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CLIENT NEWS: Waikato biotech company earns Supreme and Innovation awards at industry event

Hamilton dairy biotech company Quantec was recognised for its innovation at the annual Natural Health Products NZ awards held in Hamilton on Wednesday 27 March.  The company took out the Supreme Award, which it also received at the industry’s 2018 awards event. Quantec was also awarded the Cawthron Institute Innovation Award. The Natural Health Products NZ awards recognise the success of New Zealand companies developing, manufacturing and exporting natural products, functional foods, comp...

CLIENT NEWS: CRV Ambreed launches new gene mapping service

DNA parentage testing has become more accessible to dairy farmers with the launch of CRV Ambreed’s revitalised DNA parentage testing service this month. The Gene Mapping service uses progressive technology to identify the ancestry of individual stock. DNA samples are collected by taking a small piece of tissue from the animal’s ear. Allflex tissue sampling ear tags are either applied to calves at birth, or as buttons on mature animals.  Tissue samples are then sent to CRV’s approved ...

PR TIPS: Tips for giving the speech of your life

This month my team is helping a client put together a ‘make or break’ presentation that will see him either get one of the biggest contracts of his life or send him packing to regroup and start again.  No pressure, aye? So, while we’re in the thick of it, I thought I would share a few tips on giving an incredible presentation.  Follow these six rules and you’ll increase your chances of success exponentially. Do your researchYour talk needs to relate to the sphere in which your...

CLIENT NEWS: First home buyers fire up February home sales in Hamilton

Lodge Real Estate Managing Director Jeremy O’Rourke says first home buyers are fuelling a fire at the lower end of the Hamilton housing market, sparking a surge in February sales. “First home buyers are extremely active in the city. Three-bedroom properties sitting around the $550,000 mark are often in a multi-offer situation.  “There is a lot of stock on the market right now and first home buyers are keen to grab quality properties that set them in good stead as they start their hom...

CLIENT NEWS: Melody Dairies breaks ground on $50M spray dryer to meet sheep milk export demand

Melody Dairies began construction of its new spray dryer on the campus of the Waikato Innovation Park this month. The new $50 million industrial spray dryer will sit alongside the existing Food Waikato dryer and will have 2.4 times its capacity at 1.2 tonnes of powder per hour. The dryer will be operational by February 2020 and will grow employment at the plant from 17 to 35 staff. Burgeoning global demand for sheep milk products is the impetus behind the new project.  Melody Dairies’ fo...

CLIENT NEWS: New book shares horror of domestic violence - and hope for the future

The hotline rings at 3am on Sunday. A woman is crying. “I need help,” is all she says before the line goes dead. It rings again. In the background there are sounds of fists pummelling flesh, an angry voice and screams. “Who are you calling bitch?” “Where are you?” I ask. It’s the most important question. An address means we have somewhere to go, or somewhere to direct the cops. The next question is, “Are you safe?” “No”, she says, and the phone goes dead again. On the thir...

CLIENT NEWS: Innovation, entrepreneurship allow CRV Ambreed to achieve 50-year milestone

CRV Ambreed turns fifty this year. Over the past five decades the company has consistently helped farmers achieve herds that are easy to work with and profitable, ensuring a better life for farmers, their herds and New Zealand’s economy.  Managing director Angus Haslett says the key to the company’s long-term success has been its culture of innovation and entrepreneurship. “When our founders started the company in 1969, their main goal was to provide New Zealand dairy farmers with an...

CLIENT NEWS: January home sales slow in Hamilton – blame the baddies

The risk of money laundering and terrorism crime has prompted many changes around the world.  But who would have thought that, in a roundabout way, it would affect house sales in Hamilton? Lodge Real Estate Managing Director, Jeremy O’Rourke, says that’s exactly what happened last month. “From January first, all New Zealand agents began complying with the AML - the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act. “The additional paperwork now required has slightly le...

