Plenty of flavour

Incredible foodie offerings proves there’s so much more to the Bay than good surf and sunshine.

Words Sue Hoffart / images supplied

When Flavours of Plenty Festival director Rae Baker moved to the Western Bay of Plenty in March last year, it was a homecoming of sorts.

Although she was largely raised in Scotland and has been living in Queenstown for four years, her Kiwi father attended Tauranga Boys College. She has spent copious childhood summers at Waihī Beach and still has a network of extended whanau and old family friends in the region. Pulling together the festival programme has fast-tracked the newcomer’s food knowledge.

“This festival celebrates a place I’ve loved my whole life,” Rae says. “When we were living in Edinburgh my dad would always say kumara is kumara and jandals are jandals. 

“But I’m still learning more about the region. There have been plenty of revelations, like the fact we’ve got more truffle farms in the bay than in any other region in New Zealand. I knew about the kiwifruit and avocados but I didn’t know about the chocolate and blueberries, or the macadamias.”

The inaugural Flavours of Plenty Festival, which runs from April 7-10, aims to celebrate the coastal Bay of Plenty’s world-class culinary offerings. This year’s festival will showcase horticultural heroes through workshops and demonstrations, degustations and pop-ups, restaurant nights and themed in-house menus, cultural and māra kai (food garden) events.

“Obviously, this region has always been famous for its landscapes and beautiful beaches but we have a really rich food story to talk about and I think it’s about time we did.”

Rae says the Flavours of Plenty steering group, formed by Tourism Bay of Plenty, has uncovered hundreds of food-related producers between Waihī Beach and Ōhope.

The group has also established that the region hosts more than 600 cafes, restaurants and other eateries. In Tauranga city alone, the food and beverage sector generates more than $150 million and employs about 4400 people.

She says natural advantages, such as excellent soil and a sunny climate, are increasingly teamed with skilled growers, scientists, chefs, manufacturers and educators to produce premium products.

“Restaurants are really starting to showcase what’s great and locally grown. Our Toi Ohomai campus has an amazing culinary department and we’re seeing real efforts to connect people to the produce we grow here.

“Personally, we’ve bought a place in Papamoa and I have a vege garden now and, oh my gosh, the tomatoes. My South Island friends can’t believe I don’t need a greenhouse. And, coming from Scotland, there’s no way we have the opportunity to grow avocados and feijoas, lemons, passionfruit, clementines.

“I’m loving having access to farmers markets here, with all those people making kombucha or vanilla or sourdough. And I’ve loved taking friends to Dinner In The Domain at the pony club in Papamoa. I’m blown away and it’s time we really started singing from the rooftops about it.”

Markets and the domain dinner are included in the festival offerings, alongside events such as craft brewery tours or a multi-course modern hāngī or a family-friendly cheese rolling contest run by Mount Eliza cheesemakers.

Mount Sourdough Co’s mother-son duo Margaret and Sam Langlands are also promising foodies a new experience. The sourdough starter, which requires regular feeding with a flour and water mix, has been around for at least 15 years thanks to Margaret’s dedication and skill. Both she and her son has been known to take the precious starter along on their respective holidays, in order to keep it alive.

Sam learned baking skills from his former primary school teacher mum and became serious about dough only after working in corporate finance. He was planning to head overseas – flights were booked, visa confirmed – when their small, homegrown bread business grew unexpectedly quickly. 

Four years ago, the engineering graduate set up a Facebook page to sell bread baked in the family kitchen at Mount Maunganui. When they outgrew that space, the pair expanded into the garage and developed a range that now includes a spiced fruit version, one with olive and rosemary and another studded with flax and sunflower seeds. These days, Mount Sourdough produces 500 loaves a day from a dedicated bakery and has plans to expand both the team and the small commercial kitchen. While Sam’s airline tickets and visa have long since expired, Flavours of Plenty ticketholders will have a chance to hear the Langlands’ story and discover the history, health benefits and science of sourdough. Guests will also get their hands on some dough, learn how to look after and bake the perfect loaf and take home a sourdough starter pack of their own.

As part of the festival, at least 16 eateries will utilise a matching ‘produce box’ to showcase what’s grown and made along the coast. Judges will pick winners but diners are also encouraged to taste the specially-designed cocktails or menu items and vote for a people’s choice award. 

Fife Lane restaurant’s Flavours of Plenty lunch was the first event to sell out, while Sugo restaurant has designed a plant-based ‘king’s feast’ luncheon and Elizabeth Café is hosting a dinner created by Pepper & Me food business owner Cherie Metcalfe. 

At Paengaroa, The Mediterranean Escape will see ticketholders visit a truffiere and an olive oil producer before heading to the Trading Post restaurant in Paengaroa for a degustation dinner. 

In Whakatanē, The Good Fusion fashion and food event teams local boutiques and designers with live music and locally-made wine or kombucha as well as grazing platters that feature locally-made or grown products. Proceeds will support a charity that helps families facing childhood cancer. Whakatanē will also welcome diners to a long lunch at the award-winning Mata Brewery, led by brewer Tammy Viitakangas.

“This festival ticks all the boxes,” Rae says. “It’s great for the community, great for people who visit the region, for families. I see the event growing and growing, expanding every year.” 

Flavoursofplentyfestival.com

Worldwide Wahine

In the eight years since sisters Karena and Kasey Bird wowed the Masterchef kitchen with their home-grown culinary flair, they’ve collected more awards and travelled around the globe showcasing their kai. Now Kasey has an exciting new food critic on board to taste test all their fresh ideas.

words Sue Hoffart / image Graeme Murray
Baby Koaretaia Biel is destined to eat exceptionally widely and well, given the legendary cooking prowess of his mother and aunt.

The Maketu boy was 11 weeks old when mum Kasey Bird and her older sister Karena flew to Dubai on an official government cooking mission. The television stars and award-winning cookbook publishers travelled to United Arab Emirates in January, to help showcase New Zealand’s culinary culture. During their stay, the pair undertook a cooking challenge, led a kitchen demonstration event, designed a hangi-inspired beef dish and created a Matariki-themed multi-course feast for the World Expo.

But, even while preparing a degustation dinner for international dignitaries, Kasey regularly stepped out of the kitchen with a breast pump to keep her milk supply going in readiness for their return. She did the same thing on flights, in restaurants and while holed up in a quarantine hotel. The jet-setting mum left litres of milk with her baby’s grandparents and trainee teacher father Patuara Biel, who sent daily updates and videos of their son. Meanwhile, Karena has been researching baby food traditions in other cultures, to plan Koaretaia’s first solid meals. An Indian-inspired dahl perhaps? Or a turmeric-laced puree using vegetables grown in his grandparents’ garden. They also like the Chinese tradition of giving teething babies dried fish to gnaw on, though of course theirs would come from Bay of Plenty waters.

The sisters (Te Arawa, Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Manawa) are determined this baby will be raised by  whānau, with his feet in Maketu sand and his taste buds roaming the world. It’s a recipe that has certainly worked for them.

Growing up in the coastal village, east of Tauranga, the pair would dash across the road after school to swim or gather shellfish. Their earliest memories revolve around digging for pipi in the estuary, then cooking the molluscs on an old cake rack over an open fire on the sand. 

“It felt so safe, really idyllic,” Kasey says of their Maketu childhood. “It was normal to let kids go to the beach by themselves. Mum could see us from home and our Aunty would whistle and all the kids knew it was time to come home.”

“Every Sunday, we would have this big pot luck dinner with all the family and friends, everyone bringing a different dish. And we’re the type of kids, if we saw something we didn’t recognise, that’s what we wanted to try.”

Food dominates their memories. Kasey has always been drawn to the kitchen, while her sister was the eager eater in the family. It was Kasey who caught and smoked her own fish and pestered aunts and grandmothers for lessons and recipes or begged for cookbook gifts each Christmas. Although her sibling had little interest in cooking, she was equally excited by a good meal. Especially if it involved new flavours.

Karena recalls marvelling at the magical ingredients – capers, olives, sundried tomatoes – in a salad her aunt brought to the house. Her sister was certain she had found “the nicest thing on earth” after tasting crème brulée for the first time.

Kasey was 10 when the girls’ parents Kerry and Atarangi Bird shepherded the family onto a plane and headed overseas, intent on expanding their daughters’ horizons.

“They always wanted us to know where we’re from and be grounded,” Karena says. “And they also wanted us to see the world was a big place, to see a world full of possibilities.” 

Decades after ticking off Los Angeles and New York, London, Paris and Sweden, it is the culinary memories that linger. They still talk about discovering fresh pretzels and just-made lemonade, sushi and Mexican food for the first time. Or the French bistro where they happily ate lentils with sausages and “really stinky cheese”.

As teenagers, the sisters would scour ‘top 50’ restaurant lists and pool their pocket money before driving to Auckland to dine out. 

“When we were in high school, food was all we talked about. While our friends bought concert tickets and clothes and CDs, we would save up money to go and eat in restaurants. We’d take pictures, try new things, then come back to Maketu and try to replicate it.”

Their horrified parents  – this dining out compulsion was wasteful according to chartered accountant dad and university lecturer mum – insisted the duo pursue proper careers. Both made choices that now confound them. 

Kasey initially studied fashion in Melbourne until homesickness drew her home, where she enrolled in an accountancy degree and found local work auditing health contracts. Her sibling headed to Wellington to begin Bachelor of Commerce studies. 

