 4 974 8403. Our opening hours are: 

Giving back to the community

Orinoco will also be giving back to the community to our local Kapiti Hospice and Cancer Centre, through fresh and dried flowers donated to our local whanau/carers and loved ones suffering from cancer. Over the past year my life has been touched deeply by dear friends and whanau along this journey, as I know many of you will have been as well x

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