Businesses going global

The company’s rise to success has been phenomenal but behind the premium brand lies a uniquely Kiwi story. Wai Mānuka is the brainchild of three lifelong friends Lance Paora, Wayne Atkins and Joe Harawira, and Joe says the idea started over a few drinks. 

“We were at a New Year’s Eve BBQ together and I was drinking pineapple kombucha and I said to the boys, this is not a good option for a social event. We started discussing other possibilities and by the end of that night we had decided that we were going to take honey from Gisborne and mix it with spring water from the Bay of Plenty. Early on we were going to call it ‘The healing water of Aotearoa’ but we soon met with a compliance expert who was like “no you can’t call it that!’ so Wai Mānuka was born.”

The company’s first big break came when a mentor sent through an expression of interest form to be part of the America’s Cup. Joe says the mentor told them it was probably too early for something this big but he wanted them to understand the opportunities that could be available to them in the future.

“We thought oh well why not, let’s just give it a crack, and then a few months down the track the America’s Cup took us on board as one of the non-alcoholic beverage suppliers, alongside Coca-Cola. In terms of launching a startup we couldn’t have asked for a better platform to generate the exposure and awareness we experienced. Off the back of that opportunity we were able to secure a number of high-end partnerships.”

From there the company has continued to grow. They have just appointed an advisory board and are looking to grow their presence in Aotearoa, whilst being a focus customer of NZTE and validating global markets in Asia and the UAE. With the help of Callaghan Innovation they have also recently proven some health benefits surrounding Wai Mānuka and are looking at how to best maximize those results. 

Joe says they want to leverage the global reputation of Mānuka honey and Aotearoa whilst celebrating the Māori provenance story. 

“Every day we aim to live by the values of Kaitiakitanga, Hauoratanga, Manaakitanga and Whanaungatanga, these values help guide decision making and are inherent to Wai Mānuka. This is also acknowledged in our brand identity through a Māori motif that speaks to the integral role that nature plays in the process of creating Wai Mānuka. There’s an evocative story behind the product that offers people a deeper insight and connection to Aotearoa. This is what led us to establish our vision He taonga no Aotearoa – A precious gift from New Zealand.”   

That feeling of connection is one which Joe says he hopes Wai Mānuka will inspire not just here, but for Kiwi all over the world.

“When Wai Mānuka is available around the world we want people who enjoy it to feel like they have their own little slice of Aotearoa. At the same time if you’re a Kiwi offshore we would love for you to be proud of Wai Mānuka when you see it in a restaurant or a cafe or a bar, we want you to think, wow that comes from home, that’s where I’m from.”

“You know when it was just an idea on New Year’s eve it was about the three of us boys doing something to stay more connected. As time has gone on, we feel the support we are getting from our hometown and all around the country, and it’s been massive and we now realise and appreciate the fact that this is bigger than us, and if we are talking about celebrating the finest of Aotearoa on the world stage then that comes with a greater sense of responsibility. Nevertheless we feel very privileged to be in this position and if we stay grounded and true to our values then hopefully, we can do it justice”

It’s been hard mahi for the three ‘Māori boys’ from the Bay of Plenty. Wai Mānuka was funded by their savings and bank loans, and money borrowed from family members and Joe says there have been some expensive lessons learned along the way. 

“We had a number of bottles explode on the production line earlier this year. We found out the hard way that one of the reasons companies don’t make carbonated honey drinks is because the honey is extremely volatile during the carbonation process. If your measurements aren’t exact or your glass bottle is slightly too thin the drink will explode. It’s a mistake you only make once.”

All three of the guys kept their day jobs while running Wai Mānuka on the side, and Joe says it’s now got to the point where their biggest challenge is time, so he has made the decision to resign from his current role with New Zealand Rugby and go full time to focus on growing the business.