Neither was particularly interested in balance sheets or finance and neither was destined to complete her degree.

Instead, Kārena decided to attend the cordon bleu cook school in Sydney, while obsessively watching competitive cooking television programme Masterchef New Zealand.

“My flatmates thought I was crazy. I’d never cooked one meal in the flat and on leaving night, they gave me a Masterchef cookbook and wrote ‘can’t wait till you’re on the cover one day’. They were thinking it was a big joke. I still have that book.”
Karena only ventured into the kitchen once she was home again, intent on saving and practicing for her pending culinary training. With no restaurants nearby and no escaping the family cooking schedule, she threw herself into trialling techniques and trying to outdo her sister when it was her night to cook.

“I was making up for lost time,” she says. “I cooked heaps. I’d watch food shows then recreate it. I learnt a lot.”

Without realising it, the sisters were also amassing a portfolio of images, menus and experiences that would impress television producers looking for talent to feature on the show. A week after submitting their application, the duo had an interview and launched into auditions. 

The rest is history. In 2014, the Te Puke High School graduates – Karena is a former head girl – attained national celebrity by winning the reality show Masterchef New Zealand. Their own travel cooking series followed; Karena and Kasey’s Kitchen Diplomacy saw the pair film 20 episodes in 20 countries over a two year period, with a host of impressive international cooking engagements on the side. Trips to Asia and Europe and South America were interspersed with five separate stints in China, work for wine and food companies and starring roles in a food safety programme for the Ministry of Primary Industries. They have also run a diabetes education programme for kuia and kaumatua in a community hall in Murupara. And they have self-published two sell-out cookbooks, the first of which collected an international award. Their third book is expected to hit shelves later this year and will be written entirely in Te Reo, with pages of text and glossy photographs laid out in their parents’ house. Kasey and her husband live across the road and Karena is a one-minute walk away. Master Koaretaia is passed between all three homes and adored by everyone, including youngest Bird sibling Michaela. Auntie Michaela is an actress living in Auckland but spends plenty of weekends back home, doting on her nephew.

Maketu is the well-travelled sisters’ turangawaewae, the place they come home to for a dose of reality and unconditional love. Their mum will ask whether they have done their laundry and insist they place newspaper on the floor while cooking, to mop up any mess. No-one cares that Karena has been dining in an exclusive restaurant overlooking 15,000 fish inside the world’s largest aquarium. Or that she had to pick gold leaf out of her teeth. Back home, she is expected to rinse her dinner plates and contribute to family life.

“I think it’s what keeps everything in perspective,” Kasey says. “Just being part of the fabric of whanau and community, everyone is just the same. 

“I like to think we have the best of both worlds, that idea that a modern woman can have your baby and go to Dubai. And eat truffle and go to the marae and be in the kitchen with the aunties. The next generation can have all of that. You can still be worldly and still be really grounded.”

It was their grandfather who arrived in nearby Te Puke, from Rotorua, to open a branch of the family’s jeans manufacturing company before moving to Maketu. But the Birds have had holiday homes in the beach community for six generations;  Kasey lives in a house her paternal great great grandparents once inhabited. In recent years, they learned a Scottish female forebearer opened Te Puke’s first bakery in the 1800s.

“We loved growing up in Maketu. It’s still unspoilt, it’s remained that real quintessential beach town. It’s such a safe haven for us.

“Travel definitely gave us the real deep appreciation of where we come from and of our family.”

It also helped shape their determination to learn te reo. Although they spoke the language as young girls and grew up around it – their mother is a Maori language lecturer – their enthusiasm waned. That interest was reignited through learning about other nations’ culture, language and history and realising they knew too little of their own. 

“Being Maori is really important to us but we almost started to feel like imposters,” Kasey says.” People were so proud of us but we didn’t have the language.”

It was Kārena who pushed for them both to place their international schedule on hold and spend a year at Waikato University’s Tauranga campus, learning te reo full time. They did still squeeze in work trips to Fiji, China and Taiwan before emerging as fluent speakers, at the end of 2019.

The timing has been remarkably fortuitous. As Covid slammed international borders shut, their new skill led to new work. Like a string of Matariki-related engagements or the television miniseries that saw them teach a master class in cooking, solely in te reo. Or the  nine-course fine dining event that tells the Maori creation story through food.

“I think the best thing about learning it, though, is the feeling we have, feeling complete. And now, having a baby, it makes it all worthwhile. He’s going to have both languages.”

This year will bring another round of speaking engagements and celebrity cheffing roles, including high guest spots in the inaugural Flavours of Plenty festival. Their Hangi With Karena and Kasey event promises “a deeply cultural feast” that blends traditional cooking techniques with modern twists, whilst celebrating the Bay’s plentiful plethora of produce.

No doubt there will be more international travel in future, too.

“Always, all the time, we are looking at each other and saying ‘how good is our life?’,” Karena says of their last eight adventurous years. 

“We never take it for granted,” her younger sister chimes in. “We always pinch ourselves.”

Division of labour

Much of the sisters’ work and home life is deeply enmeshed. They even refer to Koaretaia as “our baby” and Karena attended a few antenatal classes when the father-to-be couldn’t make it.

But they do take account of each other’s strengths when it comes to sharing the load.

Kasey is the organised one, the logistics and planning expert. She is happiest behind the scenes and her accounting background has come in handy after all; she looks after the finances. 

Karena is the outgoing people person. She’s more bossy, generally takes the lead in the kitchen when it comes to plating food and tends to do the talking in public, though Kasey has plenty to say one on one. 

Karena likes to claim she brings the x-factor to the partnership. “And the humility,” she jokingly adds, as the sisters break into laughter. 

“Being sisters, we just know what our roles are without even talking about it. We have this innate understanding.”

Would they ever consider splitting up to pursue separate careers? Especially now there is a baby in the mix?

“We’re not for or against the idea,” Kasey says. “If something came up for Karena that was really awesome, we’d just be happy for each other. We want what’s best for each other.”

Travel as Self-Care: Booking.com Shares 6 Destinations to Help Travellers Feel Rejuvenated

As we approach the two-year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic arriving in Aotearoa, the important benefits that travel has on health and wellbeing are now sorely missed. According to recent Booking.com research, nearly two thirds (60%) of Kiwi travellers say they didn’t realise how important travel was to their wellbeing until it was no longer an option. For 64% of global travellers, travel is an essential part of their self-care, and almost three-quarters (71%) say that travel helps their mental and emotional wellbeing more than other forms of rest and relaxation. 

Now that New Zealand has a clear path to opening borders , international travel is on the horizon again. With this in mind, Booking.com looked at endorsement data shared by global travellers for various travel activities to present six inspiring destinations that will help travellers feel rejuvenated.

Edinburgh, United Kingdom

According to Booking.com research, two-thirds (67%) of Kiwi travellers say that staying somewhere with different scenery helps them feel rejuvenated. As one of Europe’s most picturesque capital cities, there is no shortage of scenic spots in Edinburgh. Wander around the cobblestone streets and enjoy the medieval buildings and monuments scattered around the city. Visit one of the many castles, including the iconic Edinburgh Castle which is located on Castle Rock and offers incredible views of the entire city. Or learn how Scotland’s national drink is made during a Guided Whisky Tour with Tasting.

Where to stay: Princes Street Suites is the perfect place to stay to indulge the beautiful scenery of the city. This sustainable aparthotel, located in Edinburgh’s Old Town, overlooks Edinburgh Castle with historical sites in walking distance. Most apartments have floor-to-ceiling windows with incredible views of the city and there is a shared rooftop terrace to enjoy the beautiful scenic city while sipping on your whisky. 

Airlie Beach, Australia 

In the heart of Australia’s Whitsundays region, and the gateway to the iconic Great Barrier Reef, Airlie Beach is a perfect place for relaxation. 34% of Kiwi travellers say that doing an activity that isn’t as accessible for them at home, helps them disconnect from the day-to-day routine to feel rejuvenated. With many options available, it’s not surprising that this coastal town is one of the top recommended destinations for sailing by Booking.com travellers. Jump aboard a Whitsunday Islands Boat Tour with Lunch, Sunset Cruise with Champagne or private charter and explore the 74 Whitsunday Islands nearby, or explore the crystal-clear waters of the Great Barrier Reef by boat.

Where to stay: Situated on the absolute waterfront and just a short walk from Airlie Beach village, Coral Sea Marina Resort offers a relaxed stay to totally reset and recharge. Most rooms offer stunning ocean views for guests to wake up to every morning. For guests looking to experience sailing and explore the beautiful surrounding area, Coral Sea Marina provides the perfect port for superyachts as well as a range of tours and activities, providing access to the Whitsunday Islands and Great Barrier Reef.

Queenstown, New Zealand

For nearly seven in 10 (71%)* of Kiwi travellers, relaxing all day helps them to disconnect from the day-to-day routine to help them feel rejuvenated. A little closer to home, Queenstown is not only the adventure capital of Aotearoa with adrenaline filled activities, but also caters to the opposite end of the travel spectrum as a go-to R&R destination for Kiwis. Onsen hot pools may be one of the most ‘instagrammable’ places in the Southern region! Whether it’s a trip around all the beautiful vineyards, soaking in a picturesque hot tub, or simply a cruise through the scenic lakes and mountains, Queenstown is a tried and tested destination to get your dose of self-care.

