Waikato Business News November/December 2021

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER VOLUME 29: ISSUE 11 2021 WWW.WBN.CO.NZ FACEBOOK.COM/WAIKATOBUSINESSNEWS 

Holi Boli 

meets Covid 

challenges 

with style 

Challenges of the global pandemic, a three-month 

lockdown in India and repatriation to New Zealand 

has resulted in opportunities for Hamilton-based 

entrepreneur Ana Wilkinson-Gee. 

Continued on page 2 

One of the North 

Island’s most opulent 

properties, owned 

by a prominent Kiwi 

golfer, is up for sale. 

SEE PAGE 21

2 WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS November/December 2021 

Holi Boli meets Covid 

challenges with style 

Founded by Ana and husband 

Daniel, Holi Boli 

is an ethical women’s 

clothing manufacturer and 

fashion label based in rural 

India 

The couple recently opened 

their first actual Holi Boli shop 

at 462 Ulster Street where 

you can find Ana designing, 

cutting, ironing and sewing 

the collection of quality, ecofriendly 

women’s clothing. 

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Inspired by nature and the 

iconic 50's feminine silhouettes 

and vintage features, Ana 

describes the collection as 

versatile and designed to transcend 

seasons, while taking the 

wearer from work to weekend 

to wedding. 

“Holi Boli collections are 

made from yummy earthy textiles: 

raw and organic denims, 

fair trade Indian-made cottons 

and feel-good linens, Ana says. 

$39,990 +ORC* 

THE 

BIG 

Before opening the shop, 

the Holi Boli collection was 

only sold online to a global 

market and via a few retail 

stockists in New Zealand. 

Opening a retail outlet was 

not the direction they were 

headed nor was their return to 

New Zealand part of the plan, 

but when the Covid pandemic 

first hit India a lot of mistruths 

were swirling around about 

virus’ origins. 

“Back in those early days 

(of the pandemic) the understanding 

in the village was that 

all foreigners carried this virus 

in their DNA. There was a lot 

of fear around it and we were 

asked by the authorities to stay 

in our house,” she says. 

The couple and two of their 

children had been comfortably 

enjoying life in an Odisha state 

village, a 12-hour train ride 

southwest from Kolkata for 10 

years, now found themselves 

in what felt like house arrest. 

“We weren’t allowed to go 

for walks, teddy bear hunts or 

exercise. I would sneak outside 

and hang out my washing and 

bring it back in under the cover 

of darkness,” Ana says. 

The New Zealand embassy 

had told them to sit tight as 

they had no way of getting the 

family out. 

After 45 days in lockdown, 

1 

the Australian Government 

offered them a way out and 

within 36-hours they were 

heading to catch flights from 

Kolkata back to New Zealand. 

Since her return to Hamilton, 

Ana has been working 

hard at keeping the label alive 

as well as ensuring her sewing 

team in India are paid. 

Unlike New Zealand where 

a wage subsidy and business 

support have helped many 

during the lockdowns, Ana’s 

Indian staff have no such back 

stop. 

“Our first concern, even 

while we were in MIQ in 

Auckland, was how do we 

keep all our woman paid and 

their families fed while we’re 

in lockdown.” 

Without access to her 

Indian stock and her staff 

unable to work, Ana had to 

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quickly come up with a way of 

making money to send back to 

her Indian team. 

“We looked at what we had 

in our hands right now, we 

don’t have the dresses that are 

in lockdown in India. There’s 

no way of getting those for 

who knows how long.” 

What they did have was 

a series of beautiful photos 

captured by two professional 

Wellington photographers who 

had visited Holi Boli two years 

prior. 

The idea for a thankfulness 

journal was born, featuring the 

stunning photos from India and 

quotes from her staff. 

And when Delta hit, 

another thoughtfulness journal 

followed; both endeavours 

made a big difference to the 

Holi Boli team’s financial circumstances. 

Holi Boli was founded on 

the belief that fashion can be 

a vehicle to empowerment and 

dignity for women. 

They employ local women 

and provide training, fair wages 

and meaningful employment. 

“When we first went to 

India in 2006, I was delighted 

to learn that it was quite common 

to have your clothes 

made even in the villages. I’d 

see these little treadle sewing 

machines as I’d peak through 

the curtains of a little rustic 

village house. I could see the 

machine sitting in there and 

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WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS November/December 2021 

3 

usually a father of grandfather 

pedalling away on it.” 

A fashion designer/dressmaker 

by trade, Ana realised 

her skills could be of value particularly 

for the village women 

who often had very little 

opportunity available to them. 

“I could give them a skill 

that they could use to better 

their life; they would be 

empowered and then be able to 

fight poverty themselves.” 

When they returned to India 

in 2010 with their children, 

Ana started teaching home 

sewing classes for local women 

and as the classes grew, so did 

the idea for Holi Boli and they 

began selling the garments the 

women sewed. 

They now employ 21 

women (and growing) and 

have trained another 170 in 

design and sewing. 

“Holi Boli has become an 

opportunity to make a real 

difference in the lives of local 

women and contribute to 

change in the fashion industry. 

We are proud to share their 

work with the world.” 

With the first wave of the 

pandemic forcing the family to 

uproot their life in India, Ana 

quickly began establishing 

the brand in the New Zealand 

market. 

She started in her Gordonton 

garage, cobbling together 

the tools she needed, and with 

help sourcing wholesale fabric 

from Waikato fashion designer 

Annah Stretton, Holi Boli was 

reincarnated in Hamilton. 

Working from her garage 

was a labour of love and it 

became apparent it wasn’t sustainable. 

The opportunity arose to 

take over an old mechanic’s 

workshop on Ulster St, transformations 

began in mid-July 

and Ana started working in the 

space while the fitting rooms 

were still being built. 

She is thrilled to have the 

large workspace, where she 

can showcase her one-woman 

production line to customers. 

She wanted the making part 

of the process to be very much 

part of the whole shopping 

experience. 

“Being an advocate for 

'slow, ethical fashion' I wanted 

to throw the doors open on the 

behind-the-scenes of clothing 

manufacturing. For too long, 

clothing manufacturing has 

been behind closed doors (and 

sometimes locked doors) in 

faraway places. 

“By exposing the production, 

I want to encourage people 

to think and develop an 

appreciation for the time, process 

and effort that goes into 

making our clothes and feel a 

responsibility for the welfare 

of the skilled women who 

make them. I want people to be 

able to see the patterns being 

drafted, the fabric hanging, 

drying in the breeze, see the 

fabric being cut and the pieces 

being sewn together.” 

Ana will be the first one 

to tell you she isn’t about 

fast fashion; employing local 

women and providing training, 

fair wages and meaningful 

employment is what you’re 

getting when you purchase a 

Holi Boli garment. 

“In those fast fashion, mass 

producing factories people are 

often treated very badly, not 

allowed toilet breaks and are 

working long hours for very 

little so that we here in New 

Zealand can benefit from being 

able to buy a cheap $20 t-shirt 

or $50 dress. 

“I want people to feel connected 

to their clothing and feel 

good, knowing that when they 

buy this Holi Boli dress, they 

have that personal connection 

with Sasmita, and know she 

got a lunch break and is able 

to feed her preschool-age son 

because we treat people with 

respect and she gets fair pay,” 

Ana says. 

With lockdowns easing in 

India, Ana has been able to 

get her staff back in the workshop. 

As well as keeping New 

Zealand hours at the shop she 

also works Indian time from 

3.30pm till midnight when she 

video calls Holi Boli staff for 

production planning meetings. 

With the ongoing disruptions 

in the distribution channels, 

Ana set up a team of 

contract sewers in Wellington 

to help supplement the supply 

flow from their Indian production 

house. 

“I got a bit overwhelmed 

with doing it all myself and 

connected with a cool lady in 

Wellington who has a business 

with eight ladies sewing in 

their garages. 

Ana and Daniel haven’t 

completely abandoned 

their life in India and hope to 

return to Odisha as soon as 

they can; their home and most 

of their possesions are still 

locked up and they continue 

to pay rent on the house and 

Holi Boli workshop. 

Ever the pragmatist, Ana 

is focussed on what she can 

achieve in New Zealand and 

is currently working on a new 

collection called Global Sisterhood 

to show at New Zealand 

Fashion Week in February. 

“Global Sisterhood is a 

celebration of our expansion, 

collaboration and growth 

that has resulted during this 

crazy pandemic time. We 

have seen our dreams come 

to fruition; to extend our 

reach and help more women 

in more hard-to-reach places. 

This special curated collection 

of garments is made not just 

by our team in India and New 

Zealand, but also our newly 

empowered teams at our ethical 

partner production houses 

in North India and Cambodia,” 

she says 

Holi Boli at 462 Ulster St 

is open Tuesday to Saturday, 

10am-2pm or visit 

holiboli.com. 

Photo credits Elizabeth 

J Photography, Hamish 

Johnson and Jared Buckley 

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Exciting new user experience for 

business management software 

Businesses can more easily schedule and track people and 

equipment with new business management applications powered 

by Magnetize and built by Company-X. 

Pukekohe-based Magnetize 

launched new business 

management software 

after Hamilton software 

specialist Company-X spent 

six months redesigning and 

rebuilding its existing desktop 

and mobile app from the 

ground up. 

We had development 

goals but just as 

important to us was 

a good cultural fit. 

We met with the 

Company-X team, 

they are outstanding 

and have exceeded 

our expectations, 

which are high and, 

as they say, the rest 

is history! 

The result is a vital tool 

for businesses struggling to 

schedule people and equipment 

with full visibility from 

quote to invoice. 

Before coming to Company-X 

for help, Magnetize 

had spent seven years and 

millions of dollars with offshore 

software developers in 

India building its feature-rich 

business management software. 

Users loved the features 

but found the desktop 

app overly complicated and 

cumbersome, and the mobile 

app unusable. 

Magnetize technology 

partner The Instillery recommended 

a user experience 

(UX) and user interface 

(UI) review and suggested 

Company-X as a technology 

partner. UX and UI designer 

Briana Christey reviewed the 

existing software and interviewed 

users concerning their 

experience. 

“We were talking constantly 

with The Instillery 

general manager Richie Jenkins 

about our frustrations, 

our desire to bring development 

back to New Zealand 

and to partner with the best,” 

said Magnetize chief executive 

Paul Lyons. “He said, 

‘If you’re going to do this, 

you’ve got to get Company-X 

onboard.’ 

“We had development 

goals but just as important 

to us was a good cultural fit. 

We met with the Company-X 

team, they are outstanding 

and have exceeded our expectations, 

which are high and, as 

they say, the rest is history!” 

Company-X senior software 

architect Luke McGregor 

examined the existing 

software and recommended a 

replacement approach as the 

best and most cost-effective 

way of resolving the usability 

issues and modernising the 

technology. 

“I found UX issues scattered 

across pretty much 

every aspect of the application 

that meant we would 

have to rethink every page,” 

McGregor said. 

McGregor recommended 

a replacement approach as a 

cost-effective way of resolving 

the usability and security 

issues and modernising the 

technology. 

“At that point, when 

you’ve got that much modification 

you want to do in 

that capacity, it’s cheaper to 

just start again,” McGregor 

USER-CENTRED: User experience and 

user interface designer Briana Christey. 

said. “That’s kind of a sad 

reality of it.” 

As a result, Company-X 

led a full product development 

process which resulted 

in the design and build of 

an entirely new, easy to 

use, version of Magnetize 

from the ground up. 

The project included 

exhaustive interviews 

with the Magnetize team 

as well as existing and 

prospective users. 

“Throughout the project 

we stayed focussed on the 

Magnetize clients and their 

pain points and knew that if 

we employed the best methods 

or the right methodology, 

we would be on the mark,” 

Christey said. 

In the redesign and rebuild, 

Company-X humanised the 

user experience. 

“Humanising the experience 

is about adopting a 

user-centred approach and 

thinking about real people, 

going about their workday, 

who will be using this software,” 

Christey said. 

“Sometimes we would 

role-play a phone conversation 

or speak aloud user stories 

to clarify the contexts 

we were designing for. At 

every stage of development, 

we went back to users and 

a group of potential users to 

get their input and feedback. 

Being user-centred keeps us 

on track to solve real problems 

in the best way. 

“In Magnetize, users can 

create a job in a few seconds 

because we’ve simplified the 

number of fields and clustered 

information into logical 

groups,” Christey said. 

Magnetize is used by a 

wide variety of industries 

including civil engineering, 

construction, earthworks, 

hire, rental and transport 

companies. 

Magnetize handles quoting 

and scheduling and is 

integrated with accounting 

software Xero for invoicing. 

It allows for the hosting of 

associated job-specific files 

like photographs, and health 

and safety documentation 

such as Microsoft Word documents 

and PDF files.

Magnetize: User-driven 

product development 

Users of Magnetize’s heavy equipment and 

machinery job enablement web and mobile 

app drove a new product development phase 

led by software specialist Company-X. 

Company-X senior software 

architect Luke 

McGregor insisted on 

talking to six users of the old 

version of the Magnetize web 

and mobile app about their 

needs before redesigning and 

rebuilding the software. 

McGregor wanted to hear 

about the problems the software 

was being built to solve 

first-hand. 

SIMPLE: 

Magnetize’s 

new time 

logging 

interface 

on a tablet 

computer. 

“One of the things that I've 

learned over the years is getting 

information secondhand 

doesn't always work,” McGregor 

said. “So, we've had clients 

that we've been able to consult 

with. 

“The first thing that we 

did was went to Auckland 

and interviewed six different 

Magnetize customers and 

potential customers from quite 

different businesses. 

“We talked through different 

issues that they were 

facing in their businesses, 

the software that they were 

using at the moment, the pain 

points that they had, and the 

ways that they talked and 

thought about the problems 

that they had. 

There’s nothing like 

firsthand experience 

as a software person 

of the customers who 

will be using this in 

the end. 

“There's nothing like firsthand 

experience as a software 

person of the customers who 

will be using this in the end.” 

Leading Auckland earthworks 

and excavation firm 

Dingo Groundworx particularly 

resonated with McGregor. 

As well as earthmoving 

and excavation, Dingo 

Groundworx supply diggers, 

named after the Marvel 

Avengers, Hulk and Thor, and 

is involved in landscaping and 

truck cartage. 

PROBLEM SOLVING: Company-X senior software architect 

Luke McGregor, right, discusses a problem with Cory McKenzie. 

“Dingo Groundworx does 

all sorts of things from digging 

a pool to foundations 

for houses,” McGregor said. 

“Their jobs are reasonably 

short. They started contracting 

out with a guy on a digger 

going and built their business 

from there. They also 

have a hydroseeding business 

where they plant lawns 

and spray grass seed on road 

verges,” McGregor said. 

“We talked to them 

about the kinds of issues 

they were having. 

“It was cool to hear the 

ways that they thought about 

their business, the kind of 

challenges that they had, the 

things that had become big 

issues, like health and safety, 

and how they had worked with 

existing software to try and 

achieve their goals. 

“It was cool to talk to them 

in person and hear the kinds of 

issues they were raising around 

scheduling their diggers and 

knowing where the individual 

diggers were on a given day, so 

that they have the right equipment 

on site for the right jobs 

at the right time, and the right 

people to deal with them.” 

Existing software focussed 

on smaller-scale operations 

did not meet Dingo 

Groundworx’s needs. 

About Magnetize 

Software from Magnetize 

that proved itself essential 

for enabling heavy plant 

and people in the reconstruction 

of Christchurch has been rebuilt 

from the ground up by Company-X. 

Magnetize was built 

by Pro-Drill Specialist Drilling 

Engineers to help the company 

keep on top of the rising workflow 

during the reconstruction 

of Christchurch. 

“Before we went to Christchurch 

we were doing maybe 50 

to 70 jobs per month in Auckland 

and within a year we had gone 

from 12 staff to 32 staff in Christchurch 

doing about 400 jobs per 

month,” said Magnetize product 

owner Scott Sherwin. 

“A lot of people saw the 

software and asked where they 

could get it from, which gave us 

the idea that other people would 

want it.” 

New Zealand software specialist 

Company-X redesigned 

and rebuilt Magnetize from the 

ground up in 2021 after a user 

experience review and a new 

product development phase 

involving user interviews. 

Pro-Drill Specialist Drilling 

Engineers uses Magnetize 

to manage its teams based out 

of Auckland, Wellington and 

Christchurch. 

“We started with a pad and 

a pen a decade ago, but now 

there’s no way that we’d be able 

to run our company without 

Magnetize. Drilling equipment 

operators went from scanning 

their logs every day, printing 

them out and sending them to 

the office, to doing it all on a 

mobile app while sitting in their 

truck. Boom!” 

Magnetize chief executive 

Paul Lyons said it was very hard 

for him to imagine running a 

heavy equipment and machinery 

business without Magnetize. 

“It's just horrendous and 

unthinkable, because of the 

stress of it," he said. 

Lyons said there was nothing 

else on the market like his 

company’s web and mobile app 

combo. 

DESKTOP DELIGHT: Magnetize’s new look job creation screen. 

Navigate the 

digital landscape 

with us


Dr Steve Hodgkinson CEO RuaTech 

Dr Grant 

Smolenski CSO 

RuaTech 

WAIKATO AGRITECH DEVELOPING 

COVID-19 immunity game-changer 

Innovative Waikato-based company RuaTech is poised to deliver 

virus-busting armour in the fight against COVID-19. 

The agritech company 

has proved the concept 

and lodged a patent, and 

is now seeking investment to 

take it to the next stage. 

RuaTech CEO Dr Steve 

Hodgkinson says the dairybased 

product is positioned 

for an unmet market need in 

science-backed immune support, 

something that is particularly 

relevant during a pandemic. 

“Beyond vaccines, PPE 

and social distancing, there 

are few options available 

for people wanting to 

reduce their personal risk of 

contracting COVID-19. 

“We are working towards 

a product that can provide 

science-backed immune support.” 

The eventual product, 

which could be an oral supplement 

or a nasal spray, is 

intended to safeguard people 

in high-risk situations including 

events, frontline work, or 

during mass transportation 

such as on trains or flights. 

Unlike a vaccine that stimulates 

the body to mount an 

internal response from the 

body, Hodgkinson says, the 

antibodies are being provided 

in the product. 

“You’re not asking the 

body to make the antibodies; 

the antibody is being provided 

in a form that is ingested. 

“The intention is that the 

antibodies simply coat the 

mouth or the throat and if you 

are exposed to the virus, they 

block the virus’ ability to bind 

for a period of time.” 

Hodgkinson says the 

technology isn’t new and 

the RuaTech team started 

researching and developing 

the product for 20 years with 

diseases like rotavirus, E. coli 

and candida in mind. 

“All the work we’ve done 

establishing the immunisation 

technology has been 

done and available to us to 

apply to COVID when we 

started the project in the 

middle of last year.” 

Still in the early stages of 

development, the company is 

also positioning it for on-farm 

pilot-scale production of the 

immune milk-based active 

Olivia Wallace Research Associate RuaTech 

ingredient of the product. 

The science mimics nature 

and can be compared to the 

way a mother’s milk protects 

the newborn. 

The recent breakthrough, 

made in collaboration with 

Dr William Kelton at the University 

of Waikato, has been 

in the design of coronavirus 

antigens effective at inducing 

antibodies in ruminant milk 

that block virus binding to the 

receptor that allows entry to 

human cells. 

The milk produced through 

the scientific platform will 

be used to develop the new 

immune support product. 

“Leveraging 20 years 

of research, the science is 

exciting stuff. However, the 

freedom that the end product 

could provide consumers is 

even more exciting – especially 

with so many Kiwis 

facing alert level restrictions 

currently,” Hodgkinson says. 

Not intended as a replacement 

for the vaccine, Hodkinson 

says, the product is 

designed to complement the 

vaccination by providing 

immediate protection in the 

short term. 

“What we have learned is 

vaccines aren’t going to do the 

job by themselves. 

“There’s a couple of reasons 

including that the effect 

of the vaccine wears off and 

we are entering a stage where 

we’ve got to talk about boosters. 

“The second thing is there 

are variants, we talk about 

Delta but there’s a son and 

daughter of Delta out there 

now called AY.4.2. 

“What we need is a platform 

that readily responds 

to these new challenges and 

that’s what we can do with 

this product. 

“With the University of 

Waikato, we’re able to rapidly 

design and test antigens for 

the next generation of virus. 

That’s a major strength of the 

platform.” 

But Hodgkinson also adds 

that potential applications of 

the technology extend well 

beyond the current pandemic. 

