Waikato Business News November/December 2016

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2016 VOLUME 24: ISSUE 11 WWW.WBN.CO.NZ FACEBOOK.COM/WAIKATOBUSINESSNEWS 

THE REGION’S BUSINESS VOICE 

HOBBITON 

steals the show p3 

Westpac Waikato Business 

Awards, see coverage p24 

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Hobbiton steals 

the show 

WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS November/December 2016 3 

A venture which has enjoyed exponential 

growth for five years was rewarded with the 

Supreme Award at the Westpac Waikato 

Awards in November. 

By GEOFF TAYLOR 

Hobbiton Movie Set 

also won the Deloitte 

Business Growth Award 

and the Chow Hill Marketing 

Award at the glitzy event at 

Claudelands Event Centre. 

In front of more than 600 

people, Hobbiton Movie 

set chief executive Russell 

Alexander made regular visits 

to the stage as the Matamata 

powerhouse’s incredible year of 

awards rolled on. 

Hobbiton is a stunning, 

well-run business that 

is delivering not only 

regionally but to the 

New Zealand economy 

as well." 

Russell attributed 

Hobbiton’s success to “being as 

good as you can”. 

“When we’re making a deci- 

sion we think ‘how can we do 

this better?’ We try to make 

long term decisions. Yes we 

can do it cheaper but what’s the 

right thing to do?” 

He thanked his supportive 

team and board and said belief 

in the product was a key to 

Hobbiton’s success. 

“If there’s three reasons for 

succeeding it’s one, passion, 

two, passion and three, passion. 

I believe in that.” 

Hobbiton’s visitor numbers 

have gone from being static at 

about 25,000 for 10 years to 

doubling to 52,000 in 2011, and 

then increasing to 131,000 in 

2012, 260,000 in 2013, 364,000 

in 2014 and 468,000 in 2015. 

This year visitor numbers will 

be well over the half a million 

mark. 

Waikato Chamber of 

Commerce chief executive 

William Durning told the 

audience that Hobbiton had 

re-directed tourism flows in 

New Zealand and catapulted 

Matamata into the spotlight. 

“Hobbiton has become one 

of the must-see destinations 

in New Zealand with approximately 

one in eight international 

tourists visiting Hobbiton 

during their trip. 

Westpac regional manager Lynn Walker and Hobbiton 

Movie Set chief executive Russell Alexander. 

"Hobbiton is a stunning, 

well-run business that is delivering 

not only regionally but 

to the New Zealand economy 

as well." 

On peak days in summer 

Hobbiton has accommodated 

3000 visitors. 

Russell told Waikato 

Business News that such rapid 

growth can be hard to handle 

and can often sink businesses. 

He felt sustaining such 

growth for five years has been 

Hobbiton’s biggest achievement. 

Major catalysts for growth 

were the agreement to make 

Hobbiton a permanent set and 

the success of The Hobbit 

movie, he said. 

“But I would also like to 

think that through innovative 

marketing, we’ve taken the 

brand to another level. I would 

like to think the brand is beyond 

the movie now.” 

Russell identified the opening 

of the Green Dragon pub 

in 2012 as another pivotal 

moment. He says it changed the 

Hobbiton experience because it 

allowed visitors to engage all 

five senses: sight, smell, sound, 

touch and taste. The pub gave 

them a real taste of Middle 

Earth. 

Russell said dealing with 

such growth over five years 

was about making decisions 

every day. 

“If you are going to introduce 

something new every year 

then you are going to have to 

make decisions. You are not 

going to get them all right. But 

there’s only one thing worse 

than making a bad decision and 

that’s not making one at all.” 

Hobbiton had recently introduced 

new reservation, food 

and beverage systems and a 

new website. It is constructing 

four new buildings – a production 

kitchen, a new shop, new 

toilets and a new washroom. 

Meanwhile a car park extension 

is underway. 

“There’s a fair bit going on.” 

Russell said the process 

of entering awards was good 

for any business because as it 

forced managment to look at 

all avenues – marketing, operations, 

finance and governance 

– and ask hard questions. 

“Everyone gets so busy 

and there’s so much going on. 

But this process forces you to 

review things and it can only 

make your business better.” 

Already this year Hobbiton 

has won three categories at 

September’s Tourism Industry 

Awards including the People’s 

Choice Award, Business 

Excellence (more than $6m 

turnover) and the Tourism 

Marketing Campaign Award. 

In June it was a finalist in 

the Exporter of the Year awards 

(more than $25 million turnover) 

while in October Russell 

was given the Conventions and 

Incentives New Zeland (CINZ) 

Outstanding Contributor 

Award. 

In November Hobbiton 

was a finalist in the ANZ Best 

Medium Category of the New 

Zealand International Business 

Awards. 

The Drug Detection Agency 

GRAEME SMITH - GENERAL MANAGER 

0274 881 364 | 07 850 5056 | graeme.smith@tdda.com 

Level 1, 22 Euclid Ave, Te Rapa, Hamilton | Bookings 

email: waikato@tdda.com | www.tdda.com 

TDDA makes huge 

strides in Waikato 

Graeme and Leona Smith 

have made a dramatic 

impact in the year 

since they took over ownership 

of the Waikato/Coromandel 

branch of The Drug Detection 

Agency (TDDA). 

It was November 2015 

when Graeme and Leona, 

with considerable commercial 

expertise between them, took 

over the business. 

Such has been the growth of 

the business a year on, TDDA 

in the Waikato has doubled 

the number of employees and 

vehicles in its fleet and is looking 

for a bigger headquarters. 

Graeme has worked hard to 

spread the message throughout 

the region and promote what 

TDDA can offer businesses. 

The more businesses TDDA 

has worked with, the more 

Graeme has realised the need 

in the community and the scale 

of the drug problem. 

The main focus is on safety 

in the workplace but with 

increased availability and 

usage, the impact on productivity 

and absenteeism at work 

is escalating and business who 

have implemented a strong 

Drug & Alcohol Management 

Plan are reaping the benefits.. 

This coupled with the latest 

health and safety legislation 

which puts more onus 

on employers for the duty of 

care of all employees, leaves 

unprepared businesses at risk. 

Company directors and senior 

executives have now become 

increasingly exposed to penalties 

for failing to ensure a safe 

working environment. 

"As a community we need 

to stand together to address 

drug use at every possible 

level, whether it’s educating 

our kids, together with 

resources to help people who 

are struggling with drug addiction,” 

says Graeme. 

“Workplace drug testing not 

only provides a safe working 

environment but also provides 

early identification giving people 

a chance to address their 

usage, giving them a better 

chance of giving up the drugs.” 

Graeme spends a lot of time 

focused on helping businesses 

get policies and training in 

place in order to institute drug 

testing and ensure a safe and 

productive working environment. 

Graeme has seen growth 

across the board but some 

key industries have emerged 

including the construction and 

tourism where there is huge 

onus on safety. 

Graeme is also work- 

ing with a number of local 

authorities such as Hamilton 

City Council, Waikato District 

Council, South Waikato 

District Council and Matamata- 

Piako District Council. 

Another high risk industry 

is farming, something Graeme 

understands well with 30 years 

experience in the agricultural 

sector. The on-farm safety 

risks of drug usage are huge 

and farmers as employers need 

to be up to speed with how 

they can protect their staff and 

their businesses. 

Graeme can help and is 

presently developing relationships 

with Federated Farmers 

and other rural organisations. 

But he stresses that the need 

is right across all businesses 

both large and small. No business 

can afford to ignore the 

issue of drug use. 

The benefits of introducing 

asuccesful Drug & Alcohol 

Management Plan that covers, 

PERTINENT QUESTIONS FOR COMPANY’S 

MANAGEMENT TO CONSIDER: 

• Does our company have an effectively managed 

drug-testing programme? 

policy, education, communication 

and a good drug testing 

• Have we taken all practical and reasonable steps to 

ensure that we are fulfilling our obligations to our people, 

customers and society at large by providing a drug free 

working environment? 

• Can the company afford not to introduce an effective 

drug-testing programme? 

Continued on page 20


From the editor 

It was impossible to leave 

the Westpac Waikato 

Business awards ceremony 

recently without feeling 

optimistic about the future of 

business in this region. 

On show were so many 

great businesses, so much 

innovation and so many 

inspiring leaders. 

Each of the category 

winners who lined up to 

vie for the supreme award 

were examples of excellence 

in their own right. It was 

a mighty line-up. Raglan 

Coconut Yoghurt, Coolsense 

NZ Ltd, Zealong Tea Estate, 

SKYCITY Hamilton, CSC 

Buying Group, AGOGE, 

MEA and Hobbiton Movie 

Set were there because they 

were the best in the field. 


Commerce chief executive 

William Durning and his 

team should be applauded for 

their efforts. Under a revised 

entry process, the number 

of entries – and their calibre 

– increased noticeably 

and more than 600 people 

attended the glitzy affair at 

Claudeland Event Centre. 

That’s a huge achievement. 

The growth Hobbiton 

Movie Set has achieved – and 

sustained – over five years 

makes it a worthy Supreme 

winner. In addition to the 

Supreme Award, Hobbiton’s 

quietly spoken chief executive 

Russell Alexander 

also accepted the Marketing 

Award and the Business 

Growth Award. 

It was Hobbiton’s night – 

but it was also a great night 

for Waikato business. 

Geoff Taylor 

Editor 

MONTHLY POLL 

VOTE AND WIN 

Sponsored by the Helm Bar 

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This month’s poll 

As we rush towards the end of a busy 2016 some of 

our thoughts are already straying to next year. What sort 

of year are you expecting in terms of your business? How 

optimistic are you about the business environment as a 

whole? 

Vote on the WBN website (www.wbn.co.nz) and fill in 

the entry form to be in to win a meal voucher for two at The 

Helm Bar & Kitchen. Voting closes Thursday December 

15. 

Last month’s results 

Will Andrew King as mayor be good for business? 

Business people who took part in WBN’s poll immediately 

after the local body elections were split on how he will perform. 

Fifty-two percent believe he will be good for business and forty-eight 

percent don’t. 

48% 

52% 

How will 2017 be for your 

business? 

A. Better 

B. Worse 

C. About the same 

Cast your vote at: 

www.wbn.co.nz 

WINNER OF THE HELM DINNER VOUCHER IS: 

Christine Frampton 

48% 

52% 

Yes 

No


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Gallagher urges open 

debate on new council 

Hamilton’s new deputy mayor Martin 

Gallagher says he is looking forward to a 

term full of open debate and working with a 

council full of “feisty individuals” who don’t 

just “blindly” follow the leader. 

80002 


The former Hamilton 

West MP, now in his 

third term of his cur- 

Hamilton Monthly Property Report 

HERE IS YOUR SNAP 

SHOT OF WHAT HAS 

BEEN HAPPENING IN THE 

MARKET PLACE OVER 

THE PAST MONTH. 

Sales volumes throughout the 

Waikato/Bay of Plenty region 

compared to September 2016 

fell 9%. Compared to October 

2015 sales across the region fell 

25%. 

The median price across the 

region rose $80,750 (+21%) compared 

to October 2015 to reach a new 

record high. Compared to September 

the median price rose $2,250 (+1%). 

The number of days to sell eased 

by two days compared to September, 

from 31 days in September to 33 

days in October. The number of days 

to sell eased by one day compared to 

October 2015. Over the past 10 years 

the average number of days to sell 

during October for Waikato/Bay of 

Plenty has been 45 days. 

REINZ Regional Director, Philip 

Searle noted that “There are certainly 

lower numbers of investors in the 

market and something of a decline in 

first home buyer numbers also as the 

market adjusts to the new LVR rules 

and tighter lending conditions from 

banks. Inventory levels remain low 

across the region with a significant 

decline in the number of properties 

for sale over the past 12 months.” 

Obviously the statistics contained 

within this article represent only a 

small fraction of the data I have at 

my fingertips. For more information 

relevant to your street or your property, 

call and ask for one of our team. 

P 07 834 9570 M 027 801 9962 F 07 854 3837 

VISIT www.eves.co.nz 

By Greg Petrin 

Rototuna branch manager 

Local market facts 

Hamilton City 

Sales October 

2016 

Sales October 

2015 

Under $200k* 2 6 

$200 - $299k* 8 37 

$300 - $399k* 42 111 

$400 - $499k* 75 89 

$500 - $599k* 54 61 

$600 - $699k* 45 41 

$700 - $999k* 46 25 

$1,000,000 - 

$1,999,999* 

6 5 

$2m+* 0 0 

Total number of sales* 278 375 

Median sale price* $518,000 $435,000 

Median days to sell* 32 28 

*Statistical Information Derived From The Real Estate Institute Of New Zealand. Realty Services 

Ltd/Success Realty Ltd and any contractor/employee is merely passing over the information. 

We cannot guarantee its accuracy and reliability as we have not checked, audited or reviewed 

the information and all intending purchasers are advised to conduct their own due diligence 

investigation into the same. To the maximum extent permitted by law Realty Services Ltd/Success 

Realty Ltd and its contractors/employees do not accept any responsibility to any person for the 

accuracy of the information herein. 

rent stretch on the council 

was also deputy mayor under 

Sir Ross Jansen and Margaret 

Evans in the 1980s and early 

90s. 

Mr Gallagher praises former 

mayor Julie Hardaker’s 

integrity, intelligence and 

passion for Hamilton, but 

says for parts of her last term 

the council was a “rubber 

stamper” which played “follow 

the leader”. 

He is also critical that 

under Mayor Hardaker, two 

experienced councillors - 

Dave Macpherson and Ewan 

Wilson - were “exited to the 

backbenches” and their skills 

not utilised. 

Too many subcommittees 

also led to silos whereas 

Andrew King’s structure 

has the full council sitting 

on three committees with a 

dedicated focus so everyone 

is involved. He says Mayor 

King has deliberately fostered 

democratic debate by 

appointing people to senior 

roles with different philosophical 

positions. 

“There is not a so-called 

inner circle that reflects his 

world view. He has actually 

gone out there and embraced 

the different viewpoints 

around the council table.” 

“What I see in this council 

which was not evident in the 

previous council is a collection 

of feisty individuals who 

are passionate for Hamilton. 

They have strong individual 

views but the team is about 

Hamilton.” 

Mr Gallagher, who has 

been critical of the sell off 

of the city’s pensioner houses 

and cuts to community development, 

says he also wants to 

see some of the “community 

put back into the council” 

and partnerships with providers 

to develop more social 

housing. 

“This mayor has a beating 

heart and I’m delighted to 

work with him.” 

This mayor has a 

beating heart and 

I’m delighted to work 

with him.” 

A major priority for the 

new council under Mayor 

King is development of 

new housing in areas such 

as Peacocke and Rotokauri, 

and Mr Gallagher says within 

three years he wants to see 

tangible signs of construction 

beginning. 

“This is about us doing 

everything we can to help 

young families realise the 

Kiwi dream. The critical 

challenge for this council is 

to create sufficient supply of 

sections, houses and apartments.” 

He also wants to see 

some tangible work done 

on Hamilton River Plan and 

he praises Ms Hardaker for 

Hamilton’s new deputy mayor Martin Gallagher. 

her leadership in starting the 

plan. 

However, he says he 

warned her that new councils 

have different priorities 

and the River Plan needed 

a separate organisation, like 

Friends of the Gardens, outside 

council to help drive 

it forward. Despite the fact 

that mayor King “correctly” 

places developing new 

housing as a higher priority, 

Mr Gallagher is confident 

parts of the River Plan can be 

achieved this term. 

He said it is key that the 

River Plan attracts similar 

urgency to the gardens 

in terms of philanthropic 

funding. Mr Gallagher says 

there are parallels between 

the River Plan and the gardens 

and he recalls the great 

vision showed by former 

mayors Sir Ross Jansen and 

Denis Rogers who had the 

vision that one day a rubbish 

tip could become Hamilton 

Gardens. 

“The challenge here with 

the River Plan is to make a 

start. It might not go as fast 

as we want but I think we can 

make a start.” 

Mr Gallagher promotes 

the fact that all politicians 

across the city are part of 

“team Hamilton” who by 

working together and developing 

relationships across all 

political parties, promote the 

best deal for the city. 

“I’ve heard from time 

to time that people claim 

Hamilton has no clout in 

Wellington because we 

don’t currently have Cabinet 

Ministers. I personally reject 

that.” 

He points to the funding 

a city of 150,000 people has 

received for projects such 

as the Waikato Expressway, 

the development of Waikato 

Hospital campus and 

Innovation Park. 

“I can personally testify 

to seeing (former Hamiton 

East MP) Di Yates chasing 

harassed Ministers down the 

hallway at parliament to get 

money for Innovation Park – 

and she got it.” 

Mr Gallagher points to 

Senior Whip Tim Macindoe 

who “has a 24 hour hotline” 

to the Prime Minister and all 

Cabinet Ministers. 

“That’s a powerful position 

which should never be 

underestimated.” 

Meanwhile Hamilton East 

MP David Bennett is chairman 

of the powerful Finance 

and Expenditure committee. 

“Part of my role is to 

have good professional relationships 

with everyone in 

Government, across all parties. 

I will also be a hard 

negotiator I want to work 

with them and not against 

them. We are all part of team 

Hamilton.” 

- Note: Geoff Taylor, the 

author of this story is also 

a Hamilton city councillor. 

Waikato Branch – Upcoming events/courses 

The Institute of Directors in 

New Zealand (IoD) promotes excellence 

in corporate governance, represents 

directors’ interests and facilitates their 

professional development through 

education and training. 

9 December 2016 CPD: 2 points 

"25 years Christmas celebration" 

4.00pm - 7.00pm, Southwell School, Hamilton 

It's time to celebrate our 25 years with an end of year Christmas function. 

This celebration is also a good opportunity to thank everyone who has contributed to the 

branch over many years. 

We anticipate tickets to this event will sell out quickly and would encourage you to book 

early. Spaces are strictly limited. 

To register, please contact: 

Megan Beveridge, 

Branch Manager 

Waikato.branch@iod.org.nz, 

021 358772 or www.iod.org.nz 

Waikato branch is kindly sponsored by:


New programme will give CEOs the edge 

The stressful and often lonely existence of 

chief executives has been recognised in a 

unique mentoring and support programme 

created in Waikato. 


Executive Edge which has 

the aim of developing a 

pipeline of great CEOs 

in Waikato, is the brainchild of 

HR consultants Everest Group, 

working alongside a group of 

Waikato business organisations. 

The first cohort of 14 leaders 

are presently being selected for 

the inaugural programme which 

begins in February. 

Everest Group managing 

director Senga Allen says the 

inspiration for Executive Edge 

came about through her exposure 

working with executives, 

business owners and senior 

managers. 

“We know being in that position 

in a business is quite a 

lonely role and CEOs are often 

under a huge amount of strain. 

A lot of people say to me they 

aspire to be a chief executive 

but when they get there they 

think ‘wow this is bigger than I 

anticipated.’” 

Senga says the purpose 

of Executive Edge is to bring 

CEOs together in a safe environment 

where they can be 

exposed to a variety of channels 

of support and suggest their own 

area in which they want help or 

advice. 

The aim is to ensure Waikato 

has the best possible trained 

CEOs and to encourage them 

to develop an alumni to provide 

ongoing support. 

Senga says Everest Group 

partnered with strong business 

organisations and businesses to 

broaden the support available 

for CEOs. Waikato Chamber 

of Commerce, Westpac, the 

Institute of Directors and 

Deloitte have all worked alongside 

Everest Group to hone the 

programme. 

Two well-respected ambassadors 

for Executive Edge, 

Simon Perry and Trilogy chief 

executive Angela Buglass, will 

meet participants at regular 

intervals. 

Senga says Executive Edge 

starts with some goal setting 

which looks at what CEOs want 

to achieve and where they are 

in the life cycle of the business. 

Programme mentors will work 

with the CEOs on a bi-monthly 

basis to help them achieve those 

goals. 

The programme progresses 

over 12 months with a combination 

of active learning and 

group work. 

Respected speakers and 

thought leaders will be sourced 

for each group based on areas 

of need. Participants will undergo 

a comprehensive Emotional 

Intelligence assessment and 

reports and feedback on this 

will encourage their professional 

development. 

Another key to Executive 

The team behind Executive Edge: From left, Everest Group managing director Senga Allen, Waikato Chamber of Commerce 

chief executive William Durning, Westpac Waikato area manager Hamish Ward, Deloitte partner Doug Wilson, IOD Chairman 

Margaret Devlin and Everest Group human resource specialist Greg Catley. 

Edge is its networking and the 

relationships formed with peers 

and programme mentors. 

“But the programme is really 

going to be driven by the CEO,” 

says Senga. 

“It will be customised for 

them. What are the hot spots in 

their business at the moment, 

what are the challenges that are 

causing them sleepless nights, 

what are the challenges in their 

workplace?” 

The associated organisations 

– the chamber, Westpac, Deloitte 

and the IoD - will be able to 

reach into their networks to 

source and share skills required 

by the course participants. 

Senga says Waikato’s talent 

is often minimised and she 

would like to see the programme 

emphasise that the region has 

some great people, is a place of 

excellence and national organisations 

need to be looking to 

Waikato for top people when 

they recruit. 

Margaret Devlin, chairman 

of the Waikato branch of the 

Institute of Directors says the 

relationship between the chief 

executive and the board of directors 

is critical to ensure effective 

governance. 

“We know one of the things 

boards don’t do necessarily 

well is look at how the CEO is 

developed. We see some real 

positives in not just developing 

a good CEO but in developing 

a good cohort and pipeline of 

directors coming through.” 

“One of the loneliest jobs in 

the world is the CEO. They are 

the meat in the sandwich. There 

are already some groups around 

town that have CEO forums 

and that provide support. But 

Executive Edge is effectively 

taking it to the next level and 

providing some ‘arms around 

these people’ as they go through 

their development journey.” 


Commerce CEO William 

Durning said the programme is 

a great investment in Waikato 

and New Zealand. 

“The Waikato economy over 

the next 30 years will be the lifeblood 

of the New Zealand economy 

and leading that will be the 

CEO. We are right behind it.” 

Westpac Waikato area manager 

Hamish Ward says Waikato 

has fantastic leaders already but 

Executive Edge is about “bringing 

them out into the open and 

connecting them better”. 

“Waikato is very good at 

staying under the radar, we want 

the region’s leaders to start getting 

a bit more exposure nationally.” 

“Chief executive roles can 

be very lonely. If we can connect 

CEOs that potentially don’t 

know each other then that has 

to be a good thing for building 

capability. 

Deloitte partner Doug 

Wilson says irrespective of what 

industry CEOs are in, most of 

the challenges, they face are 

similar. 

“There can be a real fear 

among CEOs to engage with 

their peer group because they 

don’t want to show any chinks 

in their armour. 

“We want to break down 

those barriers so it’s okay to 

have a coffee with someone and 

say ‘this isn’t going so well.’ It’s 

about building trust.” 

To lodge an ‘Expression of 

Interest’ for consideration of 

inclusion in the programme go 

to www.theexecutivedge.co.nz 

Cheaper buying means big 

savings for small businesses 

Big business buying power is 

available to small businesses, 

thanks to the services of a 

Waikato-based procurement 

specialist. 