Future plans include producing a 750ml sparkling version to position Wai Mānuka as the beverage of special occasions and a non-alcoholic alternative to drinking prosecco and champagne, an idea that was suggested by Government House. The boys are also keen on creating a still version to compliment the sparkling and broaden its range. The online store opens on Labour weekend and a documentary on their story is due for release on NZ screens in February. 

Joe says he wants their story to be proof that anyone, especially young Māori, can achieve their dream if they want it badly enough.

“If 3 Māori boys from Whakatāne can make a premium non-alcoholic beverage throughout a global pandemic and partner with the likes of America’s Cup, then you can do anything! We started this journey to stay more connected as mates, and honestly now it feels like we’re married! But it’s great because we know each other’s strengths and weaknesses, we’re straight up with each other and we lean on each other during tough times. We don’t agree on everything but by working through those issues and upholding each other’s mana, we come out better for it. Our advice to anyone thinking of starting a business. Do one thing everyday that brings you closer to achieving your vision. It doesn’t matter how small. Mauri ora’

Wai Mānuka were passed on to Kea Connect by our Global partner BNZ. Kea Connect was able to introduce them to Kiwi experts in the Hong Kong and China F&B channels. The company recently reached out a second time asking for connections to high end restaurants, cafes and hotels as part of their NZ growth strategy.

Kea World Class New Zealander Delwyn Moller, a trained engineer, has worked in the space industry for a number of years. She was part of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California where she worked on radar technology, primarily with a focus toward Earth science, before arriving back in New Zealand three years ago.

She’s an adjunct Professor at the University of Auckland and right now is working on a collaboration project between the University of Auckland and NASA which will see a Global Navigation Satellite System Receiver (GNSS-R) fitted onto an Air New Zealand Q300 plane. Delwyn says the GNSS-R will act as a scientific “black box” gathering data as the plane flies around Aotearoa on its scheduled passenger flights. 

“We will be looking at the difference between the direct signal from the satellite and what’s being reflected off the earth’s surface. The GNSS-R will allow us to collect data on changes in soil moisture, wetland monitoring, flooding, and susceptibility of drought to name a few. We will get these continual records over months to years, which will allow us to see short term dynamics and also long term changes to our environment.”

The project is a first of its kind collaboration in terms of a commercial airline partnering to gather data from space. Delwyn says the focus on collecting information to help us be better custodians of this planet is something New Zealand is uniquely positioned for. 

“We have a long, skinny country covering a large range of latitudes, lots of ocean, close to Antarctica and we have strong relationships with the Pacific. We also experience a range of natural disasters. In terms of being able to carry out research into different climate issues, we are a perfect proving ground.”

The use of our unique climate to help collect satellite data is also a focus for the New Zealand Space Agency. Paul Stocks, head of the agency at MBIE, says beyond rocket launches, New Zealand has strengths in applying space-based data in areas such as agri-technology, hazard management, natural resource management, oceanography and meteorology.

“The positive impact of space-based data and services for understanding climate change and mitigating or reducing environmental harm is immense. A good example of this is MethaneSAT, which is New Zealand’s first government funded space mission which uses state-of-the-art satellites designed to detect global methane emissions. In partnership with US environmental NGO the Environmental Defense Fund, it is focused on rapidly reducing oil and gas industry emissions but can be used for measuring methane from other sources such as agriculture.”

These collaborations are just some of many projects happening right now across New Zealand’s space industry. Spacebase NZ founders Eric Dahlstrom and his partner Emeline Paat-Dahlstrom emigrated to New Zealand four years ago because they recognised the huge potential of the Kiwi space industry. Emeline says our increasing expertise in this area has really made the world sit up and take notice. 

“New Zealand has an excellent reputation in the space industry right now, a couple of years ago an Australian company built a satellite and they wanted to launch it. Normally this process takes around two years, however Rocket Lab and others behind the scenes worked really hard and launched the satellite in just two months. The speed at which this was done made the whole world sort of wake up and take notice, no one ever thought something like this could be done so quickly.”

She says New Zealand is also leading the way when it comes to the sustainability of the sector.  

