Health is the new wealth

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Recently I was asked to speak at a Wealth Conference. An unusual platform for a health & fitness professional to find themselves on. Or is it?

Building wealth is important yes – but so is the having the health to enjoy it.

There are many reports and studies on multiple different health topics that would indicate that we are not ready to enjoy our health.

One example is a Deloitte report recently published that confirms that the cost of lack of movement to the NZ tax payer is: $2.3billion.

“We have this illusion that we are a sporting nation, so an active nation, the truth is we are not, we’re a sport-watching nation,” said Exercise New Zealand CEO Richard Beddie.

This comment surprised me. However, following some more research, I agree with it. The World Health Organisation activity guidelines are an hour a day for kids and 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise a week or around 20 minutes a day for everyone else. The thing is, 93% of our kids and over 40% of adults don’t hit these targets, costing our health system $530 million a year.

The Deloitte report calculates if the Government made a once-in-a-lifetime investment of $2500 per inactive person to get them active, it would be made back in less than 12 months. And it’s projected that over 30 years, that $2500 investment would actually benefit the Government by $12,500 per person in healthcare savings.

How does a typical week look to you? Are you meeting the WHO guidelines? Does your organisation encourage you to stay active and look after your health as well as your safety?

Clearly personal responsibility is a factor but employers must ‘manage’ stress in the work place and Southern Cross surveys indicate it is sadly climbing rapidly.

Assets – Liabilities = Net Worth

As companies and individuals we are quick to manage our net worth and slow to manage our health.

We have clear metrics in place to manage our wealth, and we put in a great amount of time and effort to grow our wealth. What if we managed our health like we managed our wealth.

Would we be ready to enjoy our health? Here are some simple metrics you can put in place. Check in with yourself and rate yourself on a scale of 1-10 against the seven Peak Fitness Pillars of Health and Fitness below.

 

 

1 = Feeling poor and off your game

10 = Feeling great and ready to play

If your numbers are on the low side you need to put some more time in to building your health so that you can enjoy your wealth.

Sleep – Did you get enough?

Nutrition – Have you eaten well?

Hydration – Have you drunk enough water?

Movement – How much have you done?

Energy – How much have you got?

Body – How does it feel? Aches, pains, niggles?

Stress – How high or low is it?

As Paul Chek says “sooner or later health will become your number one priority”. I’d strongly recommend that you have a clear strategy and plan in place for your personal and company health so that you are not playing catch up with your health investment in the future.

The balance between health and wealth is a challenging one. Having the wealth to enjoy your health is important. However, without good health you will never get to enjoy your wealth.

Invest wisely.

Could your team be doing better?

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Teams are a powerful asset for any organisation. However, unlike a sports team, we rarely spend time practicing being a team. While most organisations can acknowledge the positive impact of an effective team, particularly in leadership, few create a plan to make this happen. Looking at how your team is assembled and structured, how it functions, its strengths, blind spots and developmental requirements could be the single best thing you do for the success of your business this year.

Where to start 

If you are wanting to build a high performing team, its members need to know that this is their “primary team” and not a secondary one. Leaders often think their own team of direct reports is their primary team. However, their commitment and aligned focus must be to the primary team and its direction, goals, and strategy. This mindset will facilitate the breaking down of silos in an organisation.

It is also important to consider the size of the team. While leadership collaborations like to be inclusive, they can be too big to be effective. A team with more than ten members can suffer from efficiency, effectiveness and alignment problems, whereas smaller groups will ensure strong relationships, healthy debate and actioned decisions.

There is no algorithm for putting different people together in the complex roles required in a top team, so design and development are critical. If the CEO can successfully play the role of developer, the leadership team will function more effectively and members will learn to think differently, both individually and together.

Understanding the right mix of people in terms of skills, experience and personality is key to ensuring a productive team. Getting that wrong, even by just one individual, can have far reaching impacts. Too often, we promote people who are technically strong in their own roles but put little thought into a team’s collective capability.

Get the diagnosis right To improve performance, self-awareness is a must have for a team to develop effectively and master its strengths, potential fracture lines and know its blind spots and gaps, both individually and collectively. Likewise, the CEO/team leader needs to understand what makes members of the team tick individually and what makes them work (or not) as a group and talk openly about this to facilitate introspection and provide insights into behaviour, shared responses under pressure and unconscious bias.

