Business Is Boring
Episodes
Fixing your finances with the Māori Millionaire
05 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Te Kahukura Boynton is on a mission to give more Māori financial independence. Through her Māori Millionaire media and financial literacy platform s...
Dr. Johnson Witehira's mission for more Māori design
29 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
As an artist, designer, and co-founder at Indigenous Design and Innovation Aotearoa (IDIA), Dr. Johnson Witehira works with organisations like Aucklan...
Dennisson Techologies' quest for universal mobility
22 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When Anvil Bañez created Dennison Technologies, he had a dream of helping his father to walk again. Now, the team at Dennison has developed a new act...
Is Cleanery the future of sustainable home care?
15 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In a 2022 report Stuff tested the major local eco-cleaners, Cleanery's just-add-water sachets of cleaning concentrate were named as the clear favour...
Simon Moore on his game-changing golf club
08 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why does playing golf continue to require carrying around a heavy bag full of clubs? In this episode, Simon Pound speaks to Simon Moore, the founder a...
Is Ron Park NZ's mussel king?
01 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Green Lip Mussels are native, super sustainable and have scientifically proven benefits for joint health, so why are they still not as widely used as ...
How EatKinda got vegan ice-cream into Hell Pizza
24 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Can you actually use cauliflower as a milk substitute? EatKinda is doing just that. Their cauliflower based ice-cream is vegan, better on the planet a...
How Fibre Fale are indigenising the tech space
17 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How can we make sure the people making our tech represent the whole of our society? Pacific people make up just under 3% of the tech industry. In resp...
Holiday Records is bringing back local vinyl
10 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Vinyl has become one of the greatest comeback stories of all time. However, until a few years ago, there was no way to press vinyl for local artists. ...
Clem Devine on the rise of the intrepreneur
03 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Entrepreneurship is not just for the founder anymore. Clem Devine is an 'intrepreneur' building a brand practice inside one of NZ’s top architectura...
How Allbirds made the first zero carbon shoe
27 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Tim Brown is an ex-professional footballer turned co-founder of internationally recognised, Wellington-based footwear company Allbirds. They have just...
Why Grater Goods is using equity crowdfunding to expand
20 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Flip Grater decided to give up her career in music to pursue her other passion of vegan delicatessens. Now, her meat-free versions of chorizo, pastram...
How Daisy Lab is designing a dairy-free future
13 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why is it still so hard to find a good plant-based cheese substitute? After asking herself this exact question Daisy Lab co-founder Irina Miller has c...
How Dispute Buddy makes going to court easier
06 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
After going through the court system herself, Jenny Rudd noticed how difficult it is for low income people to gather the resources necessary to compil...
Matū is making VC investing accessible
20 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Most venture capitalism funds have very high buy-in minimums that can be above $50,000. Matū is a local fund that's allowing retail investors to join...
Solid Oral Care is using crowdfunding to launch their new lab
13 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Did you know that more than 16 million tubes of toothpaste enter New Zealand landfills every year? Solid Oral Care are out to change the impact we mak...
Money Sweetspot is changing the finance industry for good
06 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Why is it becoming harder to achieve debt-free status? Money Sweetspot is a new company that uses compassion and incentives to help people pay off the...
The app making it easier to share your Dosh
30 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
New Zealand is well behind the rest of the world when it comes to transferring money between banks. Shane Marsh and James McEniery discovered this whe...
How Garage Project pioneered the craft beer boom
23 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
When Pete Gillespie co-founded Garage Project in 2011 over 50% of craft beer in New Zealand was consumed in Wellington. Now, his passion for beer has ...
What is New Zealand's brand?
16 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
How do you go from being a local comedian to becoming CEO of the government agency charged with growing the country's global brand? Hear from David Do...
The food hero saving Perfectly Imperfect produce
09 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Did you know that nearly half of all produce grown in New Zealand is thrown away? When Wendy Zhou discovered the scale of food waste she created a net...
The Spinoff presents SUPERPOD 2022
25 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
SUPERPOD is back! And for 2022, we're bigger than ever! Hosted by Gone By Lunchtime's Toby Manhire and featuring Jane Yee and Alex Casey from The Real...
Creating a community from clothes
19 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What does it mean to truly shop sustainably? Crushes is a second hand store that is challenging the norms of consumption-hungry shopping. Stocking ent...
Finding practical solutions to help the unhoused
13 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
How can we make an actual difference in the lives of people in need? At 20 years old, Orange Sky co-founders Lucas Patchett and Nic Marchesi found the...
It’s time we talked about paint
05 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Paint surrounds us for most of the day, but are you aware of the harmful petro-chemicals that are used to create it? Natural Paint Co are out to chang...