“Clean space is an area we are already leading the world in, other countries are talking about five and ten year plans to make their space programmes more sustainable and environmentally friendly and all the things on these plans are things New Zealand is already doing, it would be great to see us take advantage of that and continue to be a leader in this area.” 

The global space economy has grown significantly over the past decade and is currently valued at around $350 billion US dollars. Investment company Morgan Stanley has forecast it to grow to more than one trillion US dollars by 2040. In New Zealand alone the economic contribution of the space economy was $1.69 billion in 2018-19.

So how do we continue to grow benefits here? Offshore Kiwi Lau Saili leads the development of the Space sector for the Queensland State Government in Australia and says there are opportunities for New Zealand and Australia to further cement their position in this global industry through collaboration. 

“For most of history the space industry has been predominantly government-led, in the last decade there has been a transfer of risk and opportunities to the private sector. Companies like Rocket Lab have shown the way for what’s possible in safe developed countries which are strategically placed. Currently the majority of space launch activity is in the Northern hemisphere, we have a real opportunity, I think, to bring a lot more of it down our way especially if New Zealand and Australia work together to cement our place in the future of this industry.”

Eric Dahlstrom says Spacebase is helping Kiwi startups create success in the industry and people should know that the future for New Zealand’s industry is bright. 

“There are all these little pockets of activity for building satellites and sensors and getting them ready to fly but the biggest opportunities are around what to do with all this satellite data. There are a lot of companies in New Zealand that are focused on interpreting this data in clever ways with machine learning and AI. There are some great opportunities in New Zealand to work in the space industry and we need to make sure people know that.”

Starship’s adoption of cutting-edge technology dates back to the hospital’s creation in the early 1990’s. The hospital was an early adopter of Telepaeds, a medical video conferencing service which allowed doctors to meet with family and other professionals from around the country. 

These days the Telepaeds service has been more or less replaced by more widely used forms of video conferencing, but General Paediatric Clinical Director Dr Greg Williams says the early adoption of the concept means Starship has always been well positioned to offer a range of telehealth services.

“Being able to speak to people online, or to observe a child via a video call in their home environment is hugely valuable. Telehealth services allow us to deliver high-quality care to as many children as possible. It’s a really valuable tool.” 

The early adoption of telehealth also meant that when the pandemic hit, the team at Starship were able to continue care almost seamlessly. 

“There is always the mandate to keep improving our services for whānau and patients. During the pandemic it was difficult to meet in person for obvious reasons, but regardless of Covid, telehealth provides significant benefits to patients and whānau. When we listen to our families we find many prefer telehealth. This is particularly true if we are talking about a child with a chronic long term condition who requires multiple appointments each year. An appointment with our team in Auckland can take out half a day or more if the family lives further away. The time, energy and stress we can save people by conducting some of these appointments online is immense, and can determine whether some patients can access care.”

Improving quality patient care for children is also the main driver behind the Douglas Starship Simulation Programme. The programme educates clinicians, staff and families by providing training for different scenarios in a variety of hospital settings. Operations Manager Trish Wood says Starship first got involved in the mid 00’s, but it wasn’t until about 10 years ago that things really scaled up. 

“The evolution of technology has really allowed us to take the programme to the next level. One of the best examples are our mannequins. These play the role of patients and can speak, blink, breathe and have a heartbeat. They can also react to different situations, for example they can start to turn blue for lack of oxygen. We attach monitors to feedback vital signs, and put all this together in a real environment. As a clinician the most stressful situations are those which don’t happen very often but when they do it’s critical to get it right. Our simulation programme allows us to test and practice these situations and get them right before game time.” 

The simulation programme also helps families like Larissa, whose son Lennox was born with significant lung and heart problems. Lennox was discharged from hospital with a ventilator and the programme helped his family practice the care they learnt in the PICU and apply this in a non clinical environment. It’s training that mum Larissa says is invaluable.