“There are opportunities 

to provide immune support 

against other pathogens. An 

obvious contender is Norovirus 

which regularly sweeps 

through close-quartered environments 

like cruise ships and 

retirement villages.” 

Now that the proof-ofconcept 

phase is complete, 

Hodgkinson says, it’s time to 

move ahead which requires 

funding and dairy industry 

partners. 

The research has been 

self-funded to date via a loan 

from Callaghan Innovation 

and RuaTech is looking for 

investors and partners who 

can support the next stage of 

development. 

“We are looking for 

funders and partners who can 

help us move into pilot-scale 

production and launch a product 

next year,” Hodgkinson 

says. 

RuaTech is offering collaboration, 

serious investment 

return, and global 

opportunities, this is the 

chance to bring to market a 

game-changing product that 

will help the world better 

manage COVID-19 and other 

viruses in the future. 

RuaTech (also known as 

Ruakura Technologies) is 

a research and technology 

company that uses robust 

science to develop products 

that improve people’s lives. 

A leader in the development 

of hyperimmune milk-based 

products, RuaTech’s experienced 

team specialises in 

protein design, biotech manufacturing 

(for antigen production), 

agritech, and dairying. 

About Steve Hodgkinson 

PhD, MBA (Dist.) 

Hodgkinson is a multi-disciplinary 

scientist with a varied 

background in biomedical, 

animal and plant research, and 

business development in the 

New Zealand science sector. 

His previous roles include 

National Science Leader – 

Growth and Development for 

AgResearch, Chief Operating 

Officer for the Centre of 

Research Excellence - The 

Kirsty Kraakman Senior Scientist RuaTech 

National Research Centre 

for Growth and Development 

(subsequently Gravida) 

and Business and Innovation 

Manager for a leading biomedical 

research institute – 

The Liggins Insititute. 

Since moving back to 

Hamilton, Hodgkinson has 

been founding investor, director, 

and CTO of Synthase Biotech 

Ltd and ran a successful 

life sciences consultancy 

before establishing RuaTech 

early in 2020. 

Hodgkinson has a high output 

of quality science and success 

in its commercialisation 

with over 180 scientific publications, 

five patent families, 

and multiple industry-focused 

technical reports.

Jagrut and Peter 

Rose Optometry providing 

eye care for over 50 years 

Rose Optometry, located in Lake Road, 

Frankton, has served the Waikato and 

beyond for over 50 years. 

Proud to be kiwi - Rose 

Optometry is independently 

owned and is 

affiliated with the Independent 

Optometry Group who support 

New Zealand owned practices 

throughout the country. 

What started as a small 

family-owned practice by Paul 

and Lynette Rose in 1969, still 

operates as a family enterprise 

with partner/optometrists Peter 

Walker and Jagrut Lallu at the 

helm, with their wives Kelly 

Parker and Jacqueline Rowe 

having key management roles. 

“At Roses, we pride ourselves 

on having the most up 

to date technology to better 

understand, diagnose and treat 

your eyes. Our wide range of 

services take care of all your 

visual and eye health needs,” 

Peter says. 

“Our current team of 20 

have a combined service of 237 

years, which is testament to the 

commitment and desire we all 

have to provide the best eye 

care solutions and ongoing care 

for our patients and customers,” 

Jagrut adds. 

Always at the edge of 

ground-breaking optometry 

technology, the practice opened 

the first myopia control clinic in 

New Zealand in 2009. Centred 

around research-based methods 

of slowing the progression 

of short-sightedness, the clinic 

now uses several different methods 

to achieve this, especially 

for young children with the 

condition. Instead of prescribing 

spectacles for children and 

adolescents who require regular 

updates to their glasses, the clinic 

offers contact lens-based procedures 

called Orthokeratology 

or Ortho-K and MiSight daily 

soft contact lenses. 

“Vision therapy for children 

who are experiencing 

visual difficulties at school 

can eliminate the need for prescription 

glasses. We can often 

rectify the issues with vision 

exercises to strengthen the 

eye muscles” vision therapy 

specialist Jagrut says. 

Rose’s specialty dry eye 

clinic can test for, diagnose and 

treat issues that result in dry 

eyes – an inflammatory or ocular 

surface issue. The dry eye 

clinic also covers watery and 

running eyes, as they both occur 

due to a breakdown in the composition 

of your tear film. 

“Contact lenses remain a 

popular vision correction choice 

for many of our clients” Peter 

says. 

“Rose Optometry is the 

home of the Rose K lens, a contact 

lens used in the treatment of 

the eye condition keratoconus. 

This lens design by founding 

and now retired optometrist 

Paul Rose, will forever be 

linked to our practice as we continue 

to lead in the treatment of 

this complex eye condition.” 

Complimenting the latest 

Hoya spectacle lens technology, 

the practice offers an extensive 

selection of high-end fashion 

frame brands – Faceaface, Tom 

Ford, Caroline Abrams, Ann et 

Valentine to name a few - and 

are the exclusive stockist for LA 

Eyeworks and Ahlem brands. 

“Lockdown last year 

prompted us to look at ways to 

build a more resilient business,” 

Jagrut says. 

“Investing in products 

and services such as online 

tele-medicine and increasing 

our online store product offering 

has delivered a much higher 

level of customer service to our 

clients. Our dedication to offer 

the best solution to all our clients 

and customers is the backbone 

of our business and we are 

looking forward to continuing 

this as we approach 2022.” 

Rose Optometry, 38 Lake Road, Frankton, Hamilton | 07 847 3195 

www.roseoptom.co.nz


CONVERSATIONS WITH MIKE NEALE 

OF NAI HARCOURTS HAMILTON 

To Owner-Occupy ? - 

Or To Invest ? 

We continue to have discussions 

with business people considering 

their options, around occupation 

and ownership of their own commercial 

premises, whether it be industrial, 

office or retail. The attractions for owner 

occupiers are: 

• they know the tenant (obviously) 

• they expect to see capital gain over 

time 

• they are paying their own mortgage 

• they have the ability to manage cashflow 

and rental, in what has been 

uncertain times 

What we have discovered through further 

discussions with some of these 

potential owner occupiers, is that they 

are willing to compromise on aspects of 

the premises suitability for their business, 

purely because they can own it. 

This may not be an issue initially, but 

can become one in due course, particularly 

for larger businesses who maintain 

a greater capacity to contract or increase 

their staff numbers, or for smaller business 

who may be restricted for space as 

they grow. 

The downside for owner occupiers are: 

• when purchasing, compromises are 

sometimes made, that would not have 

otherwise been made if it was a decision 

on leasing 

• they remain financially bound to the 

property, even when it may no longer 

be completely fit for purpose, due to 

size, layout or location etc 

• having different ownership structures 

Mike Neale - Managing Director, 

NAI Harcourts Hamilton. 

for the building and business can and 

often does, create conflict between 

the two different entities. There can 

also be a perceived conflict of interest 

when it comes to rent reviews and 

lease negotiations etc. 

That all said, everyone has to make 

their own decisions and balance building 

ownership with what is in the best 

interests of the business. NAI Harcourts 

Hamilton for instance, has made their 

own decisions independently. We lease 

a prime CBD corner location in a much 

more prominent building than we could 

otherwise have afforded individually, 

with an excellent Landlord in Stark 

Property, who maintains and manages 

the building. This allows us to focus on 

the most important aspect – our business. 

Individually and independently our 

team have decided on their own path to 

property investment. Over the years individuals 

have purchased a mixture of residential 

and commercial properties that 

tick their preferred requirements. Some 

are seeking cashflow, others capital 

growth or further development potential. 

To some location is important, to others 

it is the land area or business use. 

Success for 

Seeds of Joy 

Waikato secondary school 

entrepreneurs who created plantable 

celebration cards for a gift that keeps 

on giving, took home top honours at 

the Waikato Lion Foundation Young 

Enterprise Scheme (YES) Awards. 

Seeds of Joy, founded by 

Hauraki Plains College students 

Molly Smith Soppet, 

Charlette Macreath, Irene Irvine, 

Florence Somerville, Macy Jenkins 

and Zarnae Dowd, were 

named the Wintec Company of 

the Year at the online award ceremony, 

managed in the region 

by Smart Waikato Trust. 

The business recycles paper, 

repurposing it into 100% compostable 

and plantable celebration 

cards, filled with bee 

friendly seeds. From each card 

sold, a proportion of the profit 

goes to the NZ BumbleBee Conservation 

Trust. Seeds of Joy will 

represent the Waikato region 

online for the YES National 

Finals on December 15. 

Use of capital and its return on this, 

is another important aspect for consideration. 

In most instances there will be a 

far higher return on the capital utilised in 

the business, than the return on the capital 

tied up in the land and buildings – unless 

you happen to be a developer. 

“Don’t wait to buy real 

estate, buy real estate and 

wait” – T Harv Eker 

What may be a better solution, is to keep 

the two interests at arm’s length: 

• Decide on the best location and specific 

requirements for your business, allowing 

you to focus solely on the current 

and future success of the business. If 

and when the premises no longer suits 

those businesses requirements, you 

can then consider alternative premises 

options or even the possibility of your 

existing Landlord assisting with refurbishment 

/ reconfiguration, in exchange 

for a new lease. 

• Consider purchasing a commercial or 

industrial investment on its own merits. 

This can be around price bracket, 

location, use, lease covenants. This also 

allows you to spread the risk and make 

decisions without fear over a possible 

or perceived conflict of interest. 

Without compromising, this keeps everything 

at arm’s length and may well provide 

the best of both worlds - the best 

location for your business to prosper and 

an investment that ticks your investment 

boxes. 

2022 has been a challenging year, 

which 12 months ago we had not fully 

anticipated. It is with some certainty 

that I am suggesting next year will be 

no different, continued uncertainty and 

businesses having to be flexible in finding 

ways to manoeuvre the Covid environment 

and our new traffic light system. 

One just hopes that once we hit the traffic 

light system (Covid-19 Protection Framework), 

that we stay there and don’t all of 

a sudden find ourselves in another series 

of lockdowns. 

Property will continue to be an excellent 

long term investment, but should 

always be balanced against ones business 

aspirations. 

NAI Harcourts Hamilton 

Monarch Commercial Ltd MREINZ Licensed 

Agent REAA 2008 

Cnr Victoria & London Streets, HAMILTON 

07 850 5252 | hamilton@naiharcourts.co.nz 

www.naiharcourts.co.nz 

OTHER WINNERS ON THE 

ONLINE EVENT WERE: 

Foster Construction Runners Up - 

Monthly Collective, St Peters School, Cambridge, 

Baking Memories, Fraser High School; 

Smart Waikato Innovation Award - 

Joosh, St Peters Cambridge; 

Cal Isuzu Sole Trader Award - 

Ash White of Puppads.nz, St Peters School, Cambridge 

University of Waikato Leadership Award and CEO of the Year - 

Tara Lingard of Baking Memories, Fraser High School 

EMA Award for A Positive Contribution to the Community - 

JJ’s Adventures, Waikato Diocesan School for Girls 

Waikato Business News Sales and Marketing Award - 

Hive Hutt, Cambridge High School 

Waikato Chamber of Commerce Commitment to Business Award - 

Vivant by Candlelight, Hamilton Christian School 

Smart Waikato Sustainability Award - 

ReGrounded, Paeroa College.


9 

Lockdown Startup ‘& Again’ Wins 

$10,000 in Soda’s Rise Up Competition 

A business born in lockdown has taken out $10,000 in Hamiltonbased 

business growth ecosystem Soda’s Rise Up competition. 

Wendy Quatch, &Again 

Online thrift and consignment 

store & Again was 

created during lockdown 

when founder, Wendy 

Quach, returned home from 

London and wanted to find a 

solution to her clothes hoarding 

problem. 

“I'm super lazy when it 

comes to clearing out my wardrobe! 

I hoard way too much and 

promise myself I'll sell it online 

later, but I never bother. And if 

I wanted to consign my clothes, 

most stores didn't accept the 

brands I had so there was definitely 

a gap in the market,” 

Wendy says. 

“I wanted to create a modern 

thrifting experience that is 

accessible to women all across 

Aotearoa, to break down the 

barriers and make it easy to 

recycle. So, I combined my 

passion for fashion, sustainability 

and technology to create & 

Again.” 

Quach is the youngest 

founder at 26-years-old and the 

newest startup in the competition. 

“I am humbled and grateful 

to win Rise Up. I nearly 

didn’t enter so this is testament 

to giving things a go. 

I’m totally blown away.” 

The Auckland-based 

founder plans to use the 

$10,000 prize money on sales, 

marketing, warehousing and 

hiring staff to help her expand 

her business. 

Rise Up was created by 

Soda to encourage, support and 

celebrate female entrepreneurship 

in Aotearoa. 

“Women are heavily underrepresented 

in entrepreneur statistics 

– only 20 per cent of high 

growth startups in Aotearoa 

have a female founder. Yet 

every day at Soda we work with 

incredible female founders and 

business mentors, so we know 

first-hand that women have the 

talent, innovation and grit to 

become successful entrepreneurs,” 

Soda CEO Erin Wansbrough 

says. 

“We created Rise Up to 

encourage more women to 

consider entrepreneurship as 

a viable career, remove some 

of the barriers to starting their 

own business and to champion 

female entrepreneurship in 

Aotearoa. 

“All five of our Rise Up 

finalists have created high-quality 

businesses that offer sustainable 

and innovative solutions 

with the potential for significant 

impact in Aotearoa and globally. 

Soda is proud to support 

them on their entrepreneurial 

journey and already planning 

for Rise Up 2022!” 

Five inspirational female 

entrepreneurs were selected 

from nearly 100 entrants 

to pitch their business to a 

high-profile judging panel and 

online audience in November. 

Audience favourite & Again 

was also awarded the Amazon 

Web Services People's Choice 

award. 

The other Rise Up finalists 

were: Billie Jo Hohepa-Ropiha, 

founder of BDÉT; Chloe 

Van Dyke, co-founder of Chia 

Sisters; Gaelle Thieme, founder 

of Dust & Glow and Dr Angela 

Lim, co-founder of Clearhead. 

I wanted to create 

a modern thrifting 

experience that is 

accessible to women 

all across Aotearoa 

If your property project has hit troubled waters, 

our new shareholder will steer you right. 

Congratulations to the newest shareholder at Veros, 

Scott Bicknell, who leads our Hamilton office. 

Experience care as it 

should be, experience 

the Braemar way. 

If you’re up the river without a paddle, you’ll need 

a local who knows how to navigate you through 

difficult waters. 

Scott is an experienced property expert and 

development manager who knows how to make 

projects real. With years of experience and proven 

results over many years in delivering commercial, 

industrial and residential developments for our 

clients, Scott is the man for you. 

Congratulations 

on your promotion 

Scott. We’ll see you 

on Lake Karapiro 

very soon. 

Braemar Hospital is one of the largest 

private surgical hospitals in New Zealand, 

and it’s here in Hamilton. 

With more than 100 world class specialists, 

10 state-of-the-art operating rooms, 84 beds 

including 32 private rooms, at Braemar 

you’ll receive the highest level of care. 

Choose the very best. 

Choose Braemar. 

www.veros.co.nz 

07 838 2887 

braemarhospital.co.nz


Bring back Fonterra 

to the Waikato 

Now there is an idea. There 

is a catch phrase. There is a 

campaign! 

Do we want to become a 

dormitory region for Auckland? 

Is that the future our leaders 

envisage for us? 

Your Chamber has a better 

idea. 

Rather than sending our people to 

work in Auckland on a train why 

don’t we attract companies to relocate 

to the Waikato. A great example 

of that is the shift by the Sleepyhead 

group to Ohinewai. 

Substantially increasing the number 

of companies shifting from a heavily 

congested Auckland to the Waikato 

would create a significant lift to the GDP 

of the Waikato and as we all know, a rising 

tide floats everyone’s boat higher. 

Good businesses, creating employment, 

buying and selling goods and services, 

enriching our communities, will 

make the Waikato prosper and will add 

to our already vibrant region. 

Number one on that list should be 

Fonterra. 

Why Fonterra has their HQ on the 

Viaduct in downtown Auckland beats 

most people, including their farmer 

shareholders. Fonterra owns a decent 

chunk of land around their Te Rapa factory 

where our major construction companies 

would be happy to build them a 

superb and sustainable campus headquarters. 

With Perry’s stunning Te Awa Lakes 

residential and lake development a brisk 

walk or bike away, Fonterra executives 

would save a huge amount of time and 

energy avoiding the congestion and 

frustration of Auckland traffic by living 

there. 

Alternatively, there are some really 

great inner Hamilton City offices being 

developed by Fosters at Union Square 

on the corner of Hood and Anglesea 

Streets and by Stark Property in Hamilton 

East and another one on the corner 

By Don Good, CEO of Waikato 

Chamber of Commerce. 

Good businesses, creating 

employment, buying and 

selling goods and services, 

enriching our communities, 

will make the Waikato 

prosper and will add to our 

already vibrant region. 

of Ward St and Tristram St. 

With the impending opening of the 

Hamilton section of the Waikato Expressway 

and other arterial routes the 

commute to work for Fonterra executives 

from Cambridge, Huntly, Ngaruawahia, 

Te Awamutu, Morrinsville, Tamahere 

or even Ohinewai is minimal 

when compared to the gridlock from 

Remuera or Takapuna to the Viaduct. 

As a cornerstone of Peter McBride 

and Miles Hurrell’s campaign to reconnect 

Fonterra with its stakeholders, Fonterra 

needs to come back home to the 

Waikato, and have its senior team live, 

work, and play alongside its stakeholders, 

to really understand and connect 

with them. 

So here is our catch cry. 

Bring back Fonterra…back home 

to the Waikato 

Using the Christmas 

break to reset your 

business 

As we head into Christmas, it is time 

to reflect on what a roller coaster of a 

year we have all had. As you lock up 

your business and head into that special 

time of relaxing in the sun and enjoying 

your family and friends, switch off and 

recharge your battery. Once Christmas 

is over and things settle down, take time 

to think about the year ahead. 

In my opinion, there are 

two business dates to 

focus on: 

• 31 March which is the balance 

date of the majority 

of NZ (non-farming) businesses; 

and 

• 31 December being the 

last day of the calendar 

year 

My focus would be on 31 

December rather than 31 

March because it gives you 

three months to achieve your 

target results before balance 

date and it gives you three 

months as a lead into setting 

the direction of the business 

and finalising operational and 

capital budgets. 

It can be challenging for 

business owners to focus 

on strategy (direction of 

the business) while trying 

to manage the business on 

a day-to-day basis so that’s 

where the Christmas break 

comes into play. As your 

THE BUSINESS EDGE 

> BY BRENDA WILLIAMSON 

Brenda Williamson runs business advisory service 

Brenda Williamson and Associates www.bwa.net.nz 

head clears, you should feel 

calmer without the daily pressure. 

Leadership and direction 

are key so analyse how this 

year has panned out, what can 

you do differently, consider 

changes you would like to 

make and where you want the 

business to be in 12 months, 

five years and 10 years. Identify 

your stress factors and 

think about how you can 

reduce them. 

While we hope the worst of 

Covid-19 is behind us, if we 

look to the Northern Hemisphere, 

there is every chance 

there may still be rough seas 

ahead. So, factor this in to see 

what changes you may need to 

make to limit your risk. Your 

risk analysis should include 

possible staff shortages, maintaining 

business culture with 

staff working from home, 

inflation, rising interest rates 

and shipping problems. 

The idea of writing up business 

plans and strategy documents 

are often loathed by 

small business owners so perhaps 

do a work around - don’t 

worry too much about writing 

formal notes – just visualise 

and work on your thoughts. As 

things come to mind just note 

key words or ideas down on a 

scrap of paper or a notebook. 

Then once you are back at 

work, that will give you a great 

start. If you have no appetite 

to formalise your thoughts into 

a business plan or strategy document, 

it is easy to have this 

completed by someone else 

who specialises in this area. 

January can be a much 

slower month, business wise, 

and so why not use this time 

to make positive change with 

your team. By starting off the 

new year with enthusiasm and 

positive change, this invigorates 

the staff – they follow 

your lead. 

As the team come back after 

the holidays, work together to 

tidy the premises, review and 

update documentation, complete 

staff training and work on 

team communication. 

Spend January, February 

and March setting your operational 

and capital budgets 

in line with your thought-out 

strategy. 

Staff sometimes feel a bit 

flat once they return after the 

summer break but motivating 

them to get “other stuff” done 

works well for you and them. 

