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CLIENT NEWS: Frustrated investors deserting bank deposits for mortgage investments

Investors frustrated by low interest rates are increasingly turning to investments via property mortgages to secure higher income. That’s the view of Alpha First Securities, which says it’s seeing an increase in the number of investors who have “frustrated capital” - they have money to invest but consider the returns from banks unpalatable. Director Olivia Fraser says the firm has seen at least a 25% increase in the past six months of investors wanting active investments in the property ...

CLIENT NEWS: Million dollar home sales reach record numbers in Hamilton city

Lodge Real Estate’s managing director Jeremy O’Rourke says the number of million dollar homes sold in Hamilton city increased six-fold within the past five years, reaching an all-time high number sold in the city during 2017. He predicts 2018 will be another record-breaker. “In 2013, there were 11 million dollar homes sold within Hamilton city, representing .4% of all home sales.  During 2017, that number rose to 76 which was 2.5% of all sales,” says O’Rourke.  “At the star...

CLIENT NEWS: KCE superheroes dash dozens of kilometres for cancer

Eleven staff members from Taumarunui-based electricity retailer King Country Energy (KCE) have made the local community proud by keeping a relay baton moving for 12 hours straight in a bid to raise awareness and funds for the Cancer Society. The group was one of 36 teams to participate in the recent superhero themed Cambridge-based Relay for Life held at the Cambridge Raceway on Saturday (10 March). The purpose of the event was to celebrate cancer survivors, remember loved ones lost to cancer an...

HMC NEWS: Inspiring women – my meeting with Helen Clark

Former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark came to Hamilton on Tuesday night, to speak at a Zonta International Function to mark International Women’s Day. In no uncertain terms, Ms Clark is a bit of a legend, not only with the crowd of 400+ people that packed into that conference room at SkyCity Hamilton, but with generations of women. There were people of all ages in the room, but I was heartened to see local high school students among those waiting to hear Helen speak. I was there with f...

CLIENT NEWS: CRV Ambreed introduces forward-looking index to help farmers breed healthy and efficient cows

Breeding company CRV Ambreed is now providing dairy farmers with a holistic approach to building their herds through a new style of index for sire selection. The company is responding to the changing needs of New Zealand’s dairy industry. The Better Life Health Index and Better Life Efficiency Index rank bulls so farmers can easily and quickly choose those sires that will produce the most healthy and efficient herds for them. The health and efficiency index is being discussed with farmers at n...

CLIENT NEWS: Lake Surgery nurse hangs up the stethoscope after half a century

Half a century to-the-year after qualifying as a registered nurse, Lyn Durno of Pinnacle MHN practice Lake Surgery in Taupo has recently hung up her trusty stethoscope, put away her blood pressure cuffs and waved goodbye to her colleagues and patients to step into the world of retirement. Having officially retired on 1 March, Lyn confidently sums up her 50 years as a nurse as "incredibly rewarding". She shares fond memories of camaraderie with colleagues spanning decades, treating a third genera...

PR disaster averted: lessons on getting through a crisis

Recently my team led the communications during a major crisis for a client.  It was one of those projects every consultant dreams about where the client closely adhered to our recommendations and was stunning at executing under pressure. More than once, we’ve said around the office that the project was a classic case study for others to learn the correct communications steps to take to avoid a public relations disaster.  Here was the basic situation:  The client’s staff made ...

CLIENT NEWS: Digital game developed to help with sign language learning

Hamilton woman Adele Hauwai is the innovator behind SeeCom (Reo-a-Karu), a social enterprise which provides sign language classes and products, and is developing an interactive, digital sign language game to help people communicate. “Sign language is one of the easiest languages to learn and it can be fun for children, parents and whanau,” says Ms Hauwai. “There are so many benefits to learning sign language. It’s not just for deaf people. We educate parents how to communicate with all c...

CLIENT NEWS: Family trusts: roles and responsibilities of Trustees

We know that there are as many as half a million trusts in this country, and when it comes to protecting the ownership of assets – a family home or farm from creditors – a discretionary family trust provides important protection, especially to the self-employed and those running a business. There is a lot of interest in family trusts – and confusion – so it’s important to be clear about how they operate. Last month I wrote about who needs a family trust, and this month I will detail th...