Obtain, based in the heart of Hamilton’s 

CBD, offers procurement 

expertise and an innovative online 

purchasing system, giving members 24-7 

access to more than 6000 individual products. 

Steady growth over three years has seen 

its customer base grow to more than 800 

members throughout New Zealand. 

Obtain founder Stephen Coombe says 

his business is the first in New Zealand 

allowing members to order products from 

preferred suppliers directly, via an online 

purchasing system. The platform has recently 

been upgraded to be mobile and tablet 

optimised, and also includes integration 

with Xero so purchase orders can be sent 

straight to Xero for easy reconciliation. 

Goods available include office supplies 

and stationery, dairy products, food and 

beverage products, kitchen consumables, 

hospitality supplies, cleaning and hygiene 

products, medical supplies and equipment, 

linen and uniforms. Quotes can also be 

sought for services such as security, power 

and gas, and hygiene services. 

Obtain’s online purchasing system can 

be tailored for specific industries, listing 

relevant products and services in one place. 

Two examples are the Primary Health purchasing 

system, developed for medical 

practices and the Aged Care purchasing 

system, for aged care related businesses. 

“Small organisations spend lots of time 

looking for products and services and don’t 

always get the best prices. We put the buying 

power in their hands so they spend less 

and save time in the process,” Stephen said. 

Signing up for Obtain is as simple as online 

shopping - members complete a quick 

registration process before browsing online 

catalogues brimming with goods from preferred 

business suppliers. 

Credit card payment is securely accepted 

at checkout or invoices can be sent to 

businesses with a trading account. 

“So they not only save on the purchase 

price, they save by purchasing from multiple 

suppliers in the same place, and online. 

It takes the stress out of sourcing and ordering 

products.” 

Obtain, based in SODA’s co-working 

space in Wintec House, is focusing on 

helping Waikato businesses after signing 

up about 800 members throughout New 

Zealand, Stephen said. A wide range of 

businesses enjoy the benefits of Obtain’s 

services, from aged care, medical and dental 

practices, through to cafés, retail shops, 

sports clubs, builders, farmers and more. 

There is no cost to join and no ongoing 

fees, as Obtain is paid a small procurement 

fee by suppliers for their service. 

Obtain’s four team members are procurement 

and supply chain specialists, 

coming from a range sectors including 

manufacturing, health, transportation, ICT, 

engineering and facilities management, 

from small businesses to large multi-nationals. 

Stephen’s professional background is 

in procurement and supply chain for large 

corporates, such as Fonterra and Waikato 

District Health Board. 

“There are a lot of other buying groups 

out there but the innovative purchasing 

system we have developed is unique. We 

also offer project services to help with 

more complex procurement needs a business 

may have. With Obtain, we have taken 

what we’ve learned in the corporate world 

and put it to good use.” 

Registration was quick and easy with Obtain. We have saved over $450 

on purchasing our vaccine fridge, and have made over $4,300 per annum 

savings on paper, hygiene, and office supplies.” 

Adrienne Carter – Nurse Manager, Silverdale Medical 

We have made significant savings of over $14,000 per annum over 

many categories by using Obtain. The service and advice is absolutely 

wonderful. I cannot speak highly enough.” 

Ann Coughlan – CEO, Mercy Parklands 

www.obtain.co.nz 

Stephen Coombe. 

30311


Cautious message 

on dairy prices 

Despite the big lift in whole milk powder 

prices in early November, Waikato 

businesses and farmers have been 

cautioned about how prolonged that 

increase may prove to be. 

By RICHARD RENNIE 

BNZ senior economist 

Doug Steel told delegates 

at this year’s 

KPMG agri-business seminar 

at Karapiro there are still some 

factors around milk prices that 

should cast some caution over 

where future prices will fall. 

“The increase we have 

seen has been very dairy specific 

recently, and not across 

all commodities, including 

oil. Oil remains at less than 

$US50 a barrel and that feed 

through to those oil producing 

countries – their income 

remains weak,” he said. 

Historically there has been 

a relatively strong correlation 

between global milk prices 

and oil. 

“But now dairy prices, relative 

to oil are quite stretched.” 

He was also casting a wary 

eye on the level of cheap and 

plentiful grain that was washing 

around stockpiles in the 

Northern Hemisphere, helping 

keep the cost of milk production 

lower than usual there. 

Other reports have the 

domestic wheat stocks in 

the United States at three 

times what they were back in 

2006, and the United States 

Department of Agriculture 

estimates the volume of wheat 

in storage at 110 million 

tonnes. 

A mild European winter 

also means stock piles there 

are at historically high levels, 

while Russia is also sitting 

on an inventory level up 22 

percent from last year. 

“You have to look at how 

BNZ head economist Doug Steel. 

the levels of grain and the low 

oil prices feed to (less) ethanol 

production, and it is not that 

encouraging for future dairy 

price increases,” he said. 

He also pointed to the 

massive 400,000t stockpile in 

Europe of skim milk powder 

accounting for the significantly 

smaller increase at the GDT 

auction this week, of 7 percent 

against whole milk powder’s 

increase of 20 percent. 

But Europe had responded 

to lower dairy prices, 

with indications of month on 

month reductions in supply 

growth, down to August by 

3.5 percent on the year before, 

with further contraction in EU 

supply likely. 

This had come after an eye 

watering surge in EU volumes 

that amounted to an increase 

in only two years equivalent 

to half of New Zealand’s 

annual production. 

Meantime the surge in 

United States production was 

largely being mopped up with 

increased domestic demand 

from increasing US population 

and US consumers making 

a switch back to saturated 

fats like butter and cheese. 

BNZ was anticipating a 4 

percent decline in NZ production 

this season, less than 

Fonterra’s estimated 7 percent. 

Much has been made 

of the 14 percent decline in 

Waikato’s peak milk production, 

this season due to poor 

weather in October. There are 

also 1.0 million fewer cows 

and lower feed inputs this 

spring. 

Despite the wariness, BNZ 

lifted its forecast milk payout 

to $6/kg milk solids for this 

season and next on the belief 

the supply side contraction 

will be maintained, tempered 

by the grain and oil impacts. 

Waikato University leads MBA 

development nationwide 

The University of 

Waikato’s Management 

School has been selected 

to help ensure AUT, Auckland, 

Waikato, Victoria, Canterbury 

and Massey universities are 

offering high quality human 

resource (HR)management 

courses in their MBA programmes. 

MBA directors from six 

New Zealand universities have 

agreed to do a calibration exercise 

in December on various 

disciplines, focusing on outlines, 

assignments and outcomes of 

their HR programmes. The disciplines 

to be scrutinised are 

human resource management, 

operations management, management 

accounting, economics 

and strategy. All six universities 

had the opportunity to offer topics 

in which they felt they had 

significant expertise. 

Waikato Management 

School was nominated to assist 

with the calibration exercise as 

it has the leading MBA human 

resource management programme 

in New Zealand. 

As a result, human resource 

management expert Professor 

Mark Harcourt has been 

appointed to the new role of 

Founding Calibrator for the 

module. 

Professor Harcourt will calibrate 

the quality of marking 

and assignments across the universities. 

He says the new initiative 

will help universities reflect on 

how their specific MBA programmes 

are operating relative 

to others in New Zealand. “Once 

I’ve assessed the programme I’ll 

report back to the teaching staff 

at the universities to ensure their 

outlines, outcomes and assignments 

match the standard at 

other universities nationwide,” 

says Dr Harcourt. 

Dr Harcourt has studied 

workplace issues in some of 

New Zealand’s well-known 

organisations, including staff 

turnover at the Bank of New 

Zealand, stress at the Reserve 

Bank, commitment at the Police 

and Fire Service and occupational 

overuse syndrome at 

BRANZ. 

His research has covered 

various aspects of human 

resource management, including 

performance appraisal, 

health and safety, discrimination, 

and recruitment through 

social media. Recently, he has 

been focusing on employee representation 

and dismissal.


Digital Trends for 2017 

This year has been one of accelerated development in the 

technology landscape. Users are becoming increasingly 

competent and expect to use simple tools that anticipate their 

needs and declutter their thinking. This positions us all for an 

exciting 2017 as businesses are increasingly empowered to 

design what they want to achieve and worry less about the 

lower level details. 

DIGITAL INTELLIGENCE is increasingly commonplace in 

our technology. Here at Vo2 we are benefiting from digital 

intelligence by using accounting tools that suggest business 

strategies based off our Xero records, accelerating us from 

simple report generation to informed recommendations. We 

have begun to investigate the Internet of Things to understand 

how distributed devices can automate decision making 

in agricultural settings. As machine learning and artificial 

intelligence are taking an increased role in research and 

correlation identification, we suddenly find that we have more 

time for strategic thinking and energy for action, in a fast paced 

economy like the Waikato that’s extremely valuable. 

DIGITAL DELIVERY of this intelligence enables us to reach 

out to customers, staff and suppliers in simple ways. We have 

recently seen the rise of Virtual and Augmented Reality which is 

now a consumer reality and expect this to increase in 2017. The 

ways in which information can be shared and collaborated on 

is now so much wider than a Word document or spreadsheet. 

Here at Vo2 we have moved to Bamboo HR which allows team 

members and managers to manage their own leave and update 

their own profiles, greatly reducing admin time across Vo2 

whilst increasing team engagement. The devices we use are now 

diverse and personal, with many employees expecting to use 

their own smart device rather than a company asset. Phones 

and tablets can now achieve the results that were previously 

dependant on a desktop device, freeing us to spend less time 

bound to the desk and more time collaborating with customers 

and team members. 

DIGITAL COLLABORATION is the obvious conclusion, with so 

many sources of intelligent information and ways to have users 

engage with them, the ability to create bespoke experiences 

out of standardised building blocks is increasingly possible. We 

recently experimented with integrating Google Analytics with 

Microsoft Power BI and customer information to create business 

targets based off website analytics. In order to create this ability, 

it took a week from initial idea to initial delivery, something that 

would have taken a lot longer only a couple of years ago. This 

rapid improvement increases our ability to experiment, innovate 

and learn. 

So with this increasing acceleration in our digital age, how 

should we respond? Here’s a few suggestions: 

1) Learn to think systematically, what are the dynamics and 

drivers of your business and what decisions are needed to be 

made or actions initiated. The role of technology in 2017 will be 

to provide the info to support this in a simple, mobile manner. 

2) Re-design your systems to ensure that they are serving you 

and not the other way round. Until the robots take over, we are 

still in control! 

3) Think freely about the ideal place to engage with information, 

it may be on the road, at a cafe or alongside a customer, get the 

right devices for those situations. 

At Vo2, we partner with local businesses to solve problems 

digitally, through business consultancy, web and app 

development and managed IT services including cloud, as our 

team bring global technologies to regional New Zealand. 

Get to know us, learn with us and let’s have a great 2017! 

High performance digital thinking 

Working with organisations across the Waikato & Bay of Plenty to raise their digital 

performance 

www.vo2.nz


An immigration tangle 

HR AND THE LAW 

Whanau Tahi Ltd v Kiran Dasari 

There has been a lot of 

media coverage recently 

of immigration issues 

with Indian students. This is 

one story where the student 

lost his job and work permit 

as a result of the employer’s 

actions. The facts of this case 

are not so exciting as my last 

article, but the legal arguments 

are really important. 

Whanau Tahi is a wholly 

owned subsidiary of Te 

Whanau o Waipareira Trust 

and provides computer services 

to enable social and clinical 

groups to collaborate on their 

clients’ care. Mr Dasari applied 

for and was offered a job as a 

business analyst for the company 

and both he and his manager 

signed the employment 

agreement. 

Before taking up the role 

with Whanau Tahi, Dasai was 

studying and had a work permit 

that entitled him to work 

part-time. When he finished his 

studies, the work permit was 

extended to full-time employment 

with Pizza Hutt. To be 

entitled to work for Whanau 

Tahi, he needed to apply to 

Immigration to change his permit 

to the new employer. 

Whanau Tahi insisted that 

he resign from his existing 

employment and filled in the 

forms needed to make the 

change with Immigration New 

Zealand. The employment 

agreement that had been signed 

by both parties, went to the 

CEO for a further signature. 

Immigration New Zealand 

required the employment 

agreement to complete the 

process and the CEO refused 

to sign it without the required 

work permit. Dasari was stuck 

in a loop that he was unable to 

unlock. 

Dasari was working at 

Whanau Tahi but the company 

decided it could not employ 

him without a work permit. 

Instead of sitting down with 

Immigration and Dasari to 

sort out the problem, they told 

Dasari to work from home until 

it was resolved but didn’t give 

him work and closed his access 

to the computer system. A few 

days later the employer advised 

Immigration they were withdrawing 

their support for his 

work permit, but again, they 

didn’t tell Dasari. Dasari sought 

advice and took a personal 

grievance. 

Whanau Tahi hedged its bets 

and ran two arguments. First 

it argued that the employment 

agreement was an illegal contract 

because he didn’t have a 

valid work permit that entitled 

him to work for them. Secondly 

it argued that the contract was 

frustrated because, due to no 

fault from either party, they 

were unable to implement the 

contract. (In an employment 

context, frustration of contract 

most commonly applies when 

an employee dies or is unable 

to attend work for a prolonged 

period, often due to a medical 

condition or because they are 

in prison.) 

The Employment Authority 

found for Dasari so Whanau 

Tahi took the matter to the 

Employment Court. It was 

a bad move because, unusually, 

the court agreed with 

everything the authority had 

concluded except the compensation 

awarded to Mr Dasari, 

which it increased. 

The court did a detailed analysis 

of whether the employment 

was frustrated and whether the 

employment agreement was an 

illegal contract. With respect to 

frustration, it reiterated that there 

is a very high threshold required 

to prove that performance of the 

contract has become impossible, 

and that this situation has 

not arisen from any action or 

inaction of one of the parties. 

It was within Whanau Tahi’s 

ability to provide the employment 

agreement to Immigration 

New Zealand which had given 

a clear indication that the work 

permit would be approved. 

Furthermore, the employment 

had commenced without the 

work permit and therefore was 

capable of being undertaken, so 

it did not meet the definition of 

frustration of contract. 

With respect to the illegal 

contract, the employer argued 

that because there was no 

work permit the contract was 

illegal. The court found that 

> BY ANNE AITKEN 

Anne Aitken, HR Professional | Email: anne@anneaitken.co.nz 

although the employment of 

Dasari without a work permit 

was illegal, ‘there is nothing in 

the Immigration Act expressly 

providing that a breach of its 

terms renders an employment 

agreement illegal’. 

Whanau Tahi was ordered 

by the court to pay Dasari the 

two months of wages it had 

withheld, three months lost 

wages and $10,000 compensation 

for hurt and humiliation, 

up from the two months 

lost wages and $5000 hurt and 

humiliation the authority had 

ordered. 

New chair for tourism body 

Hamilton & Waikato 

Tourism has a new 

chair. 

Annabel Cotton has 

replaced Graeme Osborne 

as head of the regional tourism 

organisation marketing 

Hamilton and the wider 

Waikato region. 

Ms Cotton is currently a 

director of Waikato Regional 

Airport Ltd and is chair of the 

airport’s audit and risk committee. 

She also chairs the 

investment committee of the 

Hamilton-based Momentum 

Waikato Community 

Foundation. 

Ms Cotton’s other governance 

experience includes 

directorships and audit committee 

membership at Genesis 

Energy Limited, the Securities 

Commission, the External 

Reporting Board and several 

NZX-listed companies. She is 

a Fellow of the Australasian 

Investor Relations Association, 

the Institute of Finance 

Professionals, the Institute 

of Directors and the New 

Zealand Institute of Chartered 

Accountants. 

Ms Cotton is also a member 

of Global Women, a collaboration 

of influential women 

leaders promoting inclusion 

and diversity. 

Ms Cotton has paid tribute 

to outgoing chair, Graeme 

Osborne who, after serving 

five years as a director, is rotating 

off and has chosen to not 

offer himself for re-appointment. 

“Graeme has a very extensive 

and senior background 

in tourism and has provided 

outstanding leadership to the 

board. He leaves knowing that 

a comprehensive regional tourism 

opportunities plan is now 

in place for the region. Much 

of that was driven by his vision 

The employer could easily 

have dealt with this situation 

safely. Firstly, they should have 

fulfilled their part of the process 

to complete the Immigration 

New Zealand requirements. 

Secondly they should have 

communicated with Dasari 

much more openly, as required 

under the good faith provisions. 

Finally, the employment agreement 

included a provision that it 

was dependent on the employee 

having a work permit, if he had 

failed to secure his work permit 

he could have been dismissed 

with due process. 

New Hamilton & Waikato 

Tourism chairwoman 

Annabel Cotton. 

and enthusiasm for the tourism 

sector and for our region.” 

Ms Cotton took up her role 

on November 1. 

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70417


Waikato businesses missing out 

Out of date websites are costing 

Waikato businesses dearly. 

Waikato businesses 

could be missing out 

on half of the e-commerce 

they are due because 

their websites haven’t been 

updated for internet browsers 

on smartphones and tablets. 

If their core business is 

e-commerce this can be a substantial 

amount of business. 

If you have a website that 

is not responsive to mobile 

devices you don’t need a 

new one, only to update it 

for the latest technology 

which is here to stay. 

Hamilton based graphic 

design and web development 

company E9 surveyed 

150 local websites and found 

half were not responsive on 

the web browsers of mobile 

devices. This means websites 

designed for large desktop 

computer screens appear 

exactly the same on a smartphones 

or tablet, only in a 

shrunken form. 

Such websites are designed 

to be navigated with a mouse, 

rather than fingers, making it 

difficult to move from page 

to page. 

“It’s far from a great user 

experience for the mobile 

device user,” said E9 general 

manager Mehrdad Behroozi. 

“In fact it’s tedious seeing 

the website so tiny on your 

mobile device. It’s like trying 

to read your name on a grain 

of rice. 

“Typically such 

websites are anything 

from difficult 

to impossible 

to use on a small 

screen and the 

user usually gives 

up after a few seconds, 

since they 

know there’s a better 

browsing experience 

elsewhere. 

If your non-mobile 

responsive website 

drives a potential 

customer to your competitor, 

and they end up spending 

money with them, this can be a 

very expensive mistake.” 

It’s no coincidence that 

some of New Zealand’s busiest 

websites, google.co.nz 

and trademe.co.nz, are optimised 

for mobile web browsers. 

They appear one way on 

a desktop or laptop computer, 

and another way on a smartphone 

or tablet. 

“We were really surprised 

to see how many Waikato 

WEB OF INTRIGUE: Company-X director David Hallett (left) and E9 general manager Mehrdad Behroozi. 

websites are still not responsive 

to mobile devices,” 

Merhdad, who is known as 

Merv, said. 

“You would not print a 

brochure so small that you 

need a magnifying glass to 

read it, yet a website is a more 

important part of your marketing 

collateral because it’s 

always on and accessible from 

anywhere in the world. 

“If you have a website that 

is not responsive to mobile 

devices you don’t need a new 

one, only to update it for the 

latest technology which is 

here to stay.” 

Internet usage from mobile 

devices exceeded desktop 

worldwide for the first 

time in October, StatCounter 

Global Stats found. Mobile 

device usage claimed 51.3 

per cent of internet usage 

in October, compared with 

48.7 per cent from desktop 

computers. 

Hamilton based software 

specialist Company-X, a sister 

firm to E9, wouldn’t dream 

of building a web based application 

that wasn’t responsive 

to tablets and smartphones as 

well as the more traditional 

computer monitor. 

“Everything we do on the 

web can be viewed on small 

screens as well as larger 

screens,” said director David 

Hallett. “The idea is that you 

get an equally great experience, 

regardless of what 

device you choose to view 

the application on.” 

Company-X’s clients 

include everyone from government 

departments to one 

person businesses with projects 

of large to small scale. 

A good proportion of 

Company-X’s work is on 

smartphone and tablet platforms 

in the Apple App 

Store for iOS devices and 

the Google Play store for 

Android, David said. 

“These mobile apps, by 

their very nature, are designed 

to be responsive and their 

popularity only goes to prove 

just how popular mobile 

computing has become in the 

past few years.” 

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Visit us online: www.company-x.co.nz


WBN first on the scene 

E9 hosts Hamilton Central BA5 at The Long Room 

Proudly Sponsored By 

1. 2. 3. 

1. Vanessa Williams and Vicky 

Redwood, Hamilton Central. 

2. Anthony Ling, Eves; Graham 

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3. Tania Simpson and Jayne 

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My company, and our 

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David Richards, 

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4. 

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4. Dave Hallett, Company X; 

Sarah King, Ambassador; 

Vanessa Williams, Hamilton 

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Group; Geoff Taylor, Waikato 

Business News. 

5. Dean Howie, Waikato 

University; Ryan O’Connor, 

Aida Khangholi and Merv 

Behroozi, E9. 

6 .Kevin Flynn, SkyCity 

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TOP OF THE CLASS 

Can’t reinvent the wheel? Top Town may not have altered the shape, but over the last 30 years they 

have changed almost everything else. From humble family beginnings to the birth of DTM Wheel 

& Tyre, Top Town has been one of the silent achievers in the New Zealand wheel & tyre industry. 

Top Town is looking to the future and ready to show us how they can change the game in the 

light of a fierce & overcrowded market. 

A BORN LEGACY 

Top Town’s humble story began in the early 1980’s as a small tyre shop. The following 30 years saw the business 

evolve into a joint collaboration with DTM Wheel & Tyre, one of New Zealand’s leading wholesaler of wheels & tyres. 

Operating two businesses under one roof was testing at times, but the amount of knowledge and confidence gained 

from servicing the country with different wheel and tyre fitments became Top Towns greatest strength. 

Still owned by the Tordoff family, the team is lead now by manager and family friend Richard Wright, and his team 

continue to provide leading edge tyre solutions and of course the extensive range of Alloy Wheels viewable in their 

showroom. “We specialise in wheels and tyres from 10 inch to 30 inch, and we pride ourselves in knowing 

everything about the business and about our products.” 

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Covert recordings in the workplace 

A preliminary decision in an employment 

matter, specifically whether a covert 

recording was admissible as evidence before 

the Employment Relations Authority is raising 

eyebrows in the employment law world. 

In the September 2016 case 

of Firman v Insyn Limited 

T/A Synergy Hair Riccarton, 

the employee, Ms Firman, made 

three covert recordings in her 

workplace and wanted to file the 

recordings, and subsequent transcripts 

of the recordings, as evidence 

that, among other claims, 

employees were bullying and 

gossiping about her. 

30430 

The general rule of thumb 

regarding the covert recording 

of conversations in employment 

law is that, as long as one of 

the participants in the conversation 

(generally the recorder) 

knows that the conversation is 

being recorded, and the conversation 

has not been specifically 

designed by the employee or 

employer to entrap someone to 

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say something out of context, 

then the recording is not illegal, 

and may be admissible as 

evidence. 

One of the recordings 

was a conversation between 

Ms Firman and her employer, 

involving the handing over 

of a disciplinary letter and her 

suspension. That was held to 

be admissible, which is not 

so unusual in cases before the 

authority. 

