Pacific businesses

The aim is to help Pacific exporters promote their products to the New Zealand market.

Pacific Trade Invest New Zealand Trade Development Manager, Joe Fuavao, said around 40 companies from eleven Pacific countries will be taking part.

Mr Fuavao said the main object for the companies at the festival is to test their products to New Zealand consumers and gauge an immediate response.

Pacific Trade Invest (PTI) NZ is working in association with Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development (ATEED), an organisation of the Auckland Council, to create the Pacific Hub that will host exporting companies from Fiji, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Samoa, Tonga, the Cook Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia and Palau.

Though PTI has hosted Pacific companies at Pasifika since 2016, stalls of PTI-hosted companies tended to be scattered across the ‘villages’ throughout the sprawling Western Springs property.

The idea amongst others was raised at the Trade 2018 GC2018 briefing held by representatives from the Office of the Commonwealth Games, Queensland Government, Lisa Ward and Yasmahne Hanel for invited guests at the Pullman Hotel in Auckland last week.

PTI NZ hosted nine Pacific Island companies from five countries in a special Pacific-themed stand at the Auckland Food Show called the ‘Pacific Hub’, which was visited by thousands of consumers, retailers and distributors throughout the four-day event, sampling, negotiating and ordering product.

Growing the export potential for Pacific businesses was a key issue for the Private Sector Dialogue at last week's leaders forum in Apia.

Twenty-eight companies from eight Pacific Island countries will be travelling to Auckland from 23-30 March to test their products in the New Zealand market as part of the next step in PT&I’s Pacific Path to Market Programme.

 The companies are from Fiji, Tonga, Samoa, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Palau and the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI).

Pacific Path to Market (PPTM) is an export capability building programme that covers a series of methodical steps to entering an export market.

Liz’s business Aro Enterprises Ltd (she trades under Tifui Nursery) specialises in growing quality orchid and anthurium cutflowers, and the importing and sale of other unique ornamental plant varieties.

A small team of seven, including Liz and her husband Lori (pictured), grow the beautiful blooms in four greenhouses located on five acres of land, and the plants and flowers are then sold at the gate – mainly to florists, wedding planners and keen gardeners.

Announcing the launch of the online resource, Pacific Islands Trade & Invest (PT&I) NZ Trade Commissioner Michael Greenslade said, “We are delighted to provide a solution for online searches through our new landing page, which we have called ‘The Hub’.

“This is primarily a resource for users searching the internet seeking connection with trade and investment opportunities in the Pacific.”

With tools like Facebook and LinkedIn, you can learn the dominant languages spoken among your social media audience, as well as their age and gender.

Hosted by the Pacific Business Trust and presented by business expert and author Matt Jull, CEO of My Business People,  the Social Media workshop showcased to more than 50 participants how Social Media can help them not only as a professional, but market your business to other businesses and consumers.