Where to stay: Offering breathtaking views of the lakefront and mountains, The Rees Hotel & Apartments is the perfect place to get some R&R and completely unwind. Guests can enjoy a range of in-room massage services, including invigorating body and facial treatments. With self-care literally coming to you, guests may not even want to leave their hotel room to recharge!

Bologna, Italy 

A majority of travellers (61%) say that trying new and different cuisines helps them get out of their comfort zone, which in turn makes them feel rejuvenated. According to Booking.com travellers, Bologna is one of the top recommended destinations to visit for traditional food. While the Italian cuisine may not be new to many, Bologna is famed as a foodie's paradise and some of Italy's well-known pasta dishes, meats, cheeses and wines, originated in this city, including the famous Tagliatelle al ragù alla Bolognese (hence the name!). Discover traditional cuisine by joining a Traditional Home Cooking Class with a Mealwhere you'll meet a chef at a typical Bolognese home and spend three hours learning how to prepare typical dishes from scratch.

Where to stay: Villa Savioli Room & Breakfast is a perfect place to stay for the ultimate Bologna experience. Set in a historical, traditional building, this sustainable property offers luxurious rooms with a homely feeling. Guests can enjoy traditional Italian breakfast each morning, including home-made biscotti, croissants and of course a tasty cappuccino. With just a short walk away from the city centre, guests can choose from plenty of restaurants that offer amazing traditional cuisine.  

For those travellers looking for a trip to reset again, Booking.com is sharing Early 2022 Deals for travellers to use when booking their next trip. Discounts start at 15 percent and are valid for stays until 31 March 2022.

*Research commissioned by Booking.com and conducted among a sample of adults who plan to travel for business or leisure in the next 12-24 months. In total 24,055 respondents across 31 countries and territories were polled (including 501 from Argentina, 1003 from Australia, 500 from Belgium, 1001 from Brazil, 500 from Canada, 1000 from China, 1007 from Colombia, 1001 from Croatia, 508 from Denmark, 1002 from France, 1000 from Germany, 1005 from Hong Kong, 1000 from India, 502 from Israel, 1003 from Italy, 1002 from Japan, 500 from Mexico, 501 from The Netherlands, 501 from New Zealand, 500 from Peru, 1000 from Russia, 1005 from Singapore, 1002 from South Korea, 1002 from Spain, 501 from Sweden, 501 from Switzerland, 504 from Taiwan, 500 from Thailand, 1000 from the UK, 1002 from the US and 501 from Vietnam). Respondents completed an online survey in August 2021.
**Endorsement data from Booking.com based on the most recommended and relevant destinations by global travelers for scenery, sailing, tranquility, traditional food, kite-surfing, friendly-people.

Behind the mask

For many skin types, hydration is the number one concern during the warmer months. Arbonne reveals exactly how two of their top-selling products brighten, enhance and smooth skin by doing just that.

The change of season often comes with changes to the skin and complexion too. To make this transition easy, Arbonne is putting the spotlight on two products that sit alongside its ever-growing collection of dermatologically tested, vegan skincare products.  

Face masks work to create healthy, hydrated and firm skin, and the genius of these masks lie in their collection of ingredients and benefits for all skin types.

Arbonne’s Cell Renewing Face Mask with Fruit Acids and AHAs works to minimise pores and enhance elasticity, the perfect option for those with dull skin. 

Alternatively, the Arbonne Radiance Sheet Mask with Niacinamide is infused with a vegan serum specially designed to replenish and hydrate dry skin.

While both masks are superstars in their own right, they join an already well-established list of anti-dull and anti-dryness Arbonne products, which can be incorporated into any morning or night routine. We’ve done a deep dive into the new masks and some of the complementary products that can extend the benefits even further.  

For dull skin

Cell Renewing Face Mask with Fruit Acids and AHAS

This new Cell Renewing Mask uses a blend of hydroxy acids and botanical exfoliants to gently remove dead skin cells and create a fresh and vibrant face. As the mask works to exfoliate the skin, it simultaneously improves texture and tone. RRP$110

BrightenUp Luminous Serum with Hyaluronic Acid

This highly-concentrated vegan serum features a blend of Hyaluronic Acid Cherry Blossom, Cucumber, Red Clover and Beetroot Extracts to fight uneven skin tone and improve discolouration. Its lightweight feel and fast-absorbing properties make it a twice-a-day weapon for fighting uneven skin. RRP$104

DermResults Daily Radiance Peel Pads with 2% Caviar Lime

These pre-soaked resurfacing pads are designed for daily use and promote cell turnover through physical and chemical exfoliation. The three key ingredients, caviar lime extract, phytic and hyaluronic acid, gently remove surface impurities and dead skin cells, leaving radiant-looking skin. RRP$138

For dry skin

Radiance Sheet Mask with Niacinamide

This new vegan serum-infused sheet mask uses hydrating botanicals and Arbonne’s Algae Firming Complex to improve hydration and create a smooth appearance. The targeted formula is perfect for nightly use, leaving the skin radiant for the morning. RRP$16

AgeWell Moisture Restoring Cream with 0.5% Bakuchiol

This restoring crème provides critical moisture and hydration to dry skin, while smoothing over and reducing the appearance of wrinkles. Its botanical make up helps to recharge the skin’s natural moisture barrier. RRP$120

Arbonne Bio-Hydria™ Bio-Hydria Liquid Serum

This ultra-concentrated and lightweight serum utilises hydrating botanicals to instantly moisturise the skin. Its texture soothes and cools the skin while providing constant hydration. RRP $74

arbonne.com/nz/en 

NB The products specified above can be ‘added on’ to skincare routines. These products are not specifically recommended by Arbonne to use together for results such as brightening or hydration.

Café Near Me

With options to suit vegans, gluten-free and keto diets, as well as the pooch, there’s something
for every Mount local’s requirement at this new aptly-named café.

words Monique Balvert-O’Connor | photos Erin Cave

Carmen Furniss with her two sons, Torbin and Marick.

Carmen Furniss has just launched a long-dreamed-about venture that’s near to her heart.

She bought her first eatery (a Te Awamutu restaurant) at the tender age of 23. A few decades on and it’s time to do it again. Carmen is the proud owner of Café Near Me, which opened recently at number 8 Maunganui Road.

“Organic, earthy, textured is the look I’ve created and I think that coincides with the Near Me feel… it represents a warm hug,” the enthused, self-professed “foodie” shares. “It’s close to my heart (near me) and that’s part of the driving force behind the name.”

The name and the ambience are receiving plenty of nods of approval, as are the points of difference this

Mount Maunganui café presents.

“Our food, including a puppy menu, our implementation of a mental health policy, and our minimal waste (we’re aiming for zero waste) approach are what I call our unique selling points,” Carmen is proud to say.

As mother to a celiac daughter, she offers an essentially gluten-free menu (limited amounts of gluten can only be found in add-ons, catering for those wanting sourdough, for example).

There’s more than a cursory nod to the keto diet too. Carmen’s a-la-carte menu (there’s cabinet and counter food too) includes 12 items, three of which are exclusively keto, six are vegan and the remainder are a crossover of different elements.

If a gluten-free menu, with keto, vegan, dairy-free and refined sugar-free options are what you pine for, then Café Near Me will be close to your heart too.

Real fruit ice creams are on offer, as are smoothies and juices, the latter courtesy of Carmen and her husband’s abundant fruit orchard. Café Near Me is licensed, “so a vodka cruiser in the sun is a goer”. And the café includes an appealing outdoor area with views of Mauao.

Dog friendly, with canines permitted in the outdoor area, the café’s puppy menu features a Pupachino and two venison products supplied by the family’s Te Awamutu-based pet food range, Platinum Ranch.

Carmen wants people to feel at home in her café, and she feels very strongly about waste minimisation too.

“I’m aiming to get to zero waste and want the gold standards certificate to prove it. I have so many awesome contacts to help with this and my staff are being stringently trained on zero waste practises around set targets.”

Carmen has, for example, tapped into a new initiative – the Café Collect Incentive – that will take what’s currently not considered recyclable (for example, used napkins, tetrapack boxes, foil) and turn it into product like gib board.

“At Café Near Me there are exciting things happening. Super pumped is the over-arching feeling I am experiencing,” Carmen smiles.

Her remarkable enterprise is open from 7am to 3pm or 4pm, depending on the day (with a possibility of being open later in the peak season), six days a week, closed Mondays.

It is sited at the bottom of The Pacific building in a space that’s been home to various eateries over the years and has had a complete refit.

Contact: info@cafenearme.co.nz

Wisdom & wonder

She might be renowned in the Bay for her property prowess, but Bayleys agent
Kay Ganley knows you’re only as good as your team.

words Monique Balvert-O’Connor | photos Salina Galvan

Kay’s team clockwise from top left: Rebecca, Kimberly, Jenni, Conrad, Kay and Vanessa.

After 23 years in the real estate world, there’s not a lot that multiple award-winning salesperson Kay Ganley doesn’t know about her industry.

And one of those wisdoms, accrued over recent years, is the value of having a team to help her continue to impeccably serve the Mount Maunganui and Papamoa residential property market.

It’s four years now since Kay – who works under the Bayleys Mount Maunganui umbrella – created her own team. That team comprises Kay, three other salespeople, and two personal assistants.

A huge number of listings provided Kay with the incentive to form her own team and she’s never looked back.