CLIENT NEWS: Waikato company Cannasouth secures new licenses to import, cultivate and research medicinal cannabis

The Ministry of Health (MOH) has granted new licenses to allow Waikato medicinal cannabis company Cannasouth to import and cultivate a wide range of cannabis cultivars for research purposes.  These licenses are in addition to Cannasouth’s other MOH-approved license to possess controlled drugs, which allows the company to extract, process, and manufacture cannabis products for scientific research. One of the new licenses allows Cannasouth to import an approved pharmaceutical ingredient (AP...

HMC NEWS: What’s the rise of populism have to do with you?

Populism. It’s a term most often used in political circles and basically refers to policies and rhetoric which appeal to the “ordinary person.”  Populism is often named as the main reason why Trump got elected and the Brexit vote went through. But, as a business owner or manager in little ole’ New Zealand, you might be lulled into a false sense of security thinking, “That’s got nothing to do with me.” I beg to differ and believe there are four lessons all of us can learn from...

HMC NEWS: Can you really say 'yes' to everything at this time of year?

How many emails have you opened in recent weeks from companies telling you they've donated to charity for the holidays? Corporate charitable giving at Christmas is now the norm rather than the exception, and us Kiwis are a pretty generous bunch.But can you really say 'yes' to everything at this time of year?  Read Heather Claycomb's article in The Spinoff which offers some advice for small businesses wanting make the most impact out of their charitable giving....

HMC NEWS: Christmas Communications Checklist

Christmas is coming and for many of us that means a long summer break is on the horizon. But before you turn out the lights and head off, take a few moments to ensure you’ve got your communications sorted. Here’s a list of five communications actions to tick off your list before your break. Distribute good newsWith a dearth of business news coming out over the Christmas and New Year break, journalists are often looking for good news stories to fill space.  This creates an opportunity to...

CLIENT NEWS: KCE backs Waikato Westpac Rescue Helicopter’s life-saving work

Waikato Westpac Rescue Helicopter will receive ongoing support from energy generator King Country Energy (KCE) with a $20,000 sponsorship in 2019. KCE general manager Chris Fincham says the sponsorship is a way of saying thank you to the 24/7 life-saving service. “Due to the geography of the region, and the isolation of some farms and roads, the quick response of the chopper crew makes a real difference to people who have been injured or hurt,” he says. In 2018 alone, the Waikato Helicopter...

CLIENT NEWS: Early $12,000 Christmas present for King Country communities

Nine community initiatives across the King Country including four in the Taupo-Turangi region will receive an early Christmas present thanks to the latest Heartland Community Funding round. More than $12,000 will be distributed to local community organisations in recognition of their commitment to enhance the King Country. One of the recipients, the Turangi Foodbank, will be putting the funding towards food parcel items that have not been donated by the community. Toiletries, meat, milk and soa...

CLIENT NEWS: Hamilton house prices have found their mark

The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand released their monthly residential property data today, showing Hamilton’s median house price dipped 2.3% between October and November and now sits at $555,000.  Lodge Real Estate Managing Director, Jeremy O’Rourke, says, “Hamilton house prices have normalised and found their mark.  “And we believe Hamilton residents looking to buy or sell at the start of the new year can expect the market will remain steady well into 2019. Buyers can e...

CLIENT NEWS: Top tips for feeding cows this summer

Generating and adhering to a daily feeding plan could be the key to getting cows through an expected hot summer. That’s the message from GrainCorp Feeds technical support manager Ken Winter who says effective nutrition management can be easy and rewarding if dairy farmers focus on a daily plan. Winter says a focus on nutrition for cows is essential in summer, and a lack of preparation in previous months can impact on the summer period. “In summer, we find in many cases that the main barriers...

HMC NEWS: Leaders: is zero social profile a high-risk strategy?

According to the “iSentia Leadership Index,” released on 20 November, 44% of CEOs from New Zealand’s top companies have no public social presence. This doesn’t match the general population.  According to Statista.com, as at January 2018 74% of New Zealanders were active social media users. That’s not just a wide gap – that’s a communications chasm.  I recently led a discussion around this topic with some Hamilton CEOs and GMs and asked them why leaders are largely invisi...