Another recording was a conversation 

between the employer 

and another employee, and Ms 

Firman claimed that this conversation 

had been inadvertently 

recorded. That was held to be 

inadmissible, which is also not 

unusual in these cases. 

The remaining recording, 

however, is far more controversial 

in that Ms Firman intentionally 

left her phone on record, 

unbeknown to the other employees, 

and then left the room in 

order to record evidence of what 

other employees were saying 

about her when she was not 

there. Despite this being both a 

potential breach of the Privacy 

Act 1993 and the Crimes Act 

1961, the authority member held 

the recording (and its transcript) 

was “…admissible in the context 

of a claim before the authority 

about how the applicant was 

treated in the workplace.” 

Admissibility of the latter 

recording is highly unusual, 

although it does not make it, as 

some have erroneously termed 

it, a “landmark case.” For a case 

to be termed as such, it needs to 

have a significant and potentially 

lasting impact on the law and 

subsequent cases. 

The authority is the lowest 

jurisdictional institution in 

employment law, outranked 

by the Employment Court, 

the Court of Appeal and the 

Supreme Court (in ascending 

order of jurisdictional clout). 

Decisions in the authority are 

EMPLOYMENT LAW 

> BY ERIN BURKE 

Employment lawyer and director at Practica Legal 

Email: erin@practicalegal.co.nz phone: 027 459 3375 

not binding on any of the courts 

above it, nor even on other 

authority decisions at the same 

level, although an authority 

decision may be “persuasive” on 

other cases before the authority 

for the purposes of attempting 

to maintain consistency. What’s 

more, it is unknown at this early 

stage, whether this decision in 

the authority will be appealed 

in the Employment Court. 

Authority decisions frequently 

are appealed and overturned, so 

any “impact” this case has on 

the law, may well be short-lived. 

A major consideration that 

both employees and employers 

need to consider when engaging 

in covert recordings that they 

are not party to is this; just 

because something is admissible 

as evidence, does not imply it is 

legal. If a defendant in a murder 

trial files evidence in their 

defence that at the time of the 

murder they were somewhere 

else committing a robbery, the 

evidence would be admissible 

but it would not make the robbery 

legal. 

Pursuant to section 216B of 

the Crimes Act, it is a criminal 

offence, punishable by up 

to two years in prison, to “… 

intentionally intercept any private 

communication by means 

of an interception device” 

where the person recording is 

not party to the conversation. 

“Intercept” is defined in the Act 

as including “…to hear, listen to, 

or record…” and “interception 

device” is defined as any electronic 

device capable of carrying 

out the interception. So yes, 

recording a conversation you are 

not party to on a mobile phone 

could definitely come within 

that definition. 

Take-home tips for employers 

from this controversial decision 

would be to ensure they 

have policies in place, which, 

among other things, specifically 

informs employees that covertly 

recording conversations they are 

not party to is a criminal offence, 

will be treated as serious misconduct 

and may result in summary 

dismissal and potentially 

even, criminal proceedings. The 

parties in an employment relationship 

are also constrained by 

good faith obligations, and any 

advantage a party might gain by 

engaging in covert recordings, 

may win the battle but not the 

war, if a covert recording is 

found to have breached good 

faith obligations or held to be a 

criminal offence. 

Hamilton insurance 

broker Frank wins award 

Hamilton-based company 

Frank Risk 

Management has won 

the prize for New Zealand Small 

to Medium Broking Company 

of the Year at the Australia 

and New Zealand Institute of 

Insurance and Finance Awards. 

Frank’s unique business 

model and innovative thinking 

were singled out by the judges, 

who also commented that 

“Founded in 2008, with no clients 

and a vision to disrupt the 

traditional approach to insurance 

Frank Risk Management 

has since expanded to more 

than 2000 clients serviced by 

13 highly skilled staff...” The 

judges also acknowledged the 

company’s “...complete transparency 

with clients of all sizes 

and the innovative manner in 

which it demonstrates value to 

those clients.”. 

Frank Risk Management 

was started by Andrew 

Newman and Rene Swindley, 

who initially ran the business 

out of a small garage. They both 

left the comfort of good paying 

jobs at a corporate broker, and 

set about disrupting the market. 

It’s ‘fee for service’ approach 

to insurance broking and risk 

management immediately put 

it off side with the established 

corporate multi-nationals that 

dominate the provision of SME 

insurance in New Zealand. 

The company name, Frank 

Risk Management, reflects the 

way they operate on a full disclosure 

basis without hidden 

commissions and their belief 

that business owners have 

the right to know what they 

are paying for. Frank Risk 

Management encourages all 

insurance buyers to ‘ask their 

broker for a complete breakdown 

of costs’. Good brokers 

should have no problem 

with this and the buyer can 

then decide if the remuneration 

equates to good value for the 

services given. 

Mr Swindley said that the 

award was an affirmation of the 

Frank Risk Management philosophy 

of bespoke insurance 

placement and claims service, 

risk management support and 

disaster recovery planning that 

is built into their overall service. 

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21/04/16 4:05 pm

WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS November/December 2016 15


Double recognition 

for Ultrafast Fibre 

Locally owned Ultrafast Fibre (UFF) has had 

a notable and deserved double success 

recently with a top ten placement in the 

Deloitte Fast50 and a prestigious award for 

its Chief Operating Officer Richard Jeffares. 

At a gala dinner for 

the Westpac Waikato 

Business Awards at 

Claudelands Event Centre in 

November, Mr Jeffares took 

out the Emerging Leader of 

the Year Award and says it is 

a significant achievement not 

just for him but for UFF. 

“To be given this recognition 

is such an honour and is 

definitely a career milestone. 

I am proud to be working 

alongside exceptionally talented 

colleagues and I share 

this award with them,” he 

says. 

Our vision is to connect 

and empower as many New 

Zealanders as possible 

with all the benefits that 

UFB brings 

Mr Jeffares adds, “Ultrafast 

Fibre has grown in leaps and 

bounds and achieved major 

accomplishments over the 

last few years, including 

the completion of our fibre 

broadband network in eight 

cities and towns in Central 

North Island. Our company 

is a strong proponent of innovation, 

and we are proud to 

be the technology enabler for 

Kiwis’ entrepreneurial spirit.” 

UFF chief executive 

William Hamilton says at 

the awards event the Waikato 

business community witnessed 

the quality of talent 

leading Ultrafast Fibre. 

“Two of my executive 

leaders were nominated 

for the 

same award with 

Ultrafast Fibre’s 

chief marketing 

officer Richard 

Riley also a finalist.” 

“Having a team 

of visionary leaders 

signifies our 

company’s and 

shareholders’ commitment 

to commercial 

and service excellence 

at a time where we 

now have the wider industry 

encouraging as many customers 

as possible to get onto 

superior fibre wherever it is 

available,” he adds. 

“With a strong leadership 

team and a dedicated pool 

of staff, I am confident that 

Ultrafast Fibre will achieve 

greater things in the future,” 

says Mr Hamilton. 

Meanwhile, with a growth 

index of 600.6 percent, UFF is 

the only Central North Island 

company to have placed in 

the top 10 in the Deloitte 

Fast50 and Mr Hamilton says 

the recognition is “a major 

success” for his team. 

“We placed 13th in last 

year’s Fast50 index and to 

back that up with another 

solid year of growth and 

climb to ninth is an achievement 

and recognition we are 

all very proud of.” 

UFF’s fully-completed 

ultra-fast broadband (UFB) 

network provides superior 

broadband internet access to 

more than 195,000 end user 

customers across eight cities 

and towns in the Central 

North Island. 

“Our vision is to connect 

and empower as many New 

Zealanders as possible with 

all the benefits that UFB 

brings”, says Mr Hamilton. 

“We are already seeing that 

high-speed internet is enhancing 

and, in many ways, revolutionising 

the way Kiwis 

communicate, work, play, 

learn and are entertained 

Emerging Leader of the Year, Ultrafast Fibre Chief Operating Officer 

Richard Jeffares, left, with Chief Executive William Hamilton. 

online.” 

In 2015, and again this year, 

UFF won the regional Fast50 

awards for Fastest Growing 

Technology Company and 

they attribute this success to 

the relationships they’ve built 

with their customers and in 

their determination to focus 

on innovation. 

Mr Hamilton adds, “We 

accept this award on behalf 

of a vast group, without 

whose support such success 

could not be achieved: our 

pioneering shareholders, 

WEL Networks and Waipa 

Networks, our fantastic 

125-strong team our 48 retail 

service providers, our supply 

side partners, local mayors, 

councillors and staff, and our 

63,000 connected residential 

and business customers”. 

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With ultra-fast broadband you can easily upgrade 

to the latest technology. 

More bang for your buck 

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On-Demand entertainment like it was 

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most of On-demand TV, movies,games and video 

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Standard residential installations are currently free, 

so don’t wait to upgrade. 

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Networks, 15% Waipa Networks) purchased all of the 

Government’s remaining shares in Ultrafast Fibre Limited.


Waikato job advertisements soar 

Job advertisements on Seek New 

Zealand this October rose 17.1 percent in 

Waikato, compared with the same period 

last year. 

Janet Faulding, general 

manager for SEEK New 

Zealand, said it is great 

to see the Waikato job market 

thriving, which has contributed 

to the boost in national 

advertising growth on SEEK. 

“Advertising across the 

Waikato region on SEEK has 

grown 17.1 percent year on 

year this October with job ad 

growth coming from a broad 

Metro Motors brings a wealth of experience 

For integrity, professionalism 

and superior customer 

service, Metro Motors 

tops the bill for pre-owned vehicles. 

Based at 400 Te Rapa Rd, 

Metro Motors has been in the 

game for 22 years and the 

focus of putting customers first 

remains the same for the Metro 

team. 

The team have years of 

pre-owned car sales and service 

under their belts. Owners 

Darrell Nicholas and Craig 

Stewart, alongside Robert 

Morgan who heads the sales 

team, bring more than 40 years’ 

combined sales expertise to 

Metro. 

Workshop manager and 

co-owner Dale Hoebergen and 

range of industries in the 

region,” Ms Faulding said. 

Waikato industries, in 

rank order, that had the greatest 

number of new job ads on 

SEEK this August to October 

2016 and their average advertised 

salaries were: 

1. Trades and Services 

($55,045 ) 

2. Manufacturing, Transport 

& Logistics ($70,069) 

mechanics Andrew Chapman 

(another owner) and Gene 

Smith, have close to 50 years’ 

mechanical experience between 

them, adding to the wealth of 

motoring knowledge at Metro. 

We pride ourselves 

on providing 

complete customer 

satisfaction before, 

during and after 

purchase. 

3. Healthcare & Medical 

($72,790 ) 

4. Administration & Office 

Support ($48,779 ) 

5. Sales ($71,052) 

Across New Zealand, job 

advertisements were up 9.9 

percent. 

“The building boom across 

Waikato is helping drive 

trades and services job ad 

growth,” said Ms Faulding. 

“Electricians, building trades 

and labourers are in strongest 

demand.” 

“Mining, resources and 

the energy industry has also 

had strong growth, up 44 percent 

year on year, but is a 

smaller advertising industry, 

Metro’s motto of ‘better 

cars, better deals’ is the backbone 

of what the business is all 

about – finding the right choice 

of car for the customer is always 

at the forefront of the deal. 

The Metro team pride themselves 

on putting the customer’s 

needs first and they go out of 

their way to find the type of 

vehicle to suit. 

They recognise that understanding 

an individual’s different 

driving requirements is 

key to finding the right vehicle 

match. 

Darrell says it’s as simple as 

asking the right questions and 

taking the time to listen. 

“We take the time to ask 

what type of vehicle our clients 

really want and listen to 

so there are less employment 

opportunities on offer than 

other industries in the region. 

Most of these advertised 

mining, resources and energy 

jobs are technical roles 

supporting infrastructure 

development, such as fault 

technician, wireline manager 

and glove and barrier line 

mechanic,” she said. 

The number of jobs advertised 

on SEEK varied around 

New Zealand’s major regions 

this October, which is reflective 

of their unique labour 

and economic conditions. 

“Wellington enjoyed solid 

advertising growth, with job 

ads on SEEK up 15.4 percent 

their needs, because we want 

to ensure they purchase the car 

that suits their lifestyle.” 

But it’s more than just top 

quality pre-owned cars that 

keeps customers coming back, 

Metro offers servicing, WOF 

and detailing conveniently at 

the premises. 

With an on-site workshop, 

Dale, Andrew and Gene’s 

mechanical know-how ensures 

Metro vehicles are in tip-top 

order, while vehicle detailer 

Peter Curle has an eye for car 

grooming, meaning customers 

enjoy the best, all-round service 

available anywhere in the 

Waikato. 

“We pride ourselves on providing 

complete customer satisfaction 

before, during and after 

year on year this October. 

“Wellington’s uplift on 

SEEK was driven by top 

advertisers information and 

communication technology 

[ICT] [up three percent], 

administration and office 

support [up 12 percent], 

trades and services [up 61 

percent] and government and 

defence [up 19 percent],” 

said Ms Faulding. 

Auckland advertising 

on SEEK rose 11.2 percent 

this October, with the greatest 

number of employment 

opportunities coming from 

ICT [up 5 percent], manufacturing, 

transport and logistics 

[up 15 percent], accounting 

purchase,” Darrell says. 

“It’s important to our team 

that our customers feel confident 

that their new purchase is 

in great condition in every way 

– not only mechanically, but 

looking great inside and out.” 

It’s this attention to detail 

and the ability to listen to a 

purchaser’s particular vehicle 

needs that keeps customers 

coming back and referring 

Metro Motors to their friends 

and family. 

Every week a new supply of 

stock arrives and each vehicle 

is immaculately groomed and 

serviced. 

There is always a wide range 

of vehicles to choose from and 

if the one you’re looking for 

is not on the yard the team 

[up 7 percent] and trades and 

services [up 32 percent ]. 

Canterbury remained the 

weakest major New Zealand 

labour market this October, 

with job ads on SEEK down 

3.1 percent year on year. 

Trades and services and construction 

and engineering 

were the highest advertisers 

for the Canterbury region 

this October. 

“With our country’s recent 

earthquakes and flooding 

we expect this will have an 

impact on the demand of certain 

roles that support the 

clean-up, strengthening and 

rebuild work that will occur,” 

Faulding continued. 

can contact you as soon as the 

one that fits your requirements 

turns up. 

Metro Motors will also trade 

your old vehicle regardless 

of condition and will always 

endeavour to provide the fairest 

trade-in price. 

Community is important to 

Metro Motors and for many 

years they have sponsored the 

Hamilton Wanderers Football 

Club and the Radio Network’s 

Special Children’s Christmas 

Project. 

Open Monday to Friday, 

8am to 6pm, and weekends 

10am to 5pm, you can’t go past 

Metro Motors at 400 Te Rapa 

Rd for pre-owned vehicles or 

check out the great range online 

at www.metromotors.co.nz. 

At Metro Motors we like to do things 

right the first time. 

• Vehicles arriving weekly 

• Trade-ins welcome 

• Finance 

• WOF’s 

• Servicing and repairs 

• Great customer service 

Metro Motors provide a well rounded end-to-end 

service to make it easier for you. 

“ 

‘Cheers Metro Motors for the 

great service and easy process 

purchasing this quality car. You 

have a great team of people 

that can be relied on. Highly 

recommend to anyone anytime’ 

- Daniel Shrimpton 

400 Te Rapa Road, Te Rapa, Hamilton | Ph: 07 957 9700 | www.metromotors.co.nz 

40386


HR MANAGEMENT AND RECRUITMENT 

Zero harm? 

Dream on… 

Imagine the headline: “New Zealand 

businesses did not have one fatality in a 

single year – world first!” 

I 

can imagine the author 

of such an article stating 

“from the land that gave 

us fantasy characters like hobbits 

and goblins came a statistic 

that made the world take 

notice”. Is this a fantasy? Just 

a pipe dream perhaps? I don’t 

think so. I believe that we have 

the basics in place to surprise 

even ourselves. 

Whenever I speak to 

business owners about health 

and safety, I invariably get a 

neutral to negative response. 

Maybe it is emotional 

adjustment to the new Health 

and Safety at Work Act 

(HSWA). The fact is, the 

HSWA is the first step needed 

in our journey to zero harm. 

It is built on a model that 

has worked for other countries 

to decrease injury and fatality 

rates. So, our first step would 

be for compliance to the 

HSWA to become as Kiwi as 

Pavlova (it is ours after all). 

Compliance is certainly the 

first step, but to drive safety 

that is truly sustainable, 

with injury rates approaching 

zero, a mature safety culture 

MANAGEMENT AND HR 

> BY HENNIE PETERS 

Organisational Consultant, Everest Group Limited. Everest Group, 

Creating Exceptional Workplaces, www,everestgroup.co.nz 

is needed. In the health and 

safety field, we use the DuPont 

Bradley Curve to help companies 

understand the development 

of an effective safety 

culture. The Bradley Curve 

identifies four distinct stages. 

• The first stage is reactive 

where employers rely 

on “natural instincts” to 

ensure safety. A typical 

remark during this stage 

is “Why do I have to tell 

my employees to be safe? 

Everyone knows a stove is 

hot!” This stage is further 

characterised by one person 

being given responsibility 

for safety and precious little 

involvement from management. 

• The second stage is the 

dependent stage. During this 

stage, the focus shifts to the 

supervisor. Safety is driven 

by compliance, becomes a 

condition of employment 

and is driven by rules and 

procedures. Safety training 

and induction is provided. 

Continued on page 19 

Guidelines–v/1.1 Logo 

pg 09 

x.1 

Logo & ‘It’s time.’ 

2.2 

We want to give people 

confidence to act. 

But when it comes to taking action, time is the excuse 

that creates the most inertia. People either think that 

‘now’s not the time for this,’ or ‘I don’t have enough 

time to do this’. 

With this idea we’ll challenge people to consider if 

there is really anything stopping them from moving 

forward with their finances; giving them ways to 

ensure that it’s always the right time, to do the 

things they need and want to do. 

TM 

Print minimum size 

no less than 25mm 

25mm



Variable pay: 

a share of success 

From page 18 

Management becomes 

more involved in safety. 

The typical remark during 

this stage is “We have rules 

in place, employees should 

just follow them!” Stage 

two is therefore where one 

would find most employers 

in New Zealand as they 

respond to the HSWA’s 

implementation. 

• As the company’s safety 

culture becomes more 

mature, the focus is on 

“self”. Employees have 

internalised safety values 

which now also coincides 

with personal values. 

Individuals take responsibility 

for their own safety. 

They believe they can 

make a difference to safety 

through their own actions. 

This reduces accidents further. 

A typical remark during 

this stage is “I have 

done a proper risk assessment”. 

• The mature safety culture 

becomes more effective 

when moving to the 

fourth stage. During the 

Interdependent stage, zero 

harm becomes a reality in 

the workplace. Teams of 

employees take ownership 

for safety, and responsibility 

for themselves and 

others. Low safety standards 

and risk-taking behaviours 

are not accepted. 

Engagement is high and 

safety becomes a source of 

organisational pride. One 

notices teams of employees 

actively engaging with each 

other, and even visitors on 

site, about safety. 

How can an organisation 

develop a mature and effective 

safety culture? The answer lies 

in the development of effective 

safety habits. Behaviour-based 

safety focuses on identifying 

the critical behaviours at all 

levels of the organisation that 

drive unsafe behaviour. It follows 

a top down, bottom up 

approach by actively engaging 

management on one hand, 

and employees on the other, 

in identifying their own critical 

behaviours. This process 

builds a strong, collaborative 

and mature safety culture that 

has proven effective in massively 

reducing injuries and 

fatalities, if not eliminating 

them altogether. 

While New Zealand starts 

taking the first steps towards 

improving its safety culture 

by complying with the 

HSWA, it is worth keeping 

in mind the ultimate dream 

is to reach the reality of zero 

harm. Behaviour-based safety 

is the vehicle that will take us 

to that reality. The headlines 

may be a while away yet, but 

that shouldn’t stop us from 

dreaming! 

Some leaders believe that 

introducing an incentive 

scheme will enhance 

company performance but, 

experience suggests that the 

solution isn’t so clear-cut. 

No guarantee 

As remuneration and reward 

specialists, we are often asked 

by organisations to design 

incentive schemes that will 

remedy performance issues. 

We advocate that carefully 

designed and implemented variable 

pay schemes can improve 

workforce productivity. But, it 

is important to understand that 

incentive pay alone will not 

guarantee business success or 

drive all behavioural change 

desired. 

In fact, there are a number 

of things variable pay does not 

do. For example, don’t attempt 

to introduce incentive pay as a 

measure to shore up structural 

deficiencies, poor morale or 

bad client relationships as it is 

unlikely to address the underlying 

issues. 

Rewarding good organisation 

outcomes 

Introducing variable pay 

does not reduce fixed pay or 

remove an organisation’s systems 

around increases, rather it 

gives employees the opportunity 

to share in the organisation’s 

success. 

When exploring incentive 

schemes our view is that 

• Incentive pay is about 

rewarding good organisation 

outcomes with a financial 

reward. Except in specialised 

roles, it is not about 

Cathy Hendry 

Senior consultant 

Strategic Pay 

Tauranga 

+ mob 027 498 9812 

+ cathy@strategicpay.co.nz 

motivation. 

• With a deeply embedded 

entitlement culture in New 

Zealand, having a variable 

component to pay adds a 

refreshing reality check 

as to how an organisation 

works. 

Good employers, particularly 

those with good performance 

management systems, will be 

most capable of introducing 

such systems of variable pay 

and will be most likely to reap 

the rewards. 

Talk with us 

Variable pay, if implemented 

well, can be a useful tool to 

reward performance particularly 

in times of relatively low salary 

movement. However, if you 

are considering implementing a 

scheme it is worth talking with 

a remuneration specialist as 

poorly designed schemes can 

be problematic and will not 

produce the desired outcomes. 

Nigel Murphy, based at 

Waikato Innovation Park in 

Hamilton, and Cathy Hendry in 

Tauranga are your local consultants 

in Strategic Pay’s Northern 

Region team. They are available 

to discuss an incentive 

scheme for your organisation 

or review your existing scheme 

to ensure that it is adding value 

to your organisation. 

Nigel Murphy 

Consultant 

Strategic Pay 

Hamilton 

+ mob 027 403 1242 

+ nigel.murphy@ 

strategicpay.co.nz 

www.strategicpay.co.nz 

CREATE SUCCESS BY 

REWARDING PERFORMANCE 

Strategic Pay provides innovative solutions to organisations 

for their strategic remuneration, performance development 

and performance improvement needs. We help improve 

your overall performance by ensuring employee effort, 

remuneration and rewards are closely aligned with 

business objectives. 

Talk to us about: 

+ Remuneration and Reward 

+ Executive remuneration and performance advice 

(including incentives) 

+ Organisational Structure and Design 

Contact us for your complimentary remuneration audit 

100% 

LOCAL 

Strategic Pay Limited 

Auckland | Hamilton | Wellington | Christchurch | Dunedin | www.strategicpay.co.nz | info@strategicpay.co.nz 

Helping organisations succeed through the performance of people



New IT management service 

for smaller businesses 

November sees the launch of a new IT 

management service for small to medium 

size enterprises (SMEs). 