“If I am going to stay at the top of my game and not burn out, then I need other good people at my side so we can collectively provide the best possible service. We have each other’s back and provide back-up for each other.

“I can’t imagine not having a team now. Not only does it create a supportive working network, but I like being surrounded by people and sharing my knowledge, and helping them get established too. It has been great to see them flourish. Our team does very well,” Kay says.

Indeed, this people-and-service-focused team does do well, as the plaudits show.

Last year Kay took out top prize for Success Realty Ltd (covering the Waikato, Taranaki, and Bay of Plenty) in the residential category and over all offices (residential, country and commercial) in the same geographic area. The latter is the top prize, and Kay has achieved this over the last two consecutive years. The Kay Ganley brand also scored the top salesperson accolade in the Bayleys Mount Maunganui office for the last eight years; and has sat in the top three nationwide for residential sales.

Kay’s handpicked hard-working and fun-loving team members are Conrad Doyle, Vanessa Wansbrough and Kimberly Bain. Rebecca Yeaxlee and Jenni Stevens fill the personal assistant roles.

Conrad Doyle

Kay saw plenty of promise in Conrad, and her daughter, Chloe Ganley, concurred. Conrad is Kay’s son-in-law – she suggested he make the break from his previous job and move into real estate. His sales background has stood him in good stead, she says. Conrad, who has been part of Kay’s team since day one, has a reputation for being great with people and is regularly on the receiving end of fabulous feedback.

When not working, family pursuits keep him busy (he and Chloe have two young children) and surfing is a passion.

Vanessa Wansbrough

Vanessa has enjoyed a recent, personal real estate thrill – buying her own home in Mount Maunganui. She joined Kay’s team after moving over from Hamilton, armed with seven years’ experience in real estate.

Canadian-born, Vanessa can often be found scaling Mauao, or pursuing other health, fitness and mindfulness activities. Learning to surf is a summer goal, and there’s talk about joining Toastmasters too.

Kimberly Bain

Kimberly is a tried-and-true inclusion to the team. She was Kay’s personal assistant for a year and enjoyed real estate so much that she decided to get her license. She’s now joined the team as a salesperson, armed with a great handle on the nuts and bolts of the business. She’s gaining great traction as a salesperson, Kay says.

Her colleagues love her caring personality – she’s the office gift buyer! Outside of work, she enjoys fishing and is a keen foodie.

Jenni Stevens (PA)

Kay couldn’t believe her luck when former real estate agent, Jenni, opted out of selling and thought a personal assistant role would suit her just fine. Armed with all that relevant experience, it’s little wonder she’s considered a real asset to the team. This part-time role leaves Jenni with plenty of time to head away with her husband on caravan adventures.

Rebecca Yeaxlee (PA)

The newest member of Kay’s team, Rebecca had a fair idea of what she was getting into when she took on the personal assistant job – she’d been the part-time front desk administrator for the whole of the Bayleys Mount Maunganui office. Rebecca was keen to move into a bigger role and a full-time one. The opportunity to be on Kay’s team held plenty of appeal. Swimming and running keep Rebecca fit.

Kay’s property purchase

Earlier this year, Kay and her husband Mike Gallagher did some property buying of their own. They shifted from their Mount Maunganui apartment (now run as their Airbnb) to a 2,800m2 site, tucked down a long driveway in a quiet Papamoa cul de sac. There they have renovated and planted to create a tropical oasis.

bayleys.co.nz

Reap the rewards

Thinking of purchasing an investment property? Let Joanna Martinez-Hart from EVES guide you through the ins and outs of becoming a landlord.

interview Monique Balvert-O’Connor / photos Salina Galvan + supplied

Joanna Martinez-Hart is a stress remover and a matchmaker.

As EVES Realty BOP rental property management expert and group manager, she and her team provide peace of mind for landlords, helping them navigate the various aspects of rental ownership. Finding

a suitable tenant match is merely the starting point.

The value of tapping into the services of a rental management team has long been realised, but recent challenges – such as new compliance laws, Covid lockdowns, and huge numbers attempting to find rental accommodation – have made engaging a property manager more appealing than ever.

In addition, certain aspects of society have changed over the decades with people appearing busier with work and family commitments. Employing the services of a property manager to look after rental assets frees up time and gives owners the peace of mind to carry on concentrating with everything else happening in their lives.

Ready to help are Joanna and her large team, who cover the BOP and Waikato regions. Her team members have collated a wealth of experience and knowledge with EVES over the years. They’re loyal to EVES (a company which has been in business for more than 50 years) – which offers great consistency for the landlords and for the tenants whom they work with.

The EVES Property Management team are totally up to speed regarding new compliance requirements, such as the new insurance and tenancy laws, healthy home requirements, and regulations and guidelines for landlords that came into effect earlier this year (some staff members are even landlords themselves). And that’s part of the beauty of using a rental property manager, Joanna says. Having a property manager on board helps landlords pass the sleep test.

“Essentially, we remove any possible stress. We provide peace of mind and help navigate the rental journey,” she says.

All this is of key importance as investing in the rental market remains a preferred investment opportunity for many Kiwis. With a property manager on board, landlords can relax knowing they’ve committed to a solid, well-managed investment that need cause them little, or no, concern.

Owning a quality rental property, like this one from Barrett Homes, can be a secure financial investment.

The positives of investing in the rental market

Owning a rental property continues to be a financially secure investment, Joanna says, with property owners enjoying a good return on their money in terms of rent and capital gains at present (certainly more than they would achieve if their money were in the bank).

Rental property owners enjoy the opportunity this form of investment offers in terms of providing a passive income, and there’s flexibility around choosing the right time to sell.

“Having a rental also provides the option of having a property to move into, if required. It could be that the property is bought as a rental, but the owners later opt to make it home. If owners transfer away for work reasons it can be a good idea to rent their property out, achieve capital gain, and have a home to come back to if that’s how things unfold,” Joanna says.

Hiring a management team for your rental means you don’t have to do the dirty work.

What does a property management team do?

So many things!

“To start with we secure tenants. To do that, we market the property, conduct the viewings and vetting, deal with contracts, initial inspections and hand-overs and liaise with applicants. We make sure the property is presented in the best way and strive to find the best tenant for the property.”

It doesn’t stop there, Joanna adds. There is much to do throughout the tenancy, such as maintenance checks, regular inspections, monitoring of rental payments and liaison with the owners. If there are any payment issues then these too are dealt with by the property management team.

The team also deals with clients giving notice and then the cycle begins again.

On a more advisory level, a property manager can also advise where market rents are at. Keeping up with current market rents (and with maintenance) helps property owners maximise the return on their investment.

Landlords also need not fear they’ve failed to tick all the latest boxes regarding legal requirements

– a property manager will ensure they’re up to speed and there’s nothing to be concerned about.

While it’s not common, things can get complicated and go wrong on the tenancy front. If there’s a need to involve the Tenancy Tribunal this too is an area the EVES Property Management team has experience in. They can remove the “daunting” from the equation.

“Once people use our services, they generally come back to us. They see employing an EVES rental property manager as a good investment. There are no hidden costs, and they can claim tax on our fees,” Joanna shares.

Why now is a good time to employ a property manager Tenancy laws are complex and have undergone change in recent times.

An example is the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act, that largely came into effect in February. Joanna and her team help navigate this. Amendments to the act should not have a negative impact on landlords as long as excellent tenant vetting has been carried out throughout the application process, Joanna assures.

Many layers of compliance have recently been introduced to ensure tenants live in healthy homes.

This shouldn’t put people off being landlords as essentially it is about being prepared to be a good citizen providing warm, dry and safe living conditions, Joanna believes. Landlords can leave this concern to her team as they employ experts to access whether rented properties adhere to the healthy homes legislation. This is a law and a non-negotiable and Joanna and team won’t work with landlords who are not prepared to comply. Most properties do comply with some of the stipulated five standards, she says, and it’s just a matter of working with the property managers to get the property fully compliant.

Managing compliance in general is something landlords can leave to a property manager. The EVES team includes compliance specialists and has access to professional tenancy consultants to ensure landlords are compliant.

Resources, tools, and robust systems required to find good tenants are all part of the EVES team’s arsenal. Tenant selection has become increasingly time consuming because of incredibly high demand. The EVES team deals with the numerous applicants – outsourcing background checks in the process. For a standard three-bedroom home, it’s not unusual to get at least 50 applicants per property these days.

Amendments to The Privacy Act 2020 are coming into effect. This act governs how agencies collect, store, use, disclose, and give access to personal information. The Privacy Office has launched a new compliance monitoring programme to ensure all landlords, managers and property managers comply, which is something a self-managing landlord may not be aware of. A property manager will ensure landlords are not leaving themselves at risk.

And then there is Covid. Throughout the Covid lockdowns, the EVES property management team worked very closely with tenants and landlords to assist tenants in the difficult times and to mitigate loss for the landlords.

Joanna’s FAQ

What happens if a tenancy turns bad? Good tenant selection at the outset is imperative. Ninety percent of landlords and tenants are great. However, when things do go wrong, there are processes to follow in the Tenancy Act, which can be daunting to a landlord, but EVES has the resources to manage this.

As a side note: there is a perception that the law is more in favour of the tenant, but the reality is, the law is there to protect tenants from unfair and unreasonable landlords.