A circular, more sustainable business model
29 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
How do New Zealanders make their businesses more sustainable? As the head of innovation at the Ellen MacArthur foundation, Ken Webster literally wrote...
How managing Shapeshifter led to more Good Sh*t
22 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Meet the couple bringing you Tony's Chocolate, Seedlip, McClures Pickles and now, Good Sh*t - the soda that is intriguingly all about your gut health....
Could Mānuka oil become bigger than the honey?
14 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Mānuka honey is an internationally known product, but the oil sourced from the plant's leaves can have major skin-care benefits. Stuart Cairns, found...
Abel Odor is disrupting the fragrance industry
07 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Eleven years ago, Frances Shoemack began creating contemporary smelling perfumes with all natural products. Since then, her company has gone global an...
Redefining the industrial internet of things
31 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Arguably starting the first ever social network, Boyd Multerer is an Xbox live legend who was right in the crux of its inauguration. Implementing an i...
Simplicity's Sam Stubbs wants to improve our financial literacy
24 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Having bought his first share at age 12, Sam Stubbs has always had an eye on the economic and financial world. Now co-founder and managing director of...
Making sustainable business the norm with Rachel Brown
17 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Over the past 20 years, Sustainable Business Network have taken sustainable business practice from the fringes to front and centre. Founder/CEO Rachel...
Marking 20 years of Semi Permanent
10 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Already having stamped an everlasting mark on the culture, design and creative conference company Semi Permanent have planted their roots and are here...
Matta: The recycling pioneer turning health hazards into safety equipment
03 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Since it was founded in 1992, Matta has helped divert over 60 million tonnes of PVC and rubber waste from landfill, recycling it into safety matting u...
Dolly Mumma: Helping NZ build a bridge past butter chicken
26 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Indian cuisine is more than just butter chicken made at the mall and Perzen Patel is on a mission to bring that to light within the diaspora. With exp...
Nuro: The NZ-led answer to self driving vehicles
19 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Before we gear up full speed ahead towards the flying cars of the future, self driving vehicles are here now. Promising to be a big part of the future...
AgriSea: the wonders of NZ seaweed innovation
12 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
You may think Seaweed is just the slimy stuff rudely interrupting your summer swims but when you dive a bit deeper, it is an inventive solution to man...
Baina: The NZ contemporary towel company taking over the world
05 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Most contracts made at 16 between best friends don't generally come to fruition, but that isn't the case for Baina co-founders Bailey Meredith and Ann...
Orah offers schools a student wellbeing solution
29 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Back in 2014 Kurt Meyer and Paul Organ saw a gap in the market for an app to help boarding schools track student absences. Now Orah has a bigger missi...
How to improve disabled inclusion in the workforce
22 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Living his life overcoming exterior barriers as a blind individual, Jonathan Mosen understands the importance of hope and belief despite one's disabil...
Halter cow collars are changing the future of farming
15 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine being able to manage a herd of cows from your smartphone. That's exactly what the Halter system, founded by ex-Rocket Lab engineer Craig Piggo...
Going Global: With Banqer's Kendall Flutey
10 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In a bid to increase financial literacy and confidence among young people, Kendall Flutey (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Kahungunu) co-founded Banqer – a fin...
The new apprenticeship for NZ business people
08 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Apprenticeships are common in the trades, but how about one that helps people in companies learn how business works, all whilst developing their soft ...
Meet Vince, NZ’s meat-free vegetable mince
01 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
After conquering the far North's cafe scene in ownership, Debbie and Nigel Stowe started to notice a vital gap in local plant-based options. From that...
Going Global: With Kami co-founder Alliv Samson
27 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
As the co-founder and COO of Kami, Alliv Samson is helping build the future of online education. She joins Brianne and Simon to talk about creating on...
Yu Mei is a luxury brand where everyone is welcome
25 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
While many high end brands pride themselves on sole exclusivity, luxury leather goods company Yu Mei is more interested in establishing a welcoming co...
How Girls Get Off got going
18 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Female pleasure has always been a taboo topic, but Girls Get Off are on a mission to change that. Co-founder Viv Conway joins Simon to chat GGO's plac...
Going Global: With SYSCA CEO Lucy Blakiston
13 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Lucy Blakiston is an unlikely exporter – she’s not sending physical products overseas, but her brand is undeniably international. As the co-foun...
The Ironclad Pan Company's 100-year guarantee
11 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The Ironclad Pan Company's mission is simple: to keep things sustainable like they used to be. And to put their money where their mouth is, the New Ze...
Astrix Astronautics is putting solar panels in space
04 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
An ingenious space satellite solar tech started by three 21-year-old Auckland Uni students, Astrix Astronautics has launched from lessons in the class...
