Matariki is much more involved and complex when following the principles of maramataka. Photo / Supplied
From a sold-out dinner to a $21,000 night in a luxury lodge for six people, businesses are embracing Matariki.
This is our second year of Aotearoa’s new national Matariki holiday, a celebration growing so fast that around half of us have already done something to acknowledge and celebrate the Māori New Year.
Skye Kimura, chief executive of Māori cultural marketing and communications agency Tātou, warns against commercialising it. “No one wants to see a Matariki Big Mac,” she said last year expressing concern about businesses leveraging the celebration as a new marketing opportunity.
Just on the weekend, she contacted one retailer for a July 3 listing: ‘Matariki month celebration, sale, up to 60 per cent off’.
She objects to such commercialisation, saying it’s inappropriate.
“They should just get advice. Their intentions are not bad, they just haven’t been part of a cohort that saw that Matariki isn’t for sale. I would ask for them to remove the advertisement,” she said.
“Where do we draw the line? A blatant ‘buy my product because it’s Matariki’ is just out of the conversation,” she said.
ANZ’s ‘celebrate Matariki’ via its visa debit card with designs by Māori artist and designer Geoff Popham is not something Kimura objects to, partly because it’s free so the bank isn’t profiting from the promo.
McDonald’s certainly isn’t obliging with any holiday burgers: “Nothing planned around Matariki. Over the last five or so years we’ve worked with Te Taura Whiri on activities around Te Wiki o te Reo Māori, so that tends to be our main time of the year to focus,” a McDonald’s spokesman said.
SkyCity promoted its Matariki dinner last night as ‘the stars align’. The Depot’s Al Brown, Masu’s Nic Watt, Michael Meredith of Mr Morris and Sid Sahrawat of Cassia were all at the recently-opened Cassia for “one spectacular night under the stars”, a six-course dinner with matching drinks for $250 each.
“Celebrate the rising of the Matariki star cluster, with some of Aotearoa’s favourite chefs over a bespoke menu inspired by ingredients from the Matariki stars,” the casino business advertised.
It was so popular that by early this week, all seats were gone.
From Tuesday , the SkyTower started marking the rising of the Matariki sky, moving through blue and purple for Te Tirohanga or the viewing of the Matariki constellation, finishing on Monday with yellow-orange to mirror a sunset. Windows of the main observation deck have educational decals, so people can learn about each of the Matariki stars, a spokeswoman said.
These school holidays, kids are getting a free Matariki activity booklet on writing their pepeha and a sheet of Matariki stickers. Workshops on weaving or creating a star from clay are on too.
Tonight, SkyCity is planning to have four-piece pop rockers Mahaani Maiava performing on Federal St, 5pm-9pm, lyrics in te reo Pakeha and te reo Māori.
Wairarapa luxury lodge Wharekauhau has a Matariki package that includes a seven-course feast tonight.
That waterfront Palliser Bay lodge owned by billionaire Americans Bill and Carol Foley says: “Traditionally, Matariki was a time to finish storing food for the winter, weave new clothing and baskets, listen to the stories of our ancestors and learn about the natural world. It is about togetherness, goal setting, reflecting and sharing. What better place to celebrate than Wharekauhau?”
Its Matariki ‘recharge’ is a $3265/cottage package for one person to have the seven-course dinner with paired wines, two nights accommodation, pre-dinner drinks and canapes each evening, full country breakfast, chilled champagne on arrival and 25 per cent off spa treatments. For two people, the package is $4295 but you can also rent the Foley villa which will accommodate six for $21,115, Wharekauhau says.
Popular chocolate brand Whittaker’s has joined chef Naomi Toilalo to develop two new Matariki recipes: a no-knead fry bread with one block of Hazella chocolate and a kūmara celebration cake with 100g of Fijian Ginger and Mandarin chocolate. Recipes are in te reo Pakeha and te reo Māori.
BNZ asked on Instagram this week: “He aha o wawata mo te Tau Hou Maori? What are your aspirations for the Maori New Year?”
Rotorua tourism giant Te Puia said its Matariki celebration today was sold out and indicated it was starting early, around 4am.
Tyrone Biddle, cultural ambassador at accounting software giant Xero said that business was raising awareness of what Matariki is all about and celebrating internally as a team.
“As well as sharing a lot of content around the meaning of ngā whetū and Matariki, we also have a waiata session and a shared lunch later this week.”
Haylee Putaranui, Fonterra Māori strategy director, said the co-op’s Fanshawe St headquarters would serve kai, have kapa haka, a poi-making workshop and a market with local Māori stall holders next Thursday .
Around 400 local and overseas staff joined a July 4 webinar ‘Matariki good chat’, on people’s plans for the festival. Photos of stars taken by staff were also shared on Fonterra’s internal communication channels.
“With the milk season having drawn to a close, several of our manufacturing sites across New Zealand are coming together to have a hāngi to celebrate Matariki. Many sites view it as an opportunity to reflect and plan ahead for the new milk season, which starts in August,” Putaranui said.
A social media campaign on how staff will mark Matariki centres around Māori staff discovering their whakapapa for the first time and being motivated by Matariki to learn more; staff who are inspired by their children to learn more, as they learn and celebrate through school activities; and staff who feel the connection to Matauranga Māori as part of their overall nationwide identity, Putaranui said.