Use of a diagnostic tool is helpful here. Options include assessment tools such as personality or a team 360 survey to provide a map and understanding of strengths and performance improvement areas.

Commonality versus diversity

Truly understanding the skills and characteristics needed for a cohesive team will ensure a balance of traits – too much commonality is not a good thing.

Diversity of thinking with different “hats’’ around the table is important. This will ensure that members complement one another and, when done well, it will create a high functioning team.

Teams typically focus on functional roles (our technical role as defined by the position title) but our “psychological roles” can be more impactful. This is the informal roles individuals gravitate towards based on their personality e.g. focus on results versus relationships, pragmatism or process versus innovation and change. A high preforming team has a balance of people in these roles. Too much of the same thing and the team can miss leading the organisation in the right direction.

Keys for a high performing team

Research by leadership specialists Winsborough found key characteristics that effective leadership teams have in common.

These included:

1: Focus – Having a shared and clear brief of objective and goals. As such, spend time and energy to establish vision and set the focus.

2: Development – Having a conscious reflection on the team’s performance and investing time in development and improvement to improving team dynamics.

3: Norms and decision making – Having a clear process for decisions with no hidden agendas – consensus among members is achieved via constructive debate.

4: Trust and healthy conflict – Teams that trust their colleagues and have some conflict is healthy. Often teams are conflict averse, but the ability to be transparent, give constructive feedback and address team dynamics is crucial for success. A good team will give opinions, debate issues and hold each other to account. Lack of conflict can lead to artificial harmony. In Patrick Lencioni’s work “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team”, a lack of conflict is found to be just as damaging on team morale as harsh and direct conflict. Remember, good conflict requires a foundation of trust and if this is lacking in your team, developing trust needs to be your starting point.

5: Contribution to team – By participating, holding up their end of the role and adding value, members can create a more effective leadership team. Lencioni refers to this as commitment followed by accountability.

Summary

Building and developing a team is a process that never ends. It requires ongoing commitment and investment of time and energy, but the advantages are great and the rewards are plentiful. If you want to know more about how to map and develop your team, please contact Andrea Stevenson. andrea.stevenson@bakertillysr.nz

The Halfway Mark: Asset Class Market Update

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The July edition of the Colliers monthly property research report reflects the halfway mark for 2022 and presents a timely opportunity for us to provide an update on market conditions across multiple asset classes both of what is being experienced nationally but also some of the local activity that has taken place.

Retail

The retail sector has had its fair share of challenges over the last couple of years, but the opening of closed borders at the end of the month provides some more positive expectations for retailers ahead. The low unemployment rate has been a major tailwind for the sector, but the rising cost of living, debt cost increases and a slowing residential sector provide headwinds that will continue to impact retailing over the short-term.

It is worth noting that despite low consumer confidence surveys, there are bright spots. From an online spending perspective, Q1 2022 was a record, with the latest NZPost report showing an exceptionally strong quarterly result with $2.2 billion of spending occurring, a rise of 86% from Q1 2020 (a record 77% was with NZ-based businesses).

This highlights that people are still willing to spend while property purchasing in the retail sector and leasing activity remains buoyant with Chemist Warehouse leasing new space at 300 St Aubyn Street Hastings, and No 1 Shoes taking on a larger premises at the ex Rebel Sport at 246 Hastings Street Napier. Curtain Studio Hastings recently sold off market at a yield of 5.5%.

Office

The debate surrounding back to office work, remote working and hybrid working continues to take place. While trends offshore provide some insights, caution is advised on their use outside of the origin location.

There remains a desire for good quality office space has risen and this will add pressure to what is ultimately a limited resource.

New Zealand’s adoption of environmental standards, while improving over the years, is arguably still well behind other countries’ approaches. With an ever-increasing focus on the environment and a lack of standardised accreditation in the sector, there is likely to be a number of ongoing challenges.

