Over recent weeks, I’ve been giving some thought to the things we need to do to strengthen and grow our dynamic business sector.
In part, this was inspired by hearing the great success stories told at the recent Tauranga Business Awards, which I had the privilege of attending with deputy mayor Jen Scoular and councillors Kevin Schuler, Marten Rozeboom and Rod Taylor.
The evening was a true celebration of some very impressive local businesses and my personal highlight was announcing the Business of the Year winners, Aquaholics Ltd. However, our congratulations go to all of this year’s award winners and finalists – you’re all doing great things in and for your community while making a vital contribution to our economy.
Speaking of the economy, we are also encouraged by the central government’s impetus and focus on economic growth. Recent announcements related to the establishment of Invest New Zealand, a new foreign investment agency to attract foreign investment and capital, will benefit ‘NZ Inc’. It will also help our region because more successful businesses will mean more taxpayers and ratepayers to share the cost of the services and infrastructure on which we all depend.
Fostering economic growth is not just a matter of opening the gates and hoping people come, we also need the right policy settings and to lean in and tell our story, attend summits and take delegations to the right people and occasions. It’s great to see the government taking a lead in this key area.
At a local level, our aim is to leverage every opportunity for this region to help grow infrastructure, exports and the economy in general. We hope to be an early participant in the city and regional deals that the government is promoting. This process will establish the agreed priorities for infrastructure investment and set out accelerated timeframes for getting the mahi done.
We have some natural advantages with innovation, business start-ups and growth companies already important contributors to our economy. We need to retain these companies and the people behind them.
We also need to keep attracting and fostering talent. After all, there aren’t many places in the world that can offer the same level of inspiration we can get by climbing Mauao or going for a great surf as the sun rises or sets on our slice of heaven.
Expanding tertiary facilities are welcome additions for Tauranga as they bring diverse new talent to our city. Future efforts by such talented individuals will help improve our productivity, grow our incomes and contribute high value outputs so that Tauranga continues to lead the nation’s export growth.
Our city is home to some fantastic businesses with huge potential. Council’s elected members are keen to hear your success stories in order to understand what you need to succeed and what we need to do together so that our city can succeed.
So, please take the opportunity to give us your feedback as we consult with the community on our draft 2025/26 Annual Plan. Consultation opens at the end of March and runs through until April 28.
Ngā mihi nui, Mahé Drysdale.