What happens if the tenant doesn’t pay rent? We have good systems and processes in place to mitigate rent arrears. Our property managers are very experienced in dealing with this if need be.

How long will it take to rent the property? There’s nothing to be concerned about on this front as demand is high in this current rental market and Bay of Plenty is a desirable place to live.

What about methamphetamine use and contamination? We tell all owners they should ensure they have comprehensive insurance cover for all aspects of owning a rental – and should take special note of the meth component of their insurance policy. We talk them through the insurance needs.

Should we be concerned about compliance costs and costs in general? Most of the cost is one-off to make rentals healthy home compliant, and then there’s ongoing maintenance. Owners who keep up with maintenance get a better return, so it’s important to expect to spend some money on the upkeep of the property.

Are new regulations putting people off buying rentals? No. Most new landlords coming to the rental market know of, and expect to meet, the current regulations.

Where does the return on investment (ROI) on a rental property sit in the Bay of Plenty? Indicative rental yields for a three-bedroom house (as of June this year) in selected areas with high rental activity are for example: Greerton 4.1 percent; Bethlehem 3.7; Mt Maunganui 3.6; Pyes Pa 4.2; and TePuke 4.3.

NB: A rental yield is determined by the annual rental income divided by the property price.

How can I allay any fears around renting out a property? Give me a call and let our EVES Property Management team assist, so you can sit back and reap the rewards of a sound investment minus any major concerns.

evesrentals.co.nz

Laying down roots

Big on recognising talent, KPMG’s Tauranga office shows off its dynamic team,
working culture and new services.

words Monique Balvert-O’Connor / photos Erin Cave

KPMG Tauranga is building on its already impressive reputation and skills base.

The firm, which is focused on fueling prosperity for its clients and communities, has expanded its Tauranga offering. Services that used to be the realm of large businesses and big cities have arrived here and Tauranga (and Waikato) businesses and organisations are benefitting, thanks to a progressive outlook and a powerhouse of KPMG people.

Services around strategic advisory, deal advisory and taxation have been expanded/enriched in Tauranga. KPMG realised it was time to “put its boots on the ground in Tauranga” and make these services more accessible to Bay of Plenty and Waikato clientele. They have the perfect people on board to do just that.

UNO spoke to KPMG Tauranga partner Tracy Preston-Lett and directors Cushla Parish and Natalie Berkett, associate-director Charmian Mead, and senior manager Michelle Sinclair about the new services they (and their teams) offer, the energy and smarts they bring, and about the many reasons they applaud the KPMG working culture.

Tracy Preston-Lett feels “incredibly lucky” to be trusted with clients’ dreams.

Tracy Preston-Lett feels “incredibly lucky” to be trusted with clients’ dreams, and relishes having a shared-responsibility to help her colleagues be their absolute best.

“I believe in our people and our clients and if there’s any small thing I can do that energises them – be that sharing some words of wisdom, some connection or technical or practical insight, or just being someone to brainstorm with – then I’m up for it.”

As a partner of this Big 4 global accounting firm, Tracy’s come a long way since those leaving-school days when she lacked any real career drive. KPMG creates the same opportunity Tracy embarked on, thanks to its policy of recruiting school leavers – enabling them to learn and earn without necessarily having to leave home.

Tracy worked and studied and earned her degree and promotions while getting valuable experience from a young age.

She’s proud of what she’s achieved within this firm that collaborates nationally, and connects internationally, for the benefit of its clients and advancement of its people. There’s a great diversity of skills and backgrounds to tap into.

She doesn’t have to look far to encounter an impressive skills base – within her office are staff who thrive on using their specialist skills to help businesses find their feet and create long term success. It’s thanks to some of these superstars that the KPMG Tauranga team has been able to up its offerings of late.

Cushla Parish joined KPMG in the consulting division, but 12 months ago, a strategic move was made to create a dedicated audit technology risk team, which she now heads. It’s a national specialist team which Cushla runs from Tauranga.

KPMG Audit Technology Risk director Cushla Parish is one of those who is driving impressive change and is a role model for KPMG’s support for remote working. She joined KPMG in the consulting division, but 12 months ago, a strategic move was made to create a dedicated audit technology risk team, which she now heads. It’s a national specialist team which Cushla runs from Tauranga.

Essentially her team assesses clients’ IT-related controls predominantly focused on access, change management, programme development, automated business process controls and operational controls… all to ensure appropriate measures are in place to mitigate risk.

“The work we do is predominantly to support the audit division across lots of industries. We go into companies, big and small, and look at their internal controls to mitigate any risk around their IT systems and to ensure the integrity and reliability of their systems,” Cushla says.

Another focus area is the provision of governance risk and compliance services, which Cushla delivers through her involvement with the national internal audit consulting team.

Cushla brings to KPMG experience in predominantly the agriculture, manufacturing and local government environments. She has worked in the United Kingdom, Europe and Australia within various industries’ audit teams. Her first job was with another Big 4 firm also within the audit arena and she came to KPMG with previous director experience.

She is a Certified Information Systems Auditor (a globally recognised qualification) and a SAP expert – a highly ranked financial application favoured by big businesses with complex concerns. She left university armed with a Bachelor of Management Studies (honours) degree majoring in information systems and marketing.

KPMG is big on recognising talent and offering leadership opportunities. Cushla is a participant on KPMG’s Leading the Firm programme, that provides additional coaching and opportunities to excel for those identified as having leadership potential.

Natalie Berkett speaks of the growth she’s seen in the KPMG Tauranga tax team numbers over recent years, and an “exciting” focus on building up a Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) tax specialty.

KPMG Tax Division director Natalie Berkett, meanwhile, was nominated by KPMG to attend a full-year New Zealand Leadership course involving self-discovery as well as analysis of issues of national and international significance.

This director thrives on learning opportunities – she has both a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Commerce. She accepted a graduate position with KPMG back in 2006 and has never moved elsewhere! In those early days she enjoyed a three-month secondment to KPMG’s Beijing department and four months off to travel (her job was held).

Natalie speaks of the growth she’s seen in the KPMG Tauranga tax team numbers over recent years, and an “exciting” focus on building up a Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) tax specialty.

“There are a lot of privately-owned businesses in the Bay of Plenty and a lot of the work our team does is focused on issues quite specific to SMEs like land transactions or expanding offshore.

“What I am leading nationally, is a focus on growing and fostering our SME clients faced with complex tax issues. This involves identifying opportunities where we can assist from a tax perspective and providing a team of tax specialists that understand SME issues.”

It’s exciting, she says, that KPMG is consolidating the expertise that we already have into a more coordinated and focused service offering.

Natalie, who has an interest in the export sector in particular, sits on the Export New Zealand BOP executive committee (she’s just stepped down as Chair). She offers her expertise to this group of exporters and service providers who meet to discuss issues facing their sector and the BOP specifically.

“I enjoy this as I get to hear first-hand the issues businesses are facing and it builds up my commercial understanding, which, of course, benefits clients,” she says.

Charmian Mead’s switch from the Wellington to Tauranga office in July this year meant strategic advisory became more available to businesses and organisations.

Charmian Mead also boasts impressive qualifications, with a Bachelor of Science degree, a Bachelor of Laws, and a Master of Bioethics and Health Law.

Her switch from the Wellington to Tauranga office in July this year meant strategic advisory became more available to businesses and organisations using KPMG services.

Charmian joined the KPMG Tauranga team as Private Enterprise Advisory Team associate director. She not only heads the firm’s strategy advisory services in Tauranga, she is part of a national private enterprise advisory team. Her working day involves helping create or design strategies aimed at enabling businesses and organisations to achieve success, whether that be domestically or on the global stage.

“Our team works with a wide range of clients who, fundamentally, we help grow. We help them achieve high performance and growth through a range of advisory services, such as strategy development and implementation, business and operating model design, market insights and validation, and export planning and activation, to name a few.”

Charmian, who initially worked as an intellectual property lawyer, was keen to get involved in broader aspects of business. She recognised that working for a Big 4 would offer the platform and portfolio from which to reach into organisations she wished to work with and this led her to KPMG – initially in Wellington.

“I like to work with ambitious community and organisational leaders, entrepreneurs, innovators and visionaries. These are the people I think are out there who drive meaningful impact for communities and the New Zealand economy,” says this woman who is big on social justice.

“I know it sounds cheesy, but I just like helping people and love seeing them create impact. I see my job as

the opportunity to really amplify that impact through working with others. On my own, I can come up with ideas, but if I work with 10 peoples’ ideas that’s much more exciting!”

Charmian’s arrival in Tauranga also heralded the launch of the KPMG Business School in the region. She is a key member of a team that delivered this initiative in Wellington, and is now making the opportunity available to BOP and Waikato business and community leaders.

“This school was created because we saw there were a lot of business and organisation leaders who lacked strategic capability. We designed a workshop to help with this and give them tools and a framework to take back to their workplace. Business and organisational leaders, who have been identified as having potential, are invited to attend these interactive learning workshops to understand how they can strategically achieve their ambitions.”

Charmian put her hand up to come to Tauranga as she could identify “huge potential” within the region. She sees how business “complexities and challenges” faced by business owners have grown as the city has grown and applauds KPMG for being in step with that.

She’s enjoying becoming part of the community and the region’s business ecosystem. “It is also exciting to be part of an organisation where everyone is super smart. Anytime a client needs help with something, I know I can find someone within KPMG who can assist.”