Quality offices that have been established over the last six months include the 2nd stage of retail and commercial office space at Joll Road Havelock North, which is the new home for Colliers Hawke’s Bay as well as Forsyth Barr and RTA studio Architects. 101 Queen Street East is getting close to completion in Hastings, with Westpac now open and Ask Your Team relocating from Havelock North to a new premises within this development leasing over 800m. of new office. Napier office vacancies remain tight with limited available stock and no A grade space available.

Industrial

Rental growth in the industrial sector will be one of the standout trends for 2022 and 2023, as limited supply and ongoing demand continues to impact the sector. Projections of 3% to 4% p.a. prime rental growth rates are likely to be tested, and while limited evidence is available at this stage, anecdotal evidence suggests higher percentage rates should be anticipated, especially for the most sought-after spots. On the horizon is more industrial floor space, which may assist alleviate some occupancy constraints, but not all pressures.

Irongate, which was planned to take about 20 years to be at capacity, has quickly got close to being fully occupied or developed, with Sun Fruit commencing construction of a new coolstore and another large player in the apple industry looking to construct a new coolstore within Irongate also. T&G $100M packhouse in Whakatu is well under way which is believed to be the ‘biggest in the southern hemisphere. The recent sale of 51 Edmundson Street Onekawa leased to move logistics sold at deadline, at a yield of 4.7%, or $5.25M with multiple parties all very close in price.

New Business takes flight – Those Cabins

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Mike and Steph Russell have come up with the perfect add-on to their residential rental property business, that not only offers a solution to their own portfolio, but also other property owners and those needing an additional bedroom or office.

The couple have been property investors since 2008, purchasing ‘do ups’ in Hastings and Flaxmere and doing the hard yards themselves to make their rental homes warm and tidy for their tenants.

As their portfolio grew providing houses to both the private rental market as well as via a partnership with Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga to provide Transitional Housing for families, they identified that potential tenants needed an additional bedroom.

“We purchased run down properties that required renovations, which we completed ourselves in the evenings and weekends, creating a portfolio that we’re very proud of and that are all Healthy Homes compliant.

“In recent years we have started to get enquiries from some of our current tenants or prospective, needing an extra bedroom, so we started looking for solutions.

The Russell’s had two options – building an additional room on to existing houses or looking for a less permanent alternative.

Building a room was restrictive and a slower process – potentially requiring a resource consent, then a building consent and in recent times there’s been a shortage of building materials and labour shortages.

As well as creating a passive income stream through a housing portfolio, Mike has been a commercial pilot for Air New Zealand and Jet Star, while Steph works in the technical and quality space within the pipfruit industry. Mike was made redundant as a pilot when Jet Star closed its Hawke’s Bay service and has transitioned from planes to trucks, using his skills in the air to on the ground as a truck driver over recent COVID-19 times.

The couple, who enjoy a challenge and working together for solutions, saw cabins as a viable alternative. A cabin could easily be moved on to a property and be up and running very quickly. If the existing tenants moved out, and the new tenants didn’t need the extra room, it could easily be moved to another property.

“We started doing some research and we came across a cabin builder and hire business in Hamilton and he wasn’t interested in the Hawke’s Bay market, so we decided to partner with him.

“We didn’t want a cheap product that wouldn’t last and we were really impressed by the wood paneling, the insulation is amazing as is the double glazing.”

The Russell’s purchased a trailer from their cabin supplier and then their initial order of twelve 4.2m by 2.4m cabins.

They have a target of having a fleet of around 40 cabins. Any surplus cabins can easily be stored at their Bridge Pa property.

“We are very confident that the cabins will be popular as an ‘at home office’ or as the extra bedroom on a rental property or within the horticulture sector for worker accommodation.

“The key for us is to make sure that property owners are happy for an additional building on their properties, so we will ensure that the correct processes are done. It’s certainly a benefit that we are rental property owners ourselves, so we can provide good information and share our experiences.”

Steph says that finding a quality cabin build partner was the easy part, now it was time to create an identity for the cabins and market them to other property owners, investors and accommodation providers.

“How hard could it be … what we didn’t know too much about was building awareness of our new business via social media and advertising.

The biggest challenge so far has been coming up with a memorable brand name.

“We were struggling and every name we thought of we would check the website domain address and they were all gone.

