11th National Pacific Business Trust Awards

Winners named at the 11th National Pacific Business Trust Awards

Winners of the 11th National Pacific Business Trust Awards were celebrated at the historic Eden Park last night (Friday 22nd June 2018) with Pacific businesses and social enterprises recognised.

The 2018 National Pacific Business Trust Awards were attended by special guests, delegates, and most importantly the Pacific business community.

Cook Island family-owned fertiliser company Pacific Biofert, who have been in business for more than 30 years, took out the ATEED 2018 Pacific Business Award.

As an agricultural business supplying fertiliser products for the agricultural and horticultural sectors in New Zealand, Pacific Biofert has developed an internationally-patented process and range of products that utilise natural resources to create highly available and cost-effective soil and plant foods.

Pacific Biofert Managing Director Bill Sinclair, who accepted the award on stage with his mother said success was largely thanks to the perseverance of "this lady here" his mother and their late father, because they pushed their kids to succeed and pursue their passions. They built that mentality of pushing to succeed. We are a family business with a strong family at its foundation

Internationally renowned dancer, choreographer and dance studio owner Parris Goebel was honoured in a new closed-award category, The Legacy Award, which acknowledges Pacific business leaders with business that have been consistently successful over a number of years making a prestigious and well-known name for themselves.

Parris said “this is special because it’s being acknowledged by my people and for my culture. It’s important because it made me who I am, and the Polynesian traditions are reasons I stood out in the industry.”

She later tweeted: “What an amazing night!! Tonight I was awarded the Pacific Legacy award at the Pacific Business Awards. I couldn’t help but cry as they announced my name and the whole room stood up. This means the world to me to be acknowledged by my people. Proud Polynesian thank you so much. “

The complete list winners is:

HATCHing Pacific Business: Jitel Contracting

Pacific Impact: Kokiti Workshops

Pacific Social Enterprise: Moana Research

Pacific Innovation: The Food Company NZ

Pacific Woman in Business: Rachel Lewis, Devitise Marketing

Pacific Business: Pacific Biofert

Pacific Legacy: Parris Goebel

A major theme of the awards was collaboration, which was woven all throughout the evening with a variety of entertainment, Pacific-fusion cuisine and represented in the calibre of finalists and winners of the evening as recognised by the judges.

Held ten times since 1993, the awards highlight the transformation of innovation into business excellence and celebrate the growing number of Pacific entrepreneurs and established businesses that contribute positively to the NZ economy.

Addressing the crowd, Pacific Business Trust chair Fa’amatuainu (Inu) Tino Pereira said the calibre of the winners this evening displayed an abundance of Pacific achievement, talent, resilience, creativity and innovation being recognised even outside of our Pacific communities.

“Many of these successes are not only recognised by our Pacific community but increasingly recognised by mainstream business.

“We are becoming what we all strive for and that is success not by just a Pacific measure, but simply success in full measure.”

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