Kiwi toys inspire expat

By YVETTE ADAMS

When European youngsters build tree houses or play with wooden puzzles there's a growing chance they will be doing so with New Zealand-made toys.

That is thanks to the efforts of ex-Gisborne man Matthew Finlay, who two years ago set up Flying Kiwi to market New Zealand-made toys to the children of Britain and Europe.

Finlay arrived in Europe on his OE in 1989 and worked for 15 years in the IT and media industries before deciding to work for himself.

While looking for ideas for a business he could start, he came across nzedge.com, the website co-founded in 1999 by Kevin Roberts, of advertising agency Saatchi & Saatchi, and businessman Brian Sweeney to promote New Zealand abroad.

"That inspired me to look at doing something within New Zealand which hadn't occurred to me before," Finlay said. "When I came across the Eager Beaver website [a New Zealand toy company] they said they were interested in expanding internationally, so I gave them a call and one thing led to another."

Finlay is now the UK and European representative for Eager Beaver, which manufactures kitset tree houses and castles.

Flying Kiwi now also represents another New Zealand company, Torata Toys, which manufactures animal alphabet letters, balancing animals (including a kiwi) and wooden puzzles.

It is still early days for Flying Kiwi but there are some promising indications.



"We did the London Toy Fair in January for a launch for the UK market, and a trade show in Munich to kick off the German operation," he said, "and we're doing the Baby and Child International Fair in London in early September.

"We plan to start at the bottom of the food chain with the small independent retailers and then move up to present to some of the larger retailers when we can show a demand for the products."

Finlay initially arrived in London planning to stay for a couple of years. "But I never quite got around to going home."

He met his German wife, Sandra, while doing regular business travel in Europe.

"After a year of commuting she came over to London for a couple of years and when that time was up she said, 'How about coming to Munich for a couple of years?' That's how I ended up here."

"Here" is the Bavarian countryside, where Flying Kiwi is based and where the Finlays are now expecting their first child.

As Finlay says, the new arrival will find early employment as a quality tester for the company's products.