A summer lunchtime barbeque 

is easy to organise and there is 

nothing like the boss buying 

the team ice-creams one hot 

summer day! Happy Christmas 

– stay safe and be happy!!


11 

BOON adds colour to CBD 

Say goodbye to dull, empty walls as 

Boon Street Art Festival brings Hamilton’s 

brightest artworks to Liverpool Street in 

central Kirikiriroa. 

Armed with paintbrushes, 

spray cans, 

scaffolding and scissor 

lifts, this year’s local artists, 

Rachel Kiddie McClure, 

Ahsin Ahsin , Pauly B, Ali 

Selliman, Kieran Horner, 

Xavier Tapp, Brya Rose, 

Pounamu Wharekawa, Liam 

Bourton, and Craig McClure, 

set about reimagining the cityscape. 

The festival may have 

toned it down a little this year 

due to Covid uncertainties but 

that didn’t dampen the creativity 

of the 10 artists. 

“It was either, cancel the 

2021 festival, or take the 

opportunity to look at our 

whole project and come up 

with a new strategy,” festival 

director Craig McClure says. 

“Some of the decisions we 

could make quickly to put our 

best foot forward, was to work 

with Hamilton-based artists 

only, cancelling the public 

programme that included live 

music, art markets and hospitality 

events, and to increase 

the experience as much as we 

can for an online festival.” 

Thanks to the continued 

support of their sponsors, 

Hamilton City Council, Foster 

Construction and with the 

help of BECA, Boon was able 

to deliver brand new digital 

elements for a fresh festival 

experience the public could 

safely enjoy from the comfort 

of their bubbles. 

There’s a suite of digital 

offerings presented by local 

disco witch Patty Smack, 

including: videos of artists at 

work, ‘Paper to Concrete’ how 

to guides, competitions, epic 

art and merch up for grabs, 

and artist interviews sharing 

the stories and ideas behind 

their designs. 

Also being developed are 

360 degree high resolution 

photographs, similar to Google 

Maps Street View, where 

viewers can digitally experience 

the murals the artists 

will create, and visit murals 

around the city too. 

To catch all the festival 

action head to BOON 

Street Art Festival’s website 

(boonstreetart.co.nz), follow 

@boonstreetart on Youtube, 

Facebook, Instagram and 

Twitter or wander down Liverpool 

Street for a view of the 

mural masterpieces. 

Nau mai to council’s new maangai Maaori 

Chartered accountant 

Jaydene Kana has been 

welcomed to Hamilton 

City Council as a maangai 

Maaori representative. 

Kana (Te Kooraha marae) 

will sit on the Finance and 

Strategic Risk and Assurance 

Committees. 

After her inaugural meetings 

for both committees 

were held virtually due to 

COVID-19, council is looking 

forward to welcoming 

her in-person at the earliest 

opportunity. 

“I am proud to be a 

maangai Maaori for Waikato-Tainui 

and am honoured to 

serve my iwi as well as ngaa 

taangata o Kirikiriroa (the 

people of Hamilton),” she 

says. 

Kana is an experienced 

chartered accountant who 

has served in a variety of iwi, 

not-for-profit, public sector 

and private sector governance 

and leadership roles. 

She was born in Hamilton 

Kirikiriroa, but her career has 

taken her around New Zealand 

and the world, including 

eight years with the United 

Nations in Kenya, Kosovo, 

Lebanon and the USA. 

In 2011, Kana returned 

home to the Waikato and is 

currently based in Hamilton, 

working for Te Mahau 

– Te Tai Whenua, part of 

Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga 

(Ministry of Education). 

Her governance experience 

includes representing Te 

Kooraha Marae (Tahaaroa) at 

Te Whakakitenga o Waikato 

and the boards of Community 

Law Waikato, Volunteering 

Waikato and Volunteering 

New Zealand. 

She is also a member of 

the Finance, Audit and Risk 

Committees of Te Wānanga o 

Aotearoa and Te Kāhui Ture o 

Aotearoa (New Zealand Law 

Society). 

In September, she was 

selected to the Superdiversity 

Institute as a diverse, boardready 

chair and director. 

This initiative was a step 

towards ensuring New Zealand 

board tables reflect the 

country’s superdiverse talent 

and perform better. 

Mayor Paula Southgate 

said Kana’s skills, governance 

experience and Maaori 

perspective would be invaluable 

to council. 

“She will make an outstanding 

contribution and 

we welcome Jaydene very 

warmly.” 

Kana replaces Hemi 

Rau who resigned from the 

maangai Maaori position 

earlier in the year. 

Maangai Maaori were 

added to council’s governance 

structure in 2018 to represent 

iwi (Waikato-Tainui) and 

maataa waka (other Maaori 

and Pacific people living in 

Hamilton). 

There are five Maaori 

representatives who sit on 

various council committees, 

independently recommended 

to council by Waikato-Tainui 

and Te Runanga o Kirikiriroa. 

Waikato-Tainui and the 

maataa waka authority, Te 

Runanga o Kirikiriroa, under 

the signed kawenata with 

council, are seeking through 

maangai Maaori to ensure: 

‘He painga moo ngaa miro 

katoa I raro I te mana o 

te kaihanga – All peoples 

are valued, respected and 

flourish under the authority 

of the creator’. 

Jaydene Kana


Measuring Migrants… 

This year the Government tasked the NZ 

Productivity Commission to “investigate 

and recommend immigration settings 

that are fit for the future”. 

The Commission recently released its 

preliminary findings and recommendations 

and has invited feedback from the 

public to inform its final report in April 2022. 

We can appreciate that “measuring 

migrants” as far as their “productive benefit” 

to New Zealand is concerned can, in part, 

help inform the wider discussion on future 

immigration settings. However, the approach 

of the Productivity Commission seems to 

be all-encompassing and has taken a “bottom-up” 

approach as opposed to a big picture 

“top-down” approach. What is apparent from 

the report, and also from New Zealand’s historically 

“knee-jerk” changes in immigration 

policies, is that there is no clear long-term 

strategy for New Zealand immigration. Looking 

at immigration policy, we don’t know what 

the Government wants from immigration, or 

what they think about population growth, or 

what they think works for New Zealand. The 

report notes that the New Zealand immigration 

system is quite adaptable and that this is a 

good thing, but the lack of any clear long-term 

goals, and the economic principles upon which 

the plan to achieve these goals is based, is a 

fundamental issue needing to be addressed at 

the outset. Immigration in New Zealand is by 

and large a positive thing - it enriches the lives 

of those in New Zealand, includes the benefits 

of greater social diversity, increases cultural 

capital and associated intangibles that better 

places New Zealand in the globalised market, 

expands the national skillset and knowledge 

base, and fills significant workforce 

gaps in crucial industries. However, we cannot 

avoid the reality that ageing populations 

are a huge concern worldwide, with fewer 

taxpayers eventually needing to take care of 

more former-tax-payers. New Zealand’s population 

growth is slowing and immigration is 

Richard Howard 

the obvious (and only?) way to combat this 

trend, apart from attracting New Zealanders 

to come home. Furthermore, it is broadly 

accepted that population growth drives economic 

growth, however, the Government, and 

the report, do not promote population growth 

as in, and of, itself a good thing for national 

economic growth. Instead, population growth 

is mostly framed in the report as something 

which creates pressures on public services 

and infrastructure. It seems incongruous that 

the 65-page report dedicates two small paragraphs 

to the reality of a future in which fewer 

taxpayers are taking care of more former taxpayers, 

when common sense would indicate 

this should really be the primary driver of any 

long term immigration focus. It is unwise to 

assume the demand by migrants to come to 

New Zealand is insatiable and that New Zealand 

has the luxury to “pick & choose” who 

it wants. High house prices, high cost of living, 

low wages, lowering education outcomes 

and increasing social unrest and crime are all 

increasingly weighing on New Zealand as an 

attractive migrant destination. 

The Productivity Commission and the 

Government need to think very carefully 

about many factors in deciding how to reset 

New Zealand’s immigration policy for the 

future – the current report is not the best start. 

Tech ready for 

businesses and 

events to open up 

for summer 

Businesses and events will be set for 

summer, with the free NZ Pass Verifier 

app to scan and verify My Vaccine Passes 

now available to download, Minister for 

COVID-19 Response Chris Hipkins says. 

“New Zealand will move 

into the traffic light system 

(COVID-19 Protection 

Framework) from 

Friday 3 December, and the 

release of the NZ Pass Verifier 

app is another step for 

businesses and organisations 

to prepare for this next phase 

in our COVID response.” 

“The app helps give business 

certainty that they can 

quickly manage vaccine certificates 

and make sure they 

can easily check that their 

customers are all fully vaccinated.” 

The NZ Verifier app is 

available to be downloaded 

from the Apple and Google 

Play app stores. 

“The app is ideal for 

any organisation that needs 

to verify customers’ vaccination 

status. Hospitality 

venues, close-contact businesses, 

large gatherings, 

events, air transport and 

gyms are just some of the 

types of businesses that will 

need to verify customer’s vaccination 

status if they wish to 

operate in higher risk levels 

under the COVID-19 Protection 

Framework.” 

For customers entering a 

business requiring proof of 

vaccination status, their My 

Vaccine Pass will be scanned 

by the verifier app. The verifier 

will show a green tick recognising 

the official QR code that 

is embedded into the customer’s 

pass. 

It will show quickly that the 

person is fully vaccinated or 

has the appropriate exemption 

and can enter their premises. 

Importantly, the verifier app 

does not store a person’s data 

or see any information other 

than a person’s name and date 

of birth. 

Technical guidance for NZ 

Pass Verifier and additional 

guidance for businesses using 

the verifier under the COVID 

Protection Framework is available 

on the Ministry of Health 

website. 

People will also be able to 

call 0800 800606 for assistance. 

Further work is being 

undertaken to accommodate 

events that expect large volumes 

of people at a time – such 

as stadiums, festivals, or large 

tourism operators. 

Earlier this month, the 

ministry published technical 

specifications for My Vaccine 

Pass and its verification. Some 

companies will integrate the 

technology into existing digital 

journeys or pre-verification 

ticketing processes. 

Essential services such as 

supermarkets, access to health 

and disability services and primary 

and secondary education 

facilities cannot ask for proof 

of verification status and will 

not require a NZ Pass Verifier. 

“As My Vaccine Pass and 

its verification become part 

of everyday habits, we’re also 

asking people to keep using the 

tools we already have in place 

to protect us from COVID-19. 

Mask up, keep your distance 

and use your COVID Tracer 

app,” Chris Hipkins says. 

“Nearly 1.4 million My 

Vaccine Passes have been generated 

so far. For those who 

haven’t taken the step yet, we 

encourage you to do so.” 

The ministry is also publicising 

sector guidance for businesses 

to successfully transition 

to the traffic light system. 

Level 2 

586 Victoria Street 

Hamilton 3204 

Level 3 

50 Manners Street 

Wellington 6011 

07 834 9222 

enquiries@pathwaysnz.com 

pathwaysnz.com 

Everest 

PROPERTY 

• Commercial Property Investment & Finance 

• Business Investment & Finance 

• Residential Property Investment & Finance 

25 Ward Street, Hamilton everestproperty@xtra.co.nz 0274 742 326


13 

Cannabis purification deep-tech unveiled 

at world’s largest B2B cannabis event 

Hamilton-based deep-tech company Ligar and Canadianbased 

engineering company Maratek have joined forces to 

launch high-performance equipment for processing cannabis 

using molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs). 

The revolutionary cannabis 

purification 

system uses MIPs to 

selectively target and capture 

cannabinoid molecules 

to more efficiently, safely and 

economically produce a high 

quality, full spectrum concentrated 

cannabinoid extract. 

Unveiled at MJBizCon in 

Las Vegas, the world’s largest 

B2B cannabis event, the 

successful launch follows an 

extensive research and development 

programme, which 

includes numerous scientific 

breakthroughs, such as the 

development of ‘smart’ MIP 

beads. 

The MIP beads can be 

optimised to target and 

recover high-value molecules 

and remove contaminants in 

fluids across a wide range of 

food applications. 

The cannabis industry has 

been revolutionising itself at 

breakneck speeds over the 

last decade to automate and 

improve the process of cannabis 

extraction, driven by 

legalisation across the United 

States and Canada. 

The boom in cannabis production 

led Ligar, one of the 

Ligar team member 

Eirlys using a reactor 

first companies in the world 

to manufacture MIPs at scale, 

to apply its novel purification 

technology to cannabis 

extraction 

MIPs is a technology 

we are very excited 

about and can’t wait 

to see its applications 

not only in the 

cannabis sector but 

with all bio-actives 

around the world. 

The MIPs capture cannabinoids 

from crude extracts 

while letting the fats, waxes, 

lipids and contaminants 

pass through – eliminating 

the need for winterisation 

and distillation. The result 

is a high-quality full-spectrum 

concentrated Mipillate 

extract that contains all of the 

different cannabinoid types 

present in the crude, including 

the acid forms. 

Ligar’s managing director 

Aiden Tapping says the company 

is extremely proud to 

be bringing the MIP system 

to the cannabis extraction 

market in partnership with 

Maratek. 

“This is an exciting milestone 

for the Ligar team as it’s 

the first of a series of research 

and commercial projects to 

be launched to the market. 

We’re also excited to launch 

our new brand Mipillate - 

the evolution of distillate’, 

to describe extracts made 

by MIP systems – which we 

will develop as a distinct and 

unique product. 

Maratek president Colin 

Darcell says they are always 

looking for ways to push the 

boundaries of what is available 

by partnering with forward 

thinkers like Ligar. 

“Ligar’s unique extraction 

technology pairs perfectly 

with Maratek’s goal 

to provide a complete 

system for automation, 

optimisation, and scaling 

opportunities. 

“MIPs is a technology we 

are very excited about and 

can’t wait to see its applications 

not only in the cannabis 

sector but with all bio-actives 

around the world.” 

Maratek and Ligar have a 

shared focus on engineering 

and innovation. 

Ligar’s MIPs systems 

work alongside other technologies 

designed and manufactured 

by Maratek that 

complete the processing and 

extraction of crude oil and 

cannabinoids. 

Maratek’s strengths lie in 

ethanol extraction processes 

and look to limit solvent 

waste and increase efficiency. 

Ligar’s focus will remain on 

the development and manufacture 

of MIPs and the 

design of MIP systems. 

Ligar chief exploration 

officer Nigel Slaughter says 

the Ligar team has been working 

on its cannabinoid processing 

systems for over six 

years, with many thousands 

of hours of development 

time, trials, analysis, testing, 

system design, and regulatory 

compliance processes. 

“Our many pilot trials from 

benchtop scale to large volume 

processing, have helped 

us design and manufacture 

systems that optimise MIP 

performance and are automated 

for simple operation. 

We’ve also demonstrated we 

can manufacture the MIPs 

beads consistently at scale 

using methods that maintain 

international food contact 

compliance approvals. 

It’s exciting to have developed 

a MIPs process for cannabis 

extract purification that 

is more space, cost, and labour 

efficient than traditional winterisation 

and distillation systems 

– preserving cannabinoid 

acids and terpenes in the 

extract while leaving behind 

pesticide and heavy metal 

contaminants.” 

The reusability of the 

MIPs has been tested 

over thousands of process 

cycles. Each 1mm MIP 

bead in the system contains 

around ten quintillion 

Ligar CEO Aiden Tapping 

(100,000,000,000,000,000) 

molecular binding sites, 

all shaped like the target 

molecule. 

The MIP beads trap molecules 

and filter them out, and 

then the beads get flushed out 

and reused. 

“A decade ago, we started 

with some fantastic science 

and a concept that worked 

in the lab – with powders 

that are difficult to use – and 

have progressed through to a 

commercial deep-tech product 

manufactured in a userfriendly 

bead format. 

“We’re excited for the 

future as we have a highly 

versatile MIPs platform technology 

for capturing and 

removing molecules for a 

wide range of applications. 

“Ligar is already gearing 

up to launch the next application 

of its technology which, 

for the first time, allows 

winemakers to effectively 

remediate wine tainted by 

wildfire smoke, specifically 

removing the smoke molecules 

while retaining the 

positive characteristics,” 

Tapping says. 

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Get in touch today, to find out more about 

BUILDING SUSTAINABLY 

WITH PAUA. 

Procuta Associates 

Urban + Architecture 

Contact us 07 839 6521 

www.pauaarchitects.co.nz

IN OUR BACKYARD 

Introducing Riverside 

Adventures Waikato 

September 2021 saw the launch and re-brand of Riverside 

Adventures Waikato. Riverside Adventures Waikato can be found 

on Horahora Road, with a beautiful river side spot on the edge of 

Lake Karapiro. 

You may have known 

this family-owned 

business as Lake District 

Adventures run by Steve 

and Sally Hastie, along with 

Sally’s parents Mike and 

Ann Paget. With an impending 

move of location (just down 

the road!) it was necessary to 

refine their branding which 

better reflects who they are and 

the adventures they provide. 

Riverside Adventures 

Waikato certainly encapsulates 

this and as the new logo 

shows, key landscapes features 

have been intertwined into the 

design, bridging the divide 

from the land to river flowing 

through the illustration. 

Unique, just like a fingerprint. 

Same tours, same team – 

new name and a new look with 

some very exciting new service 

offerings on the horizon for 

2022. In October, the Waikato 

Business News featured Riverside 

Adventures Waikato 

and their authentic outdoor 

experiences. Applauding this 

locally-owned company and 

their business strategy towards 

local tourism in a setting and 

sector we all know has suffered 

through the COVID-19 

pandemic. 

This article highlights how 

this business is offering adventures 

where locals can connect 

with the Waikato River 

in a way they never thought 

possible. 

Riverside Adventures 

Waikato have options to keep 

the whole family entertained. 

Guided Kayak and Bike tours 

with the incredible Twilight 

Glow worm Kayak Tour being 

the ‘jewel in the crown’. 

The Horahora Road location is 

ideal for access to the Waikato 

River Trails and our shuttle 

service can also provide transport 

options along the Hauraki 

Rail Trail and the Te Awa River 

Ride. Don’t have the gear? No 

problem - Riverside Adventures 

Waikato have it all available 

to hire. 

You are in safe hands with 

this family-owned business, 

in addition to the teams’ local 

knowledge and passion for 

the land, the local guides and 

team at Riverside Adventures 

Waikato have extensive safety 

training and are looking forward 

to showing you around. 

Discover the Waikato River 

Minutes from Cambridge yet 

a world of its own, our spot 

along the Waikato River is 

surrounded by lush bush and 

overlooked by the magnificent 

Maungatautari. 

At Riverside Adventures we 

want you to savour the beauty 

of our picturesque backyard. 

Our guided tours are designed 

to take you on a physical and 

spiritual journey as you explore 

the Waikato with us. 

Get out of the office 

and into a Kayak! 

Get your team out and about 

with a Riverside Adventures 

Waikato End of Year celebration! 

You can book a Daytime 

Canyon Tour or Twilight Kayak 

Glowworm Tour both come 

with a free pre-tour Kiwi BBQ. 

WE can create a bespoke experience 

for you instead by 

creating an amazing race, specifically 

for your team, it’s the 

perfect way to celebrate with 

your team this Christmas. 

If you are interested in a 

Christmas function the team 

wont forget, let Riverside Adventures 

Waikato know.



15 

Get scooping with Raglan Gelato 

The warm weather is on the way and Raglan Gelato is delivering 

the taste of summer packed in a tub. 

The creamy creation of 

foodies Lars and Hanna 

Allouard, the couple have 

been on a learning journey in 

their foray into food production. 

No strangers to trialing small 

food enterprises, last year they 

dipped their toes into making 

natural dried snacks made from 

seasonal fruit as Blissful Bites, 

which met with some success. 

“We had the idea and turned 

it into a reality quite quickly. 

We really liked the product but 

some of the things didn’t really 

take off. We had lots of positive 

feedback but it proved not to 

be everyone’s cup of tea,” Lars 

says. 

After a year of Blissful Bites’ 

production and decisions to be 

made about investing in a larger 

dehydrator, the couple decided 

the business wasn’t worth the 

investment. Still keen to make 

a go of self-employment, they 

made the decision to take the 

leap into gelato making and 

realise a long-term goal of Lars 

“Making gelato is a very old 

dream of mine. I remember 12 

Raglan Gelato maker Lars Allouard 

years ago on a trip to Wellington 

and I bought a shirt in an 

op shop. I thought to myself 

that it looked like something an 

ice cream vendor would wear,” 

Lars laughs. 

By June this year, Lars was 

researching and searching for 

a gelato machine, and with little 

luck in New Zealand Lars 

headed to Australian online 

marketplace Gumtree. 