Burton and Associates 

managing director, 

Phil Burton is launching 

the service after observing 

the number of small business 

organisations for whom hiring 

of a full-time IT management 

resource is not financially 

justifiable but who still need 

professional IT assistance or 

guidance. 

It can be a nightmare negotiating 

the myriad world of IT 

TDDA makes huge 

strides in Waikato 

From page 3 

regime are many, including 

reduced accidents and near 

misses, reduced absenteeism, 

increased productivity and 

reduced disciplinary actions. 

It must be stressed that 

only a robust and approved 

drug testing programme, utilising 

proper procedures and 

conducted in accordance to 

the accredited standards with 

best commercial practice, will 

achieve these results. It is crucial 

that the testing provider 

holds ISO 15189-2012 accred- 

solutions, services, products 

and suppliers and for many 

SMEs in Waikato it has been 

difficult to secure IT management 

and/or consulting services 

independent of vendor 

influence. This new service 

means organisations can use 

a skilled and experienced IT 

resource for a tailored time 

period. This provides the ability 

to get an independent view 

of an organisation’s IT situation 

and to consider a range 

of options to resolve problems 

or facilitate business growth 

through technology benefits. 

Clients get the independent 

IT advice and delivery service 

they need without ongoing IT 

management costs. 

Phil’s research identified 

that some organisations need 

specific IT challenges resolved 

while others require the 

development of an IT roadmap 

that matches their business 

plan. One of the advantages of 

this service is that that it can 

deliver whatever IT outcomes 

are required, while keeping 

costs to a minimum and 

itation to be able to conduct 

on-site screening and prevent 

any allegations of discrimination, 

the tester should also be 

an independent service provider 

to be able to withstand legal 

scrutiny. 

Research shows clear evidence 

of the link between a 

higher incidence of workplace 

accidents and employee drug 

or substance use, both in New 

Zealand and overseas.* The 

key themes emerging from 

these studies conclude that 

businesses with sound workplace 

policies are associated 

with lower risk levels of 

workplace accidents related to 

alcohol and drug use among 

employees. 

Key emerging themes from 

these studies are: 

• Employees who used drugs 

are 51 percent more likely 

to have increased medical 

claims 

• Regular drug users are 

3.6 times more likely to 

be involved in a workplace 

accident 

• Testing at the optimal frequency 

generates net savings 

of at least 15:1, in 

onboard personnel 

• Employees who used drugs 

have a 66 percent higher 

rate of absenteeism 

• Six percent of cannabis 

users reported harmful 

flexibility is the key. 

The first step is a no 

charge initial consultation to 

identify the client’s IT situation 

and what outcomes they 

require. The second step is 

the detailed audit and evaluation 

of the client’s current 

technology situation and creation 

of a fully independent 

assessment report. This report 

contains identification of 

options available, recommendations 

for future work to be 

done and how this should be 

achieved. In some cases, no 

further action will be required 

and for some clients the situation 

might simply require 

some management oversight 

of work to be done. There is 

also the possibility of some 

independent assistance with 

effects on work 

TDDA has forged an excellent 

reputation with clients 

through world-class services 

are we are pleased to be part of 

Phil Burton of Burton and Associates, right, and Peter 

Wilkinson of Wilkinson Transport Engineers discuss IT 

issues facing the engineering business. 

that, says Graeme. 

“When you deal with 

TDDA you can be confident 

you are getting services offering 

superior methodology, an 

the evaluation and contracting 

of third party IT services and 

products. It all depends on the 

client requirements. 

It is, says Phil, a simple 

service for SMEs. Clients get 

the IT consulting and management 

they need while keeping 

costs to a minimum. For more 

information or to arrange a 

free initial consultation, contact 

Phil Burton at www.burtonandassociates.co.nz 

or on 

021 8988 048. 

adaptable attitude and people 

who genuinely care about what 

they do.” 

*Referenced studies available 

on request. 

INDEPENDENT IT CONSULTING SERVICES 

Short Term / Long Term 

Part time / Full time 

Flexible 

Cost Effective 

INDEPENDENT 

p. 07 827 8982 

m. 021 888 048 

phil@burtonandassociates.co.nz 

www.burtonandaccociates.co.nz 

J3838A


WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS November/December 2016 

21 

Oxygen 

recruitment.hr 

Annie Dobinson 

INDUSTRIAL TEMP CONSULTANT 

Annie began her career in 

recruitment in 2009. Originally from 

Australia, she has worked in the 

industry both there and in the UK 

recruiting across a broad range 

of industries - her specialty being 

temporary industrial and hospitality 

recruitment. Annie prides herself on 

a quick turnaround from job order 

to placement, and providing her 

clients with quality candidates. 

In September, Asset Welcomed 

Annie Dobinson to the Team 

Our superior market knowledge 

and relationships help us deliver 

you exceptional results 

We are a passionate and dedicated team of recruitment professionals who 

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We off er you a diverse and comprehensive range of recruitment services. 

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Whether you are looking for temporary, permanent, executive or 

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Temporary | Permanent | Executive | Industrial 

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Oil Changers 

rated top again 

Oil Changers’ supreme service has been 

recognised yet again after it was rated 

number one for the fourth year in a row out 

of a review of the country’s car servicing 

chains. 

The Canstar Blue award 

is the People’s Choice 

award and Oil Changers 

won it again hands down 

being rated five stars across 

the board from customer 

service to value for money. 

Oil Changers is one of the 

most loved brands rated by 

Canstar Blue. 

And Hamilton’s Oil 

Changers franchise holders 

Grant and Maree Tolley are 

in expansion mode as their 

business thrives. 

The couple have owned 

their Killarney Rd branch for 

eight years and 18 months 

ago opened a second branch 

in Te Rapa. With sites at 89 

Killarney Rd and 518 Te 

Rapa Rd, there are two Oil 

Changers’ branches within 

convenient locations. 

At both sites the promise 

the same: At Oil Changers you 

will get speed, convenience 

and a great price. Our services 

start at $79.95. We also change 

transmission fluids, radiator 

coolants, power steering flushes, 

diesel filters and air filters. 

With our rear window 

sticker you get free top-ups. It 

is our goal to meet your vehicle’s 

lubrication needs at any 

time not only when it is time 

for an oil change. If you want 

to check your oil just simply 

call into Oil Changers at any 

time and one of our fast and 

friendly team members will 

assist you. 

Remember no appointment 

is necessary - just drive on in 

when it suits you. 

Visit our website for a full list 

of services www.oilchangers. 

co.nz 

CANSTAR BLUE AWARD WINNER 

FOUR YEARS IN A ROW 

518 Te Rapa Road, 

Hamilton 

07 850 6447 

& 

89 Killarney Road, 

Hamilton 

07 847 7193 

Motor vehicle servicing that saves 

you time and money! 

www.oilchangers.co.nz


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Westpac Waikato Business Awards 

Winners announced 

The winners at the Westpac Waikato Business Awards were 

announced at their annual gala dinner on Friday 4, November, 

at Claudelands, along with the inaugural Laurette to the Waikato 

Business Hall of Fame. 

WESTPAC WAIKATO BUSINESS AWARDS 


Commerce Chief 

Executive, William 

Durning said that once again 

the business community from 

across Waikato, came together 

with a strong unified voice representing 

all those in business 

and the role that business plays 

in supporting and enabling the 

community that they work in. 

“It is tonight that we as 

a business community come 

together to support, encourage 

and celebrate those among 

us that have understood the 

importance of what they do 

in business every day, not just 

for our region, but also for our 

country” Mr Durning said. 

The winners are; 

NOT-FOR-PROFIT AWARD 

Sponsored by SKYCITY 

Hamilton 

CSC Buying Group 

MICRO BUSINESS AWARD 

Sponsored by Porter Group 

Raglan Coconut Yoghurt 

SERVICE EXCELLENCE 

AWARD 

Sponsored by AON Insurance 

Agoge 

BUSINESS GROWTH 

AWARD 

Sponsored by Deloitte 


MARKETING AWARD 

Sponsored by Chow:Hill 

Architects 


INNOVATION AWARD 

Sponsored by Vodafone 

Coolsense NZ Limited 

STRATEGY & PLANNING 

AWARD 

Sponsored by WINTEC 

SKYCITY Hamilton 

COMMUNITY 

CONTRIBUTION AWARD 

Sponsored by Perry Group 

Zealong Tea Estate 

GLOBAL OPERATOR 

AWARD 

Sponsored by Waikato Means 

Business 

MEA 

EMERGING LEADER OF 

THE YEAR AWARD 

Sponsored by Everest Group 

Richard Jeffares – Ultrafast 

Fibre 

CEO OF THE YEAR 

AWARD 

Sponsored by The University 

of Waikato 

Garth Dibley – CEO WEL 

Networks 

SUPREME BUSINESS OF 

THE YEAR AWARD 

Sponsored by Westpac 


WAIKATO BUSINESS 

HALL OF FAME 

INAUGURAL LAUREATE 

Bernie Crosby 

Mr Durning said the 

Waikato region is a critical part 

of the success of business in 

New Zealand and this was supported 

by the extensive range 

and quality of those businesses 

and business leaders that were 

recognised at this years sold 

out event. 

Businesses that participated 

in the awards have benefitted 

in several ways. Those that 

have made the finals and the 

category winners have had 

their business profiles raised; 

strengthening existing commercial 

relationships and laying 

the groundwork for new 

relationships to develop. 

Winner of the Micro Business or the Year 

Award – Raglan Coconut Yoghurt 

CEO of the Year Award winner 

– Garth Dibley, WEL 

“All participants have benefited 

from the process of articulating 

the specific attributes 

and processes of what they do, 

thereby helping them to consistently 

grow and develop,” 

Mr Durning said. 

Participating businesses 

also receive feedback from the 

highly capable judge’s panel, 

which gives these businesses 

points to work on for future 

planning, adding value to them 

as well as the overall region’s 

economy. 

“The intense competition, 

Winner of the Community Contrib 

Award – Zealong Tea Estate 

quality of entries coupled by 

the fact that the judges deliberated 

long and hard over selecting 

winners should give great 

pride to Russell Alexander and 

all the team from Hobbiton 

Continues page 28 

Congratulations 

to all winners in the 

2016 Westpac Waikato 

Business Awards 

WAIKATO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE 

www.waikatochamber.co.nz 

07 839 5895 

J7007A



ution 

Supreme Award winner 

– Hobbiton Movie Set 

Hobbiton’s success 

down to ‘team effort’ 

Winner Strategy & Planning Award 

– SKYCITY Hamilton 

Winner Emerging Leader of the Year 

Award – Richard Jeffares, Ultrafast Fibre 


Russell Alexander, chief 

executive of Hobbiton 

Movie Set, Supreme 

winner of the Westpac Waikato 

Business Awards has paid tribute 

to the work of his staff and his 

board of directors. 

“Having good people around 

you is the key to it. And bloody 

hard work. Those two things combined.” 

“We’ve got a supportive team 

and a supportive board and belief 

in the product and what we’re 

doing.” 

Russell described the awards 

night at which Hobbiton Movie 

Set also won the Deloitte Business 

Growth Award and the Chow:Hill 

Marketing Award as “a very cool 

night.” 

“I think it was good for the 

team to get some recognition and 

hopefully it lends a bit of a humbling 

feeling that they are part of a 

successful organisation.” 

He said Hobbiton had taken 

senior managers to other award 

ceremonies this year but on this 

occasion he wanted the next tier 

of staff to experience the event at 

Claudelands Event Centre. 

“It’s nice to share it round 

because the engine room often 

doesn’t get recognised.” 

Russell said as chief executive 

he was very lucky to have an experienced 

board. He recalled how 

after years of being a “one man 

band” he initially had been worried 

about the prospect of reporting 

to the board. 

“I remember the very first 

board meeting former Tourism 

New Zealand chief executive 

George Hickton saying to me 

‘we’re here to support you – not 

to be the ogre’ and there has never 

been a truer word spoken.” 

The board is chaired by 

Colin Harvey and comprises Mr 

Hickton, Russell’s brother Craig 

and accountant James Corke. 

“Being chief executive can be 

a lonely role to be honest. The 

board has been very supportive 

and I think it’s made a big difference.” 

Hobbiton’s success is reflected 

in the exponential growth of its 

visitors and the raft of awards it has 

received this year. Hobbiton took 

out three categories at September’s 

Tourism Industry Awards including 

the People’s Choice, Business 

Excellence (more than $6m turnover) 

and the Tourism Marketing 

Campaign Award. 

In June Hobbiton was a finalist 

in the Exporter of the Year 

awards (more than $25 million 

turnover) while in October Russell 

was given the Conventions and 

Incentives New Zealand (CINZ) 

Outstanding Contributor Award. 

In November Hobbiton was a 

finalist in the ANZ Best Medium 

Category of the New Zealand 

International Business Awards. 

Russell says the number of 

awards they have received stems 

partly from the fact that management 

has put more time into 

entries. He sees this as a healthy 

process as it helps identify gaps in 

the business. 

“I think the awards success 

we’ve had is also a culmination 

of the growth in the business and 

the effect it is having and the jobs 

we’ve created in the local economy.” 

Hobbiton employs about 220 

staff and through its construction 

activity employs many local 

contractors. On the day Waikato 

Business News visited, 55 staff 

from contractors were on- site. 

Russell says 90 percent of 

Hobbiton’s visitors are international 

tourists, most of whom also 

visit Matamata. Hobbiton is also 

keen to engage more with the 

community. Over two months in 

the winter Hobbiton ran $10 daily 

tours for Matamata locals and then 

donated the proceeds to Pohlen 

Hospital. 

Congratulations to Hobbiton Movie Set, 

Supreme Winner of the Westpac Waikato 

Business Awards. 

JN15060 

Westpac New Zealand Limited.



Coolsense 

NZ’s innovation 

recognised 

Perry Group would 

like to congratulate 

all the winners of 

the 2016 Westpac 

Business Excellence 

Awards 

PERRY HOUSE 

360 Tristram Street, Private Bag 3091 

Hamilton, New Zealand 

Ph: 64 7 838 3633 • Fx: 64 7 838 3699 

Email: perry@perry.co.nz • www.perry.co.nz 

30003 

Hamilton-based business Coolsense NZ Ltd 

has been awarded the Westpac Waikato 

Business Innovation Award for its state-ofthe-art 

snap chilling system Vari-COOL. 

Coolsense NZ Limited is 

a refrigeration manufacturer 

specialising in 

the agri-tech market, primarily 

supplying chilling equipment 

to dairy farms. At the 

heart and soul of its proposition 

is a single innovative idea 

which has helped to develop 

a unit which meets all the 

world's milk chilling standards, 

and opened up major 

export potential. And all of 

this has been achieved in a 

remarkably short period of 

time. 

The “chiller in a box” 

innovation takes all of the 

dairy shed’s chilling duties 

and controls that through one 

unit, snap chilling milk in seconds 

to sub six degrees while 

simultaneously chilling multiple 

vats and generating free 

up to 500 litres per hour of 70 

degree hot water ready for the 

dairy shed wash down. 

The units are all manufactured 

as a 'ground-up' build in 

Coolsense NZ’s Hamilton factory. 

Led by the process engineer 

director-shareholder and 

proprietor Allan Steele, and 

balanced by the pragmatism 

of his fellow-director-shareholder 

and co-manager Tim 

Stace, the small team of committed, 

focused and enthusiastic 

people have created an 

industry changing unit - a 

'game-changer'. 

We’re the big 

little start-up 

company which has 

concentrated on 

innovation to produce 

an industry changing 

eco-friendly chilling 

system. 

Allan has been working 

on different products for a 

while and says being recognised 

by the Waikato business 

community and his peers as 

having contributed something 

of value to the dairy industry 

is ‘humbling.’ 

“I have put my heart and 

soul into the development of 

snap chilling technology and 

the Vari-COOL is the one I’m 

the most proud of. I feel like 

I’ve finally got the product 

that I want and we are certainly 

seeing that with the 

Continued on 27



27 

Innovation Award winner - Coolsense NZ Ltd. 

From page 26 

traction we are getting in the 

marketplace now. 

The company’s products 

have been manufactured to be 

super robust using the highest 

quality state of the art componentry 

and materials - and 

they look attractive. The colour 

LCD control panels and 

the electronic 'smarts' at the 

heart of their unit are comparatively 

easy to use and also help 

to make them future-proof in 

terms of quality assessment, 

data collection, data logging 

and evaluation of their own 

performance and savings. 

The system has an extremely 

high energy efficiency 

rating and depending on the 

scale of the farm, Allan says 

it can save farmers anywhere 

between $4000 and $12,000 

per year in electrical consumption. 

It is also connected to 

the internet and works as a 

supervisory system by recording 

when milking starts, when 

it stops, what the milk chilling 

temperature is and how long 

it took. You can check all this 

remotely and should any issue 

arise the machine will text 

alert you. 

Tim Stace says “we’re 

the big little start-up company 

which has concentrated 

on innovation to produce an 

industry changing eco-friendly 

chilling system.” 

Snap chilling is said to half 

the bacterial content of the 

milk which in turn increases 

the value of the commodity. 

Milk bacteria spreads asexually 

so one cell splits into two, 

two into four and so on. The 

snap chilling system captures 

what is called the bacterial lag 

phase of the milk which is the 

short period of time before the 

bacteria multiplies. Getting the 

milk from the udder to the milk 

tank takes about 60 seconds 

and in that time the milk has 

been snap chilled from 36 to 

6 degrees. 

For processors like 

Fonterra it adds value to the 

milk because bacteria are the 

greatest cause of food deterioration 

and temperature is the 

greatest single factor affecting 

bacteria growth. Snap chilling 

allows them to produce better 

quality products from the milk 

allowing them to create higher 

value products. 

Allan says he was motivated 

to create a system like the 

Vari-COOL when he saw there 

was going to be a problem 

with the current milk chilling 

methodology. 

“There really wasn’t a 

robust solution for NZ dairy 

farmers to use alongside the 

current milk vat asset and to 

attain snap chilling with a solid 

return on investment. That has 

been the drive for me… to fix 

the problem that lies within the 

industry.” 

From July 2018 New 

Zealand’s dairy farmers have 

to comply with the new milk 

temperature standards. It is 

generally recognised that 

between 40-60 percent of New 

Zealand dairy farms will not 

comply with the new standards 

without some degree of 

upgrading their current equipment. 

Coolsense’s current target 

market is the dairy industry 

and although they are not 

offering the lowest price, once 

their industry-leading energy 

savings are considered, the 

engineering robustness of their 

design, and how comprehensive 

the installation package 

on offer is, then the 'Vari- 

COOL' will quickly become 

the standard. 

Initially, the units were 

principally designed for use 

by larger dairy farm platforms, 

however they have 

now expanded the range to 

cover a full range of dairy farm 

sizes. And have the potential to 

move into the wine and brewing 

industries. 

Coolsense NZ has an 

authorised dealer network of 

refrigeration specialist companies 

throughout New Zealand 

who install, service and monitor 

the machines. 

Proud Winner of the Westpac Waikato Business Awards 2016 – Planning & Strategy 

Proud Sponsor of the Not-for-profit Award Category 

Congratulations to all the Winners



Waikato Chamber of Commerce Inaugural Hall 

of Fame Laureate – Bernie Crosby 

Westpac Waikato Business 

Awards Winners Announced 

From page 24 

Movie Set. Hobbiton Movie 

set has re-directed tourism 

flows in New Zealand and 

catapulted Matamata into the 

spotlight. 

“Hobbiton has become 

one of the “must see” destinations 

in New Zealand with 

approximately one in eight 

international visitors visiting 

Hobbiton during their trip. 

“This success is attributed 

to a focus on continuous 

improvement, staff quality and 

revenue diversification. With 

460,000 visitors in 2016 the 

company has worked tirelessly 

to realise the vision of an 

authentic and informative visitor 

experience within a living 

movie set. 

“The business is delivering 

across customer experience, 

growth, and bottom line performance 

targets. It has effective 

strategies to continue a high 

rate of growth into the future. 

“It gives back to its local 

community on multiple levels. 

Hobbiton is a stunning, well 

run business that is delivering 

not only regionally but to 

the New Zealand economy as 

well.” Mr Durning said 

In announcing Bernie 

Crosby of Prolife Foods as 

the inaugural Laureate to the 

Waikato Business Hall of Fame 

Mr Durning said that time and 

time again Bernie proved that 

through positive thinking and 

hard work, what may initially 

appear as a setback, both professionally 

and personally, can 

in fact be a great opportunity 

to assist others, and as such 

he epitomised exactly those 

attributes that we all strive for 

in how we approach business 

here in Waikato. 

Winner of the Not-for-Profit Award 

– CSC Buying Group 

Bernie Crosby 

Winner Service Excellence 

Award – Agoge 

Winner of the Global Operator 

Award – MEA 

Winner of the Innovation Award 

– Coolsense NZ

Hobbiton a truly unique 

site for a function 

Looking to do something unique for your 

upcoming conference, work or Christmas 

function? 


is an experience like 

no other… allow your 

guests to be immersed in the 

natural beauty of Middleearth 

with a two-hour fully 

guided tour of the famous 

movie set as seen in The Lord 

of the Rings and The Hobbit 

trilogies movies. Your guide 

will escort you around the 

set, showing you the intricate 

detailing, pointing out the most 

famous locations and explaining 

how the movie magic was 

made. You will be taken around 

the 12 acre set; past Hobbit 

Holes, the Mill and into the 

famous Green Dragon Inn, 

where you can indulge in our 

exclusive, specially brewed 

beverages to conclude your 

own Middle-earth adventure. 

Your guests can then remain 

in the masterfully re-created 

pub where both the indoor 

and outdoor fireplaces will be 

going, encouraging your guests 

to spread throughout the venue 

and into the Bywater beer garden 

beneath the glowing lanterns. 

For a cocktail event there 

will be two bars open serving 

our Southfarthing range and 

Middle-earth wine range and 

catering will include continuous 

substantial themed canapés 

served throughout the evening 

to substitute a meal. The alternative 

option would be for your 

guests to enjoy a seated buffet 

meal or banquet feast fit 

for a Hobbit inside the Green 

Dragon Inn. 

Alternatively, for larger 

groups you can spend up to 45 

minutes in the Green Dragon 

Inn enjoying pre-dinner drinks 

before being moved to the 

adjacent party marquee for a 

seated meal. The painted canvas 

exterior, vibrant bunting and 

colourful lanterns of the party 

marquee means your group 

will be immersed in the festive 

magic of the movies and the 

outside garden bar overlooking 

the movie set, provides an 

exquisite view. 

Or allow your guests to 

experience the newest, most 

exciting offering to exclusive 

function groups... The 

Hobbiton Marketplace. 

The Marketplace is a bustling, 

vibrant experience to 

tantalise the senses of your visitors. 

