News of New Zealanders via Global Media

High Stakes

High Stakes

Christchurch Casinos Limited and international affiliate CryptoLogic have debuted Kiwi Casino on the net. Punters drop their dollars surrounded by “the exotic sub-tropical rainforests of New Zealand”.

V Good

V Good

New Zealand company Frucor, dominant in the NZ and Australian energy drinks market, feels V ready to compete with international behemoth Coca-Cola. “We believe we can grow the market fivefold in Australia,” says CEO Mark Cowsill.

Crushing Cushing

Crushing Cushing

Ansett International is looking to expand into Asian and European routes, challenging Australian giant Qantas. Asked how worried Qantas executives should be about the new competition, Air New Zealand executive chairman Selwyn Cushing advised them to “take…

Genie Rubs Up Well

Genie Rubs Up Well

Genie Systems’ OrderWare is now running in 10 US Babies ‘R’ Us stores, and is set to fully installed by next year. “Australasian software businesses have a unique style of software, and therefore I think there are many…

Banking on Success

Banking on Success

39 year-old Stuart Grimshaw used to put his body on the line for New Zealand, playing hockey at top international level. These days, as the new CEO of the Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks, his eyes are firmly…

Sir Ron Brierley: 61 Not Out

Sir Ron Brierley: 61 Not Out

Sir Ron described by the Financial Times as the “cricket mad corporate raider” and “one of the most controversial corporate figures of the past twenty years” knocked the London Stock Exchange for six when his Guiness Peat…

New Zealand Firm to Introduce CNG Equipment to Pakistan

New Zealand Firm to Introduce CNG Equipment to Pakistan

Prescon Technology Limited has been chosen to introduce quality Compressed Natural Gas equipment to Pakistan, as well as introducing new and cheap water filters for domestic and commercial treatment plants. The aim of the enterprise is to…

Kiwi Banker Helps Bosnia Rebuild

Kiwi Banker Helps Bosnia Rebuild

As the Bosnian economy struggles to recover from the ravages of war, its citizens are struggling to accept the recovering local currency. “The most telling detail on the new Bosnian currency is the signature on every…

Anti Spam Crusade

Anti Spam Crusade

A Palmerston North, New Zealand-based firm ORBS (Open Relay Behaviour-Modification Service) is joining the crusade to save the suffering masses from the indignity of spam. Identifying culpable open servers, ORBS then persuades their administrators to close…

Guinness Peat Told to Bugger off and Have a Beer

Guinness Peat Told to Bugger off and Have a Beer

New Zealand listed corporate raider Guinness Peat’s edge proved too sharp at Young & Co (Britain’s oldest brewery), after chairman John Young turned the screws on them using megaphone diplomacy. Despite having support from ‘A’ investors, private…

How to Command Attention, Change Minds, and Influence People

How to Command Attention, Change Minds, and Influence People

Yes! we can finally tell you how to be the better you: the Dallas Morning Herald business section offers their guide to summertime self-improvement, including this “top investment” from Harry Mills of Lower Hutt, Artful Persuasion: How…

New Zealand High School Dropout Blazes a Trail in Bit Valley

New Zealand High School Dropout Blazes a Trail in Bit Valley

Terrie Lloyd runs one of Bit Valley’s (Tokyo’s answer to Silicon) most successful start-up companies, Daijob.com, the largest on-line recruiting firm in Japan, as well as his English- language J@pan Inc magazine, which has virtually no competitors….

Large Natural Gas Field Discovered, NZ’s Second Largest

Large Natural Gas Field Discovered, NZ’s Second Largest

Newly discovered by Fletcher Challenge Energy, the gas field Pohokura may be New Zealand’s second largest and help underpin a sustainable gas supply for New Zealand’s future.

Kevin Roberts Punts Saatchi & Saatchi into the Premier League

Kevin Roberts Punts Saatchi & Saatchi into the Premier League

The ideas shop meets ‘La Difference’ when it was announced that Saatchis was to merge, for £1.24 billion, with French giant Publicis. Celebrating the merger, as well as scooping creative awards at Cannes and the company’s…

“Brain Drain Clouds NZ’s Future” – Refuse the Hype and Get to the Edge

“Brain Drain Clouds NZ’s Future” – Refuse the Hype and Get to the Edge

More centric thinking, this time from London’s Observer, “New Zealander’s are leaving their country in droves, placing a strain on the economy and painting a grim picture for the future.” Our opinion: New Zealand Edgers of the…

Kiwi’s Big Fightback in the War of Whiteware

Kiwi’s Big Fightback in the War of Whiteware

They might have won the eponymous netball cup, but at least someone’s beating the Aussies: Fisher & Paykel increased its Australian market share and boosted its annual profit above expectations to A$43 million, a 290% improvement…

Kiwi Chosen to Restore Sparkle to Britain’s Millennium Crown

Kiwi Chosen to Restore Sparkle to Britain’s Millennium Crown

Kiwi Former head of British pay-TV operator BSkyB, Sam Chisholm, has been appointed the new head of the much hyped, but troubled, Millennium Dome. Despite anger from Labour backbenchers at its public cost, Chisholm insists he will look to…

Moving Places: Peter Carr

Moving Places: Peter Carr

Peter Carr has been promoted to chief financial officer and chief actuary of Pearl Assurance, the life and pensions arm of AMP. Carr joined Pearl as chief actuary from AMP New Zealand.