“I was lucky enough to find 

a secondhand machine from a 

pizzeria/ice cream parlour that 

was closing down. They are 

incredibly expensive, about 

$55,000 new, so I was happy to 

buy second hand.” 

The couple used their personals 

savings to purchase the 

$15,000 Italian-made Bravo 

machine and had it shipped to 

New Zealand. 

By October, they were making 

their first batches of gelato 

in the machine at the commercial 

kitchen at the Raglan Old 

School Arts Centre. 

“The first few batches were 

far from perfect. You have to get 

used to the machine and all the 

settings. There was a lot of trial 

and error; sometimes it was too 

frozen or too runny. Quite a few 

batches went down the drain,” 

he laughs. 

Blending traditional gelato-making 

with products from 

around Whaingaroa, the couple 

use Raglan-based Dreamview 

milk and locally-sourced fruit, 

and they hope to keep the most 

of the flavours as close to home 

as possible. 

“We’re going to work with 

the season as much as possible. 

It’s citrus season at the moment 

so we are juicing as much as 

we can and freezing so we can 

make citrus sorbets or gelatos 

throughout the year,” Hanna 

says. 

Lars is the brains behind 

the recipes and it takes a lot 

of mathematical ability to get 

the right combination of ingredients. 

His love for the gelato-making 

process is so intense, 

he even attended online classes 

at the Carpigiani Gelato university 

in Bologna, Italy. 

“They have the maestros of 

teaching gelato-making in the 

old way. Without additives and 

without shortcuts,” he says. 

Such is his dedication to the 

creating authentic gelato, Lars 

did the course on Italian time 

and for three weeks he went 

online from 7pm to 3am. 

Raglan Gelato lars, 

Hannah and Adam 

Allouard 

His gelato instructor 

Gianluca Degani is famous 

in Italy for his high-quality 

gelato and writes articles for a 

bimonthly publication on artisan 

gelato. 

“He taught me a lot and even 

now if I have a question, I just 

send him an email and he gets 

back to me the next day,” Lars 

says. 

Despite starting their business 

in Level 3, the couple were 

determined to get their product 

on the market and sold their first 

gelato tubs via contactless sales 

at the end of October. 

They are also waiting for a 

gelato cart to be delivered from 

Italy, which will keep their frozen 

treats at the ideal temperature 

for selling scooped ice 

cream at the markets. 

Lars dreams of a fleet of 

gelato carts around the Waikato 

with staff taking care of the selling 

side of the business so he 

can concentrate on the gelato 

making. They also see the 

potential for the carts to be hired 

for occasions such as weddings, 

birthdays or corporate events. 

Since hitting the Raglan market, 

they have been approached 

by other local businesses to 

collaborate; a Raglan Coconut 

Yoghurt gelato is in the pipeline 

and a espresso gelato using 

locally roasted Morning Glory 

coffee beans. 

The local supermarkets 

have also contacted the couple 

to stock their product, but Lars 

says he doesn’t have the capacity 

yet to keep up with the supermarket 

demand. 

“Unfortunately, it’s too 

soon. I need a bigger machine. 

For now, small steps - they’re 

quite big steps for us already, 

but I would love to be 

in supermarkets one day.” 

While Hanna’s background 

is in the food and hospitality 

sector, Lars has come to the 

food industry with a passion for 

flavourful food. 

“I did cabinetmaking for so 

many years that it was time for 

a change. And I like food better 

than I like furniture,” Lars 

laughs. 

“Lars is a really good chef, 

he really knows how to put flavours 

together,” Hanna adds. 

Originally from Germany, 

Lars had first travelled to New 

Zealand in 2008 as a backpacker 

and fell in love with the country. 

He was particularly enamoured 

with Kaikoura, Raglan and the 

Corromandel. 

Returning to New Zealand in 

2016 with French-born Hanna, 

they landed in Christchurch and 

made their way to Kaikoura 

first. 

“We were there for two days; 

the surf was flat and the weather 

was no good so we decided to 

carry on.” 

The day after they left the 

Kaikoura earthquake hit and the 

option to settle in Kaikoura was 

taken off the list. 

After visiting the Coromandel 

and Raglan, they decided 

Raglan was a better fit for the 

lifestyle they were seeking. 

The couple are kept super 

busy with their new baby Adam, 

but say he is very relaxed and 

fits in with their gelato-making 

venture. As well as gelato flavours 

of pecan, chocolate, pistachio, 

vanilla and more, they are 

also making sorbets including 

mango, grapefruit-ginger and 

raspberry-beetroot sorbet. 

All the flavour profiles are 

natural and come from the fruit, 

vanilla beans, chocolate, nuts 

and other ingredients. 

“If you look on the back 

of the supermarket ice cream 

there are so many ingredients 

there which we don’t touch. It 

also has a lot of air incorporation 

which means it is ready to 

scoop,” he says. 

Like a good wine, Lars 

explains, gelato needs time out 

of the freezer before it’s ready 

to scoop. 

“It’s a good sign if you can’t 

get your spoon into it when 

it has come straight from the 

freezer. You need to let it sit for 

about five minutes before you 

enjoy the first scoop” he says. 

For contactless sales visit the 

Raglan Old School Arts Centre 

every Saturday from 12-5pm. 

To find out more check them 

out on Facebook and Instagram 

@raglangelato



Raglan Food Co Turns 7 

Raglan Food Co celebrates their 7th year in business this 

December, and what a year it’s been! Not only have they 

become the first Certified B Corporation in Raglan, but it’s also 

been a full year in their new, custom-built factory - only a three 

minute drive from town in the Nau Mai Business Park. 

With so much more 

space and equipment, 

they’ve been 

running popular tours for fans 

wanting a look behind the 

scenes, and have also been 

busy creating & launching 

multiple new ranges. 

Well-known for their coconut 

yoghurt, Raglan Food 

Co ventured into new territory 

in February 2021, with 

the launch of their kefir 

smoothies. 

A delicious probiotic drink 

available in four different 

flavours, and all with added 

vitamin C to help boost 

immunity. 

They soon proved popular, 

with the natural variety taking 

out the ‘Drink Champion 

Award’ in the 2021 Outstanding 

Food Producer Awards, 

and the other flavours winning 

silver and gold medals! 

They’ve also ventured beyond 

coconut-based products 

for the first time ever, and 

made it onto the condiment 

shelf in October with their 

latest creations; Vegan Mayo 

& Vegan Aioli. Continuing 

with the ethos of using premium 

quality ingredients, 

they believe they’ve made 

the best tasting Vegan Mayo 

& Aioli you can find, created 

without any preservatives or 

numbers, and 100% egg-free. 

Having safely maneuvered 

through another year 

of Covid-19, the Raglan Food 

Co team have been working 

hard to keep up with demand 

and to focus on bringing 

more plant-based options to 

New Zealand and abroad. 

You’ll find their products in 

over 750 stores worldwide, 

having recently launched in 

Shanghai, some of the Pacific 

Islands and the United Arab 

Emirates this year, in addition 

to existing stockists in Hong 

Kong and Singapore. 

With the business is getting 

busier each year, it’s 

been even more important to 

keep focusing on the wellbeing 

of their team, community, 

and the environment. 

Raglan Food Co continues 

to support local charities & 

fundraisers, and has given out 

$5,000 in local community 

grants this year. They’ve also 

maintained their Carbon Zero 

Certified status for the third 

year running. Having collected 

over 650,000 pieces of 

plastic from beaches around 

the country, they’re getting 

closer and closer to their One 

Million Pieces goal, while 

rewarding individuals and 

schools with free products for 

their efforts! 

Co-founders Seb & 

Tesh know that the business 

wouldn’t be where it is 

today without the support 

of their fans and stockists. 

In 2022 you’ll see Raglan 

Food Co continue with 

their goal of accelerating the 

shift to a plant-based diet, 

creating delicious plantbased 

alternatives for you to 

enjoy along the way! 

Having safely 

maneuvered 

through another 

year of Covid-19, 

the Raglan Food 

Co team have 

been working hard 

to keep up with 

demand and to 

focus on bringing 

more plant-based 

options to New 

Zealand and abroad.



17 

Eatery \ 

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MELODY 

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hello@weaveeatery.co.nz 

weaveeatery.co.nz

Ernest is a lot more than carefully crafted food and drink: it is a Late-Night Lounge created 

by us for you. Owned and operated by Craig Loveday, with over 12 years in hospitality he is 

pleased to bring his vision to life in Ernest. 

Where you go for one drink and end up staying all night. Settle in and let the music and 

atmosphere envelop you. Our team will take care of the rest Wednesday to Saturday 4pm 

till late. Ernest brings a unique range of bar bites and large plates produced by Haedyn 

Woollaston, making it the perfect spot for dinner or just drinks with friends. 

Ernest is not a bar, it’s not a restaurant it is a Late Night Lounge. 

30 ALEXANDER STREET, HAMILTON 

Not your ordinary bar


19 

If you want to build sustainably, 

the choice is easy. 

Fosters are the only commercial construction 

company in New Zealand to hold both top Toitū 

sustainability certifications. 

Foster’s will achieve a 

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use, less waste and more 

efficient transport solutions. 

We will reduce emissions 

from waste-to-landfill by 

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We are committed to 

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We have experience in the 

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Associates are ready now to deliver elevated service to exceed your 

ctations. 

real 

20 WAIKATO BUSINESS 

estate 

NEWS November/December 2021 

service is do 

Hamilton property listings escalate during 

er new Sales Associates announcements are imminent. If you are a 

calibre sales professional, we welcome your enquiry as we continue to 

October but sections remain scarce 

it our boutique team. 

Spring has seen new residential property listings in Hamilton jump 

up to over 614 listed for sale according to realestate.co.nz, but 

Real estate s 

Recognised 

empty sections remain hard to come by for buyers. 

as some of the W 

al estate sold by real experts, come and talk to us. 

Lodge Real Estate managing 

director Jeremy 

O’Rourke says on any 

given day you can count on 

hing compares. 

one hand the number of empty 

sections available within the 

Hamilton city boundaries, 

with the scarcity of sections 

particularly hitting the north 

of the city. 

“While there are plenty 

of house and land packages 

are excited to join New Zealan 

available in Hamilton, it’s expectations over $650,000 Introducing a new era Waikato real estate: the very best in 

difficult to secure a section for each.” 

This instant demand 

where a buyer can build their The Real Estate Institute 

the industry has arrived. 

own dream home. 

of New Zealand (REINZ) shows what people 

“Last week we released announced last month that 

recognised 

1876A River Road to market, 

a seven-section prop- 

house price was $829,000 for piece of land in the 

the October 2021 median are New looking Zealand for - 

brand 

Sotheby’s a International Realty 

and 

offers a premium alternative 

interna 

that is 

erty that will be sub-divided Hamilton. 

locally based, with enormous national and global reach. 

in sought-after Flagstaff. O’Rourke notes that right location, where 

Within hours we had 110 properties over $1 million 

people register their interest continue to see the most 

they We are can the build perfect to their agency to represent mid- to high-end Waikato property, 

own specifications. 

delivering an exceptional level of expertise and premium sales results. 

Russell and Angela Thom 

O’Rourke says that rising 

Our first Hamilton office opens soon in Tamahere Village, and our foundation 

Sales Associates are ready now to deliver elevated service to exceed your 

With top-notch 

expectations. 

real estate negotiation service is done ex 

Further new Sales Associates announcements are imminent. If you are a 

high-calibre sales professional, we welcome your enquiry as we continue to 

for the upcoming auctions. 

These sections are prime, flat 

land ranging from 450sqm 

to 503sqm – there’s nothing 

like them in the city at the 

moment. 

“This instant demand 

shows what people are looking 

for - a piece of land in the 

right location, where they can 

build to their own specifications,” 

O’Rourke says. 

With the auction for 1876A 

River Road scheduled for Friday 

26 November, O’Rourke 

explains it will be a first of its 

kind in Hamilton. 

“The sections will be sold 

on the basis that the highest 

bidder chooses the lot they 

want, rather than the lots 

being named and auctioned 

separately. The sale price 

of these sections will be a 

good barometer for where 

pricing is currently landing 

for Hamilton sections, with 

activity, but the general 

increase in spring listings 

has meant Lodge’s midweek 

auctions are booked out for 

the rest of November, with a 

second day per week being 

scheduled. 

“$1.5 million in the northeast 

of Hamilton doesn’t buy 

the same calibre of property 

it would have a year ago, and 

properties in the seven-figure 

range are seeing up to ten 

bidders registered ahead of 

going to auction. 

“While that end of the 

market has continued its 

hot streak, properties under 

$850,000 have cooled off 

with first home buyers 

becoming less active at auction 

and investors looking for 

new builds.” 

recruit our boutique team. 

interest rates and barriers 

to bank funding could be to 

blame for this, with property 

market forecasts on the former 

‘spooking’ first home 

buyers. 

“We’re also preparing 

ourselves for what might 

happen once the Auckland 

border re-opens. Our agents 

have been working with several 

Aucklanders who send 

a Hamilton-based representative 

to view properties 

but are essentially buying 

sight unseen. 

“What might hap- 

pen once Aucklanders can 

view in person is anyone’s 

guess, but the signals 

point to a possible influx. 

That’s certainly what has 

happened in big cities overseas 

– metropolitan residents 

are fleeing to provincial cities 

to escape any potential 

lockdowns or other pandemic-related 

restrictions 

in the future.” 

Recognised as some of the Waika 

For real estate sold by real experts, come and talk to us. 

Angela WEL to trial deliver EV smart charging the very and best r 

Nothing compares. 

are excited to join New Zealand S 

distributed energy resources in Raglan 

evidence 

WEL Networks and Raglan Local Energy prepare 

of 

the electricity 

their success. 

network for the future with an electric vehicle (EV) smart charging 

and distributed energy resources (DERs) trial. 

The 36-month Raglan-based 

trial will use 

smart charging units 

to understand the way EV 

drivers charge their vehicles 

at home and the integration 

impact on the WEL network. 

The trial, made up of 

10 Raglan-based EV owners, 

will use smart chargers 

that are fully integrated into 

WEL’s Distributed Energy 

Resources Management System 

(DERMS). This platform 

allows multiple devices to be 

controlled remotely (including 

EV chargers, solar, battery 

storage etc.) using artificial 

integration will have a significant 

impact on energy 

affordability and network 

reliability. 

“Smart charging enables 

charging at times when 

demand is lowest and electricity 

is cheapest which 

reduces the impact on the network 

and the cost to the customer. 

Through the learnings 

of this trial, it will allow us to 

prioritise the right resources 

at the right time to meet the 

increased demand that’s 

expected from the electrification 

of transport.” 

Dibley says the community 

involvement and engagement 

with Raglan Local 

Energy, which started in Feb- 

recognised brand and internation 

using a data-driven innovative ruary 2020, has been one of 

service model, to improve the the major success stories to 

intelligence with benefits for 

customers, including household 

level protection from 

overloading due to increased 

electricity consumption and 

lower running costs. 

The objective of the trial 

will be to enable a better 

energy future for customers 

economics and appeal of EVs 

by shifting charging from 

times of the day when energy 

is more expensive to off-peak 

periods, and when wholesale 

prices are low – typically 

With top-notch negotiation expe 

when wind and solar are generating 

strongly, WEL Net- 

ensure that EV owners 

solutions. We also want to 

to drive down 

have 

works chief executive Garth 

Dibley says. 

“As part of the government’s 

push to drive down 

Angela deliver the very best resu 

climate emissions, transpor- 

we can maximise the bene- 

opportunities we 

tation is one of the biggest 

opportunities we have in the 

energy sector to help New 

Zealand achieve a low-car- 

evidence of their success. 

bon economy. As EV uptake charging in a way that helps 

increases, the EV network with grid and network stabil- 

date. 

“We want to continue to 

encourage locals, through 

proactive engagement and 

collaboration throughout this 

trial, to be part of network 

a positive experience using 

the network to charge their 

vehicles. We hope this trial 

will help us understand how 

fits to customers by offering 

products that reduce their 

EV charging costs, as well 

as how we can manage EV 

ity,” Dibley says. 

As part of the 

government’s push 

climate emissions, 

transportation is 

one of the biggest 

have in the energy 

sector to help New 

Zealand achieve a 

low-carbon economy.

homas are redefining h 

one. 

sold by real experts. 

SPECIAL ADVERTISING WRAP 

Waikato’s best-awarded real e 

REAL ESTATE AND PROPERTY 

nd Sotheby’s International Re 

TAMAHERE 

mas are redefining how premium 

ikato’s best-awarded real estate professionals, they 

d Sotheby’s Russell International and Angela Realty Thomas to bring are redefining a globally how p 

tional reach real to their estate clients. service is done. 

Pro golfer’s luxury 

Waikato real estate service is done. home for sale 

Recognised as some of the Waikato’s best-awarded real estate professionals, they 

M. +64 20 4004 0368 

One of the North Island’s most opulent properties, 75 Bollard Road, 

Tamahere 

are excited 

- 

to 

owned 

join New 

by Kiwi 

Zealand 

professional 

Sotheby’s 

golfer 

International 

David Smail 

Realty 

and 

to 

his 

bring a globally 

angela.thomas@nzsir.com 

New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty offers a premium alternative that is locally based, with enormous 

wife recognised Sheree national brand Smail and and - is global up international for reach. sale. We reach are the to perfect clients. agency to represent mid- to high-end Waikato property, delivering an 


exceptional level of expertise and premium sales results. 

Office opening soon at 

With top-notch negotiation internal expertise swimming and pool, an a games innate market ability in the to Waikato listen, region. Russell and 

room with a sports bar, sauna and “This is an exceptional country 

65 Devine Road, 

Angela deliver Our the first very Hamilton best spa pool. results office It is opens for expected their soon to vendors. fetch in Tamahere home Repeat on a Village, grand business scale and that our offers is tangible foundation sales associates are ready now to 

deliver elevated well service above to its current exceed rating your valuation 

of $3.29 million. NZSIR sales seclusion,” he says. 

Tamahere Village, 

expectations. the ultimate in Further privacy, luxury new and sales associates announcements are imminent. 

evidence 

If 

of 

you 

their 

are 

success. 

a high-calibre sales professional, we welcome your enquiry as we continue to recruit our Hamilton boutique team. 

The extraordinary property, 

marketed by Russell & 

Angela Thomas of New 

Zealand Sotheby’s International 

Realty (NZSIR), spans across 

4.49 hectares and features an expansive 

700sq m home with five/ 

six bedrooms, three bathrooms, an 

Russell & Angela 

For an elevated real estate 

experience, call Russell and 

Recognised as some of the Waikato’s best-awarded real estate p 

Angela today. 

pertise and an innate ability to listen, Russell and 

THOMAS 

Russell Thomas 

sults for their 

recognised 

vendors. 

brand 

Repeat 

and international 

business 

reach 

is 

to M. their 

tangible 

+64 20 4004 clients. 0360 

Russell and Angela Thomas are redefining how premium 

A new era in Waikato real estate: the very best in the industry has arrived. 

associate Russell Thomas says the 

home on Bollard Road is arguably 

the finest property to ever come to 

Continued on next page 

For real estate sold by real experts, come and talk to us. Nothing compares. 

75 BOLLARD ROAD, 

Russell & 

ational reach to their clients. 

expertise ne. and an innate ability 

THOM 

results for their vendors. Repe 

A new era in Waikato real estate: the 

are excited to join New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty to 

New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty offers a pre 

national and global reach. We are the perfect agency to re 

russell.thomas@nzsir.com 

exceptional level of expertise 

With top-notch negotiation expertise and an innate ability to list 

Angela Thomas 

Our first Hamilton office opens soon in Tamahere Village 

deliver elevated service to exceed your expectations. Furt 

If you are a high-calibre sales professional, we welcome yo 

Angela deliver the very best results for their vendors. Repeat bu 

For real estate sold by real experts, com 

+64 7 464 0184 

nzsothebysrealty.com 


NOW NOTHING OPEN COMPARES 

IN WAIKATO 

Each office is independently owned and operated. NZSIR Waikato Limited (licensed under the REAA 2008) MREINZ.

homas are redefining h 

one. 


REAL ESTATE & PROPERTY 

sold by real experts. 

SPECIAL ADVERTISING WRAP 

Waikato’s best-awarded real e 

nd Sotheby’s International Re 

Russell 

Pro golfer’s luxury 

ational Waikato home reach for sale to their clients. 