Carrie Hurihanganui, Auckland Airport chief executive, said that business has a unique opportunity to educate people about Matariki traditions as they arrived in Tāmaki Makaurau. Dedicated PA announcements at the international and domestic terminals greeting and farewelling travellers in te reo Māori and explaining the significance of Matariki are planned today, she said.
Two school children and airport staff who kōrero te reo Māori voiced that. The airport will be busy today, with around 52,000 people expected to flow through on this single holiday at the start of the long weekend.
They’ll hear: “Nau mai ki Aotearoa, tau mai ki Tāmaki Makaurau. Tākina rā ko Pūanga e tōia nei a Matariki ki te pae. Mānawatia te wā, mānawatia te ātea, mānawatia ngā tohu o te tau hou Māori. [Welcome to Auckland, New Zealand. Today, we celebrate the rising of Matariki, the star cluster. For many Māori, it heralds the start of the New Year.]”
Each of the main Spark offices in Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland), Te Whanganui a Tara (Wellington), Kirikiriroa (Hamilton) and Ōtautahi (Christchurch) has activities planned: markets with local Māori pākihi (businesses), kai, harakeke weaving and kapa haka performances.
“Externally, we’ve partnered with Māui Studios - a kaupapa Māori production studio - to create our first ever fully te reo Māori campaign which goes live this week. The campaign provides these Māori digital artists with the platform to express themselves in celebrating Matariki, inspired by our guiding kaupapa ‘Ko te pae anamata whakamaua’ [grasp the future horizon] and ‘Hello Tomorrow’,” a Spark spokeswoman said.
The partnership builds on an existing strategy, te korowai tupu [cloak of growth], to create meaningful, authentic partnerships with Māori, she said.
Air New Zealand was a little more mysterious, saying it would be hosting some events for the occasion and had some surprises in store. However, it does anticipate welcoming around 42,300 passengers aboard today alone.
“Our cabin crew, airports and customer teams will be taking part in Matariki celebrations,” a spokesperson said.
Te Kaunihera o Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland Council and Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei are staging 11 days of events and around 100 activities designed around the Maramataka (Māori calendar).
Even Auckland mayor Wayne Brown was upbeat: “We are proud to partner with Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei to present Matariki Festival.” That, admittedly, was a public pronouncement from the council communications team. But still ...
Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei chairwoman Marama Royal said Matariki was an important time in the Maramataka and after last year’s initial public holiday, she was looking forward to seeing us honouring the kaupapa (purpose) once again.
Matariki is an abbreviation of Ngā Mata o te Ariki Tāwhirimātea [The Eyes of the God Tāwhirimātea] and refers to the Pleiades star cluster that rises here mid-winter.
Manatū Taonga The Ministry of Culture and Heritage this year managed a new fund to could distribute more than $3m. That Matariki Ahunga Nui fund backs the regeneration of mātauranga associated with Te Kāhui o Matariki. The contestable funding is to support Māori communities in leading the development of moves to recognise not only Te Rā Aro ki a Matariki, the public holiday, but also the wider kaupapa and principles of Matariki. ”
Last year, the fund was run by The Office for Māori Crown Relations. The fund’s chief advisor is Professor Rangiānehu Mātāmua.
Willow-Jean Prime, Associate Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister, said on Monday that as part of Budget 23, the Government announced a further investment of $18 million over four years to build on last year’s initial momentum and to see expanded public awareness and understanding of Matariki.
But it’s not all hikoi, harikoa and pārekareka.
In 2021, the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment issued a regulatory impact statement which spelt out the need for this day but also the financial cost in a country with an abundance of holidays compared to the US.
“New Zealand currently has no public holidays that specifically recognise or celebrate te ao Māori, Māori culture and appropriately recognise Māori as Treaty of Waitangi partners,” MBIE noted.
“This means there is limited balance between our imported holidays and indigenous holidays. Our 11 current public holidays originate from Christian religious or calendar-related cultural festivals (Christmas, Boxing Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, New Year), commemorating historic and nationally significant events (Waitangi Day, Anzac Day, Labour Day), honouring the sovereign’s birthday (King’s Birthday), and recognising dates that European settlers arrived in New Zealand’s regions or dates of specific local events or proclamations (provincial holidays),” MBIE noticed.
There’s a minus side for business with everyone taking a break: MBIE’s 2021 document estimated that an additional public holiday would reduce economic activity in New Zealand, or GDP, by between $340.0 million and $358.8m.
But Mātauranga Matariki chief advisor Professor Rangiānehu Mātāmua said after the first Matariki public holiday last year, there was a huge interest in people wanting to learn the ceremonies and traditions of Matariki and that is boosting resources.
Last month in Takapō (Lake Tekapo) a new booklet was launched with karakia for each of the nine stars, to be distributed to schools and communities across Aotearoa.
But Te Papa said Kanstar’s survey of 1000 people last August showed 50 per cent of all New Zealanders took action to mark Matariki last year:
That, said Te Papa, adds up to more than 50 per cent due to people doing multiple activities.
So, manawanui a Matariki!
Anne Gibson has been the Herald’s property editor for 23 years, has won many awards, written books and covered property extensively here and overseas.
The industry faces challenges but hopes to bring newcomers and veterans together.