Fourteen Māori businessmen and women took the stage for day two of the Te Hekenga III conference held at Trinity Wharf yesterday .
More than 100 attendees listened to inspirational stories of Māori business success and gained knowledge and advice in the third instalment of the National Māori Business Networksand Māori Enterprises Conference.
Whakatane man William Stewart filled the room with laughter as he shared his journey of creating two successful businesses; Mauriora Marketing & PR and NativconnectioNZ.
The father-of-three said Māori cultural tourism was a relatively untapped market and likened the industry to a taniwha sleeping at the bottom of the ocean.
"Right now the taniwha is waving its tail, when the taniwha wakes up it will transform the tourism industry," he said.
Stewart said Tauranga had a key opportunity for growth within the Māori tourism industry because of the number of visitors who come into the area via cruise ships.
"There is some work being done in Tauranga but I think the Tauranga offering in terms of Māori cultural tourism, could be one to rival anything else in New Zealand.
"I think there is immense potential here and it is good to see some iwi looking towards tourism as a pathway to advance their own aspirations," Stewart said.
William Stewart said there was "immense" potential for Māori cultural tourism in Tauranga. Photo/ John Borren
Stewart told the audience he moved home to Whakatane from Auckland to raise his family in 2009.
He said he "fell into business" after not being able to find work within his speciality of tourism and marketing which led to the creation of Mauriora Marketing & PR.
"This was the stuff I really liked, working with our people [Māori] to take us to the next level in business," he said.
In 2012 Stewart was part of a trio who started NativconnectioNZ- Real Māori Experiences that specialised in walking tours, cultural tours and adventure tours.
Stewart said the business was about creating a tourism company in Whakatane that was connected to the whenua (land) and told local stories that were different to what other companies were doing in Rotorua.
He said the company had been successful in not only making money but in cultural development, re-engaging youth, social development and economic development.
Buddy Mikaere was co-ordinating the national Maori business conference and said the gathering provided a forum for Māori small to medium enterprises and those wishing to engage with them.
The conference included speakers such as Minister for Maori Development Nanaia Mahuta and Minister for Regional Development Shane Jones.
Mana Taiao Events was hosting the biennial event in association with Tauranga Maori Business Network, which initially came up with the idea for the gathering in 2012.
Today is the final day of the conference with nine speakers scheduled throughout the day.