& 

mas 

“The overall 

are 

impression Thomas 

redefining 

adds. “It has been 

how premium 

of this home is ‘Great Gatsby’, 

from the grand Italian offering the choice of both 

designed for entertaining, 

marble entrance to the grand formal and casual dining and 

formal and informal living 

spaces, designer kitch- 

love having a morning coffee of this home is ‘Great 

living spaces. The owners The overall impression 

en and stately fireplaces. overlooking the oval whilst 

expertise ne. 

It nothing short of listening to the bird song or Gatsby’, from the grand 

an innate ability 

majestic.” 

enjoying a glass of wine in Italian marble entrance 

The stately country home the redwood forest in the 

to the grand formal and 

THOM 

sits behind a gated entrance evening.” 

and the immaculately maintained, 

established grounds ning Smail and his wife Sher- 

designer kitchen and 

New Zealand Open-win- 

informal living spaces, 

of the property also include a ee have owned the property 

tennis court with spectator’s for nearly 20 years and are stately fireplaces. It is 

pavilion, an outdoor chessboard, 

vegetable gardens and chapter of life now that their 

selling up to embark on a new nothing short of majestic. 

ikato’s 

results 

best-awarded 

orchards, as well as a charming 

three-bedroom guest cot- 

“This exceptional estate as says. “We are expecting a 

children are older. 

for 

ready 

their 

real estate 

to move on,” Thom- 

vendors. 

professionals, 

Repe 

they 

tage, all located less than a is a wonderful place to raise lot of interest in this unique 

20-minute drive away from a family and the vendors are country property.” 

Hamilton. 

“The highlights of this 

property really are the oval 

perfect for a game of croquet, Russell: +64 20 4004 0360 and | Angela: +64 Angela 2 040 040368 Thomas are redefining how p 

Russell 

the indoor swimming pool, 

sports bar and tennis court,” 

& Angela 

russell.thomas@nzsir.com | angela.thomas@nzsir.com 

Website reference: HAM0821/75-bollard-road-tamahere/ 

ional reach real to their estate 

A 

clients. service is done. 

new era in Waikato real For an elevated estate: real the 


Recognised as some of the Waikato’s best-awarded real estate p 

d Sotheby’s International Realty to bring a globally 

pertise and an innate ability to listen, Russell and 

THOMAS 


sults for their 

recognised 

vendors. 

brand 

Repeat 

and international 

business 

reach 

is 

to M. their 

tangible 

+64 20 4004 clients. 0360 

Russell and Angela Thomas are redefining how premium 

real estate service is done. 

A new era in Waikato real estate: the very best in the industry has arrived. 

Recognised as some of the Waikato’s best-awarded real estate professionals, they 

M. +64 20 4004 0368 

are excited to join New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty to bring a globally 


New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty offers a premium alternative that is locally based, with enormous 

recognised national brand and and global international reach. We reach are the to perfect clients. agency to represent mid- to high-end Waikato property, delivering an 


exceptional level of expertise and premium sales results. 


With top-notch negotiation expertise and an innate ability to listen, Russell and 


Angela deliver Our the first very Hamilton best results office opens for their soon vendors. in Tamahere Repeat Village, business and our is tangible foundation sales associates are ready now to 


deliver elevated service to exceed your expectations. Further new sales associates announcements are imminent. 

evidence 

If 

of 

you 

their 

are 

success. 

a high-calibre sales professional, we welcome your enquiry as we continue to recruit our Hamilton boutique team. 

For real estate sold by real experts, come and talk to us. Nothing compares. 

Russell and Angela Thomas 

Angela today. 

are excited to join New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty to 

New Zealand Sotheby’s International Realty offers a pre 

national and global reach. We are the perfect agency to re 


exceptional level of expertise 

With top-notch negotiation expertise and an innate ability to liste 

Angela Thomas 

Our first Hamilton office opens soon in Tamahere Village 

deliver elevated service to exceed your expectations. Furt 

If you are a high-calibre sales professional, we welcome yo 

Angela deliver the very best results for their vendors. Repeat bus 

For real estate sold by real experts, com 

+64 7 464 0184 



NOW NOTHING OPEN COMPARES 

IN WAIKATO

how premium 



23 


estate professionals, 

experience, call Russell 

they 

and 

Angela today. 

. 

ealty to bring a globally 

Angela 


M. +64 20 4004 0360 


y to listen, Russell and 

AS 

Angela Thomas 

M. +64 20 4004 0368 

eat business is 

M. 

tangible 

+64 20 4004 0360 

w premium 


he very best in the industry has arrived. 


te professionals, they 

ty to bring a globally 


premium alternative that is locally based, with enormous 

o represent mid- to high-end Waikato property, delivering an 

rtise and premium sales results. Tamahere Office Village, opening soon at 

listen, Russell and 


llage, and our foundation sales Hamilton associates are ready now to 


Further new sales associates announcements are imminent. 

e your enquiry as we continue +64 to recruit 7 464 our Hamilton 0184 boutique team. 

t business is tangible 



Angela today. 



Angela Thomas 

M. +64 20 4004 0368 


+64 7 464 0184 

, come and talk to us. Nothing compares. 

NOW OPEN IN WAIKATO



HCC greenlights $1b Te Awa 

Lakes project at Horotiu 

Stage one of a ground-breaking new 

master-planned community is now under 

way in the Waikato with construction and 

earthworks set to start this month. 

Hamilton City Council 

has granted resource 

consent for the $1b Te 

Awa Lakes project, the largest 

master-planned community 

development of its kind in the 

Waikato. 

The approval paves the way 

for construction to begin on the 

ambitious development. 

Adjacent to the Waikato 

Expressway near the Horotiu 

interchange and situated on a 

former sand quarry owned by 

The Perry Group, the 10-year 

project is set to transform the 

northern gateway to Hamilton. 

Once completed, the 100ha 

development will feature 

2500 new high-quality medium-density 

mixed dwellings 

and accommodate some 4000 

residents, as well as support 

significant retail, commercial 

and recreation attractions. 

“This resource consent has 

been five years in the making, 

but at long last we’ve got 

approval to start earth moving 

at Te Awa Lakes,” Te Awa 

Lakes development director 

Lale Ieremia says. 

“While this is only the first 

of three phases, this approval 

will unlock the first phase of 

the creation of 2500 dwellings 

and represents the start of the 

first integrated mixed-use master-planned 

community in the 

region. 

“The Perry Group has held 

this block of land for a long 

time, so it’s great to see the old 

quarry repurposed in this way. 

Te Awa Lakes will be an exemplar 

for master-planned communities 

of the future.” 

Based on the values of community, 

connection and sustainability, 

the Te Awa Lakes 

project looks to blend sophisticated, 

flexible urban living 

with first-class amenities and 

a second-to-none lifestyle, Te 

Awa Lakes CEO Richard Coventry 

says. 

“Te Awa Lakes residents 

can live, work and play, all in 

the same place, with everything 

they need right on their 

doorstep - cafes, restaurants, 

convenience stores and a 

gym in the village centre, a 

large commercial precinct, 

and there’s the lakes and the 

Waikato River. Whether you’re 

working or relaxing or looking 

for adventures, you won’t have 

to go far. 

“Te Awa Lakes will be a 

first-class destination and bring 

a whole new way of living for 

the region.” 

The site is approved for a 

mix of medium-density residential 

and business zonings. 

Mixed typology along with 

medium-density products - 

including detached dwellings, 

duplexes, and terraced apartments 

- will deliver modern, 

affordable housing options to 

the Waikato market. 

G.J. Gardner, the largest 

homebuilder in the Waikato, 

has taken on all the residential 

housing construction within 

the first stage of the Te Awa 

Lakes development along with 

Foster Develop. 

Currently in the project 

planning and design 

phase, G.J. Gardner will 

begin first stage residential 

construction of around 

90 dwellings in late 2022. 

“Te Awa Lakes is an incredible 

development project 

which creates all kinds of new 

opportunities and benefits for 

the Waikato, including lots of 

residential options combined 

with new tourism, commercial 

and recreation experiences,” 

G.J. Gardner Homes owner 

Jeff de Leeuw says. 

“Residents will enjoy significant 

lifestyle benefits borne 

out of the very best thinking in 

urban design and greenfields 

community development. 

“G.J. is thrilled to be a key 

partner to this project, which 

further cements our longstanding 

commitment to the 

Waikato.” 

In addition to the 2500 new 

homes to be constructed, an 

extensive commercial zone is 

also in development, including 

cafes, restaurants, a supermarket, 

a gymnasium, medical 

centre, places to eat and drink, 

and modern shared office 

spaces, all built by property 

development specialist Foster 

Develop. 

“The Te Awa Lakes project 

is an opportunity to curate 

a whole new suburb on the 

outskirts of Hamilton,” Foster 

Construction Group CEO 

Leonard Gardner says. 

“It’s incredibly well-connected 

to the expressway 

with connections through 

to Auckland and other 

parts of the Waikato, so it’s 

going to be a community 

of active people who also 

want to have a place to grow 

their families and enjoy life. 

“We’re looking forward to 

supporting the families that 

establish there and contributing 

our part to making a great 

community at Te Awa Lakes. 

As operators start to see the 

commercial opportunity that’s 

available at Te Awa Lakes, 

they will want to be a part of 

the mix, so we’re really looking 

forward to working with 

them to help them develop 

their commercial solutions.” 

Stage one earthworks and 

civil engineering are set to 

start this month and will continue 

through until the first half 

of next year. 

For more information visit 

the Te Awa Lakes website for 

more information - 

teawalakes.co.nz.



25 

• Vibrant high-end apartment living 

• Luxury lifestyle 

• Positioned in the northern CBD precinct on the river side of Victoria Street 

• 9 expansive 2-3 bedroom Penthouse apartments with oversized balconies and 

elevated, long distance views over 2 levels with double height ceilings 

• 18 mid-floor apartments incorporating clever design and utilisation of space 

• Secure basement carparking with easy, quiet side street access 

• Apartments radiate out from a light-filled planted central atrium 

• Expected apartment completion late 2023 

• www.northerngreen.nz 

Building Partners: 

Waikato powerhouse Foster Develop Ltd 

Renowned Architects - Edwards White 

Contact Heather Whyte for 

an information pack 

Heather Whyte 

027 239 2751 

heather.whyte@lugtons.co.nz

Rodney Stirling 



Next project confirmed to unlock 

development in Peacocke 

Hamilton City Council has awarded Brian Perry Civil the contract 

to build a new wastewater transfer station and associated works 

in the south-west of the city. 


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The $27 million project 

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new housing in the 

Peacocke area. 


Our approach to 

Peacocke, and to 

Hamilton’s overall 

future, is making sure 

we’re growing in a 

sustainable way that 

doesn’t leave our 

existing services or 

communities behind. 

Considerate 

& 

Professional 

Chair of council’s Strategic 

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Dave Macpherson said 

after receiving funding via 

the Government’s Housing 

Infrastructure Fund (HIF) 

more than three years ago, 

Considerate 

is Consistent, Reliable, 

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it’s important that this critical 

piece of infrastructure 

in the Peacocke area will be 

breaking ground soon. 

“This project is a major 

milestone for council and 

will enable essential housing 

to be built in the first stages 

of urban development in Peacocke.” 

This is the third major contract 

council has announced 

for the Peacocke area development 

and the transfer station 

will connect with existing 

construction projects 

– the northern wastewater 

pipeline and the new bridge 

over the Waikato River. 

When complete, the transfer 

station will be the largest 

in Hamilton and form the 

heart of the wastewater system 

for the new Peacocke 

community. 

Wastewater will be 

pumped to the north of Hamilton 

to continue its journey 

by gravity to the Pukete 

Wastewater Treatment Plant 

for a total of 15.5km. 

The transfer station will 

be located on Peacockes 

Road opposite the Waiora 

Our team 


Water Treatment Plant but 

a large part of the structure 

will be built underground 

– down to 8.5m 

below ground level. 

Councillor Macpherson 

said this project is about 

more than just growing the 

city and new infrastructure. 

“As well as investing in 

the new things we need for 

growth, we haven’t forgotten 

about improving existing 

infrastructure for the southwest 

residents and all Hamiltonians.” 

The transfer station project 

includes more than 1.5km 

of pipe work to bring the 

Fitzroy area into the new 

catchment which will support 

current network operations 

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communities behind,” says 

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Construction of the transfer 

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works is expected to get 

under way in January 2022 

with minor earthworks completed 

later this year. The 

project is expected to take 

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in mid-2023. 

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27 

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Signature Homes tackles carbon 

emissions from home construction 

• Planting native trees to mitigate CO2 from home construction 

• Protecting biodiversity by supporting Save the Kiwi 

• Building better homes for Kiwis 

Signature Homes has 

signalled its intention 

to mitigate its house 

construction carbon dioxide 

emissions by planting around 

45,000 native trees annually. 

The company’s CO2 reduction 

programme will kick off in 

early 2022 and chief executive 

Paul Bull expects Signature 

will plant around 45 trees for 

every home it builds. 

Bull says Signature Homes 

commissioned its own research 

to determine how many trees 

would be required to counter 

the emissions from building a 

three-bedroom home – from 

supply chain and material-sourcing 

to transport and 

fuel – after finding little work 

had been done in that area. 

“We currently sell approximately 

1,000 homes a year and 

realised that results in a significant 

carbon footprint,” he 

says. “We were determined to 

make our contribution to New 

Zealand’s goal of being carbon-neutral 

by 2050 and build 

a better future for Kiwis.” 

Bull says the company will 

not stop at simply mitigating 

emissions – “our intention is 

to lead the industry in reducing 

greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions 

from housing construction. 

“We have been building 

homes since 1983 and our name 

is synonymous with quality 

and continuous improvement. 

This is part of our commitment 

to New Zealanders that building 

a new home should not cost 

the environment.” 

Signature Homes will 

partner with charitable organisation 

Trees That Count to 

mitigate part of its carbon 

footprint and chose native 

trees rather than commercial 

radiata pine because natives 

not only reduced emissions but 

also strengthened New Zealand’s 

biodiversity and helped 

forest ecosystems thrive. By 

planting 45,000 native trees 

a year through Trees That 

Count, Signature is seeking to 

absorb around 19,000 tonnes 

of CO2-equivalent emissions 

over 50 years as those trees 

continue to grow. 

To support the native tree 

initiative, Signature Homes 

has also signed on as a sponsor 

of Save the Kiwi, the national 

kiwi recovery programme. 

Bull says Signature Homes 

sees kiwi as much more than 

just an icon for Aotearoa 

New Zealand. “They are a 

strong indicator of the health 

of our natural environment. 

More kiwi in our native bush 

means there are fewer predators 

around and few predators 

means more opportunities for 

other native birds and insects 

to thrive.” 

Save the Kiwi executive 

director Michelle Impey says 

a partnership with Signature 

Homes is a perfect match. 

“Signature Homes is in the 

business of building better 

homes for Kiwi, and we’re in 

the business of creating safe 

habitat for kiwi,” Impey says. 

“Signature Homes’ support will 

help to create kiwi-safe habitat 

all over Aotearoa through the 

likes of predator control and 

supporting kiwi conservation 

groups doing the hard mahi on 

the ground. Together, we can 

all work together to increase 

the national kiwi population.” 

Trees That Count head 

of marketing and partnerships 

melanie seyfort says 

the partnership with Signature 

Homes epitomises what 

Trees That Count is about. 

“We are increasing native 

tree planting in New Zealand 

by providing partners such as 

Signature Homes with an easy, 

high-impact and transparent 

way to fund trees, in turn supporting 

the thousands of planters 

throughout the country 

restoring their local communities. 

This support will see tens 

of thousands of native trees 

planted throughout Aotearoa in 

projects that have a truly local 

impact whilst enabling Signature 

Homes to make a tangible 

reduction on their carbon footprint 

whilst improving biodiversity,” 

Seyfort says. 

BRANZ research has 

shown that new-build, 

detached houses are projected 

to contribute around one-third 

of the climate impact of the 

New Zealand detached housing 

sector over the next three 

decades, Bull says. 

“With that in mind, we are 

working with our long-standing 

suppliers to identify more 

environmentally friendly 

building products, with a goal 

of using these as standard in 

everyday construction - but 

also offering our clients additional 

product options that 

allow them to make more 

environmentally friendly 

choices,” he says. 

While bio-based products 

such as timber and engineered 

wood are more climate-friendly 

than concrete or brick and New 

Zealand’s electricity is 85 percent 

from renewable sources, 

a new-build house is likely 

to double its carbon footprint 

over the next 30 years from 

energy use and maintenance. 

“Under our commitment of 

‘building together for a better 

future’ we’re also enabling 

our customers to be part of the 

solution,” he says. “We’ll be 

encouraging them to invest in 

an additional 24 trees through 

Trees That Count to mitigate 

future GHG emissions from 

anticipated house maintenance 

over 50 years. 

“Our sustainability journey 

doesn’t end with what we can 

do now, it is just the beginning. 

Signature Homes is embarking 

on an ambitious plan to question 

everything we do.” 

Kerry is a dedicated real estate professional who has been 

involved in the Hamilton residential property arena since 1993. 

He was also active in the marketing of the exclusive beach and 

canal front properties at Pauanui on the Coromandel Peninsula. 

Buyers Guide 

1) Look with your head and your 

heart, logic alone or pure emotion is 

not enough. 

2) Do your research, follow the 5 P’s 

principle. “Prior Preparation Prevents 

Poor Performance” 

3) Be flexible with your “must have” 

list, know your priorities and what you 

will compromise on. 

4) Ask Kerry how to get maximum 

exposure to the market so you don’t 

miss any opportunities. 

5) Don’t hold back your feelings, 

don’t be afraid to express your interest 

in a property to Kerry, you need to 

know as much as possible. 

6) Think of the future when 

buying; resale, renovation or 

rental potential should your 

circumstances change. 

Lugtons have been and still are 

industry leaders in the marketing of 

both residential and lifestyle property 

in the Hamilton regions since 1955. 

Hence, with Lugtons heritage in 

the development of this City and 

together with the commitment of 

Kerry, are extremely proud of their 

role in the important buying and 

selling decisions of their valued 

clients. 

204435AA 

Kerry Hopper 

DDI: (07) 838 5870 

Mobile: (021) 984 173 

www.KerryHopper.nz 

Kerry Hopper – Lugtons Real Estate



31 

Hamilton 

National Award Winning 

Commercial Property Experts 

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33



Children’s Entertainment $399,000 

SOLD 

Service Business $1m Cash Surplus 

SOLD 

$2,600,000 

Waikato 

· Multiple revenue streams in sales & services 

· Customers range from dairy to commercial 

to retail 

· Established team of skilled staff 

· 2021FY enjoyed sales over $4Million 

· Cash surplus to a working owner over $1M 

linkbusiness.co.nz/WK00156 

Design Import Manufacture $2,272,000 

SOLD 


· Well-established & protable 

· Solid niche market, strong market share 

· Very good systems, commercial clients 

· Secured international agency brands 

· Impressive sales & continued growth 


Motel Business, Signicant Prot $1,625,000 

SOLD 


· Perfect for rst time business owners 

· A simple & proven business model 

· Working owner would expect to earn $170K+ 

· Well recognised and trusted brand 

· Strong lease, quality business with quality 

returns! 



· Corporate clientele, ongoing growth 

· Ample onsite parking, great amenities 

· Onsite owner accomodation but can be fully 

managed 

· Located in a quiet street- close to Hamilton 

CBD 

linkbusiness.co.nz/EL03200 

Creative Business $250,000 

SOLD 

Breakers Motel 

SOLD 

Eatery Great Location $495,000 

SOLD 


· Well-established, reputable 

· Marketing & design business 

· $130K+ annual returns to working owner 

· Owner currently manages small team from afar 


$1,150,000 

Coromandel 

· Very strong nancial performer 

· Regarded as the highest quality and largest 

Motel in Whangamata 

· 26 years remain on existing lease, with further 

impressive ROR 

· Perfectly situated on main access road from 

Thames/Auckland 

linkbusiness.co.nz/HC00117 


· Fully licensed eatery 

· Main street location, easy free parking 

· Earning $200K+ one working owner 

· Great team of staff 

· Open 7 days per week 


Strong Roi.Fibre Install $1,200,000 

SOLD 

Transport Engineering $580,000 

SOLD 


· Design & manufacture light transport bodies 

& trailers 

· Forward workload is strong (approx $400K) 

· Working owner returned $200K+ 

· Qualied staff and good systems 

· Continued growth opportunities 


Retail Flooring Group $550,000 

SOLD 


· Established ‘Kerb to House’ bre installation 

· Experienced team, stream of contract work 

· 15 Toyota Hiace Van Fleet 

· Work in the business or employ a manager 

· EBPITDA $350k+ to a working owner 



· Monthly revenue averages $260,000+ incl gst 

· High-end showroom with quality product lines 

· Outstanding systems and support 

· Growing revenues & growth opportunities 


When you 

sell one of the 

largest assets 

of your life, 

you’ll want the 

right team. 

