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Business

Bernard Hickey and Andrew Patterson announce the launch of Interest.co.nz's new Business section with the support of Kiwibank and Deloitte

31st May 12, 6:17pm by Bernard Hickey

By Bernard Hickey

Interest.co.nz is proud to announce and launch a new section for growing businesses with the support of gold sponsor Kiwibank and silver sponsor Deloitte.

In the coming days and weeks we'll be publishing success stories, company profiles, how-to guides, news, analysis, videos, opinion pieces and much more to help New Zealand's small to medium businesses do their business, and more importantly, grow their businesses.

Andrew Patterson is on board as our Growing Business Correspondent to find and tell the stories of New Zealand's most innovative and interesting companies and business people. Andrew is the Business Editor for Radio Live and we've worked together for years on Andrew's Sunday Business show. He has a wealth of experience covering business for Radio Live and ABC in Australia, along with helping to grow and run businesses himself. We enjoy being enthusiasts for growing businesses, including our own!

We're unashamedly looking to find and tell the many good news stories around business in New Zealand.

We see so many success stories that are both instructional and inspirational for all of New Zealand. Often, however, they are stories that are not being told. New Zealanders tend not to blow their trumpets and there are many smaller firms that are doing spectacular things below the surface.

They are opening up new markets, inventing new technologies and employing our brightest talents. We want to bring them to light and celebrate their achievements.

We hope that by telling these stories we can help other small to medium businesses growth their businesses, and ultimately grow New Zealand. We'll try to understand and explain what makes these businesses a success. We aim to uncover some role models that can inspire the rest of us.

We'll also cover those vital day-to-day issues that affect growing businesses. There are many challenges for small to medium businesses, including access to capital, taxation, finding the right skills and finding new markets.

We want to find useful stories and information to help growing businesses meet those challenges. We also want this section to be a place for business owners, entrepreneurs and everyone else with aspiration to debate these issues and share their stories.

If you've got a great story to tell or an issue that needs addressing, just email me @ bernard.hickey@interest.co.nz

We'd also like to note the support of our gold sponsor Kiwibank and our silver sponsor Deloitte, without which we would not have been able to launch this new section. We'll be highlighting useful information they have to help businesses grow too.

So let's get on it. It's business time for Interest.co.nz.

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16 Comments

by powerdownkiwi | 5th Jun 12, 5:12pm 1338873140

We sure as heck need to be proactive.

And innovative.

But any initiative made towards anything but a sustainable society, is a waste of time.

The yardstick should be: physically sustainable, or not?

Growth is impossible long-term within any finite sphere, as has been explained here for a long time. Growth hitting the limits, is what we are seeing globally.

Wrong goal.

by steven | 5th Jun 12, 10:43pm 1338893033

As they said on the Titanic, the first class hit the bottom just as fast as steerage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYWcSfWxaf8&feature=related

regards

by David B | 5th Jun 12, 5:29pm 1338874147

How sad, but typical that the first response to this excellent and positive addition to interest.co.nz, is a Malthusian nutter spewing his usual rot.

You need to do something about this guy, Hickey, if you really want to this section to fly. Apart from that I’m very much looking forward to reading the contributions over the coming weeks. It’s good to see something positive and inspirational for a change.

by Kunst | 5th Jun 12, 5:59pm 1338875977

David B says: You need to do something about this guy, Hickey if you really want to this section to fly - well, well Hickey - delete the comment then - HA !

Here a great video about how we can succeed: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQqDS9wGsxQ

Should we not think and change our culture and talk about quality and sustainability in stead of economic growth ? (7 times the term grow in that article.)

by Gummy Bear Hero | 5th Jun 12, 6:27pm 1338877671

Sorry Walter , but I'm totally with DB on this one : I welcome Andrew Patterson to our team !

..... we're in desperate need of some uplifting business success stories from around the country ... there is alotta good stuff happening , much of which seldom sees media attention ....... good news doesn't sell !

Glad to have you on board , Andrew , as our " Growing Business " correspondent . Looking forward to the innovative stuff you un-earth & bring to light ...

by Kunst | 5th Jun 12, 7:01pm 1338879681

Gummy - you don't have to say sorry - I understand your position. As you know I’m in my business now for almost 40 years successfully – innovating and creative adopting to the markets. Of course I support the positive approach of Andrew Patterson, but only with all the elements in the video. (see above)

In today’s world - I ask myself if an entrepreneurial, innovative person running a business growth is important. I think many are too clever and wise enough and say no.

There is a big misconception among the public, especially among the older generation, that only growth means success. Success in a business has so many different meanings.

by Gummy Bear Hero | 5th Jun 12, 9:32pm 1338888724

Absolutely , Walter ...... well said ...

