Tekau Plus Provide a Unique Taste of Maori Culture

Tekau Plus Companies Provide a Unique Taste of Maori Culture in Los Angeles

Wellington, NZ, June 29, 2010 – Navigator Tours Marketing Director, John Panoho, said today that the Tekau Plus Maori Agribusiness Project is playing an essential role in increasing the market competitiveness of some of the country’s hottest Maori brands.

“In terms of marketing foods and beverages that come with a unique Maori story and provenance, Tekau Plus provides a collective offering that has yet to be matched. It’s created a platform that enables Maori businesses to show case their unique point of difference to international markets.”

Panoho recently returned to Aotearoa from Los Angeles where he hosted a full day co-marketing event with Air New Zealand at the Air New Zealand Koru Lounge. The event was co-hosted by Koru Lounge Regional Manager LAX Anastasia Jenkins and coordinated by Andrew Baker Cultural and Customer Ambassador Air New Zealand. The Matariki celebrations provided the opportunity to display an array of Maori food and beverages including products distributed by nine Tekau Plus companies and four Poutama Maori business clients as well as outstanding brands like 42Below and Cloudy Bay Clams.

The purpose of the event was to celebrate Matariki in partnership with Air New Zealand and to provide participating companies with the opportunity to be exposed to not only high net worth individuals but also to US wholesalers and distributors in the food, beverage and tourism sectors.

“Matariki is a perfect time to showcase who we are and provide a cultural experience through amazing food, wine, art and people. There’s a huge consumer base out there who are looking for something natural, unique and genuine,” said Panoho.

Panoho became involved in Tekau Plus because he recognised the value of collaborating with its substantial network of 23 food, beverage and agri-businesses.

His company, Navigator Tours, is a niche tour operator that specialises in customising Maori and cultural tourism experiences with a focus on food, wine and culture. In essence, the company offers provenance tours connecting the products with their origins. He aims to continue working with the network in other events in the future.

“Over the past two years the program has developed a whanau of brands. Maoridom now has a single channel to link offshore customers and distributors with world-class Maori companies and products. With its focus on cultural marketing strategies, the aim is to generate interests from overseas buyers. Our Matariki event illustrates that the Tekau Plus approach is working,” said Panoho.

ENDS

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