If you are considering selling your 

business, there might not be a 

better window of opportunity 

than right now to achieve the 

dream result. Start the journey 

by calling us for a condential 

discussion. 

Returning Over 200k $495,000 

SOLD 


· Well-structured service-based business 

· Fantastic systems, trained team 

· Currently homebased, exible work hours 

· Servicing mainly commercial clients 

· Owners are now ready to retire 


Alarms & Security $484,000 

SOLD 

Sales & Service Sector $350,000 

SOLD 

Stand Out Coro Accommodation $1,290,000 

SOLD 


· Strong reputation of quality and trust. 

· Stable team, secure supplier contracts 

· Well positioned location with exible lease 

· Returning $150K+ p/a to one part time 

working owner 

· Only one other local competition business 


Major Brand Liquor Store $1,300,000 

SOLD 

Coromandel 

· Six beautifully presented studio/cabins with 

a hint of gold-rush nostalgia, underlying their 

modern chic! 

· Each cabin is cleverly sited in a private bush 

setting, connected by boardwalks through the 

native bush 

· 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom owner’shome 

linkbusiness.co.nz/HC00128 

Laundromat Service $350,000 

SOLD 

Coromandel 

· Established 20yrs+ servicing businesses, 

holiday homes & residential 

· Includes vehicles & well optimised website 

· All training provided by current owner 

· Recurring revenue from alarm monitoring, 

security patrol & installing alarms 

linkbusiness.co.nz/BPW00439 


· Huge store with spacious cool room 

andgoodsize storage. 

· Good gross margins of 20.5% plus generous 

rebates 

· Plenty of designated convenient car parks 

· Rent$645+GST Per Week with secured lease 

till 01 March 2038 


Open Gate To Great Prots $599,000 

SOLD 

Book Your 5+5 Year Income $484,000 

SOLD 


· Booming industry, great prots 

· Essential products for building industry 

· Large purpose-built workshop 

· Operations Manager in place 

· Established brand, limited competition 



· Regular Income. 

· Risk Adverse Business. 

· People Management Skills Required. 

· SDE $120k For a Working Owner. 

· Home Based Suits Couples. 



· Consistent prot for 18yrs 

· Fantastic location, good parking 

· Operating 5 days per week 

· Great assets: 14 laundromat machines, 10 

commerical machines, two vehicles 


All LINK NZ ofces are licensed REAA08 

Childcare Centre in Ngaruawahia $175,000 

SOLD 


· Licensed for around 40 children 

· Fully-managed purpose-built centre 

· Fantastic environment and location 

· Excellent opportunity for either an owner/ 

operator or for someone to continue to run it as 

a managed option 

linkbusiness.co.nz/BOP00139 

Beautiful Eatery $365,000 

SOLD 


· Great team, owners works front-of-house 

· Working owner to expect $160k+ anually 

· Turnover $21,000 per week incl GST 

· Beautifully presented, quality lease 


Beauty & Massage Clinic $230,000 

SOLD 


· Fantastic history & reputation 

· Easy parking 

· Quality chattels & well presented 

· Established staff, owner keen stay as 

contractor 

· Cash surplus approx $130K 


Your Waikato Team: Alanah Eagle - Scott Miller - Rueben Haddon-Silby - Rick Johnson - Therese Bailey - Robert Brawley - Andrew Whyte 

22 Naylor Street 

Hamilton 

0800 225 999 

LINKBUSINESS.CO.NZ


35 

Mythical certainty or The 

Emperor’s New Clothes 

TECH TALK 

> BY MICHAEL HAMID 

Michael Hamid is the Professional Services Manager at Company-X. 

When it comes to estimating software design and development, 

anyone who has certainty down to dollars and cents is like the 

two swindlers in the folk tale The Emperor’s New Clothes. 

The emperor in Hans 

Christian Andersen’s 

folk tale was persuaded 

by the swindlers that they had 

supplied him with magnificent 

clothes that were invisible to the 

simple-minded. It takes a child 

to blurt out that the emperor is 

wearing nothing at all. 

Certainty, when it comes to 

estimating software design and 

development, is mythical. 

That is probably why astrologers, 

psychics and soothsayers 

have always been popular. 

You go to somebody and 

they tell you what is going to 

happen to you, and you say: 

"Great, awesome." 

We try to get that certainty, 

but absolute certainty is a myth. 

It doesn't mean that we don't 

strive to estimate better, but we 

have to remember that an estimate 

is exactly that. 

Some of the first questions 

I received, when I started out 

as a project manager many 

years ago, were, “How much 

is this project going to cost?” 

and “How long is it going to 

take?” I said, “Without doing 

some analysis on it, I don’t 

know,” I was asked to guess, 

so I did. Three months later 

I was reminded of the figure, 

and I reiterated that it was just 

a guess. If you've got a static 

piece of work to do, you can 

start with a requirements document. 

There's this idea that 

if everything is written down 

the project will have certainty. 

Software projects are seldom 

static, so by the time the 

requirements document is finished 

the requirements have 

usually changed. 

At the beginning of the estimation 

process, we try to get a 

very high-level ballpark idea 

about the cost of the overall 

work in orders of magnitude. 

Is the work less than $10,000? 

Is it between $10,000 and 

$100,000 or is it over $100,000 

up to $1,000,000? 

We might say to our prospective 

client, “This is feeling 

like it's going to be six 

figures worth of work.” They 

might ask, “Is it $100,000 

or $900,000?” We might 

say, “Somewhere in there. 

We’re certainly sure it's over 

$100,000.” As we get a better 

handle on it, we might say, “We 

think it's around $150,000 to 

$170,000.” 

Many factors influence estimation 

including the estimated 

duration of the project, the culture 

of the organisation doing 

the estimating, and the seniority 

and experience of both the 

software development team 

and the client’s team. 

If the organisation has never 

run a project of this type before 

it raises a red flag. If the culture 

of the organisation is open and 

accepting of failure there is less 

incentive to hide problems and 

that definitely helps the success 

of a project. If the project team 

has a lot of junior or inexperienced 

developers that can make 

a project take longer. 

At Company-X we often try 

to compare the projects that we 

are estimating with something 

similar we have done earlier. 

We estimate the things we 

know about. If there are things, 

we are not sure about, we try 

to work out what we need to 

do in order to get more certainty. 

It could be to carry out 

some research, or set a defined 

time period in order to further 

explore the risk area. A big mistake 

less savvy software developers 

make is to assume everything 

will work out fine without 

this extra work. It seldom does. 

We keep our forecast window 

short at Company-X in 

terms of certainty. Generally, 

we can be reasonably certain 

up to a few months into the 

future. Beyond that, it’s often a 

ballpark guesstimate. 

We break the work into 

small chunks until we can get to 

a size that we are comfortable 

with. We check the estimate 

with other experienced people 

outside of our assigned software 

development team to see 

what they think and whether we 

have considered everything. 

We try to uncover as many 

risks as we can and then figure 

out how to mitigate those risks. 

The late US secretary 

of defence Donald Rumsfeld 

talked about the known 

knowns, the known unknowns 

and the unknown unknowns. 

And he was absolutely right. 

There are things we know we 

know. There are things we 

know we don't know. There are 

things we don't know we don't 

know. 

We identify the things we 

know and feel comfortable 

about. These are things that are 

not risky and we've got a fair 

idea about how long they're 

going to take. 

We try to identify the things 

we know we don't know. For 

example, there's a risk that a 

third party’s application programming 

interface (API) may 

not work as specified, or there's 

a risk that a library component 

may not do the job we think it 

will. Then we decide what we 

are going to do about the risks, 

if possible, we try to schedule 

the mitigation work straight 

away. Is there an alternate plan? 

If we didn't get the data, what 

do we do? 

While everyone likes to 

have certainty in their lives, 

we all have to accept a level 

of uncertainty. That is why 

certainty is a myth. One of our 

jobs in Company-X is to ensure 

the client is well aware of the 

things we know as well as the 

things we don’t know. 

If we can plot a path for our 

development work and keep the 

customer in the conversation as 

we develop, evolve and understand 

more about the work, we 

increase our chance of developing 

software that meets the 

needs of the client. 

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SINGH & ASSOCIATES 

Hamilton accountancy firm Singh and 

Associates celebrated close to 10 

years in business with a new building 

The commercial building on 145 Ossie James Drive near Hamilton 

Airport is a sleek, modern design 4-unit commercial development. 

Built by Waikato Construction 

Management 

Limited (WCML), the 

company took care of the entire 

build process; from concept 

design through to engineering, 

council consent to the final 

build. Ravi says Trina and Gary 

White from WCML were great 

to work with and within a day 

of their first conversation Trina 

had a design concept ready for 

him to view. 

“She turned up the next day 

with a mocked up 3-D plan and 

we were able to virtually walk 

through the building,” he says. 

The build started in May 

2021 and despite the challenges 

of Covid and lockdowns, they 

were ready to move in at the 

beginning of November. 

“I really liked that there 

were no surprises. Everything 

was laid out in a fixed 

price contract. 

Ravi Singh, Arti Singh, Evans Chileshe and Mengdi Niu 

“Obviously we’ve gone 

through a rough period for construction 

with the lockdown, 

so I believe we were blessed to 

have them.” 

The new space is a far cry 

from the cramped offices the 

team of five at Singh and Associates 

were used to, with a larger 

office space there’s room for an 

office for each staff member. 

And there’s a private courtyard 

for coffee and lunch breaks or 

team meetings in the sun. 

Centrally located in Titanium 

Park subdivision, the 

building already hosts two tenants 

- Sunlight Tech and Limnotrack 

– as well as Ravi’s office. 

Plus, the Busy Bean coffee and 

food cart, due to start in January 

2022, will be providing muchneeded 

lunchtime treats for the 

growing businesses in the area. 

Ravi says the tenants were 

already signed up prior to the 

build’s completion thanks to 

NAI Harcourts agent Sean 

Stephens. It was Sean who 

introduced Ravi to the land. He 

had approached NAI Harcourts 

about another piece of land but 

Sean found out it had gone to 

contract on just as they were 

Ravi and Arti Singh 

checking it out. 

Not put off by his first viewing 

being sold from under his 

feet, Ravi felt confident with 

Sean’s ability to find the right 

piece of land for him. 

When the land near the airport 

came on Sean’s radar, Ravi 

jumped at the chance to purchase 

the 2228 square metres of 

prime real estate. 

“In 2020, we decided we 

needed more space for our staff 

and more storage. Sean was a 

great agent to work with and 

helped us to secure a property 

locally,” Ravi says. 

The growing industrial 

estate near the airport is abuzz 

with small industrial users, plus 

national and international businesses, 

and is becoming a real 

centre of business. 

From modest beginnings, 

Ravi is proud of his business 

and owning a new commercial 

building, tops off his accomplishments. 

He spent many years working 

for chartered accountancy 

OFFICE LOCATION 

145 Ossie James Drive, 

Propeller Business Hub, 

Titanium Park, Hamilton 

Singh & Associates Limited provides the expertise you need to grow your business to next level. 

A personal & professional service to assist with every successful outcome. 

singhandassociates.co.nz 07 843 6004 

Partnered with 

Memberhsip with

SINGH & ASSOCIATES 37 


New Zealand’s Premier design and build 

electrical contracting company. 

Talk to us about how we could save you up to 

30% on your next design and build project 

firms in Te Awamutu and Hamilton 

before beginning work in 

his Uncle Jagdishwar Singh 

business and later acquiring the 

practise in 2012. 

He started as a one-man 

band with his wife Arti working 

in the business part time 

and took the business from 250 

clients to 1200 clients from all 

over the country. 

His staff has grown to five, 

including Arti who now works 

full time, and client managers 

Anjana Prasad, Evans Chileshe 

and Mengdi Niu. 

Ravi’s says he’s now working 

with the children and grandchildren 

of some of his original 

clients in all manner of businesses; 

from small scale cleaning 

franchises, bakeries and 

restaurants to dairy farmers, 

kiwifruit growers and multiple 

petrol stations franchisees. 

As a member of Accountants 

and Tax Agents Institute 

of New Zealand (ATAINZ) 

– a recognised professional 

institution – the staff at Singh 

and Associates are required 

to undergo extensive initial 

and continuous training. This 

ensures that the firms’ knowledge 

base is kept up to date and 

that your accounts are prepared 

to the highest standard. 

A registered tax agent with 

the Inland Revenue, the company 

has maintained longstanding 

proven record and 

a good relationship with the 

agency and continue to meet 

100 per cent filing percentage 

every year. 

TEAM CABLING IS PROUD TO BE ASSOCIATED 

WITH THE BUILD FOR SINGH AND ASSOCIATES 

0800 TEAM 111 

021-284 1537 (office ext 720) 

admin@teamcabling.co.nz 

94f Duke Street, Frankton 

WAIKATO 

DESIGN & BUILD SPECIALISTS FOR 

& INDUSTRIAL 

WWW.CORESTEEL.CO.NZ | 07 871 3077 | BETTER STEEL BUILDINGS


SINGH & ASSOCIATES 

WCML works construction 

magic for new build 

Waikato Construction Management Limited (WCML) is fast making 

a name for designer building options in the greater Waikato Region. 

A 

new commercial build 

near Hamilton Airport 

is a dream come true 

for owner Ravi Singh and 

the space has transformed 

the work environment for his 

thriving accountancy business 

Singh and Associates. 

Combining beauty, durability 

and flexibility, this build is 

a stylish and functional office 

space for Ravi’s and his team. 

When time, budget and 

quality matter, WCML have 

a proven record of success, 

combining conventional 

building methods and material 

alongside new innovation 

building systems. 

Despite the Covid lockdowns, 

WCML bought the 

build in on budget and on time. 

Technology has always 

been a key part of construction 

process and using Coresteel’s 

cost-effective bolted quality 

steel coldform structure, there 

is no welding or drilling onsite 

with everything predrilled in 

the factory for quicker construction 

times. 

Built in just over five 

months, the 600sqm 4-unit 

development came together 

quickly. Featuring two workshop 

units and two office 

units, the turnkey development 

includes the concrete carpark, 

entrance and landscaping. 

WCML has completed 12 

buildings in the last two years 

at the Hamilton Airports industrial 

parks with five builds yet 

to come. 

Specialising in design and 

build projects WCML have 

undertaken a large range of 

commercial, industrial, educational 

and residential building 

projects for clients and community-based 

organisations. 

Originally formed in 2008 

under the name The Barn 

Company Waikato by husband-and-wife 

Gary and Trina 

White, WCML also bought 

the rights to Waikato region 

Coresteel at the same time. 

In 2014, John Morrow 

joined Gary and Trina as a 

director and over the last 13 

years the business has continued 

to grow and WCML now 

has a team of 40. 

“We understand design and 

we pride ourselves on our customer 

service. Our goal is to 

add value at any and all stages 

of your project, from budgeting, 

unique design, cost effective 

engineering solutions, timely 

construction, and comprehensive 

project management,” 

Gary says. 

With a WCML build, clients 

get the whole package; from 

concept design through to engineering, 

council consent and 

full turnkey construction, and 

utilising the quality Coresteel 

building structure in all their 

projects. 

“We work in collaboration 

with architects when designing 

the structural elements of all 

our buildings, we have a team 

of structural engineers through 

the Coresteel network who 

work with architects to cost 

effectively optimise structural 

designs,” Trina says. 

The WCML team worked 

closely with Ravi on the build, 

meeting regularly to discuss 

progress. 

Utilising leading-edge software 

means the WCML team 

designed the Singh commercial 

building to Ravi’ specific needs 

- right down to the last square 

metre. 

“We really enjoyed building 

a relationship with great clients 

along the way of building their 

new development,” Gary and 

Trina say. 

With the client’s requirements 

always at the forefront 

of any build, WCML integrated 

Coresteel coldform steel building 

system, coloursteel and 

cedar cladding to wing walls 

to add design features to the 

building. 

A one-stop-shop for the 

entire construction process, 

WCML removes the hassle of 

dealing with multiple companies 

and contractors. 

The company’s expert 

design engineers use a unique 

construction method to create 

buildings of any size and shape, 

without compromising structural 

integrity. 

Waikato Construction Management 

Limited own the rights 

to sell Coresteel structures 

throughout the greater Waikato 

Region. 

Based in Te Awamutu, 

WCML is a proud local company 

that supports the local 

community. 

HAMILTON AIRPORT | 145 Ossie James Drive 

HAMILTON 

AIRPORT | 145 Ossie James Drive 

For Lease 

For Lease 

 

 

 

 

For Lease 

SEAN 

STEPHENS 

027 

478 1669 

 

sean.stephens@naiharcourts.co.nz 

 

 

 

THEO 

DE LEEUW 

 

 

027 490 3248 

 

theo.deleeuw@naiharcourts.co.nz 

 

 

 

 

MONARCH COMMERCIAL LTD 

 

 

MREINZ 

LICENSED REAL ESTATE 

 

AGENT (REAA 2008) 

Cnr 

Victoria & London Streets 

Hamilton 

 

 

07 

 

850 5252 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BOUNDARY LINES ARE INDICATIVE ONLY 

 

• 

• 150sqm new office unit. Last unit available in 4-unit development 

 

• Description 

 

 

• Private courtyard 

• 

 

• Even split office and warehouse tenants in the complex 

• 

 

• Development is completed, ready for the new tenant 

• 

 

• Sleek modern design with six on site carparks 

• 

 

• Complex will have coffee cart and electric car charging port 

 

• 

 

minutes’ Location Located 

drive 

in the new Central Precinct Stage 4, Ossie James Drive, Hamilton 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Airport. 

 

This industrial 

subdivision is approximately 1t5 minutes’ drive to 

minutes’ drive 

 

Hamilton CBD, and the towns of Cambridge and Te Awamutu. Excellent 

views to the airport runway. Neighbours in the complex will be Singh & 

 

 

 

Associates Accountancy, Sunlight Tech and Limnotrack. Nearby there are a 

mix of small industrial users, plus national and international businesses. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zoning 

 

Airport Business Zone under the Waipa District Council Plan 

 

 

Land Area (more 

or less) 2,228sqm 

 

 

Floor Area 

(approx.) 150sqm 1.6m wide covered canopy 

 

Available Now 

 

 

 

 

For Lease $30,000pa plus GST & outgoings 

 

 

 

 

 

Summary This is a perfect opportunity for a small business to establish a new base in 

 

this modern complex. The airport area in general is growing at such a rate 

that is becoming a real centre for businesses. A child-care centre is planned 

Further Information Available – Enquire Now 

Further nearby. Information Secure your future Available now. Contact – Enquire the sole agent Now today. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Further Information Available - Enquire now 

PROUD TO BE THE PREFERRED CHOICE 

FOR SINGH & ASSOCIATES 

Congratulations on your recent success 

Todd Horsburgh 021 951 186 

www.ultrafloor.co.nz 

Concrete Grinding & Polishing 

In r 

icon 

Gra


39 

What can we learn from the global boardroom 

agenda, as we look beyond Covid-19? 

PEOPLE AND CULTURE 

> BY VICTORIA ASHPLANT 

PwC Director based in the Waikato office | Global Sustainability 

Reporting & Assurance Email: victoria.j.ashplant@pwc.com 

An increasing amount of pressure is on the horizon for businesses 

- ahead of the immediate challenges and frustrations of Covid-19, 

inflation looms and, what were once distant climate-related risks, 

are now urgent issues. 

One significant response; 

at least one fifth of the 

world’s 2,000 largest 

public companies have 

committed to meet net zero 

targets*. 

Food, consumer and retail 

giants including Unilever, 

IKEA, Tesco and Nestle and 

tech or telecoms companies 

including Ericsson, BT and 

Tech Mahindra have substantial 

net-zero commitments 

across their global supply 

chains. This will transform 

how they do business and who 

they do it with. 

This means that small and 

medium-sized businesses in 

countries like New Zealand 

that feed into these supply 

chains also need to meet these 

commitments. To secure their 

place in international markets, 

businesses need to act fast. 

New Zealand businesses 

aren’t alone, and if we look 

offshore to trading partners, 

extended value chains and 

customers, governments and 

investors who move funds 

across our capital markets, 

there are adaptive measures 

already underway. We have the 

benefit of learning from these 

and bringing insights to boardrooms 

here. 