CLIENT NEWS: Local leaders recognised by Dairy Women’s Network

Two women with generations of farming experience behind them are finalists in the 2018 Dairy Community Leadership Awards. They are dairy farmers Kylie Leonard, from Taupo and Lorraine Stephenson, from Dannevirke. The Dairy Community Leadership Awards are a Dairy Women’s Network (DWN) initiative recognising the unsung heroes of rural communities. This year’s award will be presented at an awards ceremony during the Network’s conference in Rotorua, Thursday 22 to Friday 23 March. Sponsored ...

CLIENT NEWS: Top dairy women announced as finalists for Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year award

A dairy consultant, a district mayor, and a leadership coach are finalists in the 2018 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year awards. Hawke’s Bay dairy consultant Rachel Baker, Tararua district mayor Tracey Collis, and Southland dairy leadership coach Loshni Manikam are in the running for the coveted dairy award, which will be announced at an awards ceremony during Dairy Women’s Network’s conference in Rotorua on Thursday 22 March. Dairy Women’s Network CEO Zelda de Villiers says the three fin...

HMC NEWS: Waikato business leaders discuss sexual harassment in the workplace

A group of senior Waikato business leaders gathered this week to discuss the implications of the Weinstein scandal and #MeToo movement on business in New Zealand. Experts from legal, human resources, governance and communications spoke to a room of CEOs, GMs and business and social services executives about sexual harassment in the workplace and how businesses and organisations in New Zealand must do more to plan for and better manage these situations. HMC Communications Director Heather Claycom...

CLIENT NEWS: Heating up: New Zealand Innovator of the Year finalists taking on the world with heat detection device

A low-cost device designed to detect when cows are ovulating and ready to be inseminated has earned two Kiwi entrepreneurs a spot among the finalists in the 2018 New Zealander of the Year Awards. Fraser Smith and Matt Yallop of Farmshed Labs are finalists in the New Zealand Innovator of the Year category for their product FlashMate. FlashMate is a small plastic dome, housing touch screen electronics that accurately detects the activity associated in cows that are in heat and ready for inseminat...

CLIENT NEWS: School health clinics making a difference in Waikato communities

Annually, thousands of youth in communities across the Waikato region struggle to access health care services, restricted by barriers such as cost, lack of transport and fear of talking to a health care professional. Thankfully, as they begin to walk through the doors of their high schools, wharekura, alternative education facilities and teen parent units this month, there's a team of 11 registered nurses and 19 general practitioners (GPs) ready and waiting to fight this access impasse. These he...

CLIENT NEWS: Down to the wire: Fieldays’ humble beginnings celebrated

In 1969, the first New Zealand Agricultural Fieldays was held at Hamilton’s Te Rapa Racecourse. The Town and Country Fair, as it was known then, aimed to bring rural and urban audiences together to celebrate New Zealand’s farming industry and lifestyle and the contribution it makes to the economy. Fast forward 50 years, and Fieldays is a staple on many agricultural people’s calendars, with hundreds of thousands descending on Mystery Creek each June. This year, it celebrates its 50th year o...

CLIENT NEWS: Strong start to the year for Hamilton residential property market

Lodge Real Estate’s managing director Jeremy O’Rourke says Hamilton’s residential property market experienced strong sales in January and a positive start to the New Year. The Real Estate Institute of NZ released its residential property data yesterday [15 February] showing there were 156 homes sold in Hamilton during the month. This compares to 141 sold during January 2017. “Hamilton house sales were strong in January and up on last year. Plus, we’ve also had a good number of quality ...

HMC NEWS: What’s all this engagement buzz?

A few years ago, one of the business buzz words on everyone’s lips was, “sustainable.” Businesses were sustainable, products were sustainable, strategies were sustainable, packaging was sustainable. What wasn’t sustainable was my tolerance for the word. In fact, I went through a short period of boycotting it entirely. Fast-forward to 2018 and one of my current bugbears is the word, “engagement.” Particularly working in public relations, I hear the word engagement many times each day....