Guests will find themselves 

engulfed in the sights, 

smells, sounds and tastes of 

the shire. Situated by the Mill 

and a short stroll across the 

double arch stone bridge from 

the Green Dragon Inn is the 

Marketplace. Guests are invited 

to taste a real piece of Middleearth 

from individually themed 

stalls bursting with traditional 

Hobbit fare. The market stalls 

are catered to your guests’ 

requirements and can consist 

of New Zealand cheeses, freshly 

baked artisan breads, cured 

meats, smoked fish, and of 

course fresh produce from the 

Hobbiton gardens just to name 

a few. 

Throughout the evening 

there will be roaming Middleearth 

entertainment mingling 

among the guests. Our visitors 

are invited to move freely 

throughout the area and watch 

the carpenters, horse farriers 

and puppeteers go about their 

daily life. Among the stalls will 

be Hobbiton’s handcrafted barrel 

bars pouring the exclusive 

Hobbit Southfarthing range, a 

selection of Middle Earth wines 

and various non-alcoholic beverages. 

As the sun sets over 

Hobbiton Movie Set the village 

will light up and provide 

a stunning backdrop for your 

celebration. 

For more information regarding 

Hobbiton functions or if you 

would like to make a booking 

please contact us at office@ 

hobbitontours.com or phone us 

on 07 888 1505.


CONFERENCE, EVENTS AND VENUES 

Travel in style with 

Luxury Airport Shuttles 

The first step you take on a journey 

begins when you leave home. 

And that very first 

step towards your 

destination can be 

the moment when 

the ‘relax button’ can be 

pushed and all the anticipation 

and excitement can 

take hold. 

That’s the aim of Luxury 

Airport Shuttles. It’s to 

start the journey with their 

passengers and to ease 

them into the luxury of 

travelling in style. 

Whether it’s in a 

Mercedes van or a 

Volkswagon four door, the 

company aims to have their 

passengers relax in style 

as they make their way 

around New Zealand. 

Luxury Airport Shuttles 

is a door-to-door service 

to Auckland airport 

and Auckland city from 

Hamilton, Rotorua & 

Tauranga. 

The difference is the 

company’s attention to 

detail. Travellers choosing 

to use Luxury Airport 

Shuttles can see it in 

the way the vehicles are 

groomed or in the manner 

their coach drivers welcome 

them on board. 

Business Development 

Manager Geoff Rawlings 

says it is about ensuring 

the company’s drivers are 

passionate about driving 

and are engaged with their 

passengers’ holiday plans. 

“We like to start the 

journey with our clients. 

It is all about enjoying the 

ride, having them arrive in 

a safe and relaxed frame 

of mind, ready for the next 

step in the journey.” 

The company offers 

transportation starting 

at midnight when clients 

need the early start to the 

airport. Luxury Airport 

Shuttles will be there for 

them when they arrive 

back home. 

The company’s bright 

turquoise and white branding 

and quality vehicles 

stand out from the crowd 

Mercedes and VW have the highest ratings for safety and comfort. 

and are easy to see at airports. 

And Luxury Airport 

Shuttles don’t stop just at 

airports, they cover corporate 

charters and rentals, 

city to city shuttles, hospital 

and cruise ship tours 

and transfers. 

It’s a comprehensive 

service with drivers able 

to take advantage of high 

quality European vehicles, 

no matter what their individual 

end destinations 

may be. 

The company fleet or 

more than 40 European 

cars and vans are all 

equipped with GPS tracking 

to ensure accurate travel 

times. Vehicles range in 

size from three seats up to 

53 seats. 

With around 10 vehicles 

per day travelling between 

Auckland Airport and the 

Bay of Plenty/ Waikato 

regions, this ensures the 

Domestic and International 

markets are covered. 

Private charters while 

staying in the Bay of 

Plenty can also be supplied, 

with groups previously 

having travelled 

around Tauranga and the 

Mount Maunganui beaches 

and toured Rotorua attractions 

and Hobbiton. 

Conference Services 

Conference Transport Providers 

We can provide your transport to and from Airports, Motels, Hotels and your conference 

venues. We can also provide your transport to team building activities, or dining out options. 

We have a modern fleet of European vehicles 

and can cater for any size group. 

Phone: 0800 454 678 or +64 07 547 4444 

21 Jean Batten Drive, Mt Maunganui | Email: info.luxuryairportshuttles.co.nz 

www.luxuryairportshuttles.co.nz 

Email: info@royalecoachlines.co.nz | Quality Coachlines & Tours 

www.royalcoachlines.co.nz 

30066


Kai for Kaikoura 

– a lunch with a cause 

The Waikato food and hospitality industry 

bands together for a great cause this 

Christmas. 

On Tuesday December 

13 the banks of Turtle 

Lake at the Hamilton 

Gardens will be a buzz with 

more than 200 diners enjoying 

a delicious four course lunch 

but there is more to this lunch 

than a dose of Christmas 

cheer! 

All the food and labour, 

every piece of cutlery and 

glass of wine, the linen and 

the entertainment have all 

been donated and proceeds, an 

expected $10-15,000 is being 

donated to the Red Cross 

Kaikoura Earthquake Appeal. 

Leanne Morris from The 

Event Company is the brainchild 

behind the event and 

with the help of Waikato Food 

Inc has pulled together the 

manpower, ingredients and 

equipment needed for this 

huge event in just one week. 

Waikato Food Inc chairperson, 

Vicki Ravlich-Horan 

says: “When Leanne told me 

about her idea I thought she 

was mad but we needed to 

give it a go.” 

Vicki says: “This is one of 

the benefits of an organisation 

like Waikato Food Inc, we 

could immediately tap into 

our members and networks 

with a call for help and we 

were not disappointed. Within 

a couple of days we had 

almost all the food we needed 

to put on an amazing lunch for 

250 people, plus offer for help 

to prepare and serve it.” 

Tickets are available via 

eventfinda.co.nz and details 

of the lunch will be posted on 

Waikato Food Inc's facebook 

page as they are confirmed. 

“This is a huge event to organise,” 

Vicki points out. “It 

would normally take months 

and we are doing it in three 

weeks all with volunteers in 

what is a crazy busy time for 

everyone so we are relying 

on word of mouth, people 

sharing what we are trying to 

achieve and generally getting 

behind the cause.” If the 

response so far is any indication 

tickets will go fast. 

Kai for Kaikoura Lunch 

Tuesday 13th December, 

12noon 

Turtle Lake, Hamilton 

Gardens (The Pavilion if wet) 

Cost $50pp for 4 course 

lunch including a glass of 

wine or beer 

Set menu as follows: 

• Volare bread served with 

Whangape Extra Virgin 

Olive Oil and Pepler’s 

dukkah 

• Ballotine of chicken served 

on a spiced pumpkin 

puree with Pirongia bacon 

wrapped asparagus, roast 

jersey bennes and black 

garlic butter 

• Lewis Road chocolate 

bread and butter pudding 

served with berries and 

Lewis Road ice cream and 

Raglan Coconut Yoghurt 

• Meyer and Over the Moon 

Cheese accompanied with 

fresh fruit and Peplers 

Quince jelly 

Tickets available via http:// 

www.eventfinda.co.nz/2016/ 

kai-for-kaikoura/waikato 

A huge thanks to our 

sponsors so far 

Bidvest Fresh, Montana, 

Kerr & Ladbrook, Volare, 

Lewis Road Creamery, 

Good George, Invivo Wines, 

Peplers, Meyer Cheese, Over 

The Moon Dairy, Pirongia 

Bacon, Whangape Olive oil, 

Raglan Coconut Oil, The 

Eatery, Banh Mi Caphe, 

Simply Squeezed, Hamilton 

Gardens 

Waikato Food Inc 

Waikato Food Inc is a 

not for profit member based 

organisation with two goals; 

promoting and growing food 

and hospitality businesses in 

the Waikato. 

For more information go to 

www.waikatofoodinc.com 


Momento Travel Co would like to wish all our clients and 

suppliers a fabulous festive season and look forward to 

working with you in 2017! 

• Groups • Conferences • Incentives 

• Product launches • Gala dinners and awards evenings 

• Roadshows • Special events • Client functions 

Your local travel and event management specialists. 

We design packages for groups and events of any size and will 

manage your arrangements from conception to completion! 

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31 

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Ember celebrates anniversary 

Ember Restaurant celebrated its first birthday with a function 

in November. Ember opened in November 2015, two years 

after a disastrous fire destroyed the Pumice Restaurant on the 

same site. Ember co-owners David Kerr and Ryan Ladbrook 

celebrated a year in operation with a lively event including a four 

course meal described as a “taste of the American banquet”. 

Leanne Morris, Olwen Kerr, Nick Childs, 

John Kerr, Shona Childs. 

David Kerr, part owner 

of the restaurant. 

Shane Walden, Ruth Walden, 

Brigit Brant, Giles Brant. 

Josh White, Clinton Cowley, 

Jayne Cowley, Annica White. 

Jessica Dwyer, Lewis Beattie, 

Tim Jutsum, Lassi Jutsum. 

Maree Hall, Tracey McHardie, 

Mitch McHardie, Jonathan Hall. 

LOOK OUT FOR OUR NEXT CONFERENCE, 

EVENTS AND VENUES FEATURE.


Food megatrends to 

tip farming on its head 

As whole milk powder prices start to 

surge again, farmers are being cautioned 

not to let that distract them from some of 

the biggest disruptions coming to farm 

systems the world as ever seen. 

By RICHARD RENNIE 

KPMG’s head of agribusiness, 

Ian Proudfoot told 

delegates at this year’s 

rural update agribusiness seminar 

at Karapiro the world was 

on the verge of a new “agrarian 

revolution”. 

It would result in some of 

the practises undertaken for 

generations being tipped on 

their head within a few short 

years. 

“Don’t let the recent rise 

cloud your judgement, we are 

at the point where there is a 

lot of hard work to be done to 

deliver a country that remains 

productive and valued into the 

future.” 

He broadly identified some 

of the megatrends unseating 

conventional commodity driven 

production from agricultural 

countries. They will demand a 

new mindset not only in how 

food is produced, but how it is 

delivered. 

Millennials, those born 

between about 1982 and 2004, 

are starting to have children 

and are bringing a different 

mindset on how food is delivered 

and consumed. 

“They want instant access 

to everything. They are 

hyper-connected and this 

access applies to food also. 

Even new start-ups like My 

Food Bag may have increased 

door-to-door access, but still 

remain relatively inflexible. 

This generation is seeking 

instantaneous and flexible food 

choices.” 

He pointed to McDonalds’ 

“Create your taste” tailored 

meal options which also have 

the effect of up-pricing a standard 

takeaway meal spend by 

tens of dollars. He expected 

supermarkets would be endangered 

within 25 years, with 

models like Amazon Fresh 

meeting that millennial need 

for instantaneous delivery. 

“They can deliver what you 

want to your front door in less 

than an hour, quicker than you 

could go and buy the things 

yourself.” 

“Crowdsourced” food 

was becoming more common, 

and at a premium. He 

cited a Californian company 

that would process lamb on 

demand, at a value of about 

$500 a lamb. 

Door-to- door deliveries have grown to satisfy the demand for instant access to food. 

Future tech envisaged by Trek 

The future of “The 

Internet of Things” looks 

like Gene Roddenberry’s 

Star Trek. 

Roddenberry’s vision 

of humankind served by 

“Unchained Technology” 

seemed a far-fetched idea only 

possible in the far future when 

he put it on screen in 1966. 

But thanks to “The Internet of 

Things”, a concept that by 2016 

has been around for 34 years, 

Roddenberry’s better technology-enabled 

future is almost 

here. 

“The Internet of Things” is a 

phrase defined by internet connectivity 

of every day devices, 

giving that hardware extra 

functionality thanks to their 

connection to the internet via 

cable, wi-fi or a mobile phone 

network. 

In today’s world that means 

more than the obvious personal 

computers, tablet computers 

and smartphones, although they 

were the start. 

The trusty old doorbell is a 

good example of how internet 

connectivity can help transform 

a simple device. It becomes 

much more usable than the simple 

function it was originally 

designed for in the days before 

the internet changed all of our 

lives. 

In the old days, the doorbell 

simply rang a chime when the 

button was pressed to alert you 

to the fact that someone was at 

your door. If you were out there 

was no way to know whether 

someone had called at your 

front door unless they left you 

a message or rang you later. 

But thanks to Australasian and 

American firm Ring’s embracing 

of “The Internet of Things” 

enabled technology it’s now 

possible to not miss a single 

caller from anywhere in the 

world. 

By adding a webcam to the 

doorbell and connecting it to 

the internet it’s possible to see 

who is at your door, and even 

speak to them, when you are 

away from home. Since most 

burglars ring the bell, posing 

as a door to door odd jobber if 

you happened to answer, this 

is a good way of identifying 

a would-be burglar. You can 

tell him or her you are in the 

shower, or some such excuse, 

but if they don’t fall for your 

ruse you can send the police a 

photograph of the person who 

called at your home the day 

it was ransacked and precious 

items stolen. This would go a 

long way towards apprehending 

the culprit and recovering your 

stolen stuff. 

You can even extend the 

range of the camera to cover 

KPMG head of agribusiness 

Ian Proudfoot. 

Creating “fashionable” 

foods opened up opportunities 

as much as it created risk. 

He pointed to Marlborough’s 

Sauvignon Blanc industry, with 

its tens of thousands of hectares 

devoted to a single grape 

type. 

“While it is going very 

well now internationally, just 

imagine what happens should it 

become the next Chardonnay?” 

The statistics on the ageing 

global population are well 

understood in terms of impact 

upon labour forces. 

But the linkage between 

longevity and good health is 

starting to fray as more people 

carry significant illnesses 

with them through longer lives, 

thanks to advances in medicine. 

Mr Proudfoot said 85 percent 

of people over 60 manage 

at least one chronic health 

condition, and that management 

was increasingly being 

achieved through food consumption. 

But those conditions also 

needed to be accounted for 

in packaging technology, for 

example avoiding difficult to 

open lids and packets for a 

market experiencing the limitations 

of arthritis. 

“We are getting to the point 

of customised food, and Nestle 

is already achieving this with 

its dog food brand Purina. It is 

possible for you as the owner 

other parts of your section with 

smart motion detection. 

Other examples of the 

“Internet of Things” today 

include burglar alarms that 

ring your mobile phone when 

they’re triggered, smart fridges 

that text you when you need 

more milk, activity trackers that 

record your fitness regime and 

its effects to the web, and RFID 

sensors that track the location 

of shipping containers. 

In Waikato “The Internet 

of Things” connects farmers 

to their cows in real time via 

Hamilton-based herd improvement 

co-operative LIC's online 

herd records database MINDA. 

to enter on line the dog’s health 

history and issues, and receive 

a tailored dog food. If it can 

be done for dogs, how long 

will it be before we do it for 

humans?” 

As health systems groan 

under the chronic disease onset 

and an older population, more 

governments are also acknowledging 

the value of keeping 

people healthy rather than curing 

them in later life. 

Taxes on sugar, salt and 

fats were likely to impact upon 

New Zealand significantly, 

given NZ products did end up 

in final items that may contain 

higher levels of salt, fat and 

sugar. 

But with an ageing population 

also came a nostalgic 

streak with a market seeking 

out products that reminded 

them of the ‘good old days’, 

accounting for growing 

demand of products like craft 

beer. 

“As the global beer market 

grows at 0.2 percent a year, 

this market is growing at 13 

percent.” 

Globally there is now an 

additional 1.3 million people 

a week moving into cities, and 

estimates are for average commuting 

time to now account for 

3-4 hours a day, with the first 

and last meal of the day held on 

the means of commuting, such 

as the train. 

“So the challenge is how 

TECH TALK 

> BY DAVID HALLETT 

do we put value into the food 

they eat in a way that it is convenient?” 

He also cautioned on the 

assumption made that as developing 

nations became wealthier 

they would migrate to more 

westernised tastes. 

“What we are seeing is the 

diet in emerging markets is not 

changing as greatly as thought. 

In Japan for example, they will 

pay a fortune now for a great 

piece of steak, but the diet is 

essentially the same as it was 

50 years ago.” 

In what he labelled the 

“bok choy” effect, it is in fact 

the diet of countries like ours 

that is changing, incorporating 

more of what those countries 

had traditionally consumed. 

“So we have to remember 

that what we grow may not be 

what people want to eat.” 

In this rapidly changing 

environment, New Zealand ran 

the risk of falling behind. 

With only 0.5 percent of the 

global research and development 

spend on food technology, 

we risked only getting 0.5 

percent of the good ideas. 

At present NZ’s $37.5 

billion of food exports when 

on-sold and processed further 

offshore were earning a quarter 

of a trillion dollars. 

“So at present we are only 

recognising less the 15 percent 

of the total value of what we 

grow.” 

David Hallett is a director of Hamilton software specialist Company-X, 

design house E9 and chief nerd at Waikato Need a Nerd. 

In tomorrow’s world 

that means a proliferation of 

such devices as envisaged by 

Roddenberry and his production 

team. The USS Enterprise’s 

shipboard computer was connected 

to practically every tool 

used by the crew, the most versatile 

of which was the tricorder. 

The tricorder could record, 

store and analyse data. 

A working model of what 

the Star Trek team envisaged 

50 year ago is about to become 

reality thanks to the Qualcomm 

Tricorder XPRIZE competition. 

The winning team will receive 

US$10 million to develop a real 

life working model of a medical 

tricorder. For this imagine a 

portable, wireless device in the 

palm of your hand that monitors 

and diagnoses your health 

conditions for a remote doctor. 

Qualcomm hopes it will lead to 

a radical innovation in healthcare 

that will give individuals 

far greater choices in when, 

where, and how they receive 

medical care. 

Such is the future of “The 

Internet of Things”. 

While the Qualcomm 

Tricroder XPRIZE is a logical 

outcome of “The Internet of 

Things”, the final frontier is 

literally the limit to what’s next 

in this space.


HAMILTON AIRPORT PRECINCT 

Hamilton Airport 

- a destination in its 

own right 

Hamilton Airport is a popular destination 

these days – and not just for travellers. 


Hard on the heels of the 

successful opening 

of the airport’s new 

destination café, the Mavis 

Lounge, a new Mavis & Co, 

the airport has celebrated 

the launch of its conference 

facilities. 

Hamilton & Waikato 

Tourism’s industry symposium 

on November 23 proved 

to be the perfect occasion to 

unveil the airport’s four conference 

rooms utilising previously 

unused terminal space. 

The response from 

attendees at the symposium 

was enthusiastic. 

The new offering comprises 

two large rooms capable 

of seating more than 100 and 

ideal for a variety of formal 

dinners and functions 

and two smaller rooms ideal 

for presentations or board 

meetings. Matching that is a 

comprehensive, top quality 

food and beverage offering, 

free car parking for delegates 

and the intention to offer hot 

desking facilities for businesspeople. 

Already the introduction 

of Mavis Lounge has created 

a “fantastic” response, 

according to airport chief 

executive Mark Morgan who 

says its presence has changed 

the whole atmosphere and 

environment of the mezzanine 

floor. 

It’s all part of the airport 

management’s desire to 

emphasise that the airport is a 

place for people to come and 

enjoy themselves, not just to 

fly in or out of. 

“Our message is simple; 

it’s your airport – come 

and enjoy it. We would like 

nothing better than to see 

Waikato people come in here 

for brunch, relax and plane 

spot. “And similarly, make 

the most of our meeting and 

convention space. It’s an easy 

destination to get in and out 

of and it’s a pleasant place 

to come.” 

Airport finances sound 

The new attractions are the 

result of some hard consolidation 

work over the last 

two years to steer the airport 

into a sound financial 

position. A new board and 

new chief executive came in 

with a clear mandate from 

shareholding councils: to create 

a strong viable regional 

airport. The objective was 

to get the finances back in 

order and create a sustainable 

business. 

The airport’s Titanium 

Park Joint Venture was 

dissolved by the board on 

March 31. In its place is 

Images of Hamilton Airport's conference and board rooms. 

the Titanium Park Ltd (TPL) 

board, a subsidiary of the 

airport which is charged with 

maximising income from the 

airport’s extensive land holdings 

and tenancies. To help 

ensure that perpetual property 

income, a comprehensive 

development plan is to be put 

before the airport board and 

shareholding councils early 

next year. The land is perfectly 

positioned for developers; 

it is more competitively 

priced than north of the city, 

there are no development 

costs for developers and TPL 

is in total control of the landholdings, 

making it responsive 

and flexible and it can 

ensure that design guidelines 

protect the property value 

and working environment of 

all land owners and tenants 

on the airport precinct 

Furthermore, the impending 

development of the 

Peacocke subdivision is 

likely to bring forward the 

long-awaited Southern Links 

roading network, providing a 

better connection to SH1 and 

the Port of Tauranga. 

All of these factors 

make the land an increasingly 

attractive proposition 

for businesses to relocate to 

the Airport(Conscious that 

freight statement is good but 

would need to expand that to 

freight and other businesses 

– don’t want to exclude non 

freight businesses from considering 

this?) 

Mr Morgan is confident 

that over time, the property 

holdings will create a strong 

non-aeronautical revenue 

base to supplement the airport’s 

income. 

Passenger numbers on 

the increase 

With patronage across 

Hamilton’s three main regional 

routes on the rise and the 

second highest total aircraft 

movements in the country, 

Hamilton Airport’s books are 

heading back into the black 

and ahead of budget. 

From October, patronage 

on flights between Hamilton 

and Palmerston North has 

jumped massively as capacity 

was boosted when the 

50-seater Q300 replaced 

the 19-seater Beech aircraft 

1900D. Schedules have been 


SOMETHING DIFFERENT 

FOR yOuR NExT EvENT? 

With great food and coffee and an interesting space, 

Hamilton Airport is a great venue for your next 

business meeting or event. 

Email admin@hamiltonairport.co.nz to find out more. 

www.hamiltonairport.co.nz

HAMILTON AIRPORT ... PRECINCT 


From page 34 

aligned to allow Palmerston 

North-bound passengers to 

then fly on to Wellington if 

they desire. In the last two 

months, year-on-year patronage 

on this route has jumped 

by up to 90 percent. 

Capacity between 

Hamilton and Wellington 

has been boosted as new 

68-seat ATR72-600 aircraft 

have been introduced on all 

peak time services, providing 

more seating and quicker 

flight times. In addition, the 

Christchurch schedule has 

been increased with an additional 

daily service. ATR72- 

600 are the most efficient aircraft 

in their class and feature 

a new cabin layout, larger 

overhead bins, and advanced 

cockpit technology. 

Over the past two months, 

year on year, patronage on 

Hamilton’s three routes 

between Palmerston North, 

Wellington and Christchurch 

are up about 10 percent. 

Premium customer 

experience 

Having all the basics in 

place has allowed Hamilton 

Airport’s management to 

focus on ensuring a premium 

customer experience. 

The establishment of the 

café and conference facilities 

not only makes the airport an 

attractive destination, it creates 

further revenue creating 

possibilities. 

Meanwhile Air New 

Zealand has invested significantly 

in the airport, 

including spending well in 

excess of one million on its 

new regional lounge which 

opened earlier this year. The 

new-look lounge seats 92 

people, boasts prime views of 

the runway and surrounding 

farmland and provides guests 

with buffet and light refreshments 

as well as bar facilities. 

For business travelers, 

there is access to Wifi, a photocopier/printer 

and USB and 

power points at most seats. 

