After years of watching its income dwindle as it transitioned into the digital age the New Zealand music industry has turned a significant corner. Recorded Music New Zealand CEO Damian Vaughan is cock-a-hoop that the wallets of the artists and labels he represents are looking a lot fatter. The doom and gloom that had hung … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week he talks to Grant Straker, co-founder and CEO of Straker Translations. … Read more
Anointed by Forbes magazine as one of Asia Pacific’s rising entrepreneurial stars, Ben Forman has a vision for building an honourable advertising industry in his home town. This week Wellington adman Ben Forman was one of six New Zealanders to be named in Forbes Asia’s latest ‘30 Under 30’ list of the region’s hottest young entrepreneurs. Some … Read more
A new law makes domestic violence a workplace issue but does not spell out how businesses should respond, and even allows the employer to seek proof, writes Shine’s Holly Carrington. Within a few months of moving in together, Carol’s love for her boyfriend had turned to fear and she stopped blaming herself for the violence. … Read more
Alex Casey talks to Grace Stratton, founder of All is For All, about creating a pioneering online store that makes accessibility a priority. It all began last July with an uninvited tie. Grace Stratton – fashion enthusiast, uni student and wheelchair user – had bought a pair of pants online from a New Zealand designer, and … Read more
A ticket retailer and a tech startup are joining forces to try and solve some of the industry’s biggest problems. Jihee Junn talks to the co-founders of iTICKET and Passphere on why they’re merging, what they hope to achieve with their new platform, and what they think about websites like Viagogo. Last month, pre-sales for … Read more
The Kiwi success story is working for an agency that developed stealth aircraft and the scheme to bombard Vietnam with Agent Orange. After weather delays and problems with a dodgy video transmitter, Rocket Lab finally launched its first mission of 2019 this week. As it’s usually told, the story of New Zealand’s entrance into the space … Read more
Every week on The Primer we ask a local business or product to introduce themselves in eight simple takes. This week we talk to Dr Will Barker, CEO of biotech startup Mint Innovation which recovers valuable metals from electronic waste. ONE: How did Mint Innovation start and what was the inspiration behind it? Mint was founded in … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week he talks to Jenny Morel, founder of Morel & Co, No 8 … Read more
Allowing overseas money to pour in and fill the gap left by a dearth of New Zealand investors is robbing us of employment opportunities and valuable tax revenue, Bill O’Boyle writes. Anyone who’s spent time around the Kiwi startup scene knows that one of the biggest challenges facing our fledgling businesses is the dreaded ‘funding … Read more
One of the most powerful tools of the 21st century is being allowed to operate with impunity and it’s hurting humankind, according to a silicon valley-based New Zealand AI expert. Artificial intelligence expert Sean Gourley is in the business of creating machines that can read and write. The Kiwi is the founder and CEO of … Read more
The product used to broadcast the murder of 50 innocents is one of Facebook’s least popular and least profitable. What makes it so special that it can’t just hit pause? In the days since a terrorist opened fire in Christchurch, in part motivated by his ability to break new ground in very literally weaponising social … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week he talks to John Macaskill-Smith, CEO of virtual health company Ventures. … Read more
A coalition of major New Zealand advertisers is building a coalition to demand change from the tech giants. New Zealand’s biggest advertisers are working both individually and collectively to try and force change from the tech giants in the wake of the Christchurch terror attacks. At midday on Monday the Association of New Zealand Advertisers … Read more
Imposing a Digital Services Tax will concentrate the tech giants’ minds on their woeful response to the Christchurch massacre, writes Terry Baucher. What to do about Facebook, Google and Twitter’s reprehensible failure to stop the live-streaming of a terrorist atrocity and the dissemination of vile images? How about a 20% Digital Services Tax, for starters … Read more
A report commissioned by Uber says Auckland wins Australasia’s traffic congestion Grand Prix and needs to embrace ‘point-to-point’ transport. It’s official: Auckland is the most congested city in Australasia, according to Uber. It hired international management consultancy Boston Consulting Group to look at transport in the region’s major cities and what role ridesharing services such … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week he talks to Imche Fourie, General Manager of LevelTwo, and Dr … Read more
Researching ancestry is a spiritual matter for Māori, and platforms like ancestry.com just don’t cut it. Ahau, a Māori-led startup, believes the mysterious technology of blockchain holds the answer. Dan Walker was a bit nervous when he put his great-great-great grandfather Tuwhakaruru Katene into ancestry.com. Tuwhakaruru lived through some of the hardest years of colonisation for … Read more
Refilleries such as GoodFor and Be Free Grocer say their time has come, with consumers from Ponsonby to Palmerston North seeking a zero-waste option. Horror stories such as sea turtles being found with hundred of pieces of plastic in their gut are shocking people into realising the planet will slowly strangle if we don’t stop … Read more
SkyCity’s moves to set up an offshore online gambling subsidiary throw up a huge range of questions about just how tax should work in the digital age, writes tax consultant Terry Baucher. The news that SkyCity is voluntarily paying perhaps as much as $40 million in “tax” sounds like someone actually took seriously the remark … Read more
The business partnership behind the controversial LGBTI Awards has gone nuclear with one director accusing the other of theft. Maria Slade reports One of the biggest rows Linda Riley ever had with her business partner Silke Bader was over the Topp Twins. The story as Riley tells it is that the twins were due to … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week: men’s clothing subscription company Asuwere. Dollar Shave Club, My Food … Read more
Last week, a study was released listing the top 20 jobs New Zealanders should be studying for the future. This week, we asked those working in four of those jobs to explain how and why they chose their careers and what advice they’d give to students today. Chef Brody Jenkins (Little Easy/Jo Bros Burgers) What do … Read more
Size is relative, and a recent report on iwi investment shows that despite growth, the Māori economy has a long way to go. It often amazes me that when we speak of the Māori economy we do not talk about what comprises the Māori economy, how it is supporting the Māori population, and how to … Read more
Two decades on since ‘100% Pure’ New Zealand is slipping behind in environmental innovation. We need to act now to preserve our hard-won global image, writes James Araci. This year will be the 20th anniversary of New Zealand’s ‘100% Pure’ tourism campaign. Whatever you think of that slogan, there’s no doubt it has created billions of … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week Simon talks to Elisha Watson of underwear company Nisa. When … Read more
A study using salary data, employment prospects, skill shortages and training positions suggests aspiring engineers, builders, teachers, midwives and panel beaters are off to a great start. First published in February 2019. One of the most difficult choices in a young person’s life is deciding what they want to study. They have to think about … Read more
‘Dependent contractors’ say they are forced to fight numerous battles against corporates like the Australasian company owing to New Zealand’s lack of regulation, reports Maria Slade There are those who can’t face the day before they’ve had their Vogel’s toast. Maybe you want your Molenberg. Or perhaps your kids refuse to eat bread with “bits” … Read more
Recruiting can suck, both for job seekers and employers alike. In the interests of improving the experience, HR expert Sylvie Thrush Marsh offers her top tips for winning the employment game. Job hunting is a pain in the proverbial. At worst, it’s stressful, discouraging, and an emotional roller-coaster ride. Until you’re established enough in your industry … Read more