..... but as you notice from our recent technological advances ( Facebook didn't exist 11 years ago ! ) ..... " growth " will happen , regardless of our opinion of it's efficaciousness in advancing the soul of mankind .....

by Andrew R | 5th Jun 12, 9:31pm 1338888668

David B, I particularly appreciate the tolerance and respect you show to anyone who you don't agree with.

Pity you seem to be unaware that the earth is a finite (and small) planet, that geometric growth is unsustainable, that anthropic climate change is happening and will have big big impacts on the way we do things.

So I fully support the notion that the business success stories that get reported here need to be stories about environmental sustainability as much as innovation and financial success.

by Gummy Bear Hero | 5th Jun 12, 9:40pm 1338889215

I agree , DB is remarkably tolerant of the " watermelons " who blog here , and whitter on endlessly about " PEAK " and " ERROL " and " DENIERS " ....

..... he's a real cool dude .... glad you see that too , Andrew R

:-)

by moa man | 5th Jun 12, 5:48pm 1338875301

A section which is well overdue. Looking forward to a property free zone.

by Gummy Bear Hero | 5th Jun 12, 6:25pm 1338877514

... a " section " is a type of property , isn't it ? ....

:-)

by KH | 5th Jun 12, 8:26pm 1338884778

Yep. Great to be away from property for a while. it's important to me. But I need a break.

And very interested to hear about business, as versus finance.

It's business that brings us what we need as individuals, and as a nation.

Also I am less interested in being informed about innovators etc. I have spent some time around an 'incubator' which was full of people who were looking for the next big idea. They wanted to be facebook inventors. When ordinary business was passing them by. The guys who were doing the phones, renting them the building and bringing them food were doing it.

I want to hear about the people doing it.

by Your Landlord | 5th Jun 12, 9:56pm 1338890192

Laudable idea Bernard, but I fear your new site will be dragged down by the winge and wine brigade that follows you around.

And I predict you will get nowhere near the amount of comments for this site than you get for your property posts.

That's because most - not all - bloggers on this site are employee-type workers...they don't know anything about running a business.

A few more funnies from Gummy would be a good thing though...

by speckles | 5th Jun 12, 10:21pm 1338891660

Well said your landlord, I hardly see a comment here from people actually in business or comments that reflect people working in/on a business. It very well reading all the articles in the world on a subject.... however no real experience or real context leaves it all falling short.

In addition, there are two types of businesses, those with need/desire self promotion and other's who just do it.

Most of the start ups I work with and in particular the very good ones don't need and want the self promotion, they ride under the radar as much as possible..no good idea is unique so why make the comp. more alert/aware of what you doing.

by Bernard Hickey | 6th Jun 12, 5:09pm 1338959396

Speckles

Many thanks for your comments. We're trying to broaden our range of articles and audience.

I understand your point on self promotion.

But there comes a point in any businesses' evolution where it makes sense to tell your story. Some may be trying to raise capital or build their profiles to attract the best talent.

We all know now about Sam Morgan and Rod Drury and the like.

But at some stage they were unknowns. We aim to find the next Sam Morgan and Rod Drury and tell their story on this site.

That's our role: to find the stories and convince these business people to tell those stories.

cheers

Bernard

by iconoclast | 6th Jun 12, 5:43pm 1338961430

Bernard: Two things that YOU could do to help yourself and interest.co.nz

(a) In selling they teach you "never ask - can I help you" to which the response will always be "just looking thanks" .. if they are browsing through the underwear section you have to ask them "are you interested in the green ones or the pink ones" .. you have to engage people ..

(b) many of interest.co.nz articles are simply press releases (such as the Barfoot & Thompson reports) with no critical examination or investigation. I have posted already today the deficiencies in the data .. information that B&T has at their disposal but they choose not to divulge it .. however for the sake of asking and investigating and publishing you would get far more meaningful discussions and opinions proferred which in turn would encourage the type of specialists you are interested in to come forward.

(c) an earlier recommendation was to cut the top 10 down to "Todays Hit Parade" of 3, 4 or 5 items, and do them in a little more depth .. many of the topics in the Top 10 are repeats in the sense 3 or 4 will be on the same subject (different surface level opinions) of China or Europe or Greece but they only touch the surface without digging in to them.

(d) it is the surface treatment of topics without meaningful data that permits (provides scope for) neverending opinions to pour forth. And that's unhelpful in fulfilling your "mission statement" helping you to make financial decisions. See (a) above - you need to ask if you are interested in the green ones or the pink ones.