Going Global: With Rachel Taulelei, Oho co-founder
29 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Rachel Taulelei is a strong advocate for the Māori economy and sustainability, and her connection to her Māoritanga has been vital in her career –...
How true love and tragedy led Trow Group to business success
27 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Growing up in poverty, losing his mum at age eight, and leaving school at 14, Saia Finau Latu had the odds stacked against him. In 2016 further family...
Madison Recruitment’s Marisa Fong on what makes a great leader
20 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Building the next generation of leaders is a key element of Marisa Fong’s business approach. Passionate about connections and how they impact sales,...
Going Global: With fashion icon, Karen Walker
15 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
From Runaway Girl to runway success, for more than 30 years powerhouse designer Karen Walker has built her brand and business globally. Known for clev...
Roti Bros want to take their curry-inspired pies to the world
13 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
What do you get if you cross a pie with a curry? That's the question that led Ollie Morrison and Logan Stevens to found Roti Bros. The pair join the p...
How Augusto is blurring lines beyond being just an agency
05 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Production company Augusto have pioneered a hit model. Harnessing the tagline "Blurring the lines between advertising, entertainment and production", ...
Going Global: With Laura Bell, SafeStack Academy
01 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
How do you take your business beyond Aotearoa to the world stage? Welcome to Going Global, a six part pop-up series where we find out. For its inaugur...
Bringing the best of Australia’s high-growth companies to NZ
30 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Even if you've never heard of Canva, you've definitely seen social media posts using its graphic design templates. Mahesh Muralidhar played a part in ...
Girls that Invest: Simran Kaur on changing the face of investment
23 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
With Girls That Invest, Simran Kaur is dismantling the patriarchy through financial independence and making more women welcome in the world of investi...
What's your mental health plan? (with Sir John Kirwan)
16 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
With his workplace mental health platform Groov, Sir John Kirwan is continuing a journey to change the conversation around mental health. An open and ...
Easy Crypto's build to a billion in sales
09 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
A self-proclaimed "high school drop out", Janine Grainger now works in the blockchain and cryptocurrency tech fields as the CEO and co-founder of New ...
Special Group's hard mahi and manifested success
02 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Coming from humble beginnings in an ambitious yet small market, Special Group has built itself up big from day dot. With a driven mindset of being the...
NewFish is reimagining the future of NZ fishing
25 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
NewFish is a startup aiming to change the fishing industry for the better. Using fish that might otherwise be waste, they are looking to massively inc...
Dotterel is taking NZ IP to the world
18 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We first spoke to NZ company, Dotterel in 2019 as they were just coming together with a cool concept for making recording from drones less noisy. Now,...
Michele Wilson on the sacred kaupapa of AWWA
11 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Michele Wilson, founder of AWWA period care, was once a corporate lawyer whose side hustle turned into her full time mahi. Now leading conversations a...
Greg Denton on creating accessible pathways into the tech world
04 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week we’re talking tech companies and seeing it, to be it. Greg Denton excelled in his studies and afterwards, found himself in a big bank. Not...
Method's Sam Ramlu talks the secrets to metaverse success
28 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We’ve all heard a lot about the metaverse lately; the virtual worlds we soon might be spending a lot more time in. However, for Sam Ramlu (co-founde...
Brooke Roberts on the rise of Sharesies
21 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Business is Boring is back! With the support of Spark Lab, we’ll be talking with some of Aotearoa’s most successful business people and checking b...
Do you have oat milk?
29 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Supply shortages earlier this year brought attention to the fact that although we grow plenty of oats here in New Zealand – and know a thing or two ...
The electrician behind 20% of NZ’s new solar installations
22 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Luke Nutting is an electrician who eight or so years ago saw that solar would be the future. He went from being a man in a van to now leading Lightfor...
The former Apple leader helping NZ companies go global
15 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Vignesh Kumar is a partner in Global from Day 1, or Gd1, a local venture capital fund which recently announced the first close of its third fund -- a ...
The property developer helping build better communities
08 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Ockham Residential co-founder Mark Todd is not your usual property developer. Over the years Ockham has helped make Auckland a more compact and liveab...
The NZ startup changing batteries for the better
01 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Batteries are an ethical minefield, and it’s an issue that often gets overlooked in the important move to green tech. Now a New Zealand startup is h...
The local label pioneering carbon positive fashion
25 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
A couple of years ago Maggie Marilyn designer and founder Maggie Hewitt debuted her first collection straight onto Net-a-Porter, one of the most desir...
The importance of employee experience
11 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Samantha Gadd founded Humankind about ten years ago as a new kind of HR, people and culture company. Over time, Humankind has specialised to focus on ...