Our IT provider Bruce from Herbert, Harrison and Associates came up with the observation that when people are referring to a destination they say ‘those houses down the road’ and he said why not name the business ‘those cabins’.

“It’s clever and it has worked really well.”

www.thosecabins.co.nz

Re-Leased plays big role in retaining tech talent in the Bay

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It was not too long ago that school leavers were leaving Hawke’s Bay in their droves. Tempted by big city lights and the promise of high-flying careers, the region was, at the time, seemingly lacking the opportunity, and the excitement to keep the twenty-somethings around.

In recent years, however, thanks to some long-term thinking and perhaps risky business moves by many key individuals and Councils, Hawke’s Bay is flourishing.

In part due to the mass migration away from the big cities and the influx of business opportunities that have come with it.

One such business contributing significantly to both the region’s workforce, and its built environment, is local commercial property management software company, Re-Leased.

Founded in 2012 by Hawke’s Bay local Tom Wallace, it has now gone global with offices in Australia, America, UK and New Zealand, but retains its Research and Development hub, employing over 60 people, in Napier.

Released partnership with Dev Academy

“When we created Re-Leased in 2012, the business community and certainly the tech industry was limited within the region,” says Tom. “But being locals, we knew what Hawke’s Bay had to offer from a lifestyle and staff satisfaction standpoint, so we committed to maintaining a considerable presence here to help grow the opportunity and showcase that you can build big business from the regions, and sell to customers anywhere in the world.”

Re-Leased’s commitment to the region has gone a lot further than simply maintaining office space. Recognising that the local tech talent pool was not going to sufficiently meet their growth projections, and having their international pipeline cut off at the knees post the 2020 border closure, the team took a different approach. They doubled down on growing the Hawke’s Bay tech sector by offering the opportunity for locals to train to be coders – free of charge.

Partnering with Dev Academy, New Zealand’s most immersive online coding course, Re-Leased were able to utilise the Government Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund (TTAF), which supports learners undertaking vocational training without fees.

“While we had already developed, and continue to maintain a successful relationship with EIT, regularly taking on their interns and graduates, we felt the time was right to kick things up a notch and take things into our own hands.”

The 15-week intensive course takes those with an interest in coding and turns them into work-ready developers.

“Hosting the Hawke’s Bay cohorts for the Dev Academy has been fantastic for our Junior Developer pipeline. It has allowed us to offer several full-time placements to graduates every year, and it also contributes significantly to the woefully understaffed tech industry for the region as a whole.”

“The aim really is to create opportunity and options for Hawke’s Bay’s job seekers, so that they don’t necessarily believe they have to leave this amazing region to get a good job.”

This significant growth has seen Re-Leased hit maximum capacity at their Ahuriri Tech Hub offices and hence, they are currently collaborating with local commercial property development company, and family business, Wallace Development, to create something special on Marine Parade.

“Napier CBD has come a long way from a few years ago when there was the mass exodus of commercial business over to Ahuriri.”

“It is now a vibrant and busy town centre, and we are excited to bring the team across the hill and have them make the most of what the town has to offer.”

Located at 126 Hastings Street, the building that formerly housed BNZ is being restored to its former glory, with a stunning Art Deco inspired fit out, ground level retail and hospitality, commercial space, car parking and the long awaited rooftop bar.

With remote working at an all-time high post-Covid, developments such as this are embracing change and evolving our towns into people-centred “experience” hubs.

“What we’ve seen post-Covid is that many people became too comfortable working from their kitchen table. In order to get people excited about coming to work, we need to create environments that people want to be in.”

“Sure that’s the cool office space, but it’s also the amenities around it – how far is the best coffee in town? Where’s a great spot to meet mates for a beer after work? With 126 Hastings Street, we have managed to create that all in one place, with the added value of having a view of the Pacific Ocean from your desk.”

Tom’s commitment to the evolution of the region goes far beyond the success of his own business.

“The hope is that we are contributing to creating a sustainable Hawke’s Bay that locals love.”

Tribune complex a tribute to couple’s vision and hard work

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A Hastings landmark that closed due to earthquake risk has come alive as a stunning office, retail and hospitality precinct that rivals the best in New Zealand.