CLIENT NEWS: Celebrating 10 years of innovation with Lindsay’s Precision VRI system

It’s a classic story of Kiwi innovation and invention. One summer’s evening in late 2004, two Massey University engineering graduates, Stu Bradbury and George Ricketts, were sitting around, chewing the fat. They were staying on the South Wairarapa farm of Brian and Jo Bosch, living on site while they worked a summer job assembling irrigators in the area. Over a cuppa, Stu, George and Brian talked about irrigation, and some of the challenges on the Bosch’s farm – the existing pivot irriga...

CLIENT NEWS: Turning adversity into business success

A businessman who’s suffered depression, been in a wheelchair with broken knees, pulled people out of rubble in the Christchurch quakes and ridden a rickshaw across India for charity, has been recognised with an award for running the top gym franchise in New Zealand. Matty Lovell’s gym recently won the Franchise Facility of the Year at New Zealand’s Exercise Industry Awards and he says he takes the same approach to business as he does in life. He’s got a list of top tips for leadership ...

CLIENT NEWS: Emma’s Food Bag supporting Waikato Women’s Refuge this Christmas

Cambridge-based meal delivery service Emma’s Food Bag is getting behind Waikato Women’s Refuge Te Whakaruruhau to spread the Christmas spirit this holiday season. The company is supporting the refuge this year in a public campaign to gift Christmas Food Bags to Waikato women and children affected by domestic violence. Local businesses and individuals can get involved by purchasing a Christmas Food Bags, at a specially discounted price of $130, which will then be gifted to a family in one of ...

HMC NEWS: Leaders risk visibility and goodwill not being online, according to new leadership index

A new leadership index has found nearly half of CEOs in New Zealand have no public social media presence, putting them at risk of reduced visibility and connection with their brand’s audience. The leadership index, released this month by media intelligence and insights company iSentia, was presented during an event on leadership run by Hamilton PR firm HMC Communications. The event, part of HMC Communications’ Crucial Conversations over Lunch (CRUNCH) series, featured a panel discussion with...

CLIENT NEWS: New Zealand attempts World record in pool

English four-time Guinness World Record holder Dave Pearson is challenging New Zealanders to break his record on the pool table. On Saturday 1 December Dave ‘Ginger Wizard’ Pearson will be hosted by Hamilton cue sports club Massé to witness a potential record-breaking attempt for the fastest 10-table clearance. Players attempting to break the record will need to pocket 150 balls in total by sinking 15 balls, ten times over, in less than 8 minutes and 50.1 seconds. “A kiwi cracking the w...

CLIENT NEWS: Hamilton home listings and sales escalate as local market bucks national trend

Over 410 homes were listed for sale in Hamilton on realestate.co.nz during October, representing a 13% increase on September 2018 listings and up 13% on October 2017. Sales were also strong during October with 300 homes being sold in the city. This is and increase from 245 homes sold in Hamilton in September 2018 and also up on 235 sold during October 2017. Lodge Real Estate managing director, Jeremy O’Rourke says, “The majority of those people listing homes for sale are looking to buy again...

CLIENT NEWS: Hamilton veterinary practice named best in the country

Hamilton Veterinary Services (HVS) won Vet Practice of the Year at the recent Petplan Veterinary Awards which recognises the best veterinary practices across New Zealand. The Te Rapa Road practice received the award following winning the highest number of public votes. Established by Petplan in 2016, the award pays tribute to a veterinary practice’s industry contribution while going beyond normal duties. HVS small animal director and clinical veterinarian, Dr Craig Brighouse, says the award ...

HMC NEWS: Influencers: What are they and should you be using them?

It’s a tale as old as time in the PR world. Find a famous person, send them your product, pay them some money, and watch as they tell all the people they know how great your product is. It’s a promotional practice called influencer PR and its sole purpose is to use the clout of popular people to sell products. And it’s not just for hocking skinny tea or waist trainers – influencers exist in every industry, even if you don’t see them on your Instagram feed. How did we get here?Remember ...