In the near future, Air New 

Zealand will follow this with 

a comprehensive revamp of 

its check-in facilities which 

will further enhance the experience 

for airport customers. 

The exciting infrastructural 

changes have been complemented 

by up to a 10 percent 

drop in regional airfares and 

scheduling improvements 

instituted as part of Air New 

Zealand’s regional strategy. 

With research showing the 

airport’s catchment will grow 

by about 50,000 people in the 

next decade, there is no reason 

why passenger numbers 

won’t continue to rise. 

Also, Hamilton Airport is 

in prime position to capitalise 

on traveller’s unwillingness 

to face traffic congestion and 

high accommodation prices 

in Auckland, particularly as 

the price differential between 

flying out of the two airport’s 

narrows. 

The airport board consolidation 

over the last two years 

has paid off. The basics are 

in place and the new vision 

to create a destination in its 

own right is already paying 

dividends. 

Hamilton Airport is perfectly 

placed to maximise 

on the growth opportunities 

ahead. 

Hamilton & Waikato Tourism chief executive Jason 

Dawson speaks at November's tourism industry 

symposium where Hamilton Airport's conference 

facilities were unveiled for the first time. 

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To find out more about this unique opportunity contact: 

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www.hamiltonairport.co.nz | www.titaniumpark.co.nz

36 

HAMILTON AIRPORT ... PRECINCT 


Mavis takes off 

at the airport 

The extension of the Mavis brand to 

Hamilton Airport in recent months has been 

a huge success – but even better is to 

come. 


With business already 

flourishing at the 

new Mavis Lounge, 

Mavis & Co owner Fin Irwin 

says he is about to unveil an 

exciting new menu. 

Fin, owner of two Mavis 

outlets – the original Mavis 

& Co in Hamilton East and 

Mavis & Co – Made to Order 

in the city - readily admits 

when the idea of extending 

the brand into the airport was 

first raised he was unsure. 

All up, it’s been a 

great move. It’s 

been good for the 

business and I think 

good for the airport 

too.” 

“I was flattered and interested 

but at the same time a 

little cautious,” he says. 

“I wasn’t sure that an airport 

would fit our brand.” 

The idea was part of airport 

mangement plan’s to 

make the airport a destination 

for Waikato people rather 

than just a place for travellers. 

“The important thing for 

me was that it didn’t just feel 

like an airport café. It had to 

be a Mavis café at the airport 

rather than an airport café. 

We wanted to keep the prices 

down as much as we can.” 

Even leading up to opening 

day in August, Fin was having 

the odd second thought. 

He had expected the “pop 

up” Mavis created downstairs 

while the permanent café was 

built might be “marginal” in 

terms of turnover but was 

surprised with its popularity. 

The move to the new café 

on the mezzanine was even 

better. 

“We hadn’t even got any 

signs in place yet so I wasn’t 

expecting the first day to be 

anything spectacular. It coincided 

with school holidays 

which obviously helped but it 

was very busy. Overall, going 

upstairs has been a great 

Mavis & Co owner Fin Irwin and 

Hamilton Airport chief executive Mark 

Morgan at Mavis Lounge's opening. 

move for us.” 

Ever since, the business 

has cracked along and every 

day staff are fielding more 

enquiries. Fin is anticipating 

residents in nearby areas like 

Tamahere will often pop in 

for coffee or a drink, making 

the most of two hours free 

parking for any spend over 

$15. 

Mavis Lounge has started 

out serving cabinet food 

but is ready to implement a 

varied new menu likely to 

cover breakfast seven days 

and a fuller menu Wednesday 

to Sundays, highlighted by 


MAVIS Lounge 

New 

menu 

coming 

soon 

2 hours 

free parking 

with a minimum 

spend of $15 

The ideal venue for small and large functions/gatherings 

Located upstairs at Hamilton Airport, Airport Road, Hamilton 

Enquires: hello@mavis.co.nz 

J9420A 

MAVIS

HAMILTON AIRPORT PRECINCT 


From page 36 

Friday night tapas. 

Brunch specialities include 

Eggs Benedict on house made 

English muffin & hollandaise 

and the Mavis Feast. Fin 

highly recommends house cut 

potato crisps and thick cut 

chips with chicken gravy on 

the snack menu and the lunch 

menu dish Korean Fried 

Chicken. Meanwhile tapas 

dishes include Angus Pure 

Beef Skewer, Beef Tallow 

Beignet, Lightly Smoked 

Oysters and a bowl of Crispy 

White Anchovy Stuffed 

Olives. 

“The menu is going to be 

very varied and very exciting. 

I think people will love it.” 

Mavis Lounge seats more 

than 100 and Finn says it’s an 

idea place for events, parties 

and functions. It’s a big area, 

says Finn and areas can easily 

be partitioned off while music 

will soon be introduced. 

The kitchen will also be 

catering for events at the airport’s 

newly opened conference 

facilities. 

“All up, it’s been a great 

move. It’s been good for the 

business and I think good for 

the airport too.” 

Wrought iron manufacturers, gates & balustrades 

30 YEARS IN BUSINESS 

Artform Steelworks are proud to support the 

opening of Mavis Lounge at the Hamilton Airport 

www.artformsteelworks.com 

25B Northway Street | Te Rapa, Waikato, 3200 | +64 7 849 2944 

40099 

Flooring Covering Specialist 

Cantec Service Hamilton Ltd 

are proud to be part of the 

Mavis Lounge opening 

at the Hamilton Airport 

hamilton@cantecservices.co.nz 

1118 Norton Rd • Hamilton 

Tel 07 846 7166 Fax 07 846 6103 

COMMERCIAL / INDUSTRIAL / 

Midland MRI new refurbishment 

RESIDENTIAL PAINTING 

hamilton@centecservices.co.nz 

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The team at Hamilton Flooring are 

proud to support Mavis Lounge on their 

recent opening at Hamilton Airport. 

Hamilton Flooring Limited 

9 Ashmore Court, Hamilton 

P: 07 853 5944 | F: 07 853 5945 | M: 027 4941 000 

30055

38 

LANDMARK HOMES 

Stylish Landmark 

show home graces 

our northern suburbs 

A new show home, the Orini, now graces 

the northern suburbs of Hamilton. 

This is one of the many 

outstanding designs 

presented by Landmark 

Homes and reflects the Central 

Otago pavilion style of residential 

living. 

After passing through the 

very welcoming entrance visitors 

will be impressed by the 

roomy living spaces that wrap 

around the spacious entertainer’s 

kitchen, with generous 

scullery, which forms the 

hub of this upmarket home 

and opens to outside through 

French doors. 

Four large bedrooms form 

a separate wing with wide 

hallways from which outdoor 

garden features are on display 

through grand picture windows. 

Pavilion style rooflines 

umbrella the luxurious sized 

spaces throughout this carefully 

thought out show home 

placed on its own block at 71 

Roy Hilton Drive, Flagstaff, 

Hamilton. 

“2016 has been a great year 

for the Waikato/Coromandel 

Landmark Homes franchise,” 

said director Will Quigley. “We 

won the Landmark Homes 

Franchise of the Year Supreme 

Award and have 16 homes 

under construction.” 

Will, who was born to a life 

of farming, finally gave up the 

land and headed to the United 

States where he lived for several 

years 

On his return he bought a 

Landmark Homes franchise, 

agreeing with the company 

catchphrase… Don’t build a 

house, build a landmark. 


Creating your dream home 

Landmark Homes mission is to guid you through the new build accommodating your 

needs and shaping your ideas into reality. 

LANDMARK HOMES WAIKATO/COROMANDEL 

543 Te Rapa Road, Hamilton | p. 07 849 5565 | www.landmarkhomes.co.nz 

2016 FRANCHISE 

OF THE YEAR 

30363



39 

Proudly associated with 

Landmark Homes Hamilton 

Congratulations on the opening of your new show home! 

80443 

18 Eldonwood Drive, Matamata | 07 888 5414 

www.curtaincreations.co.nz 

www.laserelectrical.co.nz 

email Hamilton@laserelectrical.co.nz 

Proud to be 

associated 

with Landmark 

Homes 

show homes 

40168 

Proud to support 

Landmark Homes 

www.hostess.co.nz 

40004 

Experienced installers and retailers 

Warm Floors Gas & Heat Centre 

767 Victoria Road, Cambridge 

027 275 8695 

www.totalheating.co.nz



Stylish Landmark show home 

graces our northern suburbs 

30424 

Hardware Direct Limited 

47 Maui Street 

Te Rapa, Hamilton 

p. 07 839 3025 

e. terapa@hardwaredirect.co.nz 

w. hardwaredirect.co.nz 

Proud to work along with 

Landmark Homes on their new show home 

Congratulations on winning 2016 

Franchise of the Year 

Phone Nigel 027 4970 424 

warrenpainters.com 

warrenpainters007@gmail.com 

Hardware Direct 

are proud to be 

suppliers of quality 

Dorma hardware 

to Landmark 

Homes Waikato 

D9209M 

From page 36 

And so it was, four years 

ago, he took over the franchise 

and has never looked back. 

Eighteen months ago Will’s 

project manager at the time 

Nigel Watson joined forces and 

is now a partner in the business 

“We have a great group of 

subbies who communicate well 

with our building gangs so the 

builds keep right on schedule,” 

said Will. 

A visit to Landmark Homes 

Orini show home at 17 Roy 

Hilton Drive, Flagstaff will 

give you an insight into just 

what this franchise can produce 

for you. 

Check out the website 

www.landmarkhomes.co.nz 

The website is a goldmine 

of ideas for the potential home 

owner. 

The plan selection offers a 

plan to suit most every budget 

as well as presenting your 

dream home. 

In its Design and Build section 

Landmark says: “Let us 

bring your dream to fruition. 

“With our design expertise 

and a melding of design 

principles, practical use of 

your section, light and spaces, 

Landmark looks forward to 

working closely with you on 

this exciting option. 

Here are a few practical 

hints to get you on your way. 

Invest in a scrapbook and 

sectionalise it into living spaces, 

sleeping spaces, kitchen, 

bathroom and outside living. 

Include lights, staircases, 

exterior finishes, floor coverings 

and room layout…absolutely 

everything that takes 

your fancy. 

Use the internet to peruse 

architectural websites, structural 

features, fireplaces and 

more. Record the links or 

prepare a disc to show your 

Landmark designer. 

Visit your site at different 

times of the day. While 

practicalities such as drainage, 

access to services, day lighting 

can and do influence where 

your home is positioned, by 

having a feel for the land and 

how it relates to other properties, 

you will be able to consider 

the positioning rooms and 

outdoor living spaces. 

The next step is to call Will 

027 858 1230 and he can set up 

your design meeting 

Proud to be associated with 

Landmark Homes and being part of 

the successful show home new build. 

Spouting made to measure on site 

New or existing homes 

Colour steel or copper 

Internal or external fascia systems to suit your needs 

Rain water heads and downpipes 

Guaranteed workmanship 

All enquires call Alan Murray 

M. 027 522 6485 | w-fascia-spouting@hotmail.com 

30184 

30061 

We are proud to join Landmark Homes 

to celebrate the opening of the new 

show home and congratulate them on 

winning 2016 Franchise of the year. 

The new home cleaning experts 

Prestige Home Groomers 

Kathy 021 227 3521 • www.homegroomers.co.nz


Waikato business puts head in the cloud 

It was a full house recently at an informative 

lunch event on the benefits of cloud IT 

services and how to accelerate Waikato 

business success in an increasingly digital 

environment. 

Held at Gothenburg 

Restaurant on the river 

it was hosted by local 

cloud IT company Dynamo6, 

in partnership with Amazon 

Web Services (AWS). The 

guest speaker was ICT manager 

Tainui Group Holdings, 

Helaman Tangiora. 

The event presented ways 

to manage the ever increasing 

demands on IT systems by 

moving infrastructure to the 

cloud, as a cost-effective and 

reliable platform for growth. 

Igor Matich, managing 

director Dynamo6, said 

Waikato is an innovative region 

punching above its weight so it 

shouldn’t be held back by dated 

and cumbersome IT infrastructure. 

“This region has a huge 

opportunity – we have a growing 

population thanks to people 

moving in, a wide variety of 

businesses and sectors, and a 

creative approach to agriculture, 

manufacturing, services 

and information technology. 

“Scaling a business whether 

you are selling locally, nationally 

or internationally needs the 

best IT, so you can do business 

anywhere, anytime and on any 

device. Being flexible, agile and 

cost effective is vital for success,” 

he says. 

“This is where cloud technology 

plays a central role. It 

allows business to move away 

from the upfront risk of investing 

in fixed server based technology, 

to flexible software as 

a service technology with ongoing 

regular expense – just like 

leasing instead of buying a car. 

“It also removes complicated 

infrastructure management 

that adds little value, and allows 

businesses to grow without 

capacity limits,” he says. 

Fifty guests attended the 

event from industries and sectors 

including agriculture, construction, 

education, health, 

technology and legal. 

Guest speaker Helaman 

Tangiora introduced the experience 

of Tainui Group Holdings 

having changed to a 100 percent 

cloud-based operation. In doing 

so it has set the future direction 

of its tribal business by 

embracing the digital delivery 

of services. 

Dynamo6 is the only 

Helaman Tangiora, Tainui 

Group Holdings. 

Waikato-based partner of 

Amazon Web Services (AWS), 

the fastest growing subsidiary 

of amazon.com, the well-known 

international e-commerce company. 

Igor Matich, Dynamo6. 

Dynamo6 uses digital solutions 

to make businesses better 

and specialises in cloud, mobile 

and web development solutions. 

Established solely as a cloud 

services provider it helps people 

and organisations work smarter, 

faster and more cost-effectively, 

while being better connected, 

anytime, anywhere. Established 

in Hamilton, Dynamo6 also has 

an office in Auckland. 

Trish Thompson and Brad 

Lohnes, Gallagher Group. 

Suzanne Hunt, AgResearch, Mark Sargent, 

Shift 72, Thomas Coats, J Swap Contractors. 

Kiran Chandra, Corey Davis, Shift 72. 

Gav Curtis, Shift, Justin Mason, 

Midlands Health Network – Xcrania. 

For your business and property structure advice, call us. 

Free initial consultation at the office or 

two doors down at the Good George! 

e. steve@auctus.co.nz m. 027 664 4289 t. 07 974 4813 

a. 34a Somerset St, Frankton, Hamilton 

www.auctus.co.nz 

40095 

TERRY RYAN 

REALTORS 

ALWAYS THE BEST RESULT FOR YOU 

P 07 855 0550 M 021 909 978 

E terry.ryan@lugtons.co.nz 

40384


Purchase two gift vouchers and go in the draw to 

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07 838 2202 | www.watersdayspa.co.nz 

80183 

FREE 

Ring cleaning 

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Chocolate gifts for all occasions 

Corporate and personal options 

available 

100% New Zealand made 

Instore at Shop 59 (opposite Dick Smith Electronics), 

Te Awa Shopping Mall, The Base, Te Rapa, Ph 07 850 5113 

Shop online at www.thechocolateshop.co.nz 

Restyle your old gold and diamonds at Midas 

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Insurance & valuations exclusive 

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07 854 8389 

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Chartwell, Hamilton 

www.thewillowtree.co.nz


43


AON HAMILTON 

Aon’s rebuild an 

investment in Waikato 

Aon New Zealand’s stunning Waikato 

headquarters at 85 Tristram St is a signal of 

its commitment to Hamilton and the wider 

region. 


The insurance broker’s 

former building on the 

site was comprehensively 

redeveloped in the first 

half of the year and Aon’s 45 

staff moved back onto the site 

at the end of August. 

The new build was cel- 

ebrated with a glitzy, jampacked 

opening on October 

27. 

While renowned Waikato 

musician Tim Armstrong 

performed, a who’s who of 

the Waikato sporting scene 

attended, reflecting Aon’s 

many sporting sponsorships. 

The Chiefs’ contingent 

included Tawera Kerr-Barlow 

and Atunaisa Moli, who mingled 

with representatives 

from Rowing NZ and Cycling 

NZ as well as Aon staff from 

the region’s 11 other offices, 

and clients large and small. 

Aon New Zealand chief executive 

Geoff Blampied, general 

manager Finance Andrew 

Bergman, general manager 

Human Resources Sophie 

Cawse, and managing director 

Russell Bailey also attended. 

Aon New Zealand regional 

manager Christine Martin 

says the investment in Aon 

House is a clear sign of Aon’s 

commitment to Hamilton and 

Aon’s new building in Tristram Street. 

the wider region and to being 

part of the community. The 

Hamilton office and 11 other 

branches from Whitianga 

to Taumarunui and up to 

It’s a great site here, 

with good profile and 

good parking. It was 

really just the design 

of the building that 

didn’t suit us.” 

Pukekohe provide the region 

with a wide array of services. 

Aon has always had a 

regional focus. Over the last 

two decades, at a time when 

other insurers were centralising 

and pulling out of regional 

towns, Aon did the opposite 

and set up branches across 

provincial New Zealand. 

“It’s a philosophy that has 

worked really well for us,” 

says Christine. 

“Local people still like to 

deal with local people.” 

The new Hamilton office 

serves as a hub for the wider 

region and has a great street 

profile and plenty of parking. 

Aon welcomes customers 

coming in off the street 

to discuss their requirements. 

With a variety of experts in 

the building, Aon staff can 

sort out client’s needs in a one 

stop shop environment. 

With more than 30 years of 

industry experience, Aon has 

designed solutions to meet 

the specific needs of all New 

Zealanders, and will negotiate 

with insurers on your behalf 

to save you time, money and 

worry. Our on-site team have 

specialists within in many 

areas from: 

- Personal insurance solutions 

help to protect Kiwi 

families and their personal 

belongings including your 

house and contents, vehicles 

and boat. 

- SME Business have a 

range of insurance solutions 

designed to suit 

businesses of all shapes 

and sizes, whether you are 

a sole trader or the next 

burgeoning global success 

story. 

- Corporate team provides 

innovative risk management 

solutions for corporate 

and government agencies, 

regardless of size, 


Come in and see the new 

Aon Hamilton. 

Aon is the leading provider of insurance broking and risk 

management advice in New Zealand. 

We’re proud to be a part of the Hamilton community and we’re looking 

forward to showing you around our newly refurbished offices. 

Come in to see us at 85 Tristram Street, Hamilton or, 

speak to your local Aon Hamilton broker by calling 07 837 7100. 

aon.co.nz 

Aon-Hamilton-Ad-Final.indd 1 

18/11/2016 4:14:33 p.m.

AON HAMILTON 


Belinda Overdevest and Graeme Tocker. 

Wiki Rolleston and Mary-anne Tobin. 

From page 44 

providing support across 

a broad range of key areas 

such as employee benefits, 

superannuation administration, 

strategic risk 

financing. 

- ACC Claims Management 

at WorkAon who are the 

largest independent claims 

administrator and rehabilitation 

co-ordinator in New 

Zealand; 

- Aon Sprinkler Certification 

Services who certify new 

sprinkler systems and 

significant extensions to 

existing systems, as well 

as sprinkler and fire alarm 

inspections. 

- Aon Global Risk 

Consulting provides a 

range of integrated solutions 

to improve your risk 

profile, protect your interest 

and increase business 

profitability. Risk consul- 

tancy services include but 

are not limited to analytical 

and loss modelling services, 

business continuity 

management, engineering 

consultancy services and 

valuation services 

Geoff Taylor and Deanna Macdonald. 

Christine says the basis of 

the decision to make such 

an investment at the Tristram 

St site was the knowledge 

that it is going to be Aon’s 


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Phone 07 849 3817 

 

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Visit 

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info@originwindows.co.nz 

 

 

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constructltd.co.nz 

07 848 1101 

Proud to be the 

preferred Waikato 

builder and would 


Aon-Hamilton on 

their redevelopment 

of Aon House 

30166


AON HAMILTON 

Aon’s rebuild an 

investment in Waikato 

From page 45 

home for a long time. Aon 

first moved on to the site 13 

years ago at a point when they 

had only 14 staff across three 

divisions. But the success of 

Aon’s Waikato team has seen 

it necessary to invest in the 

upgrade of the office environment 

and facilities. 

“It’s a great site here, with 

good profile and good parking. 

It was really just the 

design of the building that 

didn’t suit us.” 

She says the first step in 

the rebuilding process was 

getting Wallace Development 

Company to prepare some 

concept plans, after which 

Matz Architects from 

Auckland designed a floor 

plan. 

Aon staff moved out at 

the end of January and set up 

temporary office at the nearby 

ASB building in Collingwood 

St. Frankton-based builders 

Construct Ltd started physical 

works in March by demolishing 

all but the basic structure. 

The construction process was 

slickly managed. 

“They kept us informed 

and it wasn’t stressful as construction 

projects can sometimes 

be,” says Christine. 

Key Aon staff would come 

on to the site once a month 

discuss progress. 

Over a weekend at the 

end of August, Aon’s 45 staff 

moved back into their purpose-built 

pristine new building. 

It was 13 years – almost 

to the day – since Aon had 

first moved in. 

Christine says Aon 

is thankful to Wallace 

Development Company Ltd, 

Matz Architects and Construct 

Ltd, as well as the many other 

contractors that were involved 

with the project. 

“They really did a fantastic 

job. They were just so 

organised and we ended up 

with something we were very 

happy with. We moved in 

and staff were able to operate 

from day one and that’s really 

all you can ask for.” 

The transformed building 

provides a modern working 

environment with the latest 

in technology. Christine says 

the open plan design allows 

for a better flow of information 

and a team environment. 

There are five meeting rooms, 

including a well-utilised larger 

room which allows staff 

from throughout the region to 

meet and train together. 

The visibility of Aon 

House sends a key message 

to customers who are encouraged 

to visit or inquire. 

“We welcome people who 

want to come in and see us. 

That’s why it’s important to 

have car parking. Drive in, 

come in and let us know what 

you need. We are very welcoming. 

That’s a really big 

thing for us.” 

Andrew Flexman, Russell Bailey, Sean Austin and Emma Langman. 

Comins Plumbing and Gas is your one stop shop servicing the 

Cambridge/Waikato area. We have a team of experienced and qualified 

plumbers, heating specialists, gas fitters and drain layers ready to tackle 

any job big or small. 

Plumbing - Drainage - Gas fitting - Heating 

Leanore Bullen and Nan Austin. 

Proud to work with Construct Ltd on the Aon project 

Local agents for The Fireplace selling and 

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Local agents for Central Heating New Zealand 

CONTACT US 

Office hours: 

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Friday 7.30 am till 4.00pm. 

Phone: 07 8237263 

Fax: 07 8237264 

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pricing/technical email: Joe - joe@cominsplumbing.co.nz 

80063 

Luke Edmonds and Carol Findlay.


Pedal kart encounter 

spurs distributorship 

This is a Toy Story with a difference. 

A 

Kiwi guy, with Dutch 

and Croatian ancestry, 

a business management 

degree from the University of 

Waikato and one of the Three 

Brothers gold medal winemaking 

trio, recently spotted an 

ancient pedal kart in a second 

hand shop in Thames. 

The guy is Adam Nooyen 

and he tells the story leading up 

to the pedal kart purchase. 