Property developers and passionate Hastings’ champions Rob and Barb Hansen have brought life back into the former Hawke’s Bay Herald Tribune buildings, transforming them into a modern social and business precinct that still acknowledges its past newspaper history.

 

The old red brick building on the corner of Karamu Road and Queen Street, which once housed the paper’s archives, has been strengthened and converted into a retail and café space; the old press printer area is now an expansive sun-capturing atrium with an array of commercial tenants; and the former paper dispatch area is now Brave Brewing Co. and bar.

More than 150 people across 25 businesses will be based at Tribune, bringing to life what had sadly become an eye sore since media outlet NZME moved to new premises many years ago.

“Right from the start we wanted to create a precinct with personality and heart that shows pride in the community of Hastings. That has remained our primary motivation while striving to create an attractive, aspirational place that attracts people from all over Hawke’s Bay and visitors to the region.

“We have always felt that Hastings has beautiful character buildings that haven’t been given the love and attention that has been seen in other parts of Hawke’s Bay,” says Barb Hansen.

“We had worked 100 metres down Karamu Road for many years and walked past the site every day.

“We acquired it in late 2018 but at that stage had no plans, consents or tenants.

There were six separate building projects at different stages so it has been hard to determine an actual completion date,” she says.

The dynamic couple have always loved the challenge of transforming character buildings into beautiful functional spaces and could see the potential for a mixed-use precinct of hospitality, retail and office spaces established in character settings with lots of greenery.

“We had many ideas for what the precinct could become and were inspired by some beautifully created urban spaces such as Britomart, Morningside, Osborne Lane and City Works Depot in Auckland, and there are many great examples in cities around the world.”

Barb says the project has been a real labour of love, more so with disruptions thanks to COVID-19 as well as convincing prospective tenants of their vision.

“We had a very strong vision of what we wanted the end result to be so it has been about constantly chipping away to get the right tenant mix to create it.

“We have seen it as an opportunity to create something amazing in Hastings but we have also had a real sense of responsibility to do it justice.” The precinct has progressively opened over the past 12 months, with Brave Brewing Co.

opening its doors first through to the latest (as of June) being organic baker and café OMGoodness Specialty Breads.

Businesses within Tribune include:

Kindred Road, BAZAAR, Brave Brewing Co., Morgan Lane, The Dental Institute, OMGoodness Specialty Breads, Tu Meke Don, Glenn Cook Technologies, GHD, Willis Legal, Midlands Mortgage Trust, Real World, Creative Marketing, Digital Circus, HPG, Animals Like Us, Gannon Fire, Advice 4 Life, HB Foundation, RWR Health, Goodman Rural, Extra- Mile Consulting, Atrium at Tribune, and two more yet to be announced!

Barb says completion is close with just a couple of premises to fill. “We’re almost there, just a few more tenancies to complete and lots of planting and lighting to soften the environment, which will give it more personality.”

For Barb, her favourite part of the precinct is the laneway between Kindred Road and BAZAAR/Morgan Lane running off Karamu Road.

“The mix of the new cedar building, the recycled brick of Kindred Road and the exposed concrete beams shows the integrity of the original building.”

Meanwhile, Rob is thrilled with the outcome of the challenging atrium roof.

“This was a real challenge in trying to make it work, including the use of glazing products that would ensure that there wasn’t massive heat build-up from the Hawke’s Bay sun, and ensuring that it had good sound insulation properties for events. The end result is really cool with interconnecting triangular shapes.”

Rob and Barb have worked tirelessly and been very hands-on. Barb says Rob’s vision for the project and tenacity to see it through to completion has been inspiring.

“Rob is an incredibly hard worker who has been all over every single part of the project, from design, consenting, tenants and financials to being relentless with optimism and a can-do attitude.”

Rob attributes Tribune’s success to Barb’s determination to get the right tenants that have bought into their vision.

“Barb has been amazing in her ability to work with a wide variety of people, to articulate our vision and convince them to come on our journey. She has been really successful in securing a large number of Tribune tenants and has been a fantastic sounding board, always coming up with logical solutions.”

Creating a career that’s the right fit

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Successful marketer pivots to provide career advice and coaching.