How can New Zealand 

businesses adapt? 

Here’s what I recommend: 

• Preserve and create value 

for growth, and investment. 

Generating wealth, 

and the ability to raise 

capital will fund business 

transformation. 

• Build organisational and 

individual talent into a 

workforce fit for the future; 

align workforce capabilities 

to achieve strategy, 

upskill for the digital world, 

rethink your physical and 

digital workspace to revitalise 

a sense of purpose and 

organisational energy . 

• Look to tech-enabled 

solutions, digitisation and 

data-led automation, and 

develop capabilities that 

will help you compete in a 

digital world – or risk being 

left behind by others who 

will advance more quickly, 

efficiently and intelligently 

than you. A sector using 

innovation to revolutionise 

its business models this 

way is NZ agritech. 

• Create lean and resilient 

operating models that 

operate across sanctions, 

cross-border mechanisms, 

regulations and security 

risks and manage the 

conflicts from global polarisation. 

Protect key assets 

and supply chains. 

• Understand demographic 

trends, systematic inequality 

and polarisation and 

how your business contributes 

to them, then, put in 

strategies to rebalance. An 

example is the disparity, job 

loss and anxieties inadvertently 

caused by technology 

development. The social 

disruption of our changing 

world is significant, so it 

is also imperative that how 

business navigates each 

step, results in a fair and 

just transition, and vulnerable 

parts of our community 

are not left behind. 

• Implement practices that 

assess the physical and 

transition risks of climate 

change, and in managing 

those risks, set meaningful 

targets that will support a 

collective global effort to 

net-zero. Look to solutions 

that create value, beyond 

compliance, and embrace 

broader strategic and operational 

transformation. 

Moves to increase transparency 

in reporting, and independent 

assurance of metrics 

and targets, will build 

trust for wider stakeholders. 

It's an exciting road ahead, and 

never has it been more important 

for businesses to bring the 

best talent and innovations to 

solving some of society’s biggest 

challenges. As multinationals 

drive their agenda and 

cast the net wider on how they 

tackle these issues on a global 

scale, New Zealand businesses 

and their boards need to know 

how to respond to be fit for the 

future. 

* ‘Taking Stock: A global 

assessment of net zero targets.’ 

eciu.net/analysis/ 

reports/2021/taking-stockassessment-net-zero-targets 

Grassroots Trust 

has been with the 

velodrome right from 

the very beginning, 

even before our 

doors opened. They 

have been a longtime 

supporter of our 

junior programme so 

it’s terrific to have 

them front and centre 

so we can showcase 

a key supporter. 

In recognition of the ongoing support from Grassroots Trust, The Home of Cycling Charitable Trust announce the renaming of the 

iconic Cambridge based velodrome, now known as Grassroots Trust Velodrome. Left to right - Martin Bradley, Executive Chairman 

Grassroots Trust, Scott Gemmill, General Manager Home of Cycling Charitable Trust, and Tim Wood, Managing Director Maxserv 

New name and new look for 

revered velodrome 

Cambridge’s internationally-renowned 

velodrome has a new name and a new logo. 

In recognition of the significant 

and ongoing financial 

support received from 

Grassroots Trust, the Home 

of Cycling Board has agreed 

to rename the velodrome the 

Grassroots Trust Velodrome, 

complete with a new logo and 

fresh new signage. 

General manager Scott 

Gemmill said the change is 

a “natural progression” for 

both organisations. 

“Grassroots Trust has 

been with the velodrome 

right from the very beginning, 

even before our doors 

opened. They have been a 

long-time supporter of our 

junior programme so it’s terrific 

to have them front and 

centre so we can showcase a 

key supporter. 

“Grassroots is not an 

organisation that seeks recognition 

in the traditional sense. 

But we wanted to rename the 

facility because it’s something 

we can do to show our 

appreciation of their longterm 

support.” 

Gemmill said the organisation 

will continue to work 

closely with Grassroots. 

“We’ll be very upfront 

about how we are performing 

and growing as a community-focused 

facility,” he said. 

“In addition to supporting 

New Zealand’s elite cyclists, 

community use of the velodrome 

has grown from an 

average of 1,300 users per 

month in 2014 to more than 

2,700 users per month now. 

Plus, we’re seeing roughly 

60,000 visitors per year using 

our track, the gym, doing 

tours or coming here for 

events or functions.” 

“We’re seeing more people 

from the wider community 

use the facility in all 

sorts of ways which is exactly 

what was intended and I’m 

really proud of that.” 

Grassroots Trust executive 

chair Martin Bradley 

said Grassroots Trust has 

been a funder of the Home of 

Cycling since its inception. 

“We are grateful to be 

offered the naming rights to 

the velodrome as a consequence 

of our support. The 

home of cycling is doing 

fantastic work with cycling 

and in the community space 

which is unique for such a 

facility.” 

Gemmill said the new 

website is in place at www. 

velodrome.nz and the signage 

to reflect the new name and 

logo would in place by early 

December.

“ 


HR & RECRUITMENT 

Is the drive for “fit” killing a good hire? 

PEOPLE AND CULTURE 

> BY SENGA ALLEN 

Managing Director, Everest – All about people TM 

www.everestpeople.co.nz 

How many times have you heard the line – “Joe Bloggs has 

excellent skills, but we just don’t think he’ll fit our culture”. Now 

don’t get me wrong – I’m all for fit and creating a team that works 

well together but I’d like to challenge your assumption that you 

can determine “fit” after one short interview. 

Is your eagerness to find 

a team member who you 

perceive will seamlessly fit 

into your culture blindsiding 

other great candidates who in 

the long run may be a better 

fit because of a range of factor 

such as skills, qualifications, 

behaviours, personality, values 

and fit? How much time do you 

actually spend assessing “fit” 

before offering someone a new 

job? Experience tells me – not 

enough. 

Similarly, we see many a 

hiring manager excluding great 

candidates because of a range 

of different biases – “they 

can’t work here because they 

don’t have New Zealand experience” 

or “she won’t fit in here 

because we’re rough and ready 

blokes” or “he is too qualified 

and will get bored within 

two months”. Often biases 

like these come from previous 

experiences – however, 

proceed with caution – just 

because something happened 

once, it doesn’t mean that it 

will happen every single time. 

Assumptions like these can 

lead to a very slim candidate 

pool or a pool that doesn’t take 

into consideration all the skills 

and behaviours that you’re 

really looking for. 

So how can you truly be 

sure that you are selecting a 

candidate who will be the perfect 

person and exact fit for 

your business? The fact is, 

there is no magic formula and 

there are no fail safe guarantees 

that what you see at the 

first exchange is what you will 

get 91 days (and onwards) after 

employment. But by taking a 

wider approach to data collection 

and validation of your 

“gut” feeling you are much 

more likely to create a positive, 

enduring match. Recruitment 

is a bit like dating – you need 

to get know your candidate to 

figure out whether you actually 

want a long-term relationship. 

Like dating, finding a new 

person for your team takes 

time and it is definitely a twoway 

process. Would you want 

to be stuck in a relationship 

with someone who you didn’t 

take time to get to know first? 

So here are some top tips for 

“dating” your prospective hire: 

1. Meet them, interview them, 

meet them again – only you 

can decide how many times 

you need to meet someone 

before you understand how 

they tick. But remember 

many first timers are nervous 

at the initial interview 

and you might need 

a couple of “coffee dates” 

to get to know your candidate. 

Often we hear “we’re 

desperate for someone and 

they seem to fit our team 

so I’m going to make an 

offer”. Desperation can 

lead to mistakes! 

2. Ask other people in your 

team to meet your preferred 

candidate; take them on a 

tour around your business, 

take them out for lunch, 

meet on neutral ground, 

catch up for breakfast. 

Now you might think – why 

would I bother doing this if 

I didn’t feel the magic when 

we first met? My response 

to this – why wouldn’t you? 

If you’re spending anywhere 

between $50k and 

$100k on salary (or more!) 

per annum for your new 

hire you want to make sure 

that investment is going to 

be worth it. 

3. Don’t just rely on interviews 

to see whether your 

candidate will “fit” your 

team. Consider using ability 

testing, personality 

assessments, emotional 

intelligence testing, values 

and ethics testing – the list 

goes on. These tools are all 

designed to help you verify 

your thinking and can add 

more data to your decision 

making process. 

4. Be careful of your own 

internal biases – these 

can disguise really good 

candidates. For example, 

if you drive a blue car and 

only want to hire people 

who drive blue cars – your 

talent pool may be pretty 

small and you might miss 

that perfect gem. There are 

plenty of great people out 

there who drive red cars! 

So perhaps some simple tips 

and ideas that might widen and 

freshen our thinking on fit. Fit 

isn’t just about the fact that 

someone is “nice” and will get 

on with your team. It can be a 

fit of skills; a fit of values; fit of 

ethics and so on. These qualities 

in individuals may take 

time to come to the surface. 

Don’t discount fit after just a 

one hour interview! 

Senga Allen 

Executive Recruiter 

Sharyn Codlin 

Recruiter 

Rachel Knox 

Recruiter 

“ 

Beth Haigh 

Recruiter 

Sharon Jefferies 

Career Specialist 

everestpeople.co.nz

HR & RECRUITMENT 


41 

Preserve your reputation, beat the storm 

PR AND COMMUNICATIONS 

> BY HEATHER CLAYCOMB 

Heather Claycomb is director of HMC, a Hamilton-based, 

award-winning public relations agency. 

I don’t know if it’s a combination of Covid craziness and end 

of year angst, or the cosmic after-effects of last month’s micro 

Moon eclipse, but recent days at HMC have seen an unusual 

convergence of heavy issues and crises. 

For our team, every time 

we advise a client on 

a tough issue, we like 

to step back and understand 

what we can learn, take away 

and apply in the future when 

another client issue arises. 

Here are a few of our learnings 

over the past month, which 

might help when your organisation 

faces its next big issue. 

Putting these nuggets into 

practice will help you preserve 

your reputation, build trust and 

manage risk. 

Face into the wind 

When a storm is brewing, the 

best thing you can do is to start 

battening down the hatches. 

If you choose not to board up 

the windows and sandbag your 

doors, and hide under the bed 

instead, you’re just going to 

emerge back into a house that 

is battered – maybe beyond 

repair. 

When an issue is threatening 

to become public, face 

into it. And face into it early. 

Prepare and plan until there’s 

nothing more you can do but 

wait. 

Yes, it’s exhausting. Yes, 

worst-case scenario planning is 

scary. Yes, it means you need 

to drop BAU. But if you want 

to preserve your organisation’s 

reputation, you don’t have a 

choice. The calm before the 

storm is the time when leaders 

earn their mettle. 

Don’t get comfy in 

the eye of the storm 

It’s unlikely many of us have 

experienced the eye of a hurricane, 

but we’ve all likely 

seen footage in movies or on 

the news. An eye comes in 

the middle of the storm, not at 

the end. And it can give you 

a false sense of security. The 

eye is often calm. It can even 

be sunny. But it only lasts for 

a short time until the raging 

wind and rain returns. 

When you are managing a 

crisis, don’t get comfortable. 

Very often, particularly if we 

are talking about media coverage, 

it can get worse before it 

gets better. So, don’t let your 

guard down. Keep strategising 

and forward-planning. 

Visibility can be low 

When a storm is upon you, you 

often can’t see the road ahead 

and the obstacles on it. You’ve 

got to put one step in front of 

the other and hope you are on 

the right road. 

That’s why you need to 

map your course before the 

rain starts falling. And then 

practise walking it. What will 

you do if X happens? How 

will you react if media says Y? 

What other route might you 

take if Z ends up not being an 

option? 

Believe me, the storm is a 

lot less scary when you can 

visualise the roadmap and the 

destination. 

The end of the 

storm is just the start 

Organisations often spend so 

much time planning for a negative 

event or tricky announcement, 

but then forget to plan 

for ‘what’s next.’ When the 

storm has passed, that’s the 

time to look around, do a 

stocktake and then determine 

your strategy for the clean-up 

phase. 

Don’t think you can just 

go back to business-as-usual 

after your organisation’s gone 

through a crisis or issue. You’ll 

need to adjust and think about 

the ways you can rebuild trust, 

while demonstrating your 

organisation has learned from 

the experience and is making 

things better as a result. 

You need your 

mates to get through 

Sitting alone in your house 

while a storm rages around 

you is a very lonely and scary 

place to be. It’s also a dangerous 

place – you can’t navigate 

it alone. 

Get a trusted, experienced 

team around you – people 

who have been through storms 

before. Managing issues and 

crises can bring out the best in 

your staff and your advisors, 

especially when a great leader 

is at the helm. 

Facing a major issue or 

crisis is bloody hard work. It 

calls for an organisation to step 

up and do the right thing. And 

that means taking the knocks 

you deserve, but hopefully 

also accepting the kudos you’ll 

have earned when you muster 

up the courage to meet the 

storm head-on. 

Bidding war for candidates 

sees salaries rise 

Employers need to put their best offer on the table 

to secure candidates. 

That’s the advice from 

Asset Recruitment’s 

permanent and executive 

recruitment specialist, 

Judy Davison, who says the 

traditional approach to recruitment 

is a thing of the past in 

our post-COVID labour market. 

At a time when vacancies 

are high and candidate numbers 

are low, employers are 

bidding against each other to 

fill current vacancies. 

“It’s a bit like the property 

market,” says Judy. “Candidates 

are receiving multiple 

offers so employers who are 

offering good salaries tend to 

secure the individual. Gone is 

the historical approach of setting 

a salary and reviewing it in 

six months’ time. Companies 

must now make close to their 

best offer from the outset.” 

However, Judy issues a 

word of warning for employers 

offering salaries at the top of 

their bracket in order to fill a 

position. 

“Don’t lose sight of your 

current staff,” she says. “If 

you’re securing a candidate 

by paying them the same 

as, or more than, an existing 

team member who has been 

with you through COVID, 

who potentially underwent 

a salary freeze, and who is 

exhibiting loyalty to your company, 

it can cause significant 

internal problems.” 

[H2] Offering the 

whole package 

While the current market certainly 

favours job seekers, the 

highest salary won’t always 

seal the deal when it comes 

to securing a good candidate. 

“Other benefits, such as health 

insurance and performance 

bonuses, are being offered 

more so than ever before,” 

says Judy. 

“We’re urging employers 

to put together a good overall 

package to secure great 

candidates. Flexibility is very 

important for job seekers, 

being able to work two to three 

days from home. Paid parking 

in Hamilton’s CBD is another 

attraction, as is the private use 

of company cars.” 

Judy acknowledges not all 

businesses are in a position 

to offer top dollar, with many 

still dealing with the impact of 

last year’s lockdowns, so how 

can they recruit much-needed 

staff? 

“Offering a collaborative 

work environment, a great 

team culture, supportive management, 

and recognising a job 

well done still goes a long way 

when it comes to attracting 

staff,” says Judy. “Although 

the labour market is tight, we 

won’t place just anyone into a 

role. Skill set, personality and 

attitude continue to be key 

factors when we’re looking 

Judy Davison 

at matching the right candidate 

with the right role. There 

has got to be a good fit – for 

both the employer and the 

employee.” 

[H2] Proactive approach 

to staff retention 

What continues to be the best 

way for companies to navigate 

the current labour market is 

ensuring they have good staff 

retention. 

“Be proactive,” advises 

Judy. “Companies who forget 

to look at their existing 

staff risk losing them. Make 

sure your staff have regular 

reviews, are compensated 

for their performance, given 

opportunities to progress, learn 

new skills, and contribute more 

widely to your organisation. 

Taking a proactive approach 

to staff retention will l 

essen the risk of your talent 

moving on.” 

[CTA] Looking to fill a 

vacancy? Speak with Judy 

and the team at Asset Recruitment. 

They position excellence 

across the Waikato in temporary, 

permanent, executive and 

industrial roles. 

Positioning Excellence 

Locally owned and operated, Asset Recruitment 

has been established for more than 30 years. 

We’re specialists in temporary, permanent, 

executive and industrial recruitment. 

If you’re looking to hire or would like to discuss career opportunities, 

do get in touch with our team. We position excellence in roles across 

different industries and sectors, working with both candidates 

and clients to secure the right fit for temporary, permanent and 

contract positions. 

Recruit with Excellence. Recruit with Asset. 

Temporary | Permanent | Executive | Industrial 

07 839 3685 | www.assetrec.co.nz


Celebrating one 

year in business 

There’s no doubt 2021 has been another challenging yet 

remarkable year in history. But while many small businesses 

floundered and stalled through tough economic conditions, 

others grew wings and soared to new heights. 

Waikato-based recruitment 

agency, 

RecruitNet, launched 

in December 2020. Now, one 

year into the journey, founder 

Brigitta Warren reflects on the 

highs and lows of launching a 

small business during uncertain 

times. 

“We first met Brigitta while 

establishing a renovations franchise 

business in Hamilton. Her 

competent and professional 

handling of our requirements 

reinforced with us just why it’s 

so important to engage the right 

people to get the right results.” 

- Lawrie and Mandy Foster, Refresh 

Renovations 

The business of connecting 

Brigitta Warren stumbled into 

recruitment twenty years ago 

after a stint as a Scientist. She 

quickly realised she’d found her 

groove. 

“I didn’t expect to fall in love 

with recruitment,” explains Brigitta. 

“At the time, I just wanted 

to try something new. But I got 

hooked.” 

Fuelled by her love of people 

and her unwavering ability to 

get stuff done, Brigitta permanently 

packed away her lab coat 

as her reputation as a first-class 

Recruiter flourished. She soon 

became the right-hand woman 

for many companies seeking 

new leaders and executives 

across New Zealand. When 

lockdown 2020 hit, Brigitta 

saw an opportunity to take her 

skills and help more people find 

meaningful work. She knew she 

could plug a gap in the market 

for an agency dedicated to recruiting 

top talent in New Zealand’s 

growing manufacturing 

and engineering industries. A 

few months later, she launched 

RecruitNet. 

“Brigitta and the team always 

take the time to understand 

the positions we’re seeking 

relative to our business 

goals. As a result, we are always 

presented with the best possible 

candidates.” - Simon Cairns, 

General Manager, Kliptank 

A year of growth in 

uncertain times 

After one year in business, RecruitNet 

is a critical business 

partner to many manufacturing, 

engineering and primary sector 

businesses across New Zealand, 

particularly in the Waikato and 

Bay of Plenty. 

There was no quiet, slow 

start to RecruitNet. Brigitta hit 

the deck running at full pelt. 

“I already had the relationships, 

and once they heard I’d 

formed RecruitNet, they knew 

where to come.” 

Within a few months of operation, 

Brigitta needed to scale 

up to meet her clients’ needs. 

Your recruitment specialists in: 

Operations & Manufacturing 

Procurement & Supply Chain 

Engineering 

Technical & Quality 

Sales & Marketing 

Accounting & Finance 

www.recruitnet.co.nz 

She brought in Maria McCarthy, 

whom she had worked with 

before, as a Senior Recruitment 

Consultant. “I’d always planned 

to grow the business as I knew 

the demand was there, but the 

speed with which it took off was 

surprising,” says Brigitta. 

Not long after, Brigitta and 

Maria were joined by Birger 

Kirsten who supports their business 

operations. 

“Maria kept me informed at 

every stage, she also provided 

tips and guidance for the interview 

process. She clearly had 

my best interests at heart. Communications 

were top notch. 

“Of all the recruiters and 

recruitment companies I dealt 

with recently Maria was the 

best by far.”- Iain Mac, former 

job seeker 

The RecruitNet difference 

Brigitta and Maria’s in-depth 

knowledge of New Zealand’s 

manufacturing industry, along 

with their recruitment insights, 

form the backbone of Recruit- 

Net. But it’s their caring and 

unwavering focus on people 

that keep them top of mind for 

employers and job seekers alike. 

“Anyone can pick up a resume 

and tick off experience for 

a role,” explains Maria McCarthy. 

“For us, the process is much 

deeper. 

“It’s all about asking the 

Maria McCarthy – Senior Recruitment Consultant and Brigitta Warren – Director 

right questions and listening to 

uncover the pot of gold.” 

Yes, experience and skills 

matter. But according to Maria, 

character, ambitions and cultural 

fit are just as important. 

“We want to know what gets 

each candidate out of bed in the 

morning. What environment do 

they need to thrive? Most importantly, 

does this all match 

with who the employer is and 

what they offer their people?” 