“I still had my Christmas 

bonus in my pocket and it was 

the last day of the holidays so I 

thought how much fun the old 

kart would be for my nephews 

and nieces at the regular family 

Sunday lunch gatherings.” 

He also had a ‘lightbulb 

moment’ spotting a possible 

future in making and selling 

the toys. 

So Adam bought the kart and 

while the kids had lots of fun, 

he went ahead and investigated 

costs of modern production and 

decided it wouldn’t work for the 

right price. 

So like most enterprising 

entrepreneurs Adam hit the 

web and found a swathe of outdoor 

products manufactured in 

Holland by the BERG company, 

so he flew there and met the 

team. 

He set up Outdoor Top Toys 

New Zealand, offering endless 

opportunities for the summer at 

campsites, beaches and camping 

grounds as well as promoting 

outdoor fun for children and 

families at home. 

BERG karts is a world leading 

pedal kart creator with its 

products being used in the recreational 

sector all over the globe 

providing fun and a unique 

experience. 

The robust quality assures 

the products, at all levels, are 

reliable and extensive testing 

enables children to play outside 

on them safely while having lots 

of fun. 

BERG is now exporting 

karts to more than 90 countries 

worldwide. 

“When I introduced myself 

to the team at BERG it was 

most opportune,” said Adam. 

“They were looking for an agent 

to handle New Zealand and the 

Pacific. 

“After one year in business 

I can claim that no repairs have 

had to be made…basically nothing 

goes wrong with the karts.” 

When asked: “Why on earth 

pedal karts?” 

Adam smiles and says it’s 

watching the enjoyment kids get 

and hearing their laughter. 

The pedal karts being distributed in New 

Zealand by Outdoor Top Toys New Zealand. 

“Pedal karting is pure fun 

and it captures all age groups 

from two to 99 years,” he said. 

There is a kart in the range 

to suit anyone from one child, to 

mum, dad and a couple of kids 

and electric pedal assisted karts 

for the older folk. 

But they can all enjoy the 

ride. 

The karts come with a two to 

five year warranty and there is a 

one year warranty on parts. 

At present sales are made 

online only. So check out the 

website at www.outdoortoptoys. 

com 

But further contact may also 

be made by email at sales@ 

outdoortoys.com 

You can touch base directly 

with Adam on 021 423 266 

Finda Home – Property 

management with heart and integrity 

A team of award-winning property management specialists has expanded into 

Hamilton to meet growing demand. 

A 

team of award-winning property management 

specialists has expanded into 

Hamilton to meet growing demand. 

Cambridge-based Finda Home NZ is a boutique 

firm which promises property management 

with vision, heart and total transparency. 

Waikato owned and operated, Finda Home 

NZ prides itself on integrity and accountability. 

Director Carol McEldowney and property 

managers Rae Guard, Kate Laurie and office 

admistrator Trish Grantham, have perfected 

their business model and are now offering their 

combined 60-year property business experience 

to Hamiltonians with rental properties and 

those looking for a place to call home. 

“Since we launched in 2008 we’ve had 

many requests to offer our services in Hamilton 

from both landlords and tenants. We’ve listened 

and we are now focusing our attention 

on our existing Cambridge catchment and new 

business in north Hamilton,” Rae told Waikato 

Business News. 

Rae, who has an extensive business background 

knowledge of a range of sectors, manages 

the Hamilton property portfolio. 

“We take pride in offering both landlords 

and tenants high quality service and reporting 

to ensure the needs of both parties are addressed 

and respected.” 

Good communication and a rigid application 

process ensures Finda Home retains complete 

control throughout the process, resulting in very 

few tenancy issues. 

“We have a zero tolerance for rent arrears 

and are firm but fair with this policy,” said Rae. 

“We offer total transparency of service to 

all parties so everybody is on the same page. 

It works well. Our unique and thorough tenant 

selection process is another positive point of 

difference. We have high expectations of both 

tenants and landlords and this has been our 

recipe for success,” Rae said. 

Director Carol has received many awards 

in her 30 year real estate career and has a 

RAE GUARD 

Diploma in Real Estate specialising in Property 

Management, complimented by certificates in 

Business Studies and Psychology. 

“As an owner of investment properties I 

appreciate the value of our clients’ investments. 

My priorities are good service and communication 

with all our associates,” Carol said. 

Finda Home NZ Property and maintenance 

manager Kate has a financial background and 

has managed her own investment properties. 

The Finda Home NZ team, also including 

administrator Trish Grantham, have founded 

the business on the premise of creating threeway 

business partnerships between themselves, 

landlords and tenants. 

“Finda Home has gone from strength-tostrength 

and we are delighted to be now offering 

this recipe for success in North Hamilton.” 

Please make contact to Rae Guard on her 

mobile 027 286 3876 or office number 07 827 

9282. We would also invite you to visit our 

website www.findahomenz.co.nz. 

30440 

Hamilton Windscreen LWP.indd 1 

07 849 2818 



Hamilton Windscreens 

712 Te Rapa Road, Hamilton 

www.hamiltonwindscreen.co.nz 

info@hamiltonwindscreen.co.nz 

30067 


2/12/10 9:23:50 AM


FOCUS ON YOU 

BarberShopCo hits Hamilton East! 

Men’s grooming specialists BarberShopCo have opened a 

new store in Grey Street, and the founders of the renowned 

KTIZO Hair & Skin, Paul Ganley and Wayne Richardson are 

behind it. 

ultimate goal was to create 

a New York styled, modern, 

“Our 

friendly environment where 

everyone would feel comfortable.” 

The men’s grooming market has 

exploded in Europe and the U.S over 

the last few years. 

“We are now seeing New Zealand 

men asking where they can get a 

reasonably priced, quality haircut with 

hygienic, professional and efficient 

service.” 

BarberShopCo specialise in cut 

throat shaving which has really taken 

off, resulting in some of their clients 

making weekly visits. 

This goes to show Kiwi blokes are 

ready to embrace the new experiences 

and products on offer at the Grey Street 

store. 

Paul and Wayne know what it’s like to 

put in the hard yards in an exciting but 

physically demanding career. 

They train their staff to progress 

not just their hair cutting techniques, 

but how to advance their business and 

customer service skills too. 

“Developing the industry and the 

young people behind it is a really 

rewarding experience.” 

“Our barbers love that we are 

teaching them hairdressing techniques 

that they have not previously used, 

which evidently creates a better 

outcome for their clients.” 

It’s not just short back and sides 

like traditional barbering has been, 

our barbers are true artists who are 

always looking at better products and 

techniques to excel within this exciting 

and rapidly growing profession. 

BarberShopCo in Hamilton East is 

open seven days a week with two late 

nights, they also stock a wide range of 

professional men’s styling products and 

shaving essentials. 

Mon & Wed, 8am-6pm, 

Tuesday 8am-4pm, 

Thur & Fri 8am-7pm, 

Saturday 9am-4pm 

Sunday 9am-4pm 

07 858 2644 

394 Grey Street, 

Hamilton East 

J8738A 

Are you confused about your health? 

Come down to Naturally Healthy, the one stop shop you 

can count on, to get a cost effective wholesome solution 

tailored to your individual needs. 

40279 

Frans and Monica like to provide one 

on one consultations with sincerity and 

integrity being at the forefront of their 

family owned and operated business. They 

offer whole solution packages. 

Nutrition 

· Fermented Food supplements/ 

powders for easy digestion and easy use 

· Liquid Herbs 

· Taste testing – Herbal teas, 

Smoothies and Superfoods 

(tasting bar at London Street 

store only) 

· Food Sensitivity testing 

· Flowers Essences and Herbal Remedies 

· Supplements 

Health 

· Physiotherapy 

· Bowen Therapy 

· Professional therapeutic ranges 

· Aromatherapy 

· Cranio Sacral Therapy 

· Massages 

· Fertility 

· Detoxification products 

· Weight Management 

Beauty 

· Everything you need for your 

perfect skin 

· Facials 

· Bath and body care/therapy 

· Skin Ailments 

Free facial 

on your birthday 

when you buy skin care 

products from Naturally 

Healthy. 

Health Stores and Clinics 

106 London Street, Hamilton 07 958 3845 

FREE ON-SITE PARKING AVAILABLE 

419 Grey Street, Hamilton East 07 958 3846 

COMMUNITY STORE

FOCUS ON YOU 


Why take a supplement? 

Why would we need to take supplements? 

We have our diet full of nutrition and clean 

water from the tap. So let's go through the 

reasons when you could need some help 

with your nutrition. 

By MONICA 

VAN DE WEERD 

Stress 

Our bodies are made to 

deal with stress in short duration. 

Scientifically our bodies 

are not designed to be in a 

stressful situation for more 

that 24 to 48 hours. Through 

our fight or flight mechanism 

and with breathing 

and mind work., this is not 

always enough if the stress is 

long-term or excessive. High 

stress levels will over time 

affect our emotions. Sleep 

and eating patterns can also 

be affected. 

The nervous system and 

adrenals will be overstretched 

and depleted. It is difficult to 

eat light high energy foods 

when you are feeling emotional 

and unhappy. And 

this is what your body needs 

when you are busy with emotional 

and physical excess. 

Make use of smoothies 

and whole food powders. 

Add B complex nutrients, 

Magnesium and herbs recommended 

for stress. Get the 

right information to suit your 

needs. When you take a nutrient 

that you need in the right 

dosage - you should notice 

results. 

High performance 

Whether you are coping 

with the demands of working 

all day, giving your time and 

energy to family and friends, 

or you are a high performing 

athlete or sporting enthusiast, 


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FOCUS ON YOU 

Why take a 

supplement? 

Are you feeling the heat? 

Stay hydrated with Purewater! 

S Water Coolers 

S Fountains 

S Under Bench Chillers 

S Under Bench Filtration Units 

We offer servicing and installation of new units 

From page 49 

some of us cope better than 

others. If you are tired all the 

time and finding you always 

catch whatever bug is around 

and not bouncing back from 

those bouts, then you may 

need some extra support. 

What you need will 

depend on the diet, lifestyle 

and body requirements you 

have personally. You could 

add certain whole foods to 

your smoothie or take a supplement 

that supports your 

body’s needs. Always get 

advice and take as recommended 

by a trusted natural 

health advisor. Natural 

Health works - with the right 

advice. 

• Take a daily preventative. 

There are some lovely 

daily supports available. 

My favourites are 

Biostrath; Immunity Fuel; 

Neem Powder or Bentonite 

Clay. All these are nutritious 

natural foods (and 1x 

clay from our own southern 

alps) and easy to take 

next to a good diet. Find 

out which one is best for 

you. 

Avoid 

• sugary drinks 

• white sugar and white 

flour in high amounts. 

• excessive alcohol 

• instant foods 

Listen to your body. There 

will be symptoms that tell 

you what needs attention. For 

example: twitching or cramping 

could be that your body 

needs more magnesium. It 

could be that simple. So when 

your body continually shows 

the following symptoms: 

• you are always tired with 

no reason. 

• you lose/gain weight and 

nothing else has changed. 

You are often sad or 

depressed or over reacting 

to small events. 

• Headaches, fevers, twitching 

or cramping. 

• Bloating, fluid retention 

or constipation. 

Don't wait - get advice. 

Always talk to your health 

specialist and take as directed. 

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or e-mail info@purewater.co.nz 

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Saturday 9.30am to 1.30pm 

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Immunity 

Bugs are always around 

us and normally with a few 

symptoms we have the natural 

capacity to fight them off. 

When our bodies need a little 

help, it is important to give 

them the correct nutrients to 

support. 

• Keep a high grade honey 

in your pantry. Add some 

lemons and you have a 

wonderful bug fighter. 

Always have them available. 

• Echinacea/Echinacea 

combinations. There have 

been so many studies done 

on this wonderful herb. 

• Keep yourself hydrated. 

MONICA VAN DE WEERD 

Monica van de Weerd is a well 

respected Waikato based beauty 

therapist and aromatherapist, 

with an impressive knowledge of 

natural health and wellbeing. She 

and husband Frans (a qualified 

physiotherapist, homoeopath, 

craniosacral therapist and bowen 

therapist) are committed to living 

a naturally healthy lifestyle. 

www.naturallyhealthy.co.nz 

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True Colours 

Melbourne Cup Long 

Lunch a winning day 

Hundreds of people joined True Colours Children’s 

Health Trust at their annual fundraiser event - 

The Kerr & Ladbrook Long Lunch to celebrate 

Melbourne Cup Day in style. 

Anne Marie Case-Millar, Toni Hamlin and 

Jen Campbell caught in the act 

Held each year at the Atrium 

Wintec, the event has become 

synonymous with the 

Melbourne Cup in Hamilton, with 

the event selling purely by word of 

mouth. 

“The Friends of True Colours 

Committee work really hard to put 

on a great event that offers plenty 

of entertainment and value to 

those that attend” says Long Lunch 

Coordinator Sarah Rawcliffe. “The 

event has a wonderful reputation 

which meant we didn’t have to 

advertise the event at all this year, 

as people return year after year 

and tell their friends and then they 

want to come too.” 

Leading the large group of sponsors 

that make this event possible is 

Kerr & Ladbrook Catering. For the 

past 4 years, they have been the 

principal sponsor of the event dishing 

up a gourmet three course lunch 

for the 300+ crowd. The event fits 

with what Kerr & Ladbrook Catering 

Kerr & Ladbrook Catering preparing lunch for the 300+ crowd 

is all about: quality, professionalism 

and a bit of fun. “It’s a glamorous, 

fun day for a very worthy cause and 

it’s really nice to be able to help 

raise a lot of money” says Lisa Kerr. 

“The day has the added attraction 

of the Melbourne Cup which adds 

to the buzz on the day. It’s also 

great to see a room full of a lot of 

our existing customers having a fun 

day away from the office.” 

The Kerr & Ladbrook Long Lunch 

is a wonderful example of a community 

organisation working together 

with businesses to create 

not only a memorable event but 

also to raise valuable funds. “The 

local business community really 

get behind this event and we are 

incredibly grateful and humbled 

by the support that we receive 

each year” says Cynthia Ward, 

True Colours CEO. 

The day was MC’d by comedian 

Ben Hurley, with entertainment by 

local band Hair of the Dog, and Dynamica 

Violin Duo. The always 

popular Fashion in the Field was 

well attended, with plenty of 

stunning fashions on show. There 

were plenty of auction items on 

offer, these alone raising over 

$40,000 on the day. Again this 

was only possible due to businesses 

and individuals sponsoring 

some amazing items for the 

crowd to bid on. 

While the event is all about 

having a wonderful time, it’s 

also an opportunity for people 

to learn more about True Colours, 

why it exists and the work 

they do. Each year a parent is 

invited to speak to the crowd 

to give a personal insight into 

what it’s like to have a child 

with a serious health condition. 

This year, Sarah Verran shared 

her journey with her daughter 

Ruby speaking of her diagnosis 

of Craniopharyngioma, a type 

of brain tumour, and her rehabilitation 

following the removal of 

the tumour. 

The total amount raised for the 

event has just been confirmed at 

a record breaking $100,452. “We 

didn’t know if it would be possible 

to beat last year’s result of $91,000 

but thanks to the generosity 

of everyone involved we have 

achieved an amazing outcome” 

Sarah said. “It makes all the hard 

work worthwhile knowing that we 

have raised such a sizable amount 

of funds for True Colours, and what 

that means for them and the families 

they support”. 

Fashion in the Field winners Murray Williams(Starr Tours) 

and Tony Kerapa(Lugton’s) 

True Colours was established in 

2004 with a vision of helping seriously 

ill children and families in their 

time of need. They have supported 

over 1400 children and families 

that may otherwise have had to 

walk their ‘journey’ alone. If you 

would like to learn more about True 

Colours and the work they do, visit 

www.truecolours.org.nz 

Thanks to our media partner 

Waikato Business News for 

sponsorship of this advertisement 

TO ALL OUR AMAZING SPONSORS THAT MAKE THE KERR & LADBROOK LONG LUNCH POSSIBLE 

Thank you!


The Devil is 

in the detail 

It is rare for highly valued employees to 

be remunerated solely in cash. Typically, 

a ‘remuneration package’ includes a 

combination of cash and non-cash 

incentives. 

Non-cash incentives 

inherently give rise to 

the potential imposition 

of fringe benefit tax (FBT) and 

one of the most common forms 

is the private use of a vehicle. 

FBT on vehicles is neither 

new nor rare. However, 

we invariably encounter errors 

in FBT calculations due to the 

murky and complicated nature 

of the rules and principles that 

apply. One of the fundamental 

starting points to keep in mind 

is that FBT is merely a proxy 

for PAYE. The FBT rates are 

a ‘gross up’ of a net salary/ 

wage amount, ie. $100 @ 33% 

= $33 of tax, so a fringe benefit 

value of $67 @ the FBT 

rate of 49.25%, also equals $33. 

If I were to digress, I would 

suggest that we get rid of FBT 

completely and suggest it is simply 

included within the PAYE 

return, on a gross up basis. But 

I won’t deviate, let’s stay on 

track. 

Your most likely thought 

is, ‘how can I minimise my 

FBT liability on vehicles provided 

to employees?’ But this 

shouldn’t be your starting point. 

30098 

The important question is, 

when vehicles are provided to 

employees, how much private 

use do you want them to have? 

It should then be a case of practically 

restricting a vehicle’s use 

to that level, and that drives the 

amount of FBT payable. 

The concept of being ‘available 

for private use’ can be 

misleading. The key thing to 

remember is that if a vehicle 

is available to an employee for 

private use, FBT is payable 

whether or not the vehicle is 

actually used. By definition, if a 

vehicle is used for home to work 

travel that will be captured as 

private use. However, if a vehicle 

qualifies as a "work related 

vehicle", that same travel from 

home to work is not considered 

private use. 

To qualify as a work-related 

vehicle it can’t be designed to 

principally carry passengers (eg. 

a Ute will qualify as a work 

related vehicle). The name of 

the employer’s business also 

needs to be identified permanently 

and obviously on the 

vehicle’s exterior (eg. sign written). 

A common error is to treat 

a sign written sedan that is never 

used to carry passengers as a 

work-related vehicle. Finally, 

it needs to be a condition of 

employment that the employee 

stores the vehicle at home. 

Restrictions on private use 

should be agreed in writing 

and monitored to avoid FBT. 

For example, if an employee is 

restricted from using a work-related 

vehicle at the weekend, 

then the employer should periodically 

take the odometer reading 

on Friday afternoon and 

Monday morning, the difference 

should be the distance from 

work to home, and back. If documentation 

is put in place, but it 

is found that the employee and 

employer are ‘quietly’ ignoring 

the restrictions, the paperwork 

will be ignored and FBT is likely 

to apply. 

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When it comes to calculating 

the FBT payable, the quarterly 

equation appears to be simple 

enough: work out the proportion 

of days that the vehicle was 

available for private use during 

the quarter, and multiply this by 

the relevant vehicle value and a 

specific percentage. However, 

each of these elements can be 

easily misunderstood. 

There are certain instances 

where a vehicle is deemed to 

be not available for private use, 

and thus such days are excluded 

from the FBT calculation. 

Specific exclusions include: 

when a vehicle is stored on the 

business premises; if the vehicle 

is used for an emergency call 

between 6pm and 6am; and the 

employee travels out of town for 

business. 

Once an employer has determined 

the private use proportion 

for a vehicle, this is multiplied 

by the vehicle’s value. There are 

TAXATION AND THE LAW 

> BY HAYDEN FARROW 

Hayden Farrow is a PwC Executive Director based in the 

Waikato office. Email: hayden.d.farrow@nz.pwc.com 

two methods available to determine 

a vehicle’s value - either 

the cost price method, or the tax 

book value (TBV) method. The 

TBV method is the original cost 

price (including or excluding 

GST depending on the rate) less 

its total accumulated depreciation 

at the start of the FBT 

period. A minimum value of 

$8,333 applies when using the 

TBV method. 

Once an employer has chosen 

which method to use for 

a particular vehicle, they must 

continue to use the same method 

for that vehicle for five years. 

Typically, the cost price method 

is used from acquisition because 

the TBV method front loads the 

FBT liability. After five years 

employers should then switch to 

the TBV method, which should 

give rise to a reduction in the 

annual amount of FBT payable. 

Cue our next common error: 

Where there is a switch from the 

cost method to the TBV method 

after five years, the minimum 

amount of $8,333 is not an automatic 

option. The $8,333 minimum 

is only applicable where 

a vehicle’s TBV is less than 

$8,333. 

As a general rule, FBT is 

calculated based on GST inclusive 

vehicle values. GST exclusive 

values can be used, but 

the fringe benefit calculation 

percentage needs to be adjusted 

accordingly. The quarterly 

percentage using the cost price 

method is adjusted from 5% 

to 5.75%, and the percentage 

using the TBV method adjusts 

from 9% to 10.35%. A common 

error is to use the GST exclusive 

vehicle values multiplied by the 

lower of each applicable rate. 

Another misunderstanding is to 

apply the 5% rate to all vehicles, 

even when the TBV method has 

been used. 

FBT can be frustrating 

because it takes considerable 

time to calculate, for what can 

seem like a small amount of tax. 

But it is worthwhile reviewing 

both the availability on which 

FBT is being calculated and the 

calculation itself. There may be 

savings to be had or errors to 

be identified, both of which can 

add up over a period of time. 

The comments in this article 

of a general nature and should 

not be relied on for specific 

cases. Taxpayers should seek 

specific advice. 

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Free support 

offered for 

start-ups and 

innovators 

This is the first in a series which will profile 

Waikato emerging business and starts ups. 

Each story will look at the challenges each 

business faced and the journey they took 

to get to market. 

Waikato entrepreneurs, 

inventors and business 

start-ups can get 

valuable free advice and mentoring 

support thanks to a team 

of local experts. 

Waikato Innovation Park’s 

Business Growth Services team 

meets with around 400 businesses 

every year helping them 

grow and supporting embryonic 

products and services to reach 

their market. 

Led by business growth 

manager Craig Purcell, the 

team of six includes business 

growth advisors Peter Davey 

and Novell Gopal, project and 

business growth advisor Merran 

Davis, communications and 

administration assistant Sneha 

Tiwary and Waikato mentor 

manager Tony Kane. 

“Every one of us would have 

20 years’ experience in a variety 

of businesses, so we know a lot 

of tricks of the trade that we can 

share,” said Craig. 

Their clients include both 

established businesses and start- 

ups. Some are people with good 

ideas but in need of guidance 

or research and development 

co-funding, while others may 

be small-to-medium businesses 

with high-growth aspirations or 

with innovative new products or 

services they want to commercialise 

or export. 

“We’ve got a privileged job,” 

said Craig. “We meet with people 

who have new ideas with 

real merit and commercial application, 

week in-week out. The 

challenge is taking their inventions 

and good ideas through 

to reality and commercial success.” 

The services are free to all 

greater Waikato businesses, 

not just those based at Waikato 

Innovation Park. The Business 

Growth Services team is funded 

by the Regional Business 

Partner Network (RBPN) which 

is supported by New Zealand 

Trade & Enterprise (NZTE) and 

Callaghan Innovation. 