It might sound like an unusual move to retrain as a career advisor and coach whilst running a successful marketing business, but for Julia Kay the pivot was borne of a desire to help others find their ‘right fit’ career pathway.

Providing a comprehensive career service for teenagers from Y12 was the start point for her business, as that’s when decisions need to be made for the future. Julia works with her clients to identify individual skills, personality traits, strengths and interests before considering career options.

“Many of my teenage clients are a bit anxious and overwhelmed when we first meet as they’ve put off making any decisions, plus some feel pressure from their parents which can end up causing extra stress at home… The goal is for my client to understand themselves better when making choices. I want them to feel in control of what comes next, ideally so that they don’t waste time or money progressing down the wrong track.”

Over time it became clear there was also a need for a careers service for adults who were looking for support to achieve goals within their current role, or on the flipside were feeling unfulfilled in their job, were going through a restructure, or were looking to define the next step in their career.

Julia’s career service for adults is quite different to working with teenagers, as adult clients have built up a toolkit of transferable skills over the years and have the benefit of personal experience and hindsight.

“My adult clients usually have a pretty good idea of what’s important to them; they’re looking for unbiased support to explore their options and make wise decisions when taking their next steps.”

The missing piece of the puzzle was for Julia to gain qualifications as a coach, in addition to her career guidance qualifications. Although still in its infancy in New Zealand, coaching is incredibly popular overseas, with many progressive companies across the USA and Europe including coaching as an integral part of employment packages for staff at all levels.

“Coaching is not counselling or therapy. It’s a proactive way of addressing challenges whilst looking to the future and taking action to achieve goals. Overseas, businesses use coaching on an ongoing basis to support their employee’s health and wellbeing.”

It’s no surprise that the current situation with Covid, increased cost of living and geopolitical situations around the world are affecting stress and anxiety levels, which can have a flow on effect into the workplace.

A growing number of Julia’s clients are employers who want to provide impartial support and mentoring for their staff. Many staff find it helpful to be supported by a trusted outsider and, considering the challenges with the current tight job market, coaching can be a beneficial way to offer support and resolve any issues rather than lose a staff member.

“It’s fairly easy to say ‘this is what you should do, go do it’ but the real benefit is in providing impartial one-on-one support to the employee, listening objectively and helping to find solutions. I can bring fresh eyes to a situation and provide a perspective they may not have considered before. Providing this type of support to employees on a regular basis will help them to feel more valued.”

As an employer who has worked with SMEs, large corporates, government departments and not-for-profits, Julia understands the realities of the world of work from ‘lived experience’ rather than through an academic lens. She aims to provide pragmatic, practical advice and recommendations that support her clients to thrive.

“Let’s face it, we spend a huge amount of our waking hours at work, more time there than we do at home with our families and friends, so it’s important to get it right” says Julia. “If you want to find the best fit career direction for your teenager or yourself, or have staff who are in need of impartial support or guidance at work, I can help.”

For more information visit www.juliakay.nz

WashRite – the Rite choice

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Anthony Norris is sure he has made the RITE decision to take on the Hawke’s Bay franchise for Wash Rite, which is New Zealand’s largest exterior cleaning business with 23 franchises and growing.

Anthony is up for the challenge and he’s not daunted by taking on the exterior cleaning of large-scale buildings in any weather elements, as he loves working outside, something he did in his former career in the New Zealand Navy.

He spent 17 years as a Navy officer specialising in navigation and warfare and although Wash Rite is a land based business, it requires a similar set of skills of tackling projects that require good planning and implementation. He’ll probably be a pretty good aim with the water blaster as well!

“Wash Rite appealed as I wanted to be working outside and I love being able to help people and leave them with a smile on their face.

“I truly believe I can accomplish that and leave customers happy and also surprised at the difference we can make with our services.

“Wash Rite also appealed as it is a high profile award winning franchise which has excellent procedures in place and a proven track record with franchises and after speaking with other business owners and Troy (the founder of Wash Rite) I could tell this would be a good fit for me with good people, who are always willing to help each other out.”

Wash Rite was established in August 2015,by Troy Hillard and it has quickly grown to 23 franchises in operation in 26 cities in New Zealand, from Whangarei to Auckland, Hamilton to Wellington and from Christchurch to Dunedin and is also expanding into Australia.