“When we initially were given a date to be discharged everything was scary. We didn’t know what to expect. The Douglas simulation team supported us to care for Lennox and showed us how we could tackle different situations in the home and in different locations such as in the car or at the park. This made my husband and I feel a lot more at ease, it was a safe space to freely learn and grow in confidence.”

Trish says the programme is about empowering families to be independent of the hospital and be able to return home to a ‘new normal.”

One of the most important parts of simulation based education is the debriefing. Starship has made huge advancements in this area and are now using their expertise to help other hospitals across New Zealand and Australia. 

To stay at the forefront of technology Starship has also partnered with Kiwi tech innovators and leaders. Last year the Starship Foundation partnered with a Kiwi app developer to run a clinical trial of the app ‘Village’ designed to help teens dealing with self-harm and suicide. 

‘Village’ empowers young people, aged 13 to 25, who suffer from low moods to mental distress; to obtain regular and real-time support from a network of trusted individuals called “buddies”. Those buddies are, in turn, educated and supported to respond appropriately. 

Starship’s Child Psychiatrist and Paediatrician Dr Hiran Thabrew says the app has been co-designed with families and young people in mind and takes a whānau approach.

“It’s important for us to work smarter to improve health outcomes for patients and using e-health to support our current services is one way we can do this. When we look at the future of the system we have to look at collaborative care and how we can support patients and their whānau to care for and learn about their own health and build health literacy. ‘Village’ lets us do this.”

Starship has also partnered with Kea World Class New Zealanders Greg Cross and Dr Mark Sagar founders of Kiwi tech company Soul Machines to work on creating an AI driven world first digital person named Maia. ‘Maia’ will support children who need to have an intravenous cannulation (a procedure that enables children to receive medication directly into their bloodstream via a needle inserted in the arm.)

Director of the Douglas Starship Simulation Programme Jo Hegarty, says children who require this procedure are currently supported by play specialists who work in the hospital, but after hours these specialists aren’t always available and Starship recognised an opportunity where technology could help out. 

“Maia will be a digital person who will be able to provide interactive conversation with a child and help them to feel less anxious and practise mindfulness techniques before and during the procedure. This is an exciting world first innovation and gives us the opportunity to work with an amazing Kiwi business. Maia is still in development but already people are seeing all sorts of applications for her. It’s really exciting!”

Philanthropy has been at the very heart of technological innovation at Starship since the Starship Foundation was established in 1992. Since then, the charity has invested over $150 million in child health. Thanks to the generosity of New Zealanders, Starship is enabled to provide patients and their whānau with world class care. The Foundation has a continued urgency to keep innovating and delivering impact, with a target to generate $20 million a year for Starship and the children of Aotearoa. 

This month, NZTE has confirmed that the campaign is ramping up with further paid media
activity. Once again, the focus is on our key export markets, Australia, China, Japan, North America & the United Kingdom. Many other markets are also leveraging the campaign and assets including F&B activations centred around Dubai’s Expo early in 2022.

Launched in October 2021, Made with Care is part of the government’s COVID-19 recovery strategy
to and share New Zealand’s Food & Beverage story with the world at a time when many exporters can’t be in market. The campaign is being executed with a combination of paid social media, content marketing, digital e-commerce, in store promotions, influencer and PR activity.

The campaign’s proposition of care is underpinned by global research which reinforces consumers are seeking safe, nutritious, healthy, premium, quality, tasty and sustainably produced food and beverage.

In New Zealand, over 2,000 business have engaged with or leveraged the campaign; either
downloading and using the ready-to-use marketing toolkit, using the campaign messaging to
help build their brand story or being involved with NZTE’s in-market activations.

The marketing toolkit includes FREE images, social media content, video footage, sector copy,
infographics and marketing messages to help exporting businesses engage with their global
consumers, and we are actively encouraging more to access this fantastic resource to help build
the Made with Care movement.

