Business Leaders

Doug Ducker – an industry icon retires

Doug Ducker has seen more than two consecutive forestry plantations grow to full harvest, having worked for Pan Pac for nearly 46 years. Doug started as a process engineer and in 2004 became the businesses Managing Director. Pan Pac began as a Joint Venture involving Carter Holt (60%) and two Japanese companies, Oji Paper and Sanyo Kokusaku Pulp in 1973...

Fingermark & Luke Irving – Making a mark on the global fast food scene

Luke Irving has big aspirations to leave an indelible mark on the global technology scene from Havelock North, as well as creating a Silicon Valley styled technology scene nurturing Hawke’s Bay talent. Luke, the founder of a global tech company Fingermark which is leading the development of applied computer vision and deep learning computer machine technology, uplifted his team of...

Mark Matthews – Making his Mark on the animal health scene

Mark Matthews retired as a veterinarian earlier this year after 44 years of travelling on dirt roads to the back blocks of Hawke’s Bay and other parts of the Central North Island. Mark grew up on a farm in Poverty Bay but rather than becoming a farmer, he set his sights on being a vet – and a pretty good...

Colin Shanley packs away the tripod after 63 years

In 2020 Colin will pack away his theodolite for the last time, drawing an end to a career that has spanned 63 years as a land surveyor. Over this time, he’s seen the emergence of Flaxmere as Hastings’ new suburb, the huge population growth of Havelock North, and the subdivision of lifestyle blocks and rural properties into more smaller parcels...

Call for Young people to get involved and take lead in horticulture

Outgoing Hawke’s Bay 2018 Young Fruit Grower of the Year Lisa Arnold is calling on more young people to get involved and take the lead…

Leaving FAWCland for Auckland

Since it began in 2012, F.A.W .C! has become such a drawcard for locals and visitors alike that it’s hard to imagine Hawke’s Bay’s event calendar without it. But now the woman who established the Food and Wine Challenge – and has nurtured the growth of the twice-a-year celebration of great eating and drinking – has left town. After more...

Tribute – Ray Turner

He may be closing in on 90 years of age, yet Hawke’s Bay’s greatest living inventor continues to submit product patents. A.R. (Ray) Turner just can’t stop inventing. He’s so prolific that in the past three years, he’s listed 36 patents with the Australian Patent Office. During his lifetime he’s patented more than 100 inventions. His first invention was in...

Katie Nimon takes the wheel

Katie Nimon has been working in her family business – Nimon Luxury Passenger Transport – since she was 14. Now she’s been recognised as a leading influencer for Hawke’s Bay tourism. When this year’s Hawke’s Bay Tourism Awards were announced in September, Katie Nimon was honoured with a special individual accolade that seems very appropriate: Ambassador for Tourism in Hawke’s...

Pro Q&A with Tim Aitken

Tim Aitken is the new chair of Horse of the Year (HoY). Tim has farmed in Central Hawke’s Bay for many years and is also a CHB district councillor. Tim has had a strong involvement in equestrian being a “Brony”, see below to what that stands for... What are your key aspirations for the event? Firstly I have to acknowledge...

Direction Focused

“Stay focused on your direction, and don’t get too hung up on specifics,” is the advice one of Hawke’s Bay’s most experienced farming leaders has for the future generation when goal setting. Sam Robinson, who is this year’s recipient of the Laurie Dowling Memorial Award for services to agriculture, is now spending more of his time mentoring and sharing his...