The small but dedicated 

team strive to find the right people 

who will stay the distance 

and drive business performance. 

But for every successful job 

placement, there is someone 

who missed out. 

“We always pick up the 

phone and talk to the candidate. 

We don’t waste their time, 

and we don’t leave them in the 

dark,” says Maria. 

“Even if they didn’t land the 

job, we pick up the phone and 

talk to them. There will always 

be more opportunities. The journey 

never ends there.” 

“Maria was absolutely confident 

I would succeed and that 

gave me enormous confidence. 

Needless to say, I owe my current 

wonderful role (of Mechanical 

Engineer) in huge part to 

her”. - Sanjay Pandey, former 

job seeker 

How the pandemic has 

shifted the manufacturing 

job market 

The recruitment process and the 

needs of job seekers and employers 

have transformed dramatically 

since the early 2000s. 

But according to Brigitta, the 

most drastic changes have occurred 

over the last year. 

“The closed borders and uncertain 

times created both a volatile 

and buoyant job market,” 

says Brigitta. 

“This is particularly true for 

leadership and executive roles, 

which before Covid would typically 

attract people overseas 

willing to relocate or come 

home for the opportunity. But 

since the borders closed, New 

Zealand has faced a skills shortage, 

and as recruiters, our focus 

had to shift to focus solely on 

finding awesome local talent.” 

At the same time, the way 

people think of the workplace 

and what they want from their 

employer has transformed and 

‘the great resignation’ has started 

to play out here as it has 

overseas. 

“Job seekers are telling us 

they want stability and they 

value flexibility. They want to 

work for companies that prioritise 

employee well-being and do 

right by their teams,” explains 

Brigitta. 

With all this in play, matching 

the right person with the 

right organisation has never 

been so important. 

“When people leave jobs, 

particularly leaders, it triggers 

an expensive process for the organisation. 

A whole lot of company 

knowledge may have just 

walked out the door. 

“The recruitment process 

takes time, effort and money, 

and it’s so important to get it 

right the first time.” 

Brigitta believes finding the 

right leader to steer a company 

into the future is one of the most 

important decisions an organisation 

ever makes. 

“If you get it wrong, the 

ripples can be felt by employees 

and customers for years to 

come. 

“This is why we work so 

closely with our clients to get 

a deep understanding of their 

business, culture and needs. 

Only then can we find the right 

person for the role.” 

Being in the start-up phase 

during a time of such significant 

change has given RecruitNet a 

clear leg-up. 

‘Pivoting’ and ‘agility’ must 

be the most overused business 

buzz words of the last two years. 

Still, nothing pivots faster than a 

blossoming small business, especially 

one driven by passion 

and purpose to serve the local 

community. 

“I started RecruitNet with a 

clear vision to grow the best recruitment 

business in New Zealand, 

providing the best service 

to both clients and job seekers. 

“The pandemic, the resulting 

skills shortage along with local 

economic growth simply accelerated 

things, and we’ve grown 

quicker than I expected.” 

“Numerous positions have 

been filled over the last year, 

some of which have been open 

for a very long time before engaging 

RecruitNet in an exclusive 

partnership.” - Peter 

Pooran, CEO, Stainless Design 

Serving top brands 

across the Waikato 

and Bay of Plenty 

RecruitNet is a strategic partner 

for many respected Kiwi 

brands, including Stainless 

Design, Kiwi Lumber, Camco, 

Refresh Renovations, Kliptank 

and Waikato Shed Company, to 

name just a few. In the first year 

of business, the small team have 

placed dozens of talented people 

into their dream roles. 

Successful job placements 

include but aren’t limited to: 

Manufacturing Manager, Warehouse 

Manager, Logistics Coordinator, 

Buyer, Regulatory 

Affairs, H&S Manager, Automation 

Engineer, Production 

Manager, across the chemical, 

honey, animal pharmaceutical, 

food, dairy, automation, local 

council and engineering fabrication 

environment. 

“RecruitNet has helped 

us successfully fill roles with 

very difficult to find talent for 

our very specific requirements. 

They’ve done this by fully understanding 

what we need and 

even giving us candidates above 

and beyond what we expected.” 

- Simon Cairns, General Manager, 

Kliptank 

The local manufacturing job 

market looks bright for 2022 

While the uncertainty of the 

pandemic and border closures 

look set to be with us into early 

2022, Brigitta is confident the 

local job market will remain 

buoyant. 

“The manufacturing and 

engineering industry in New 

Zealand hasn’t slowed down; in 

fact, it’s sped up. We also have 

primary industries like timber, 

agriculture and dairy going 

gangbusters with growth and 

job opportunities.” 

Brigitta believes the push 

from consumers to support local 

and buy local is partly behind 

the growth and that this behaviour 

is here to stay. 

“We want to support kiwi 

companies more than ever. We 

want to work for them. We want 

to buy from them. We want to 

feed our families with food from 

local suppliers. I don’t think this 

mindset will change once the 

borders open and the strains on 

global supply chains ease.” 

And while more automation 

looks set to flow into the industry, 

Brigitta doesn’t necessarily 

feel this will equate to fewer 

jobs. 

“We will always need people 

to drive and manage the processes 

and technology. Yes, the 

nature and tasks of some roles 

might shift, but we will always 

need people.” 

It seems the future also looks 

bright for the team at Recruit- 

Net. Brigitta feels there’s room 

for further growth to support 

the robust recruitment needs of 

businesses In New Zealand. 

“A year on, we’ve grown 

the business, worked with some 

awesome clients and made a 

positive impact on many lives. 

It’s been an amazing ride. While 

I never take anything for granted, 

I’m excited to see what 2022 

has in store.” 

Discover outstanding talent 

You can trust RecruitNet to do 

the heavy lifting so you can stay 

focused on your business priorities. 

Contact the team today to 

discuss your recruitment needs. 

Email: info@recruitnet.co.nz 

Call: 021 466 732

MOTORING 


43 

New player launches into the New 

Zealand electric vehicle charging market 

Just launched, Hikotron’s EV charging stations are now available 

for public use at Waikato Innovation Park. A locally designed and 

manufactured smart charging solution, Hikotron has bold plans to 

roll out this technology throughout New Zealand. 

The Hikotron EV charging 

station design is based 

on learnings from 

proven European AC Type 

2 socket infrastructure, with 

further high-tech improvements 

including two pending 

patents that address common 

EV charging infrastructure 

pain points. Hikotron is vertically 

integrated from design 

and manufacture through to 

post implementation support 

allowing for rapid response 

in rollout and maintenance, as 

well as continuous R&D and 

an investment that remains in 

New Zealand. 

Like many Kiwi’s, 

Hikotron’s co-founders Ron 

Smits, Stephanie Smits O’Callaghan 

and Lawrence Muijlwijk 

found themselves returning 

to New Zealand during 

the Covid-19 pandemic and 

brought with them experiences 

from Europe and as EV owners. 

They quickly identified a 

gap in the local EV charging 

market and this opportunity 

along with a passion to support 

the acceleration of EV use 

across New Zealand saw them 

develop the technology using 

their combined experience and 

knowledge. 

“What struck me immediately 

was that while there was 

desire for EV ownership in 

New Zealand, the infrastructure 

required to support this is 

lacking and focuses predominantly 

on fast DC charging in 

an attempt to replicate the legacy 

petrol model of ‘filling up 

your car’ when empty. Having 

lived in London and travelled 

throughout Europe as an EV 

owner, I learned that a range 

of charging options both slow 

and fast, and a greater number 

of them, along with the ability 

to charge your car where it is 

normally parked, offers convenience 

for EV owners and is 

the best use of New Zealand’s 

electricity grid. We shouldn’t 

try to fast charge our way to 

mass EV adoption.” Ron says. 

As an engineer, Ron and 

his business partners set out to 

design and manufacture their 

own solution, utilising stateof-the-art 

technology to roll 

out an AC charging network 

that would enable EV owners 

to travel from destination to 

destination with the confidence 

that they can charge their vehicles 

upon arrival. 

Waikato Innovation Park 

was a natural choice for the 

first location, as it is a hub 

for technology and innovation 

businesses, providing the best 

facilities for the business community, 

and having this stateof-the-art 

technology available 

at the park was a no-brainer for 

operations manager Catherine 

Clark. 

“We have just completed 

our newest build, with planning 

and construction underway 

on a series of other buildings. 

With more businesses 

relocating from outside of 

the Waikato and utilising the 

Waikato as a hub for business, 

supporting electric vehicle 

charging on-site is just another 

one of the ways Waikato Innovation 

Park keeps business 

moving” Catherine says. 

Hikotron chargers are operated 

through a mobile application 

which enables users to 

locate the charger, start and 

stop the charge, monitor how 

much power is being drawn 

while charging and make payment. 

The users can use the 

same mobile application for all 

the chargers on the Hikotron 

public network. 

Hikotron chargers can 

dynamically load share on 

sites with limited power, will 

include booking systems, ability 

to schedule charging times, 

and load shedding/balancing 

ability which the grid will 

require when EVs move into 

mass adoption. In addition, all 

Hikotron chargers’ onboard 

software can be updated and 

supported remotely over the 

air. 

Hikotron is a user-provided 

cable network, which 

allows ultimate compatibility 

for vehicles and avoids 

being susceptible to damage 

and other safety issues associated 

with tethered cables. 

The cable is locked in place, 

meaning it cannot be removed 

or tampered with during your 

charging session. 

Hikotron is working with 

developers, businesses, and 

other organisations with strong 

interest around the country, 

starting in Waikato. They have 

sites planned for a range of 

locations around the region 

that will go-live early 2022.


MOTORING 

EVOLUTION BECOMES REVOLUTION 

The arrival of the Sportster S, a new era in power and performance, and our vision for 

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What do you want from me? 

TELLING YOUR STORY 

> BY VICKI JONES 

Vicki Jones is director of Dugmore Jones, Hamilton-based brand 

management consultancy. Email vicki@dugmorejones.co.nz 

Marketers use the phrase ‘call to action’ for the prompt that you 

see on advertising or marketing that triggers you to respond or 

tell you what to do next. But how are these prompts changing? 

In my first agency job, I 

sometimes got to help out 

as a Mac operator. My 

graphic designer friends are 

probably shuddering at the 

thought of this, but the studio 

got busy and they sent me on 

a quick course to be able to do 

some basics. Very basic! 

Close to the city in London, 

we had lots of financial services 

clients and I spent hours 

resizing newspaper ads that 

were selling things like insurance 

policies. But in those days 

the internet was only a baby 

(yes, showing my age again!) 

the ads didn’t send you to a 

website for more information, 

or even offer an email address. 

You filled in a form, cut it out 

and sent off for a brochure – it 

was the good old days of ‘coupon 

response advertising’. 

You certainly don’t see this 

anymore as we’re given much 

easier options. In fact, the list 

of options for us to choose from 

Why website conversion rate 

is the wrong KPI for growth 

has grown like billy-o. Ring an 

0800 number, email, browse 

the website, send a Facebook 

message, and Instagram message, 

a Snapchat message, a 

WhatsApp message, scan a 

QR code, have an overly polite 

conversation with a ChatBot… 

it’s bordering on confronting 

sometimes, isn’t it, and we can 

safely resign ourselves to the 

fact that the list is only going 

to get longer. 

The world of websites, 

apps and digital marketing 

has, of course, got all sorts 

of complex dos and don’ts as 

to how to grab our attention, 

make us click for more, but 

the fundamentals are still the 

same. The next step is always 

ours and every advertiser has 

to feel assured that they have 

done enough to seduce us into 

action. 

But we’re used to it all now, 

aren’t we? How prescriptive 

do we need them to be these 

days? 

I remember when we 

first started putting website 

addresses on advertising, we 

used to put the full address, 

usually the ‘www’ and even, 

for those who might be new to 

and less au fait with the ‘interweb’, 

we might even have put 

the ‘https’ in too, even though 

we didn’t technically need to. 

A few years later, I recall 

a friendly debate with a client 

about whether we needed 

to include the ‘www’ because 

people would understand what 

we were getting at without it. 

By then we were used to the 

fact that something ending in 

.co.nz was a website address 

and we didn’t need to teach 

anyone how to suck eggs, even 

grandma. 

And if you’re giving me an 

email address, do you really 

need to put ‘Email us at’ in 

front of it? As an advertiser, 

you now have to find a respectful 

balance between making it 

clear to your customers how 

they can reach you but without 

insulting their intelligence. 

Now, we often see ads 

that don’t even have a website 

address, phone number or 

anything. Particularly where 

the ads are about positioning 

a brand, making an emotive 

connection, a bigger-picture 

message, we see a direct call 

to action less and less. It now 

seems to be just as acceptable 

to trust us to Google the brand 

to find more. (And you can 

pretty much guarantee that our 

social media feeds will then be 

filled with their ads after we’ve 

Googled them anyway!) 

It feels that it used to be 

that brands who had already 

invested heavily in getting our 

attention were the only ones 

with the strength to stand alone 

without a clear call to action. 

The confidence to go naked 

of obvious prompts was the 

domain of household brands, 

those with deep pockets for 

advertising spend, the ones 

that have been highly visible 

and built-up awareness in our 

minds. But now, it’s common 

even for the newest and smallest 

of advertisers. 

When it comes down to it, 

advertisers are naturally going 

to be a bit FOMO (fear of missing 

out) and for some it may 

be too brave a move to be less 

than blatantly obvious. And, 

as more advertising moves 

to platforms where contact is 

merely a click or two away, the 

need for a foolproof pathway 

will be less of an issue. 

But in the meantime, perhaps, 

as marketers, we need to 

ask ourselves ‘is our patronisingly 

obvious instruction really 

necessary?’ 

“Up and to the right” – that’s 

what every business owner 

and marketing manager 

wants to see when looking at 

graphs showing their business 

performance. 

I lead a team of digital marketers 

who love helping clients 

grow their businesses, and “up 

and to the right” is what we 

want to see too. 

But what if the graph for an 

important KPI drops, such as 

“overall conversion rate”? 

Sometimes I have seen clients 

deeply concerned about 

a drop in the overall conversion 

rate on their website. The 

monthly Google Analytics 

report arrives in their inbox 

and if the conversion rate has 

dropped there is a sudden panic. 

Or the marketing manager has 

presented a website performance 

summary to the board 

of directors, who raise concern 

about a drop in overall conversion 

rate. 

But looking at the overall 

conversion rate on your website 

is the wrong metric to be 

focused on. 

THE DIGITAL WORLD 

> BY JOSH MOORE 

Josh Moore is the head marketing fanatic at Duoplus, a 

Hamilton-based digital marketing agency that helps clients get 

more leads and sales through online marketing. www.duoplus.nz 

I know this sounds strange. 

At first impression, the overall 

website conversion rate sounds 

like a robust KPI. But this 

thinking is actually misguided. 

Here’s why: You could have 

a sharp decline in the overall 

website conversion rate and yet 

increase overall sales. 

We had an ecommerce client 

who experienced this. Their 

sales from our digital ad campaigns 

had just achieved their 

best month ever. Yet their conversion 

rate was down. 

We had another client whose 

campaigns were focused on 

leads rather than online sales. 

They had 140 per cent more 

leads than just four months earlier, 

yet their overall website 

conversion rate was now half of 

what it was those four months 

prior. How can that be? 

The short answer was that 

we had increased the amount 

of display ads (image ads) that 

were being run for these clients. 

Display ads are different 

to Google search ads. If you 

search for something on Google 

you are shown text-based 

search ads on the search engine 

results page that match what 

you were searching for. When 

people click on these ads we call 

this “high intent traffic” because 

they were intentionally searching 

for something and the ad 

matches what they are searching 

for. 

In contrast, display ads do 

not show on search results 

pages. Instead display ads are 

image ads that sit alongside 

content on websites such as 

news sites, YouTube, blog sites, 

TradeMe and millions of other 

sites. When people see these ads 

they are not actively searching 

for what you are offering. However, 

some who see it are interested 

enough to click it. We call 

this traffic “low intent traffic”. 

The good thing about display 

ads is that they can generate a 

lot of traffic to your site very 

cheaply. However, the downside 

of traffic from display ads is that 

because the traffic has lower 

intent, it has a much lower conversion 

rate than other forms of 

traffic. 

So, when we increased the 

amount of display traffic coming 

to these websites it decreased 

the overall conversion rate. 

However, it also helped increase 

the number of sales/leads from 

the sites, for the same amount of 

money spent. 

This is why it’s not just about 

overall conversion rate. It’s 

about the total sales and profit. 

Even though the conversion 

rate is much lower with display 

ads, the cost of the traffic is very 

cheap and can generate good 

numbers of customers. Some 

of the traffic will buy or enquire 

straight away, and for the ones 

that don’t, they have now been 

exposed to your brand and products/services. 

This positions 

your company in their mind as 

a solution, and some of these 

users will return to your website 

two or three times and then convert 

to being a customer. 

If you were focused on the 

overall conversion rate, you 

would want to turn off display 

advertising. However, this can 

decrease the total amount of 

sales/leads you get from your 

advertising. 

So, if the overall conversion 

rate is not the right KPI, what 

figures should you look at? 

Firstly, for ecommerce sites, 

I recommend you view the 

Return On Ad Spend (ROAS) 

figure. This is the total revenue 

generated from ads divided by 

the total cost of the ads. For 

example, if you spent $1000 on 

digital ads and this generated 

$6500 in ecommerce revenue, 

your ROAS is 6.5. The higher 

the number the better the return. 

This is the most important overall 

KPI to focus on. 

Alternatively, for lead-focused 

businesses the best KPI 

would be the Cost Per Acquisition 

(CPA) – which is the total 

ad spend divided by the number 

of leads. If you spent $1000 on 

ads and received 20 leads you 

have a CPA of $50 per lead. 

These are the best top-level 

figures to compare month-tomonth. 

When it comes to conversion 

rates, they are still important. 

Just don’t get distracted by 

the “overall conversion rate”. 

There are two useful ways you 

could approach this. 

Firstly, for an overall figure 

of website performance I recommend 

directors and owners 

look at a filtered overall conversion 

rate, with display ads traffic 

filtered out. This will give a 

reliable overall conversion rate 

figure that can be compared 

month-to-month. 

Secondly, marketing managers 

who want to delve into the 

detail can look at the month-tomonth 

conversion rates for each 

traffic source. 

For example, you can compare 

the conversion rate for 

organic traffic month-to-month, 

and separately compare the conversion 

rate for Google search 

ads month-to-month. This 

means you’re comparing apples 

with apples. 

By choosing the right KPIs, 

you can keep your finger on the 

pulse and make good decisions 

that result in long-term success.

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“This is a team with the technical 

knowledge and skills to make creative 

solutions as things happen along the way.” 

Jenny Collings, Ordained Minister & Local Charity Director, Salvation Army Hamilton 

The Salvation Army Hamilton City building has 

had a major facelift, fulfilling their objective to 

create a warm and welcoming environment. 

Last renovated 10 years ago, the project was a 

joint effort between Foster Construction, Sekta 

Architects and Cooper Interiors. 

Work by Foster Construction has transformed 

the front of house into a large hospitality 

space, two separate entrances now one big 

sliding door. A newly configured office area 

means the team are more easily accessible to 

visitors. Upstairs, two cavernous rooms initially 

earmarked as auditoriums have been completed, 

along with a new stairwell and toilet block. 

Finally, the food bank was revamped into a 

social supermarket environment. 

“The result is exactly what we hoped for” 

says Salvation Army Ordained Minister & 

Local Charity Director Jenny Collings. “We are 

absolutely delighted. Our front of house is now a 

truly interactive, hospitable space. Upstairs we 

have two large, multi-purpose areas which are 

also ideal for children. 

“Working with Fosters was the best decision” 

she continues. “They have great people. Our kind 

of people; easy to talk with, socially intelligent, 

great communicators, accessible and responsive. 

They put technical stuff into plain language 

for us non-technical people. And they were so 

adaptable to our changing requirements. 

“We started with high expectations in terms of 

the result we wanted. Throughout the project, 

Fosters maintained our confidence in meeting 

our standards of excellence.” 

Jenny notes they did have some doubts as to 

how they’d be able to work with the renovations 

going on. 

“Fosters exceeded our expectations in how 

amenable they were to our needs, creating 

temporary structures for us to work in and 

building great relationships with our staff,” she 

says. 

“This is a team with the technical knowledge 

and skills to make creative solutions as things 

happen along the way. They absolutely know 

what they are doing, and I would work with them 

again in a heartbeat.” 

FOSTERS.CO.NZ . 07 849 3849

Waikato Business News November/December 2021

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