Everyone can play a part in helping drive awareness and preference for our food & beverages.
Here are some quick ways your business can support the movement:

• Use the hashtag #NZMadewithCare on your social media posts as a way to extend your
  brand’s reach and have your content shared on our channels
• Explore the marketing toolkit and share with your in-house designers, agencies and
  distributors to use the FREE tools that has been created for all exporters to use.
• Use the Made with Care campaign stamp on your marketing collateral and promotions to
  help drive greater consideration and propensity to purchase via campaign recognition
• Leverage the campaign insights and key messages when having conversations with buyers
  and investors alike
• Use the videos as a way of introducing your sector in business / pitch presentations to
  introduce New Zealand’s proposition
• Use the campaign messaging and social templates to help shape their own brand story
• Follow the campaign on Facebook and Instagram @discovernew.nz and help share our
  unique stories and proposition of NZ’s food & beverage.

If we all play a part, we can collectively create greater impact to help drive awareness and preference for our Food & Beverage products.

China

After a boiling hot August, China is currently embracing the best season of the year! 

In September, one of country’s the two most important traditional festivals, Mid-Autumn Festival, is celebrated, providing welcome relief from the pandemic. Covid continues to play a big role in China, although overall positive cases remain on a low level. Currently, the Chinese mainland reports around 120 to 150 positive cases per day while Shanghai remains at a low level of positive cases reported in the past 8 weeks. Beijing remains under a strict travel policy to keep the pandemic well controlled for the coming National Holiday in October (aka “the Golden Week”）as well as the preparation for the 20th CPC National Congress which is due to also take place next month. In addition, China reported the 1st case of Monkeypox in the 3rd week of September. The infected Chinese salesman entered Chongqing Municipality and later developed symptoms during central quarantine for COVID-19. Given the lack of vaccines worldwide, the Chinese government has tightened up the entry policy for travellers from overseas and suggests a self-monitoring of 3 weeks upon arrival.  

On Sept 21, I attended the Pure Discovery China Roadshow 2022 in Shanghai. The once-a-year roadshow features more than 60 New Zealand wine brands from eight regions, allowing wine lovers to experience the pure flavours in New Zealand wines, experience the unique terroir of New Zealand and explore the uniqueness and charm of New Zealand’s famous wineries. The roadshow will carry on in Nanjing as the next stop. The Beijing and Shenzhen stops are cancelled due to Covid-19.

In September, I also had the chance to meet with Andrew White, the Regional Director of NZTE, China. Kea looks forward to deepening the complimentary relations with NZTE and other public sectors. More talks with the NZTE team are on the way. I also had an e-meeting with Felix Ye, the Senior Development Manager of Education New Zealand which was equally constructive. I look forward to connecting with more overseas returnees in the Southern China area which is the hub of the education market for New Zealand. I also met with some of the senior figures in the Kiwi community and the Australian community in Shanghai who are keen to get involved in Kea’s projects and events.  

Rebecca Bao, China Regional Director

UK & Europe

The UK is shrouded in uncertainty amid the death of the Queen, the arrival of a new Prime Minister, Liz Truss, and an economy in flux. High inflation, fuelled by rising energy bills, has prompted rising fears of a recession this winter.

UK inflation fell from 10.1% to 9.9% in August, according to the Office of National Statistics, with falling petrol prices being offset by soaring food costs. This is the first time the rate has fallen since September last year. Kitty Ussher, the chief economist at the Institute of Directors, says ‘This will be reassuring to businesses for whomever-rising headline rates are a driving factor behind an overall lack of confidence in the UK economy.’

At its next meeting, the Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates again from 1.75%,
in an attempt to tame inflation. The Sterling fell sharply following a sharp drop in UK retail sales figures, with the pound continuing to struggle against the dollar – and hitting its lowest level since 1985. In recent weeks, it has also lost ground against the euro.

What does this all mean for Kiwi exporters looking to the market – there is uncertainty here and a lot of change. Still a lot of pressure on understanding costs in the short and medium terms, and for exporting partners and distributors, there is still pressure on staffing levels here in the market.
Prime Minister Liz Truss is a strong ally of New Zealand having started the FTA negotiations between NZ & the UK. She and Prime Minister Rt Hon Jacinda Ardern were able to meet last week when Prime Minister Ardern was in London for the Queen’s funeral.

Also this month our community were able to celebrate the World Class New Zealand Awards with a breakfast celebration in London, complete with a live feed into the Auckland event. We were
delighted to award London based, Katie Sadleir with her World Class Award with our partner, Ben Guerin, from Topham Guerin in person and to celebrate with her and her family.

Sara Fogarty, Kea UK/Europe Regional Director

North America

The city has seen a change in Covid rules this month, with mask mandates lifted for all schools and public transport. Although the move was welcomed, many New Yorkers are still choosing to wear masks in the transit system for the time being.

This month has also seen a big jump in office workers returning to the city and businesses increasing their space to accommodate the return of these workers. If NZ exporters are considering office space in the city, there are many options. Co-working spaces exploded in popularity before the pandemic and are an excellent option for companies looking for long or short-term space. A hot desk offers flexibility for teams and is an ideal place for business networking.

This month has seen a hive of activity in the US, and Air New Zealand’s first-ever direct flight to New York City arrived at JFK airport on September 17. Minister Stuart Nash, former Prime Minister Helen Clark, senior Air NZ executives, and a delegation of New Zealand businesses were on the flight to participate in several days of events around the city. Air New Zealand celebrated the arrival by hosting a gala that included NY officials, NY-based Kiwi community members, and a showcase with NZ band Six60 performing with a backdrop of a stunning New York sunset. It was a brilliant NYC & New Zealand experience.

NZTE Investment is currently hosting a group of top NZ investment fund managers on an immersion program throughout the US. It started with two packed days in New York: roundtable sessions on Sunday, including one featuring WCNZer Guy Horrocks, and a full day of activities on Monday. The delegation started early with a special Flat White meet-up featuring Kea member Tessa Gould, CEO of Made by Nacho, in conversation with WCNZer Ronnie Peters. Made by Nacho is celebrity chef Bobby Flay’s cat food start-up which provides sustainable and healthy food options to the vast cat parent population. It was a fascinating peek into the size and opportunity of the pet food business in the US. Later in the day, the delegation had a diversity investment session at Lowenstein Sandler, which was made possible thanks to an introduction by Guy. This was followed by a session at BlackRock, thanks to Kea member Michelle Edkins, Managing Director of Investment Stewardship at BlackRock, who kindly hosted the delegation for a roundtable discussion with several impressive colleagues, alongside Minister Nash; Ambassador to the US, Bede Corry; NZ Consul General and NZTE Trade Commissioner Hannah Lee-Darboe; and NZTE’s GM – Investment, Dylan Lawrence – showing the value of our offshore New Zealanders who want to give back to the community.

Minister Stuart Nash and Dylan Lawrence presented NZTE’s new Investment brand and spoke to the new Active Investor Plus Visa at the end of the day’s activities. The event hosted members of the NY business and investment community to celebrate the launch of the “Do Good, Do Well” campaign and new visa, both of which aim to attract productive, inclusive, and sustainable investment opportunities to drive economic benefit for the good of New Zealand. The Air New Zealand flight will undoubtedly open new opportunities for NZ businesses travelling to this part of the world, and I look forward to welcoming more of our exporters in the coming months.

Gary Fortune, Kea North America Regional Director

New Zealand

The news this month was dominated by the passing of Queen Elizabeth II. Community representatives chosen in recognition of the late Queen’s commitment to service joined world leaders and official representatives in making their way to London to attend the State Funeral. 