Nationally, KPMG has about 1,300 staff, including about 90 partners. And then there are the international offices. Charmian believes KPMG’s international status carries great benefit to clients.

“A big thing that attracts clients – from start ups to big global brands, is we can partner with them throughout their entire business journey as we have depth of expertise, scale and a global footprint.”

Michelle Sinclair brings with her, experience as a business owner in the start up and growth phase.

Also relatively new to KPMG is Michelle Sinclair, a Private Enterprise Team senior manager. Before this she worked elsewhere as a senior tax manager, and before that she and her husband spent 18 years working on their own IT-focused business start-ups – she using her strong accounting background. Through that business experience she identified an interest in tax law. Michelle has also been a lecturer at a tertiary level.

When KPMG Tauranga made the decision to build up its business advisory team, Michelle came on board. “I love tax law and love supporting SMEs. I draw on my own valuable experience as a business owner to work alongside other entrepreneurs navigating the business lifecycle, from start up to exit.”

She’s also particularly passionate about women in business.

“I was the Chief Financial Officer of emerging businesses experiencing rapid growth in a fast-moving industry, a wife, I had children and miscarriages, I moved countries without a support network… Women in business have numerous demands on their time and have to juggle a multitude of things, all while driving business performance.”

Michelle appreciates how KPMG acknowledges she is an avid learner and hence she has Friday’s off for study.

Her initial tertiary qualification was a Bachelor of Management Studies majoring in accounting and finance. Years later she tackled a Master of Taxation Studies, passing with first class honours. She is currently pursuing a law degree – learning about general law provides an underlying layer of knowledge that she can apply to her tax law specialty, all to the benefit of her KPMG clients.

Beyond that? “A PhD in tax law could be a big, hairy audacious goal,” she laughs.

Some more of the good

Work flexibility

KPMG is big on enabling staff to work in a way that suits their circumstances. Staff work from home, can work with ease remotely across the country or any office or location, and can take career breaks to chase sporting or travel dreams, knowing their jobs are being held open for them. They can also work part-time knowing this won’t jeopardise their career pathways.

“We have people come and work in our office from other locations, which supports our community and business ecosystem here in the Bay,” Tracy tells.

“We’ve had team members working remotely from Wanaka enjoying that lifestyle while simultaneously keeping their careers on track within the Big 4. We’ve had employees, employed by the Australian firm, working in Tauranga.”

Helping the younger generation

KPMG recruits five students from local schools in the Tauranga office every year. Summer internships and a graduate intake are also on offer.

Community Spirit

KPMG staff are involved in community projects such as buying Christmas presents for everyone at one of Tauranga’s low decile schools and have recently started a workplace giving programme with Acorn Foundation.

It’s but one of many great things fuelled from KPMG’s Tauranga impressive engine room.

home.kpmg/nz

Mount Dobson

Accommodation at Parkbrae Estate at Lake Tekapo, along with car hire, was easy to book through Booking.com.

Can you keep a secret? Luckily for you, neither can we.

words Jenny Rudd / photos Ben Hunter + supplied

Scything down the slope, plumes of glitter spraying behind him, my husband Mat whoops with joy after yet another run down the sundrenched slopes at Mt Dobson. Even though it's the winter school holidays and the snow and sun are plentiful, there are just a handful of people up here. Apparently the first rule of Dobbo is no one talks about Dobbo. That's what we were told by a Mackenzie Country local who has been skiing here for 35 years. And it explains why barely anyone's heard of the best-kept snowy secret in Aotearoa. This ski field has some of the country's best snow, every year, the best weather, the friendliest atmosphere and the least people. Allow us to lift the lid.

Skiing terrain

This is family skiing at its best. There are four lifts; one chair, one pommel, one T-bar and a beginners' rope tow. The basin is wide and open, and the runs are never crowded. We didn't queue for lifts, and we always found new places to explore over the week. The kids found some cool jumps and you could see right across the slopes to your little ones on one of the best learner slopes in the country. We skied every one of the seven days we were there. The sun shone, the powder fluffed around, and we wanted to stay another week because another dump was expected.

Ski school

Our four children had a two hour snowboarding lesson every morning with Archie, whose patience must not go unmentioned. All four went from absolute beginners to bombing down all the slopes by the end of the week. The lifties and instructors were all friendly and greeted everyone by name. You can book lessons before you arrive or on the day.

Writer Jenny and her brood of skiers and snowboarders about to hit the mountain for some serious shredding.

Eating on the mountain

Fairlie Bakehouse Pies. If you've had one before you'll be getting flashbacks around now. The pork belly and apple pie had a generous chip of crackling on top, and was an absolute winner. The café serves coffees, hot chocolates, pies and instant noodles. Sit round the heater in the cafe, or chuck a few folding chairs in the back of the car for a car park picnic. We took snacks up every day and left the car open so that we had a base to come back to.

Kit hire

You can hire all your kit from the well-stocked hut up on the mountain. We hired trousers, jackets, skis, boards, boots and helmets. Bring your own gloves, goggles, hats and gloves. Arrive early as it gets busy.

Peter Foote

In the seventies, Peter Foote climbed to the top with his cousin and thought 'This is it!' He spent seven years building a 17km road up to the ski field, and has been running Mt Dobson for the past forty years with members of his family. If you can get hold of a copy, read his book Against The Odds. I don't think there'll ever be another story like it. You'll see Peter whizzing around the slopes on various machines.

Stay in Lake Tekapo

We booked our accommodation on the booking.com app because of their flexible cancellation policy. There was no guarantee that snow (yes please!) or covid (no thanks!) would play ball. There are a huge range of options on the app to suit budgets and your group. We went for a house on the Parkbrae Estate, on the lake front by the Church of the Good Shepherd. The whole town is very well set up for visitors with a flash Foursquare, and great outdoors shops.

The stay at Parkbrae Estate, booked through Booking.com, was perfect for a family of six.

Do

Any non-skiing days are easily catered for in Lake Tekapo. Book into the Dark Sky Project for some stargazing, or soak in the hot springs overlooking the lake at Tekapo Springs.

Getting there

The booking.com app was a winner for car hire. We got a very roomy Audi Q7, which came with a roof box and snow chains. It was seamless, and as soon as we'd booked online, someone called to make sure we had everything we needed for our trip. The flight from Tauranga to Christchurch was direct, then the car was ready and waiting at the airport.

We were guests of Booking.com for accommodation and car hire, and Mt Dobson for lift passes and kit hire.

booking.com

Denise Arnold: Changemaker

In a world where so much is wrong, BOP legend Denise Arnold makes the right kind of difference – bringing purpose and hope to the abandoned generations of Cambodia.

words nicky adams / photos graeme murray + stacey simpkin

styling lisa shea / hair + makeup desiree osterman

It is relatively rare to meet someone who channels their energies into the greater good rather than individual gain. Even rarer when they seem oblivious to the fact that this trait is in part what makes them exceptional. Denise Arnold, although I’m confident she’ll absolutely hate it being said, is just such a person. In 2007, she founded the Tauranga-based Cambodia Charitable Trust, which, through developing quality education, provides free education to vulnerable Cambodian children (predominantly female). The aim is ultimately to give the children of Cambodia the tools to forge a future for themselves. A future which, otherwise, they would not have even the remotest chance of accessing.

A finalist for this year’s Women Of Influence award, Denise is calm and low key, and what strikes me most as she makes me a cup of tea and we chat about cats, children and COVID, is that while so much of her time must be channeled into the charity, there is a real sense of balance about her. She has a marvellous selection of teas in her tea drawer and has recently rehomed a cat from an aged client at her law firm. Straight away it’s clear she has impeccable taste (the love of tea gave that away) and the kindest of hearts.

A lawyer by profession, in 2006 Denise was busy with two teenage girls and her position as a partner at Tauranga law firm Lyon O’Neale Arnold, when she was galvanised into action by two consecutive events. Her elder daughter Emily had just returned from a school trip to Bangkok, a trip that had heightened every maternal sense of safety and ‘what if’. At the time, Denise was working as a volunteer for ECPAT – End Child Prostitution Pornography And Trafficking (now Child Alert). But with her own daughter away, Denise could not shake the knowledge circling in her head of the literally millions of women and girls who go missing. Around this time, she was triggered by another incident. “I read in the New Zealand Herald about children in Cambodia being rented out of a brothel on a weekly basis – that is no less horrific than on an hourly basis – but for some reason it just hit me to the core. When I read about this I thought emphatically no, no, no, that is not happening on my watch.”

She was told by a friend that a man called Steve Chitty (who became an initial trustee of CCT) was talking about taking businesspeople to Cambodia to introduce honest trade. Steve and Denise spent a year independently researching and learning, during which time Denise became more and more interested in the development aspect. At the end of 2007, the duo headed over to Cambodia. Steve focused on Phnom Penh, and Denise spent about three weeks travelling around rural areas. “That was my way of trying to find out how I was going to bring about long-term change. It’s easy to do good, but it’s harder to do no harm; that’s a really strong principle for me. While we can achieve a goal, we need to be cognitive in our path and the impact that might have.”