Wash Rite NZ services both the residential and commercial markets, providing building cleaning services, including window cleaning, roof washing, deck and fence cleaning, pest and insect control, driveway and concrete path cleaning.

Over the past 7 years, Wash Rite has become known for high quality wash trucks within the exterior cleaning industry. So much so other exterior cleaning companies have tried to copy the Wash Rite design with various amounts of success.

Wash Rite’s 3rd generation wash trucks were designed with input from many of the franchisees and a key modification has been to place both engine and pumps on the passenger side of the truck, freeing up deck space while also improving operational safety.

“It means the operator did not have to go into the traffic lane to start the motors.

However the largest change to the trucks is a fabricated aluminium chemical drum holder mounted under the deck that allows 6 x 20lt water drums to be carried and freeing up deck space.

Troy sees huge potential for Anthony and Kim’s Wash Rite  franchise in Hawke’s Bay and some large building jobs have already been priced up and the brand gaining strong interest due to Wash Rite’s innovations in cleaning products, soaps, and water run off covers that catch water, preventing run off into storm water drains.

“This is very appealing for many businesses, especially local councils and central government agencies that are committed to the environment, but also want to protect their biggest assets.

Troy says the same approach can be taken with residential homes and the importance of maintaining the exterior paint condition and their 10 year warranties.

“A house is usually someone’s biggest asset and it’s important to look after it, whether that’s a soft clean that protects the paint or cleaning gutters.

“We are also undertake a lot of pre-sale exterior cleaning as a first impression is very important.

Troy is excited about Anthony and wife Kim joining the Wash Rite franchise family. He says they are keen to learn and bring with them good work ethic and a desire to develop great client relationships.

“The Wash Rite brand is fortunate to have such experienced and qualified franchisees joining our brand and Anthony and Kim are a fantastic addition to our franchise family.

Anthony is looking forward to getting around Hawke’s Bay and quickly building a great reputation for quality workmanship that in turn grows his business.

“We will be starting off with just ourselves but we have goals which will require us to expand in due course and we’re willing to do that as soon as we can.

Visit www.washrite.co.nz or contact Anthony on 0800 101 216 or 027 406 7264

‘Muni’ awakens with metro city vibe

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The doors shut to Hutchinson’s eight years ago, as well as the Municipal Building and beloved Assembly Hall, due to the building being earthquake prone.

Now the Municipal Building (‘Muni’) is springing back to life as part of the overall Toitoi – Hawke’s Bay Arts & Events Centre rebuild project that began in 2016, costing over $45 million.

The ground floor has been transformed into three hospitality offerings, as well as being home to Hastings District Council’s new i-site visitor centre and a contemporary art gallery. After a nationwide promotion to attract new hospitality offerings, three well respected local hospitality identities have stepped up to the main stage.

They will showcase the best of local food, wine and craft beer in modern, chic venues more commonly enjoyed while in the big smokes of Auckland, Wellington or Melbourne. As well as street frontage onto Heretaunga Street, the Muni also opens out onto a newly created outdoor laneway connecting to the Hawke’s Bay Opera House.

Kristy Isaacson’s Long Island Delicatessen is nestled on the corner of Hastings Street and Heretaunga Street, alongside Akina Gallery, a new entrance foyer, Master of Wine Michael Henley’s Cellar 495 boutique wine cellar and bar, and then Damon McGinniss’ Craft & Social at the western end.

Damon McGinniss is raring to go and share his passion and craftsmanship as the owner and chef of Craft & Social.

“I’m really passionate about my industry and always look at all aspects of it as a craft, whether that’s creating food or being front of house with customers. Ultimately, people get together to enjoy well-crafted food and drinks in a social environment.”

Damon says he was prepared to significantly invest in establishing a new hospitality style with the confidence of the CBD’s revitalisation and council’s investment in the stunning Municipal Building.

He has eyed a gap in the market and likens Craft & Social to well-known celebrity chef Al Brown’s Depot Eatery in Auckland.

“The food will be flavour-driven small plates to share; it’s a style that I love doing.

“The Hastings CBD is going forward big time; more and more is happening and people now have a much wider choice and I’m ready to give it my all.