Resulting scheduling changes saw Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern being asked by Prince William to speak on his behalf in New York at a climate change charity he is a co-founder of along with Sir David Attenborough. The charity is Earthshot Prize – an environmental charity that finds and funds innovative solutions to environmental problems. Outside of this, her primary focus at the UN General Assembly in New York is climate change, mis and disinformation, and online extremism. The centrepiece of this programme is a Christchurch Call summit, which is jointly hosted with French President Emmanuel Macron. Under the banner of the Christchurch Call, New Zealand, the USA, Twitter, and Microsoft announced an investment in a technology innovation initiative. This initiative will support the creation of new technology to understand the impacts of algorithms on people’s online experiences, empowering independent researchers to help build safer platforms and more effective interventions to protect people both online and offline.

This month saw a continued high volume of scheduled offshore Ministerial visits with a focus on export growth and values-based investment furthering New Zealand’s economic recovery. The Minister for Trade and Economic Growth, Damien O’Connor visited the US to represent New Zealand at a ministerial meeting on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF). IPEF boosts regional cooperation on a range of future-focused economic, trade and climate issues. Building on the May visit to California where the Prime Minister and California’s Governor Newsom witnessed the signing of a new climate partnership, the visit also includes furthering New Zealand’s relationship with California and supporting sustainable agriculture connections.

Minister O’Connor also visits India this month to showcase New Zealand’s investments in agri-tech, on-farm training, skills development, and climate-responsive farming, and Indonesia to attend the G20 Trade, Investment, and Industry Ministerial Meeting.

The Minister for Economic Development, Stuart Nash, unveiled the InvestNZ Do Good, Do Well initiative at a launch event in New York this week. The campaign is a drive to attract investors to New Zealand that want to take a values-based approach to investment. It makes the connection that those businesses prioritising care of people and place (kaitiakitanga) and using innovation to create solutions to global challenges are more likely to create long-term sustainable returns. Watch the launch video here.

Saya Wahrlich, Global Director, Government & Industry

• CASE STUDY – “YOU HAVE TO KNOCK ON THE BIG DOORS TO GET THE BIG PRIZES”
• INSIGHTS FROM OUR GLOBAL COMMUNITY
• THIS MONTH IN NUMBERS
• GROWTH THROUGH KEA CONNECT
• NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
• TRENDING AT KEA
• UPCOMING EVENTS
• HOW KEA CAN HELP

“You have to knock on the big doors to get the big prizes”

Parkable CEO Toby Littin shares his advice on startups, scaling and scoring the big contracts. Plus find out how the Kiwi tech company almost missed out on signing a deal with US tech giant Meta because they were convinced the company’s attempts to get in touch were nothing more than spam. READ MORE

North America

This month Kea has been working with NZTE Investment to host a group of top NZ investment fund managers on an immersion program throughout the US. It started with two packed days in New York and was greatly enriched by a number of connections from within our Kea community. Our North America Regional Director Gary Fortune has all the highlights. READ MORE

China

It’s been a busy month in China with the celebration of The Mid-Autumn Festival. Celebrations provided welcome relief from the pandemic, but Covid continues to have a big impact on travel both within and to and from the country. The discovery of the first case of monkey pox has added further disruptions. China Regional Director Rebecca Bao looks at what businesses need to know. READ MORE

UK and Europe

The UK is shrouded in uncertainty amid the death of the Queen, the arrival of the new Prime Minister, Liz Truss, and an economy in flux. High inflation, fuelled by rising energy bills, has prompted rising fears of a recession this winter Our UK and Europe Regional Director Sara Fogarty looks at what this could mean for Kiwi businesses going forward. READ MORE

New Zealand

Jacinda Ardern has put a spotlight on climate change, mis- and disinformation, and online extremism at the UN assembly in New York this month, taking part in the launch of a new initiative to support the creation of new technology to understand the impacts of algorithms on people’s online experiences. Global Director Government and Industry Saya Wahrlich explains. READ MORE

BUSINESSES ASSISTED MADE IN MARKET THIS MONTH**

SECTORS KEA CONNECT SUPPORTED THIS MONTH

*Year to date reflects financial year commencing 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023
**Some businesses were provided with connections in more than one market

New Zealand innovation takes e-bike market by storm

Hybrid Bikes is an award-winning carbon fibre e-bike design company, based in Nelson. Founded in 2018 the brand has been featured on various news platforms and magazines. The unique IP of the carbon fibre frames, the price point and the way the frames can be turned into eight different e-bike styles from road, gravel, mountain and all-terrain bikes, set them apart from their competitors.