Theresa Gattung on dealing with burnout in business
04 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
When Theresa Gattung became CEO of Telecom at 37, she became the first woman to run an NZX top 50 company. It was a glass ceiling shattering moment, b...
A new way for startups to raise capital
28 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Jodie Imam and Lance Hodges are the COO and general partner of Tractor Ventures, a group offering debt financing to Australian and New Zealand startup...
How Socialites stays on top of the social media game
21 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Melanie Spencer is the co-CEO of Socialites, a company that’s helping businesses big and small succeed on social media. She joins Simon Pound on Bus...
How NZ joined the space club, with Rocket Lab’s Peter Beck
14 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Ten years ago, if you said New Zealand would soon be one of the handful of countries in the space club, regularly sending satellites to space and famo...
How Multitudes is helping businesses measure and improve team culture
07 Jul 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Lauren Peate is the founder and CEO of Multitudes, a New Zealand software company that helps measure and improve companies’ culture and performance....
Shotgun’s ride from mountain biking brainwave to global business
30 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Shotgun co-founder Dan Necklen joins Simon Pound to talk about designing a new type of kids’ bike seat and taking it to the world. From a couple of ...
How to sell a fast growing company, and other tips from an advertising entrepreneur
23 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Jane Ormsby is an online ad industry innovator. She built online advertising inventory network Response Directive into an Australasian market leader b...
What Woop does differently with their food boxes
16 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Thomas Dietz is the founder and CEO of Woop – short for world on our plate – a company whose inventive offering has found a strong foothold in the...
The ticketing app using booking fees for good
09 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
New Zealander Georgia Robertson is the CEO of Humanitix, an Australian ticketing app with a difference. The company was started by two friends in Sydn...
Making wearable tech for astronauts, Olympic athletes and everybody
02 Jun 2021
Contributed by Lukas
New Zealand company Myovolt has been at the cutting edge of innovation in wearable technology the last 20 years, with founders Dianne Jones and Steve ...
The business and politics of bread
26 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Isabel Pasch is the majority owner of Bread and Butter, bakeries and cafes that focus on traditional sourdough fermentation and using as many locally ...
How Rush built the NZ COVID Tracer app in a hurry
19 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
If you’re listening to this podcast on a smartphone in New Zealand, chances are you have an app today’s guest helped create – and hopefully you ...
Compostic's plan to replace plastic cling wrap
12 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
New Zealand has an addiction to using plastic cling wrap – and it goes without saying that’s no good for the environment. Jon Reed’s startup Com...
The Seinfeld-inspired startup simplifying flower buying
05 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
If flowers are so often bought by men, how come florists aren't designed to appeal to them more? That’s the (extremely paraphrased) gist of the Jerr...
The NZ company working on a new Covid-19 vaccine
21 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this week’s episode, Simon Pound talks to Dr Robert Feldman, CEO of Covid-19 Vaccine Corporation, about the fascinating science behind developing...
The social enterprise helping create more social enterprises
14 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Louise Aitken is the CEO of the Ākina Foundation, which for the last three years has been delivering a programme in partnership with the government, ...
Fewer than 5% of tradies are women – here’s where to find them
07 Apr 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Women make up about 10% of all tradespeople in New Zealand, and only about 4% of “on the tools” workers. That's a wild statistic, and part of why ...
Fix & Fogg is taking NZ nut butters to the world
31 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
From humble hole-in-the-wall beginnings, Wellington-based Fix & Fogg is now one of the hottest nut butter companies in the world. Founder and CEO Roma...
The NZ non-profit helping prisoners learn to code
24 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Take2 CEO and founder Cam Smith tells Simon Pound about the life-changing work his company does helping ex-prisoners reenter the job market. The job m...
The NZ platform where you can rent just about anything
17 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Mutu founder Toby Skilton joins Business is Boring to talk about his vision for a service where people could rent out and borrow things from each othe...
Why ZeroJet wants to electrify small boat motors
10 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This week on Business is Boring, Bex Rempel tells Simon Pound about the need to replace petrol motors on boats. Did you know that an hour out on a lit...
The NZ entrepreneur solving some big toilet problems
03 Mar 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This week on Business is Boring, Billie Jo Hohepa-Ropiha tells Simon Pound about inventing the sewer-safe wet wipe alternative BDÉT. There is a big p...
The Christchurch mum getting people moving in the morning
24 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Nearly every morning, thousands of people around New Zealand and the world start their day with a workout led by a mum of four boys from her Christchu...
How LPL became Australasia’s biggest esports broadcaster
17 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Duane Mutu is the founder and CEO of LetsPlay.Live. Esports are big business, with the number of people playing competitively and the number of specta...
How do you become CEO of one of NZ’s biggest insurers?
10 Feb 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Callaghan Innovation. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovato...