Mangawhai startups impress judges

 

Four startups from Mangawhai and Waipu were among 22 Northland finalists in a recent business ideas competition, proving entrepreneurial thinking and innovation are booming in Bream Bay.

The Pick:2017 was created by Northland Inc and Northland’s business and events hub, The Orchard, to promote Northland as a great place to be entrepreneurial. It began in July with 147 teams who were keen to take their business idea to the next level and were prepared to answer questions like “what makes you unique” and “how will your business be viable”.

Each team received mentorship, guidance and industry contacts over a four-month long process. The journey concluded in November with portfolio submissions and a final pitch to a group of business savvy judges, to compete for five Supreme Winner titles. Supreme Winners received a further year of mentorship and support vouchers. Mangawhai locals Toby and Libby Evans took out one of the Supreme Winner titles with their idea that changes the way people live on tank water with a smart tank device and integrated software.

The couple moved to Mangawhai from Auckland 18 months ago, with the desire to bring their kids up in a small community, and the entrepreneurial drive to create a smart tech enterprise. Toby, who has a background in web development and Libby who has her own marketing coaching business, Thrive Marketing, have explored many business ideas together. At the awards ceremony the judges praised Toby and Libby’s work in exploring global markets and focussing on solving the consumer’s problem.

“The mentorship and support to help get our business off the ground have been invaluable. We’d recommend this process to anyone who might need a bit of structure and support to turn their idea into a business.” Waipu locals Richard Brookes and Wairere Iti took another of the Supreme Winner titles with their idea, Akudos, a cloud based awards management system, designed to streamline any awards process from initial setup, collection of nominations and supporting material, managing judges and the entire judging process through to the collation of the final results. Akudos received some early powerhouse market validation, being picked up at its launch by three paying minimum viable product clients across New Zealand, including the Vodafone NZ Music Awards.

Locals may also be familiar with Mangawhai finalists Nicola Bradburn and Glen Crofskey, the friendly team behind Tara Retreat. Together they are creating ‘Nootropics from Nature’, a locally sourced and made plant-based supplement line. Nicola works as a health practitioner and Glen is a yoga and movement instructor. “We entered The Pick:2017 to get help and ideas for marketing, make connections in the wellness industry and to gain a better understanding of research, product development and production,” says Nicola. The fourth Mangawhai finalists were Haim and Sadra from Bean Brothers.