CLIENT NEWS: Genetics helps Taranaki farmers with facial eczema (FE) in cows

Facial eczema (FE) is a challenge for many New Zealand farmers. Affected cattle can suffer with skin irritation and peeling, internal damage to the liver and other organs, and it sometimes results in death. FE also leads to a drop in milk production. For farmers in regions prone to FE, it can be extremely frustrating – but genetics can offer a long-term solution, as one Taranaki farmer found out. “We are highly prone to facial eczema here in North Taranaki,” says farmer Gary Phillips, who,...

CLIENT NEWS: Michelin purchases 25% share in Tyreline and Beaurepaires

International tyre manufacturer Michelin has purchased a 25% stake in two Hamilton companies, Tyreline Distributors Limited and Beau Ideal Limited, which trades as Beaurepaires. Both Tyreline and Beau Ideal are owned by the Rushbrooke family, who now retain 75% ownership in their businesses. Michelin, headquartered in France, is one of the world’s most well-known brands and is on the 2017 Fortune 500 list. Tyreline Distributors Limited is a tyre and lubricants importer and wholesaler headquar...

HMC NEWS: Five foundations for building a personal brand

This article is about building a personal brand. Now, you might think, “This is not relevant to me. Building a personal brand is something celebrities like Kim Kardashian and Richard Branson do, right?” Well, yes, that’s right, many celebrities spend every day building their personal brands. And many like Kim and Richard do it really well.  What might surprise you, however, is that building a personal brand has a lot of advantages for normal, everyday people like you and me. And by �...

CLIENT NEWS: Momentum Waikato Community Foundation announces new CEO

Momentum Waikato Community Foundation has announced its new CEO is Kelvyn Eglinton, currently Hamilton City Council’s General Manager City Growth. Mr Eglinton will take up the role at the community foundation in mid-March. Founding Chief Executive Cheryl Reynolds has left after four years at the helm to establish a new social enterprise for generosity. Momentum Waikato Chair Leonard Gardner is pleased the foundation’s board has appointed Mr Eglinton. “We are grateful Kelvyn is joining us. ...

CLIENT NEWS: Search begins for Dairy Women’s Network CEO

The Dairy Women’s Network has begun its recruitment campaign for a new chief executive. Applications for the role are now open, and board chair Cathy Brown says the new CEO will be the face of the 10,000-strong membership organisation with responsibility for leading it to the next level. “The CEO represents our organisation and its members at the highest level,” Brown says. “The Network has become an increasingly influential participant in the industry, and we’re looking for someone wh...

CLIENT NEWS: New spray dryer planned at Waikato Innovation Park to cope with high demand

A $45 million new food spray dryer is being planned for Food Waikato at Waikato Innovation Park, to cope with an increase in demand from the sheep milk industry. The existing open access development spray dryer, which came online just five years ago, is already at capacity, says Waikato Innovation Park CEO Stuart Gordon. He says the growth in the sheep milk industry in the Waikato region requires extra capacity, hence the need for the new dryer, which could be online by June 2019. Currently the ...

HMC NEWS: Facebook is changing its News Feed – here’s why you don’t need to worry

You may have heard Facebook’s recent announcement that it will change the algorithm that runs its News Feed, which shows a selection of posts from other users and pages. The algorithm is complex and decides what users see in their news feed based on many different aspects of their behaviour – from what they click on to who they’re friends with and the types of businesses and groups they choose to follow. Facebook is now changing its algorithm to help its users have “more meaningful expe...

HMC NEWS: PR agency warns Harvey Weinstein harassment fallout will impact on all businesses

Business leaders in the Waikato are being encouraged to learn how to prevent the Harvey Weinstein scandal impacting on their businesses. Hamilton PR agency HMC Communications is running a learning lunch session on Tuesday 20 February with speakers from the legal, human resources, public relations and governance realms. “Managing reputation in the post-Harvey Weinstein world”, is designed to help senior leaders consider how they might be able to act differently in the wake of the scandal. HM...