To date the team has engaged 

with more than 1000 businesses 

and have helped contribute 

more than $1.3 million to the 

regional economy through their 

support of new businesses and 

products. 

At least one-third of clients 

are outside of Hamilton, and 

team members travel at least 

once a month to Tokoroa, 

Thames, Paeroa and Tuakau to 

meet with people and talk to 

them about their businesses. 

A key part of their job is 

talking to people, listening to 

their ideas and assessing whether 

they are commercially viable. 

“Not every business idea is a 

good one,” said Craig. “That’s 

part of what we do – trying 

to get market validation – will 

someone want to buy it?” 

Bay man takes helm at 

Institute of Directors 

The Institute of Directors 

in New Zealand (IoD) 

has announced the 

appointment of Bay of Plenty’s 

Glenn Snelgrove to the role 

of interim chief executive, 

following the resignation of 

Simon Arcus. 

Mr Snelgrove is an experienced 

governance practitioner 

and serving member of the 

IoD and is currently a member 

of Council, chairman of the 

HR Committee and chairman 

of the Bay of Plenty Branch 

Committee. He also holds 

numerous governance positions 

including as chairman 

of the South Waikato District 

Council Risk and Audit 

Iod event at stadium 

The Institute of Directors Waikato branch held a 

function at FMG Stadium Waikato in November at 

which the founder and chief executive of Board 

Dynamics, Henri Eliot spoke about ‘Disruptive 

Technologies – balancing risk and opportunities’. 

The Business Growth Services team: From left, Craig Purcell, Merran Davis, 

Tony Kane, Peter Davey, Novell Gopal and Sneha Tiwary. 

Committee, Chairman of the 

Lake Tarawera Wastewater 

Steering Committee and as a 

member of the Lake Rotorua 

Rotoiti Sewage Steering 

Committee. 

IoD president Michael 

Stiassny welcomed Mr 

Snelgrove’s appointment. 

“As a long time contributor 

He said it was important that 

those with innovative business 

ideas or products to come and 

see them early on as it’s more 

likely that we can help them 

access co-funding or a Getting 

Started Grant. “If they come and 

see us later, sometimes there is 

not much we can do for them.” 

Their aim is to support businesses 

who have high-growth 

aspirations, are export-focused, 

technology-driven or have innovative 

products or services with 

real commercial merit. 

An initial ‘discovery’ meeting 

is then followed by an action 

plan that details opportunities as 

well as barriers to growth. 

Depending on the stage of 

the business or product, they 

Interim chief executive at 

The Institute of Directors 

New Zealand, Glenn 

Snelgrove. 

to the IoD and member of the 

Council, Mr Snelgrove brings 

Phil Taylor, Stuart Anderson and John Adams. 

can put people in touch with a 

business mentor, connect with 

resources or experts to expand 

their business or offer access to 

co-funding. 

“As a team we have great 

networks and contacts,” said 

Craig. “Between us there are 

very few questions we cannot 

answer.” 

He said Waikato mentor 

manager Tony Kane has great 

links through Business Mentors, 

which can be valuable for some 

start-ups. “Mentors are great 

because they can see the wood 

for the trees – they can be former 

CEOs and business owners 

who have gone through this and 

can offer valuable advice or put 

things in context.” 

a wealth of governance knowledge 

and valuable experience. 

His leadership will stand the 

Institute in good stead while 

we undertake a recruitment 

process,” Mr Stiassny said. 

Mr Arcus, who was the 

chief executive since July 

2015, but had acted in the 

role from November 2014, 

resigned due to personal reasons 

last week. 

Mr Arcus was known for his 

governance experience, advocacy 

and knowledge, having 

established IoD’s thought leadership 

hub, the Governance 

Leadership Centre. 

Ben Stevens and Henri Eliot. Robyn Hallam-Reid and Phil Caffyn. Andy Tremewan and Josh Roberts. 

Eligible businesses may 

qualify for Regional Business 

Partner co-funding through the 

NZTE Capability Development 

Voucher Scheme, which can be 

used to subsidise training and 

capability development. The 

vouchers enable key staff in eligible 

businesses to upskill in key 

areas, including strategic planning, 

marketing, capital raising, 

business systems, finance, sustainability, 

managing resources, 

governance and exporting 

– allowing access to around 800 

high-level service providers. 

CRAIG PURCELL: 

KEY MISTAKES NEW 

BUSINESSES MAKE 

1. “Not testing the market is 

one of the single biggest 

mistakes new businesses 

make. They are so focused 

on inventing, that they don’t 

spend time finding out if 

there is a market for their 

product or service. We say 

to people, talk to people who 

aren’t your friends. Do some 

market research. It’s important 

to get an indication of 

how your product will sell 

when it is ready for the market.” 

2. “A solution looking for a 

problem. Someone might 

have a great solution but they 

haven’t thought about what 

problem it solves.” 

3. “Too small a market. For 

some, New Zealand is too 

small and they might want 

to consider marketing globally. 

To build a business with 

only 2000 units projected 

to sell is probably just too 

niche. You need to research 

your potential market and 

how that stacks up against 

costs. Is the market even big 

enough to justify spending, 

say $25,000, to build a prototype?” 

4. “Too many advisors can also 

be a problem. I’ve encountered 

people getting advice 

from five or six different 

channels, and it can get confusing. 

I’d recommend to 

people to focus on getting 

good advice from just one or 

two trusted advisors.” 

People interested in getting 

advice and support for their new 

business idea, product or service 

can contact 07 857 0538 or businessgrowth@wipltd.co.nz 

For more information see 

www.wipltd.co.nz/what-we-do/ 

grow-your-business


Enterprising students celebrated at Awards 

Enterprising Waikato secondary school students will wing their 

way to Wellington in December after coming up trumps at the 

Waikato-King Country Lion Foundation Young Enterprise Scheme 

Annual Awards. 

Survive Out of School 

(SOS), of Waikato 

Diocesan School for 

Girls, took home top honours 

as Waikato-King Country Lion 

Foundation Young Enterprise 

Scheme (YES) Wintec 

Company of the Year. 

The business, which 

developed a smartphone app 

for students leaving home 

and school, also took home 

Waikato Business News Sales 

and Marketing Award. Smart 

Waikato YES Waikato-King 

Country co-ordinator Levinia 

Paku said SOS worked consistently 

well throughout the 

year, building a good business 

around a useful product. 

“The app includes lots of 

life-hacks and essential information 

for young people leaving 

home, helping them to develop 

independent and healthy 

lifestyles. They performed 

well in YES assessments and 

have networked with the right 

people, with assistance from 

their excellent mentor Seamus 

McCrosby (Kiwi Innovation 

Network),” Levinia said. 

YES involves students setting 

up and running a real business, 

creating, promoting and 

selling a product or service, 

conducting market research, 

planning, budgeting, taking 

and managing risk and turning 

problems into challenges. 

A second Waikato Diocesan 

School young enterprise 

team, Tihi Hipi, was named 

Stafford Industries runner-up in 

the regional awards and their 

chief executive Chloe Saxton 

clinched the University of 

Waikato Award for Leadership. 

Tihi Hipi specialises in artisan 

sheep cheese products with 

unique flavours, including 

native kawakawa and manuka 

honey. 

Fraser High School’s 

Be Somebody, specialising 

in vegan and organic skincare 

products, and St Paul’s 

Collegiate’s Crankworks, 

who developed a post-hole 

borer, have won YES National 

Excellence Awards and will 

join SOS at the national awards 

on December 6. The national 

awards remain top secret until 

the event. 

“These awards are a reflection 

of the very talented young 

entrepreneurs we have here in 

Waikato. 

“These teams are not only 

thinking outside the square 

to develop unique products, 

they are working hard to fulfil 

the requirements of running 

a successful business,” 

Levinia said. 

Other Waikato King 

Country 2016 YES Awards 

winners are: 

Staples Rodway Financial 

Award – Kiwicrosse 

(St Peter’s School of 

Cambridge) 

Smart Waikato chief executive 

Mary Jensen said she 

is thrilled with the calibre of 

entries this year. 

“All students can be 

extremely proud of what they 

have achieved this year. Young 

enterprise in our region is alive 

and kicking,” Mary said. 

Wintec Waikato-King Country Lion Foundation Young Enterprise Scheme Company of the 

Year: S.O.S (Waikato Diocesan School for Girls) with National Excellence Awards winners 

Crankworks (St Paul’s Collegiate), Be Somebody (Fraser High School), Foster Construction’s 

Graham Boswell and YES chief executive Terry Shubkin. 

EMA Science and Technology 

Award: Dallas Kete– H2O-o-YES 

(Matamata College) with YES chief 

executive Terry Shubkin. 

Waikato and Cambridge chambers of commerce 

Teamwork Award: Mana Burgers (Hamilton Girls’High 

School) with Nathan Orr and Phil Mackay. 

Foster Construction Innovation Award: Crankworks (St Paul’s 

Collegiate) with Graham Boswell. 

University of Waikato 

Leadership Award: Chloe 

Saxton (Waikato Diocesan 

School for Girls) with 

Cynthia McNabb. 

Waikato Business News Sales and Marketing 

Award: S.O.S (Waikato Diocesan School for Girls) 

with Alan Neben. 

Stafford Engineering Runner Up: Tihi Hipi (Waikato Diocesan 

School for Girls) with Kaleb James. 

Te Wananga o Aotearoa Sustainability Award: 

DECO (Putaruru College) with Angeline 

McCormack. 

Gallagher Group Commitment Award: 

Corallee Collins-Annan– Be Somebody 

(Fraser High School) with Keith Gallagher. 

Wintec Waikato-King Country Lion Foundation Young Enterprise Scheme Company of the 

Year: S.O.S (Waikato Diocesan School for Girls) with Klaus Reiter. 

Skycity Hamilton Community Trust Third place: JA-OK (Matamata College) 

with Roger FitzGerald.

EBBETT TOYOTA 


Ebbett Toyota 

comes to Morrinsville 

Ebbett Toyota has arrived in Morrinsville 

and nothing has been done by halves. 

The brand spanking new 

showroom and service 

department, attached to 

a large forecourt, is on a primo 

site at the entrance to town on 

the corner of Avenue Road and 

State Highway 26. 

Branch manager Scott 

Grenside, a Hamilton man with 

10 years’ experience in the 

automotive industry, is excited 

about the move by Toyota. 

“Getting the brand back 

into thriving Morrinsville is 

an excellent move on behalf 

of the Ebbett Group,” he said. 

“We have 11 staff handling 

a full five bay, high tech, 

service department; parts 

department and of course sales 

and administration. 

On the forecourt we 

carry a full stock of 

new and used vehicles 

including cars, vans, 

trucks, utes and SUVs 

OPEN DAY @ EBBETT TOYOTA 

SATURDAY 26TH NOVEMBER 

9.00AM – 5.00PM 

“We will even have proper 


BOUNCY CASTLE FOR THE KIDS, 

ALL DAY SAUSAGE SIZZLE & REFRESHMENTS, 

TOYOTA NZ SHOW CARS, 

LIVE RADIO SHOW 

Branch Manager – Scott Grenside. 

GREAT DEALS ON NEW CARS 

& OVER 40 USED VEHICLES 

PLUS SPECIAL GUEST APPEARANCE FROM VALERIE 

ADAMS BETWEEN 12pm & 1pm 

FREE PROTECTION 

PACK WITH ANY 

NEW PASSENGER 

VEHICLE 

(Floor Mats, 

Headlight Protectors, 

Monsoon Shields) 

FREE TOW BAR 

WITH ANY NEW 

COMMERCIAL 

VEHICLE 

85 Avenue Road North Morrinsville | 07 889 7678 

www.ebbett.toyota.co.nz 

Scott Grenside 021 508 766 | Nick Thompson 027 205 6816 

AU-7489396AA


EBBETT TOYOTA 

Ebbett Toyota Yard from on S.H 26. 

Ebbett Toyota 

comes to Morrinsville 

Comins Plumbing and Gas is your one stop shop servicing the 

Cambridge/Waikato area. We have a team of experienced and qualified 

plumbers, heating specialists, gas fitters and drain layers ready to tackle 

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Plumbing - Drainage - Gas fitting - Heating 

From page 55 

coffee-making facilities, when 

the machine turns up. 

“On the forecourt we carry 

a full stock of new and used 

vehicles including cars, vans, 

trucks, utes and SUVs,” said 

Scott. 

It has taken six months to 

finalise the build and according 

to Scott wild rumours went 

about in the beginning as to 

what was going to occupy the 

high-profile spot. 

Already the dealership is 

making strong headway with 

numerous new and used vehicles 

sold and great numbers 

through the after sales department. 

Scott has planned an open 

day at the site on November 

26 for people to come and 

meet the staff and see what the 

dealership has to offer at 85 

Avenue Road North. 

“As well as our impressive 

line-up of vehicles, there will 

be Toyota show cars on display, 

a bouncy castle for the 

kids and a sausage sizzle with 

refreshments,” he said. 

Ebbett Toyota in 

Morrinsville is the home of 

the New Hilux. Over the years 

Hilux has become a byword 

for versatility and reliability 

the world over. Here in New 

Zealand this rugged truck is 

the perfect partner for our 

go-anywhere, do-anything 

ethos. We’ve enjoyed a relationship 

with the rugged and 

dependable Hilux since 1976 

and New Zealanders have 


Proud to work with Construct Ltd on the Ebbett Toyota project 

Local agents for The Fireplace selling and 

installing Jetmaster Gasco fires 

Local agents for Central Heating New Zealand 

CONTACT US 

Office hours: 

Monday to Thursday 7.30 am till 5.00pm 

Friday 7.30 am till 4.00pm. 

Phone: 07 8237263 

Fax: 07 8237264 

administration email: Sharon - office@cominsplumbing.co.nz 

pricing/technical email: Joe - joe@cominsplumbing.co.nz 

80388 

constructltd.co.nz 

07 848 1101 

Proud to be the 

preferred Waikato 

builder and would 


Morrinsville Toyota 

on the opening of 

their new show room 

30454

EBBETT TOYOTA 


From page 56 

made it their favourite truck 

for an incredible three decades. 

Hilux delivers you the power 

to get things done and the fuel 

efficiency to go further. And 

with 12 4WD models in the 

range, there’s a rugged and 

reliable Hilux 4WD for every 

driver and every task. 

Our expanded 2WD lineup 

also delivers more choice 

than ever, with both traditional 

2WD utes perfect for the 

trades, and new SR, SR5 and 

SR5 Limited PreRunner model 

options which boast the same 

superior ride height as our 

proven 4WD range. Whatever 

your busy urban requirements 

might be, one of our nine 2WD 

Hilux models will suit your 

lifestyle. 

Whether it’s at work or 

play, this is New Zealand’s 

truck. 

Contact details are: Phone 

– 07 889 7678. Mobile 021 

508 766 

Staff: Nick Thompson (Sales) Daniel Carr (Parts Department) Scott Grenside (Branch Manager) Tracey Pearce 

(Administration) Matt Walton (Aftersales Manager) Brian Caulfied (Service Department). 

We pride ourselves on our efficent 

and professional workmanship in 

standing pre-cast concrete panels. 

Proudly in the support of 

Ebbett Toyota 

CUTTING EDGE CIVIL CONTRACTORS WHO SPECIALISE IN: 

40207 

s Commercial and Industrial Development 

s Subdivisions, Lifestyle Blocks and Retirement Villages 

s Bulk Earthworks s Drainage s Roading s Retaining Walls 

SCHICK IS PROUD TO BE ASSOCIATED 

WITH EBBETT TOYOTA - MORRINSVILLE 

Schick Civil 

Construction 

PROUD TO BE ASSOCIATED WITH EBBETT 

TOYOTA AND CONSTRUCT LTD. 

CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR BUILD 

Supreme Award Winners 

CCNZ - Waikato 

Construction Awards 

2015 and 2016 

80046 

30406 

Ph: 07 849 3111 • Fax: 07 849 4545 

18 Manchester Place, Te Rapa • PO Box 20463, Hamilton 3241


Publisher 

Alan Neben 

Ph: (07) 838 1333 

Mob: 021 733 536 

Email: alan@wbn.co.nz 

Sales director 

Deidre Morris 

Ph: (07) 838 1333 

Mob: 027 228 8442 

Email: deidre@wbn.co.nz 

Editor 

Geoff Taylor 

Ph: (07) 838 1333 

Mob: 022 694 1595 

Email: geoff@wbn.co.nz 

Production Manager 

Tania Hogg 

Ph: (07) 838 1333 

Email: production@wbn.co.nz 

ADVERTISING INQUIRIES 

Please contact: 

Sales Manager 

Jody Anderson 

Ph: (07) 838 1333 

Mob: 027 236 7912 

Email: jody@wbn.co.nz 

Candra Hansen 

Ph: (07) 838 1333 

Mob: 027 386 2226 

Email: candra@wbn.co.nz 

Joanne Poole 

Ph: (07) 838 1333 

Mob: (021) 507 991 

Email: joanne@wbn.co.nz 

ELECTRONIC FORWARDING 

Editorial: 

News releases/Photos/Letters: 

geoff@wbn.co.nz 

Production: 

Copy/Proofs: 

production@wbn.co.nz 

Subscriptions: 

kim@wbn.co.nz 

Waikato Business Publications Ltd 

specialises in business publishing, 

advertising, design and print media 

services. Waikato Business News has 

a circulation of 11,000, distributed 

throughout the Waikato between 

Tuakau and Turangi, and to a 

subscription base. 

WaikatoBusiness 

PUBLICATIONS 

12 Mill Street, Hamilton PO Box 1425, 

Hamilton, 3240. Ph: (07) 838 1333 

Fax: (07) 838 2807 | www.wbp.net.nz 

New Holden Trailblazer: 

Specification up, price down 

Details of the new Holden Trailblazer 

have been released, with fans of the large 

seven-seat Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) 

receiving two pieces of fantastic news. 

Not only has specification 

been increased significantly, 

but the price of 

the new model has been reduced. 

“This is a win-win situation 

for our customers, one which has 

resulted in increased specification 

but a decrease in price,” said 

the managing director of Holden 

New Zealand, Kristian Aquilina. 

“This will help position the 

new Trailblazer as not only the 

newest large SUV in the market, 

but also one of the most attainable.” 

The price of the new Holden 

Trailblazer LTZ is $62,990 

(+ORC), which represents a 

$4000 reduction compared with 

the outgoing model. 

However, when extra specification 

is considered, the overall 

value equation increases to a net 

gain for enthusiasts of more than 

$7000. 

Trailblazer debuts with 

a sophisticated new look, 

advanced vehicle and connectivity 

technology, the use of premium 

materials and a fresh design 

throughout. 

“Trailblazer will be sure to 

challenge the 4x4 SUV market, 

thanks to its significant engineering, 

feature and design upgrades, 

combined with competitive pricing,” 

said Mr Aquilina. 

Awarded a five star ANCAP 

safety rating, Trailblazer offers 

an array of active and passive 

safety features including additional 

driver’s knee airbag, 

Hill Start Assist, Trailer Sway 

Control and Hill Descent 

Control. 

The addition of Side Blind 

Zone Alert and Rear Cross 

Traffic Alert to the LTZ model 

contribute considerably to the 

overall safety story. 

The exterior of the vehicle 

has received a revised bonnet 

and now features headlamps 

with LED daylight running 

lights, a new front fascia and 

upper grille, but the biggest 

changes are on the inside. 

The interior has been afforded 

a full rejuvenation and is 

now more car-like in appearance 

and features a new MyLink system, 

while an 8-inch screen with 

integrated sat-nav completes the 

look of the LTZ. 

Developed in collaboration 

between Holden and GM Brazil 

and alongside the acclaimed 

2017 Holden Colorado, 

Trailblazer blends 4x4 capability 

with refined and confident 

on-road performance. 

Holden Australia’s Lead 

Dynamics Engineer, Rob 

Trubiani, said customers’ lifestyles 

were central to the engineering 

objectives for the new 

Trailblazer. 

“Trailblazer is such a versatile 

SUV, used for anything 

from weekday grocery runs to 

weekend 4x4 driving adventures 

so we had to ensure it performed 

in a variety of situations and terrains,” 

Mr Trubiani said. 

The extensive engineering 

improvements include a revised 

steering calibration, co-developed 

between Holden and 

Brazilian engineers providing a 

more precise steering feel thanks 

to a faster steering rack ratio and 

less turns lock-to-lock. 

Other key developments in 

Trailblazer’s chassis include a 

revised set of engine, transmission 

and body mounts to provide 

a more refined and composed 

ride which will improve drive 

quality, particularly while towing. 

Driver confidence is furthered 

with the variable steering 

efforts in Trailblazer’s Electric 

Power Steering system, allowing 

it to handle more nimbly and 

drive like a car. 

When all changes are considered, 

the launch of the new 

model sees the introduction 

of a clear naming distinction 

between the Colorado truck and 

Trailblazer SUV siblings. 

“The new model is a significant 

enhancement compared 

with the predecessor, so the 

opportunity was taken to initiate 

a name change to differentiate 

the two bodystyles,” said Mr 

Aquilina. 

“The Trailblazer shares similar 

improvements to ride and 

handling as its Colorado stablemate 

but we wanted to emphasise 

the significant enhancements 

it’s undergone, so a standalone 

name was appropriate.” 

The Trailblazer LTZ features 

a 2.8-litre Duramax diesel 

engine, delivering 147kW of 

power combined with 500Nm of 

torque in the automatic model. 

It features a 6-speed automatic 

transmission with Shift-on-the- 

Fly 4WD and is capable of towing 

a braked weight of 3,000kg. 

The Trailblazer proved itself 

a competent offroader when it 

was used as a support vehicle 

on the recent Colorado launch 

in the Lees Valley, which included 

a river crossing and off-road 

component. 

“The new Trailblazer has all 

the bases covered and delivers 

an unbeaten combination of outstanding 

features and attributes,” 

said Mr Aquilina. 

“We anticipate it will have 

huge appeal for families who 

desire the ability to get out and 

about to enjoy an outdoors orientated 

Kiwi lifestyle.” 

70129


59 

NEW MID-SIZE 

MALIBU CD PETROL 

from rsp 

$ 

33,990 

CRUZE EQUIPE 

1.8L SEDAN AUTO 

from rsp 

$ 

25,990 

Not new...But nearly! 

+on roads 

+on roads 

New shipment arriving soon 

COLORADO 4X2 

CREWCAB AUTO 

from rsp 

$ 

39,990 

+on roads 

Only four months old Ebbett Bulk Buy Breakthrough! Fantastic pricing on the RS Barina 1.4 turbo charged engine, 

6 speed manual or 6 speed auto $21,990, 17’’ Alloys, sports body kit, 7’’ colour touch screen, nearly new! 

THESE DEALS ARE AS GOOD AS THEY GET 

EBBETT HOLDEN 

Offer available while stocks last. Offers end April 30th 2014. Not available wit 

other offers. Private customers only. 

D6171M 

5965158AA 

204-208 Anglesea St, Hamilton, T 0800 07 838280 0949 888 

www.ebbett.co.nz 

www.ebbett.co.nz

400mm high x 260mm wide

Waikato Business News November/December 2016

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