Returning from the trip Denise was clear that she wanted to implement change systematically. She identified education as the key, thus the manifesto was set for the establishment of the Cambodian Charitable Trust. The team is made up of key volunteers and educators, as well as Patron Theresa Gattung and Ambassadors Nadia Lim and (former New Zealand prime minister / UN Administrator) Helen Clark. Since 2008 the team in Cambodia has been led by “the truly wonderful, gifted, well respected” country manager Soeun Ouch. Over 14 operational years the organisation may have grown, but the guiding principles remain clear – every person is a volunteer, thus 100 percent of money raised goes exactly where it is intended. Surprisingly, this is actually quite unusual.

Today, the Trust supports 209 schools and tens of thousands of needy children.

Denise doesn’t blather on about how wonderful it feels to make a difference, or the warm fuzzies she gets from providing aid. She is at once compassionate and pragmatic as she talks about the gentle Cambodian culture, and how it is one that welcomes her input. “The people want you to know them – they don’t just want money; they want you to appreciate who they are and the challenges they face.” There was, she says, a learning curve she underwent getting to grips with operating within a totally different economic paradigm, for example quickly realising that instead of handing out pre-made school uniforms, by providing sewing machines and guidance a group of villagers could sew them themselves. The concept of providing the tools, rather than just a pre-packaged solution is an ethos she is passionate about.

When there are so many countries in need, why Cambodia? Simple, says Denise – “I really felt like I was in the right place.” It is perhaps too easy to forget that Cambodia is a country decimated by a brutal 30-year civil war that took place in very recent history. A war which, under the Khmer Rouge regime (1975-9) and Pol Pot, destroyed lives, culture, politicians, leaders, educators, mothers and fathers. An entire generation was wiped out, and another brought up in camps barely surviving starvation and physical abuse. This is a country that was expected to re-learn everything, but in the ultimate of cruel ironies, there was barely anyone left to teach. “The rich history has been dominated by recent history. We’re aware that through Pol Pot a whole generation was lost but also lost were the parenting skills – that will take another generation to correct. Today’s adults were abandoned. There’s a gap that will “take another generation to get right.”

I wonder if, as a conservative society, there is a reluctance to deal with a woman in a position of authority. “Not at all – as a Westerner people turn to you… and I feel we’re sending a strong message to women in Cambodia when our van pulls up and out pile a group of rather rumpled, tired women. They are watching this and thinking, ‘Here are unaccompanied decision makers.’” A turning point for Denise was “the realisation that we had the ability to influence schools far wider than you ever expected. If you retain an open approach to knowledge and expertise and resourcing, then you’re lily jumping. That drove us to think about working into clusters of schools to expand further.” Which all comes back to the concept of teaching someone to fish, rather than giving them a meal.

Still, it must be hard not to be overwhelmed. Denise agrees, but says she took heart when her mother-in-law quoted Eleanor Roosevelt to her: “’It’s better to light a candle than curse the darkness.’ I felt a huge sense of relief that I didn’t need to solve it all, I just needed to do something… My role is to keep my eye on the horizon and keep everyone moving forwards towards a better outcome.” Sometimes, though, such

focus is nigh on impossible. Denise recalls, “We had a baby starving and it really derailed me. I had to try and figure out how to save it. In the end the baby died. I wondered what I could have done differently. My husband said, ‘You’re helping thousands.’ And I said, there’s

no point helping thousands if you lose the value of one. I’ve really struggled with that.”

What drives her, I wonder. “Fundamentally every child deserves to have a childhood and go to school and play, and be happy. They also have a right to the opportunity for a decent life and a good future and education is the key to that I believe.”

The success of the Trust cannot be underestimated. She talks not just of the work of the team but also of the incredible educators – many Tauranga locals – who have generously lent their expertise. Nevertheless, for Denise the years have been filled with constant learning, striving to deliver her best.

As part of her journey, she completed a Masters, and contemplated a PHD.

The pressure must be immense, yet I don’t get the sense that Denise sees the difference between how most of us try to make a difference (I struggle to organise a cake bake) and the incredible work that she is doing. What really strikes me is how she seems to be hands-on in every aspect, from fundraising to liaising with ministries. Her bandwidth seems to be so wide I am frankly floored with admiration. To achieve all she does Denise says she breaks it down into sizeable chunks.

“I will never reach everywhere I want to reach. I’m a one-horse race. I need to focus on what I can do and not be overwhelmed by what I can’t achieve. I can’t afford the mission to drift and dilute us to the point we can’t survive.”

The mission, however, has inevitably been affected by COVID. “The issue last year for Cambodia with COVID wasn’t illness, it was the complete breakdown of the economic system. The families had no work, no income, no food. The contrast between them and us is always grounded in the degree of poverty – we have poverty in New Zealand, but this is poverty with no support network.” Just prior to COVID hitting, she explains that Helen Clark was due to spend four days with them in Cambodia. “I admire her vision and capacity for understanding development issues hugely. I really wanted her to give us an overarching strategic review about where we were going, how we were managing, what our focus could be. Because we do span right from the top, working with the Cambodian Ministry of Education, down to sponsorship and getting children to school – and pretty much everything inbetween. We support schools and teacher training colleges, and the sponsorship of individuals. I was really welcoming Helen’s overview.”

Unfortunately, that trip was cancelled, and instead Denise has found herself dealing with a very different landscape. “Last year it was about the economic impact and verging on starvation. This year the Cambodians have Delta Virus in communities so it’s about economic loss, also the management of the virus in a very poor country with an underprepared health system.” Denise explains how maintaining the educational program requires working with the Ministry to develop strategies for the basics of distance learning, both for the students and the teachers who are training. However, “At the other extreme we

have a humanitarian crisis – no rice, no ability to have medical care… but we can’t let go of the systemic development of education in Cambodia. You also need to make sure the people survive.” So, whereas usually the Trust supports 23 schools and 10,500 children, this has increased to include an additional

186 schools. They have also handed out 1,806 50kg bags of rice.

Denise sees education as key to effecting meaningful change in Cambodia, and Ambassador Nadia Lim is also onboard for the cause.

Peppered through our conversation are loving references to Denise’s husband Doug, their children, grandchildren, her sisters, and nephews. It’s no surprise to find that Denise hasn’t fallen far from her genetic tree – her dad, Brian, is a retired teacher and mum, Fiona, a retired nurse. Both are involved in CCT, combining their skills to set up a system for health screening and training Cambodian nurses to conduct eye tests. Don’t ask me how she keeps all her balls in the air, but it’s apparent her close family help with the juggle. She muses that she sometimes wonders if her daughters Emily and Tegan have missed out in any way by the time she has spent focusing on the Trust – but then she laughs as she points out that as teenagers, they were probably just hugely relieved she had a focus that kept her off their backs.

Clearly her family are immensely proud of her, and they share her philanthropic spirit. Daughter Emily is currently setting up an online business, the Giftery, five percent of the profits from which will go towards the concept of building residential facilities on the school grounds – a vital move to protect the most vulnerable. In this family of overachievers, Denise’s sister Janine is the founder of Bestow Beauty, well-known in New Zealand for its holistic products which promote beauty from within (although its collagen powder also helps with those pesky wrinkles on the outside). Janine and Denise’s other sister Robyn are firm supporters of the Trust, both sponsoring children and through the Bestow Sisterhood program. The Bestow Generositea are beautiful teas, the profits from which are donated to the Trust. This tea and Nadia Lim’s cookbooks will be just some of the products available from the Giftery – raising the funds is, after all, the vital foundation on which the charity is built.

It’s exciting to find out not just how Denise has grown, developed, but how she has rolled with the punches and adapted the Charity to unexpected challenges. Denise is very appreciative of the amazing team – Theresa Gattung, ‘a dear friend and stalwart’, and Nadia Lim, who has been unreserved in her support. It’s little surprise that Denise is a finalist for this year’s Women Of Influence awards. It is an honour for which she is obviously very grateful, but in typical fashion sees it as a reflection of the incredible broader team in both New Zealand and Cambodia. Nevertheless, credit where it is due, Denise is more than just the glue holding all these fantastic people together, she is the tireless champion of the cause: the instigator, the cheerleader, and most importantly the voice that sets the tone, both internally and externally. She has

a very human approach to such a multifaceted task.

If she feels daunted by the fact that this is not a position she can just walk away from, she doesn’t show it. Denise doesn’t miss a beat when she tells me, “I see this as my life’s work and feel really lucky that I have found my calling. Other people spend a lifetime trying to figure out what theirs is.” And this is just one

of many, many reasons that whether she walks away with a trophy or not, she is absolutely a woman of honour.

cctnz.org.nz

Finding freedom

Having spent five years locked in a basement as a teen, Dr Angela Loucks Alexander now uses her experience to break others free from the metaphorical prisons of their mind.

WORDS Dr Angela Loucks Alexander
PHOTOS Karlie Morrow

Thirteen steps and a click. These were the sounds I listened for because it meant my dad was coming down the stairs and unlocking the basement door with my next meal. Always the same. Two peanut butter sandwiches for lunch. Two American processed cheese sandwiches for dinner, always left wordlessly on the chair outside my room. I wasn’t talked to or touched or told I was loved from the ages of 13 to 17. This was the number of years I was locked in that basement.

There was no running water downstairs, so buckets were my bath and my toilet. I went to school to keep up appearances, to show that things were fine, because my dad and stepmother were primary school teachers. I was too frightened and humiliated to tell anyone how I lived and I thought it was reasonable because I believed them when they told me they were doing it for my own good – to help me focus. 

They had pressured me to tell my mother that I wanted nothing to do with her. She thought I was living a life of privilege. She wrote me letters that I never saw. My dad and stepmother didn't want me, but they didn't want my mother to have me either.    