“I wanted to create a cool place to enjoy some food, beer or wine, where people can chill and have a good time.”

 

Kristy Isaacson experience and success in ‘ready to go’ food has led her to creating the Long Island Delicatessen which will offer takeaway lunch options such as a fresh salad bar, proteins, baked goods and sandwiches along with Havana coffee, sodas and smoothies.

Kristy has established a couple of other café and food offerings in the past and says that the Municipal Building setting is like no other in the Bay, replicating funky hospitality precincts usually found in larger CBDs in Auckland and Melbourne.

Long Island Delicatessen opens in mid-July and Kristy says it will be a fun place to call into and pick up something fresh and tasty to eat or drink to take back to the office, or to enjoy in the window seating or in the laneway.

“The building is awesome, and I really bought into the vision of council and councillors to create a new place to gather in town. The brick laneway is a stunning addition and will be well utilised.”

She is also excited about the complementary offerings of the new wine bar and Craft & Social.

“We are all different but will benefit from each other. I’m not licenced but the other two hospo offerings are, so together we offer a mix of healthy takeaway food options through to places that you can sit back and enjoy a meal or drink.”

Council group manager corporate Bruce Allan, who was the project lead for the Municipal Building restoration, says council is delighted at the range and quality of the businesses that have signed up as foundation tenants.

“We have secured world-class businesses run by people who are experienced leaders in their fields and council looks forward to introducing them in detail in the coming months.”

Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst says the introduction of the new tenants heralded another fantastic step forward for Hastings.

“Our city centre already has a stellar line-up of hospitality and retail businesses and we know these exciting new additions in the Municipal Building will appeal to Hawke’s Bay locals and visitors, and further enhance our great central city offering.”

WoolWorks leads the way in emission reduction

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Local wool scourer business WoolWorks received more than $4 million in co-funding from GIDI Fund to convert gas and coal boilers at their Awatoto (Napier) and Washdyke (near Timaru) sites to more modern and efficient hot water heat pump technology.

The new hot water pump at Awatoto, which will be one of the most sophisticated and largest in New Zealand, will replace the site’s natural gas-based hot water generation system, including a hot water boiler and steam heat exchangers.

WoolWorks will invest $2 million into the Awatoto project, with EECA (the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority) contributing $455,000 through GIDI funding.

WoolWorks, which employs 150 people, is the largest wool scourer by volume in the world and handles 76 percent of all New Zealand wool.

The project will reduce carbon dioxide emissions from scouring operations at the plant by 1,700 net tonnes per year, 24 percent of the total energy-related emissions from the site.

Every year, the company’s three sites wash more than 100,000,000 kilograms of wool, ranging from superfine merino to crossbred. Prior to processing into garments or carpets, wool needs to be cleaned and this is an energy intensive process reliant on coal boilers.

“We were on a path to reduce our dependence on coal but it would probably have been closer to 2030 before we got there,” says WoolWorks chief executive Nigel Hales.

The funding will be used to install an electrode boiler to produce steam and an industrial heat pump to generate hot water, reducing over 11,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year, the equivalent of removing 3,021 cars from the road.

Nigel says the company has made significant gains in improving the efficiency of its world-class scour operations, leading the way globally for the total useful energy usage per kilogram of wool and reducing its carbon footprint.

EECA also funded an energy audit for the Awatoto site in 2020. The audit identified many opportunities that could be implemented to reduce energy consumption, and resulted in installing new low carbon technologies for process heat decarbonisation.

WoolWorks actively manages its energy consumption at its sites and through EECA has been able to appoint a process engineering graduate to focus on energy modelling, simulation and sustainable options.

Other energy efficiency initiatives at Awatoto include the insulation of high-temperature surfaces, including steam and condensate piping and modifying flow-down systems to maximise heat recovery. Every part of the scouring process is monitored, with water usage carefully controlled and waste streams recycled and re-used where possible.

“We will provide the New Zealand wool sector with a unique low-carbon start to the global supply chain, which will support increased demand for New Zealand wool. Rather than planting our way out of the climate change problem by purchasing pine trees to offset our greenhouse gas emissions, we are choosing to do the right thing by the environment and actually reduce our emissions,” says Nigel.