Wall Street Gets Emotional Rescue from the Edge

Wall Street Gets Emotional Rescue from the Edge

Kevin Roberts says there is a challenge for the ‘anti-social medium’ of the web, traditional advertising and product design in general. That is, to get emotional and to create mystery and sensuality in order to re-connect…

A Funeral to Die For

A Funeral to Die For

Death is finding new life on the web:  a New Zealand-based Web site, www.funeralstodiefor.com, will plan a customer’s last rites down to the choice of music and type of flowers–and promises to help make the ceremony happen…

Buttery New Zealand invention Spreads the word

Buttery New Zealand invention Spreads the word

As British consumers have become more concerned about food safety, Anchor has taken advantage of New Zealand’s clean, green image to promote its spreadable butter – a product invented by the New Zealand Dairy Board.

“She is Right Mate” New Zealand Sheep and Cattle Reap Benefit of Revolution

“She is Right Mate” New Zealand Sheep and Cattle Reap Benefit of Revolution

Immense changes under way in NZ farming, ranging from challenges of e-commerce and overseas trade restraints, to the costly introduction of organic produce and changing market demands, mean that NZ farming is poised for one of its…

Management Executives on the Move

Management Executives on the Move

Tim Corcoran, who studied law at Canterbury University, New Zealand, is to become chief financial officer of Prolifix Ltd, a privately owned pharmaceutical company that is a leader in cell cycle research.

Hard Work Starts to Pay off for Kiwi Organic Pioneers

Hard Work Starts to Pay off for Kiwi Organic Pioneers

At first farmers were concerned labeling certain products ‘organic’ would tarnish others as inferior, but many are beginning to see that increasing demand from consumers, home and abroad cannot be ignored, as New Zealand pioneers like Angela Aitchison…

Kiwi Revolutionises Advertising Through Seamless Internet Surfing

Kiwi Revolutionises Advertising Through Seamless Internet Surfing

Financial Times special report “Japanese Internet Tsumani”, looks at how the internet is making reaching customers easy: “you can be sitting in the back of a taxi in a traffic jam checking your stocks, paying bills.  It…

Kiwifruit Big Brand Inspiration for Malaysian Fruits

Kiwifruit Big Brand Inspiration for Malaysian Fruits

Dr Aziz Abdul Rahman claims the answer to Malaysia’s fruit marketing woes: “There is a need to internationalise our products with a brand that will be associated with the country such as ‘Sunkist’ or ‘Kiwi fruit’…

Kiwi Ex-bellboy Now Japan Dotcom Millionaire

Kiwi Ex-bellboy Now Japan Dotcom Millionaire

Young entrepreneur Jonathan Hendricksen this week became the first foreigner to list a company on the Tokyo Stock Exchange – and overnight made himself a $150 million fortune.  The former hotel doorman has a 15% stake in…

New Zealand Gets a Tonic from Deer

New Zealand Gets a Tonic from Deer

The booming Korean economy not only means a boost for New Zealand tourism but also the deer industry as it has boosted the demand for deer velvet, the soft precursor to antler widely used in oriental medicine.

Our Trans-tasman Neighbours May Have More of the Amber Gold Flowing at After-match Celebrations Lately, but Guess Where the Money’s Going?

Our Trans-tasman Neighbours May Have More of the Amber Gold Flowing at After-match Celebrations Lately, but Guess Where the Money’s Going?

Toheeys and Hahn is going to be the new tap-beer in over 300 Victorian pubs as New Zealand’s Lion Nathan announces an aggressive A$100million pub buy-out in an effort to gain leverage in the Melbourne beer…

NZ Company to Introduce CNG to Pakistan

NZ Company to Introduce CNG to Pakistan

Lahore: Prescon Technology Company, of New Zealand, has announced to introduce state-of-the-art technology-based compressed natural gas (CNG) filling stations in Pakistan.

0800 GAZZA – Personalised Phone Numbers Up for Sale in Britain

0800 GAZZA – Personalised Phone Numbers Up for Sale in Britain

Henry Newrick, a New Zealand entrepreneur, who brought the idea to Britain, says, “They will change the way people think about phone numbers and make them more memorable and certainly valuable”.

Beware of Frankenfood

Beware of Frankenfood

New Zealand has developed a niche in the prosperous international organics market. “New Zealand, for example, is developing its organics markets with great success and produce from that country can be found in health food shops around the…