During long periods in the basement, like the three months of summer or Christmas break, it was so lonely. I used to stare at the ceiling, picking out images from the wood in the beams overhead. There was no sound, no sunshine, only nothing. 

My stepmother believed children like me should be seen and not heard. They said I wasn't intelligent enough to go to university. 

Luckily for me, a group of brave girls and strong women in my high school realised something wasn't quite right, and they found a way of reaching down and pulling me up out of my basement prison. 

My life transitioned from darkness to sunshine in the blink of an eye.

My foster mum restored the faith I had lost in myself by saying, “You are so good!” hundreds of times per day. I'd do the smallest thing, such as closing the door softly, and she would notice it. “Look at what you just did,” she’d say. “You just closed that so nicely. You are
so good. How lucky am I to have you?”
In the six months I lived with her, she reconnected me with my mum, who showered me with all the love she had held in, through all those years without me.

Today, I’m a doctor of audiology and I’m telling this story because I know what it's like to be set aside. To be dismissed. To be imprisoned. But I also know how it feels to be set free.

School wasn't easy for me, but learning brought me joy. When I was in graduate school, I needed to record lectures and re-listen to them about three times to understand and remember what I learned.

And then, one day in April 2004, my life snapped into focus when Jack Katz, PhD, gave a lecture at the University of Kansas on Auditory Processing Disorder (APD). There was this unmistakable feeling that I was learning about something I had always known. It felt like I was falling in love. I knew, on that day, that this was the work I would do for the rest of my life and the wonderful Dr Katz became my mentor.

What is APD?

Auditory processing is how the brain translates what the ears hear. When there is an error in this process it is called an Auditory Processing Disorder. So, APD is a hearing disorder with less to do with the ears and more to do with the brain. 

Six in 100 people likely live with the disorder, but the rates are even higher
in the most marginalised and vulnerable people. For example, research from the University of Auckland suggests that 35 percent of Pacific Island children may have this disorder partially due to the high prevalence of middle ear problems in early childhood. If a child learns language through fluid in the ears, the brain gets a distorted version of speech sounds.

APD often occurs alongside dyslexia, autism, AD/HD, brain injury, and emerging research suggests high rates in the prison population.  

If you have travelled to another country where people speak a different language, you know how this feels. You’re aware they are speaking, but you can’t process what they are saying. It's exhausting, frustrating and isolating. Now, imagine feeling like that in your own language. 

When you struggle to hear and understand, you struggle to feel heard and understood.

1. Awareness

   The first step is awareness. Ask someone to say these two sounds – ‘b-eh’ and ‘d-eh’ – out loud. Are you aware that they just said something? If you aren't, you might have hearing loss. We overcome issues of awareness with devices like hearing aids or cochlear implants.

2. Discrimination

   The next step is called “discrimination”. You might be aware that they said something, but can you tell that b-eh and d-eh are different sounds. They are similar, but they are not the same.  

3. Identification

   After that is “identification”. Let’s say you can hear the difference between two sounds, but can you identify that b-eh is B and d-eh is D.  

4. Comprehension

   We need all these steps to get to the final level, our goal, which is called “comprehension” or understanding what someone has said. 

   While each person with APD may struggle with a different auditory skill along this continuum, some struggle even at the discrimination level – hearing the difference between sounds.  

   Because discrimination is such a low-level skill, it can look like an issue of awareness and many people get diagnosed with hearing loss. As a result, adults with APD will often think they need hearing aids and go to an audiologist for a hearing test. 

   A standard hearing test where you hear a beep and you push a button, or you raise
   your hand, is a test of awareness. This tells us nothing about auditory processing, which is far more complex.

Jackie’s test results before doing the 12-week course delivered by Dr Alexander, designed to help people with APD. 

Jackie’s story

My client, Jackie, thought she had hearing loss, but her hearing tests were normal. Audiologists said that she was fine, but this didn't match her experience. During my career, I’ve learned to make the conscious decision to believe every client who tells me they're struggling.  

Jackie had complaints that were consistent with APD. She constantly asked people to repeat themselves. She would struggle to hear in background noise and she'd always mishear lyrics. And she had to use subtitles in order to understand the plot in movies.

She said her ears didn't work right even as a child, but her parents said she needed to pay more attention. When she got things wrong, her family called her dumb, and then, in school, she struggled to learn to read and spell. 

We assessed Jackie’s auditory processing abilities by using a battery of tests that measure different auditory skills. Here were Jackie's intial and retest APD test results:

Green is good. Red means a score worse than 99.9% of the population her age.

Jackie has a lot of red. She has an auditory processing disorder, but it's a hopeful diagnosis because we can do something about it. We can introduce auditory training. 

It's like circuit training for the ears. We increase whatever auditory skills are lacking to see improvement in potential and wellbeing.  

One of the exercises is called Words in Noise Training. When you hear a word, you repeat it back immediately. As the exercise progresses, so does the level of background noise.

Jackie had auditory training sessions once a week for 12 weeks and then we retested her. I couldn't believe the transformed woman in front of me. She was comfortable and confident. She told me this work had changed her relationship with her dad. He said he'd been hard on her because people had been hard on him. 

It’s difficult to be a parent or a teacher of a child with APD because “not listening” is such a trigger for most adults. How often have you heard someone complain that a child is a “selective listener”? Or a husband who has “domestic deafness?” All dad jokes aside, what if that person has this neurological condition and needs treatment?

Looking back

Remember how I said I had to record all my lectures? After a year of sitting next to Dr Katz as he provided auditory training, I arrived at a lecture without my recording device. I panicked and thought the next three hours would be a waste of time. But, at the end of the class, I realised my notes were coherent and I had remembered what the professor had said. And for the first time, I didn't feel tired from listening. 

I had not realised how much my own life had been affected by APD until it was resolved. And I'm not alone. A majority of the people most affected by APD don't even know it exists. And most professionals who know it exists don't realise it can be treated beyond devices. But I'm working to change that. I'm teaching courses with the Auditory Processing Institute to train and empower audiologists and speech-language pathologists to identify and treat this difficulty. 

Early intervention  

We have test materials that can assess auditory skills from three and a half years of age. 

Right now, there is a new protocol called the Frequency Following Response that tests processing using brain waves in response to sound. It has the potential to identify children at risk of language and reading problems at birth. 

Early intervention is crucial in child development. The first three months are the most important and the first three years are the next most important. As I’m a mother now, I want my kid to have the best life as soon as possible. 

People with hearing loss can also have auditory processing difficulties. They can fix their awareness issue with great hearing aids, but that doesn't automatically get them to comprehension. They can also benefit from auditory training.

We must understand that the ear is the hardware and the brain is the software. We need both to work well to have a great user experience. 

There are lots of treatment types available: in-person, online, even apps.  What works for some, doesn’t necessarily work for others.  And, unfortunately, some approaches aren’t backed by good science.  

When we went to print, Angela’s TEDxTauranga talk had over 107k views on Youtube, just days after being posted. To enjoy the powerful talk and read the incredibly emotional comments search ‘Escaping the Hidden Prison of Auditory Processing Disorder’ on YouTube and TEDxTauranga.com. 

Dreams for the future

Remember Jackie? Her treatment matched the problems she had which is why her results were so life changing.

In the future, I have a dream that we could do this for more people by using machine learning to plan treatment.

My hope is that people will notice the impact auditory processing has on their lives and be empowered to seek help to improve it. 

While it may take a bit of courage and persistence, I'll tell you right now, to come out of this metaphorical basement, to end the solitary confinement, it's well worth it for a life in the sun.

And you should do it because you are SO good.

apdsupport.com
auditoryprocessinginstitute.com

7 predictions for Kiwi travel in 2022

After more than 18 months of travel restrictions for New Zealanders, there’s no denying the excitement of our eventual return to travel in 2022 – and after months of lockdown for Aucklanders in particular, it can’t come sooner. 

In recent travel predictions, Booking.com reveals a renewed sense of optimism among Kiwi travellers keen to embrace the new normal and return to exploring the world in the year ahead. Read on for a sample of the trends:

1. Vitamin Vacay - More so than daily exercise or mindful meditation, getting away on holiday will become THE form of self-care in 2022, with over three-quarters of people (79%) affirming that travel helps their mental and emotional wellbeing more than other forms of rest and relaxation. The majority of Kiwi travellers (82%) say that having a holiday planned has a positive impact on their emotional wellbeing.

2.  Resetting the Out Of (Home) Office - When the pandemic hit, homes across the globe became our offices too, and the novelty of working remotely was realised. However, in 2022 we’ll see a significant rise in people wanting to take back control in a bid to firmly re-establish a healthy work-life balance as travel time itself will be strictly work-free for two thirds of Kiwi travellers (67%) in 2022.

3. All the First-Time Feels - Remember what it was like to board a plane for the very first time? Or even just to check into a hotel? After feeling ‘stuck’ for so long, rather than rushing through the journey, travellers will be relishing every moment, with a quarter (23%) most looking forward to the pure excitement and anticipation as the journey begins. 

Other trends include a renewed focus on community on our travels, from connecting authentically with the local community to ensure our impact on the places we visit and the people who live there is positive. Kiwi travellers are also keen on meeting new people, in particular a potential romantic interest, with four in ten (39%) hoping for love to strike on their next trip.