GrabOne founder gifts time to Start-up Pitch winners
14 August 2014
GrabOne founder and former Rotorua man Shane Bradley has emerged as one of New Zealand’s leading entrepreneurs has got
in behind the Start-up Pitch Night on in Rotorua on Friday 15 August.
Shane Bradley is gifting two hours of his time to the winner of the event, which is being held at the Waiariki National
Centre for the Forest and Wood Industry starting at 6.30 pm.
The involvement of Bradley, the founder of GrabOne and other successful start-ups, is a further boost for an event
attracting a lot of attention.
Organiser Darren McGarvie, chair of the Rotorua X Charitable Trust board, told www.themud.co.nz that Bradley’s support
and those of other sponsors has been tremendous.
At last count, 40 people had been confirmed as attending as spectators, not including the pitch teams and judges. The
number of pitch teams had jumped in number from 12 to 15, with the time available for each pitch set at five minutes.
“It’s overwhelming,” McGarvie said. “Our mission has been to create a business community where businesses feel
comfortable to launch and grow and to already see so much start-up activity is far more than we envisaged.”
Shane Bradley grew up in Rotorua and lived here until moving to Auckland when he was 21 with his first business.
He is the brother of Tony Bradley, a well-known developer in Rotorua responsible for retail centres established in
suburban areas.
One of the new start-ups that Shane co-founded is a web-based business called Neighbourly, which has been picked up by
the Rotorua District Council to assist it in developing community communications.
Asked why he was backing the Rotorua pitch night, he told The Mud: “I just genuinely enjoy talking to people who are out
there giving it a crack in business. Anything that encourages this I am keen to get behind and lend whatever support I
can.”
He comes to Rotorua regularly, so will be able to meet the winner here or in Auckland.
When the deal with Neighbourly was launched in Rotorua, Mayor Steve Chadwick said the site “provides an excellent
platform for the Council to support its Rotorua 2030 vision, in particular its focus on resilient communities.
“Our goal of inclusive, liveable and safe neighbourhoods will be further supported by our use of Neighbourly,” she said
in a statement. “As a social media platform we believe it will give our community the confidence to be more involved and
form stronger connections with one another, in turn helping us achieve our community’s vision for the future.”
RDC would use Neighbourly for engaging with local Rotorua communities, providing information on council–led events and
meetings, keeping people informed about service interruptions and seeking feedback on issues, the statement said.
ends