Hybrid Bikes is exploring the potential to enter the global market and came to Kea seeking advice and insights. Kea connected them with several people including a Board Member in the fitness supplier industry, a New Zealand global fitness business, a customer service specialist of a bike manufacturer in Canada and a CEO of another bike exporter from NZ who is also a Kea customer.

Kiwi company aims to create efficient energy everywhere

Founded in 2006, Shape Energy (formerly known as Nukor) is a leading provider of essential services to businesses and industries. Their services include Compressed Gas Systems, Power Generation, Energy Storage and UPS solutions and Renewable Energies. They are passionate about making New Zealand a world leader in efficiency and alternative energy.

The CEO of Shape sought the opportunity to meet experts in the tech and energy sectors during a recent trip to the US. Kea was able to introduce him to a senior member of an energy company, Snr Director, Product Marketing at a comm- infrastructure virtualisation company and a geographer who has worked for utilities, governments and transportation organisations through the capture of imagery, point clouds and GIS feature extraction.

Going Global – with Rachel Taulelei

Kea World Class New Zealander Rachel Taulelei, is a strong advocate for the Māori economy and sustainability, and her connection to her Māoritanga has been vital in her career – from founding sustainable fishery Yellow Brick Road to being CEO of the food and beverage company Kono. Now at the helm of Oho, an Aotearoa business design and brand strategy firm, Rachel joins Simon and Brianne in this webinar to spill her secrets to global success. LISTEN

Let’s be ambitious, let’s be aspirational

“There is so much we could be doing as a country if we were better at harnessing and celebrating all the talent that we have here. We might be small, but there’s no reason we can’t dream big.” World Class New Zealand Award winner Anna Fifield shares her experiences on returning to New Zealand and explains why she wants Kiwi to think bigger. READ MORE

From Olympic glory to grassroots growth

Two time Olympic medalist and World Rowing Champion Rebecca Scown is giving others the opportunity to hopefully one day follow in her footsteps. The offshore Kiwi has recently taken on the role of CEO of Youth Experience Sport (YES) a charity which is focused on helping disadvantaged kids find belonging and acceptance in sport. She talks to us about flying the Kiwi flag on the world stage and how this next chapter in her life is challenging her in different ways. READ MORE

New Zealand awash with tech opportunities

Sure we might not have as much data as the big UK or USA retailers but the New Zealand culture is so empowering that the opportunities it creates are as exciting as anything happening in other markets around the world.” Maz Kassis talks about his move to NZ and why after a global career in data and analytics he’s so excited about the future of our tech industry. READ MORE

Meet our new Israel Ambassador

Kea’s new Israel Ambassador Josh Brown is a self confessed entrepreneur with an interest in finance and technology. Based in Te Aviv he’s partnered with Kea to help grow the Kiwi network in Israel and tells us why he thinks the two countries could leverage a shared network. READ MORE

WORLD CLASS SPEAKER SERIES: In our most recent World Class New Zealand speaker series we spoke to David Skilling. David is the founding Director of Landfall Strategy Group, an advisory firm that provides advice and insights on global economic, policy, and political dynamics to governments, firms, and financial institutions. David discussed the economic and political trends he’s seeing in New Zealand and globally, the ongoing impact of the Ukraine conflict, and his insights for the future of our global economies. If you missed the webinar catch up here. LISTEN

KEA MEETUPS: Our next meetup will be held in Auckland on November 2nd, at The Chatham, 27 Drake Street from 17.00. If you know a Kiwi business owner, entrepreneur or recently returned Kiwi please encourage them to come along and expand their networks. These meetups are also a great opportunity for our Kea partners to meet members of our community. SIGN UP