James White (centre) pictured with members of the Legend Story Studios team after winning first place at the 2022 Deloitte Fast 50 awards. Also featured: Deloitte New Zealand CEO, Mike Horne (far left), and Greg Bonnett, Head of Professionals, Bank of New Zealand (far right).
James White (centre) pictured with members of the Legend Story Studios team after winning first place at the 2022 Deloitte Fast 50 awards. Also featured: Deloitte New Zealand CEO, Mike Horne (far left), and Greg Bonnett, Head of Professionals, Bank of New Zealand (far right).
For 25 years, the Deloitte Fast 50 index has recognised the businesses powering Aotearoa’s growth. The awards, which champion businesses scaling at speed, have featured some of the country’s most recognisable brands. This year holds particular significance, marking a quarter-century of the awards. To celebrate this milestone, Deloitte is recognisingNew Zealand’s fastest-growing businesses of all time with a Top 25 over 25 years index, ranking past national winners in order of growth percentage.
In this spirit of nostalgia, we’ve spoken with Deloitte Fast 50 alumni, including Legend Story Studios founder and CEO James White and Night ’n Day general manager Matthew Lane to find out where they are now and what opportunities the programme has created for them. From humble beginnings to industry leaders, they share their insights on how being part of the programme has shaped their path, fuelled their ambitions, and propelled them towards even greater success.
With unprecedented growth of 6416%, game design, development, and publishing studio, Legend Story Studios took out the Fast 50 top spot in 2022.
For many, placing on the Deloitte Fast 50 index is a personal goal that symbolises success. White agrees, citing a Fast 50 award in the office of a business mentor that “planted a seed”.
“For New Zealand business owners and entrepreneurs, the Fast 50 was this very special thing that really recognises excellence in business in New Zealand. For many years, I followed the Fast 50 and it was an aspirational thing to hope to win one day.”
Since the win, White says Legend Story Studios has significantly grown in more ways than one. “I think around 2022 we were approaching 20 staff, and now we’re at 70. We’ve moved to a state-of-the-art, brand-new studio in Newmarket that we custom-designed and houses our growing team.
“In terms of global reputation and presence, we’ve really established ourselves as being the number one independent trading card game studio in the world. Our peers in the market are companies with $US15 billion market caps. We’re the one independent studio that’s taking the fight to these big guys and doing really well.”
When asked if the business’s strategy has changed since 2022, White responds, “For us, it’s always been about creating a brand and business that is sustainable and will stand the test of time. Our industry has a 98% failure rate so it can be very cruel and unforgiving.”
Night ’n Day general manager Matthew Lane also recognises the importance of sustainable growth.
“While we’re always looking for growth, one thing we do focus on is quality of growth versus just quantity, so it creates a sustainable platform to move forward,” says Lane.
Night 'n Day was a regular feature of the Deloitte Fast 50 index between 2012 and 2019. Photo / Peter McIntosh, file
Night ‘n Day, an award-winning retail convenience network with over 50 stores across the country, was a regular feature of the Deloitte Fast 50 index between 2012 and 2019, placing fourth in 2012 with a growth percentage of 952%.
When asked about the pressures of scaling up, especially at speed, Lane comments, “It was tough and it burst us to the seams in every aspect of our business - from an operational sense, from a financial sense, from an accounting and payroll sense.
“Scaling up highlights any shortcomings in the business when you accelerate growth like that. And if you don’t have the right platform, it can set you back a bit, but it has also enabled us to see where we needed to have better scalability to continue growth moving forward,” he continues.
Lane understands firsthand the work that goes into creating and maintaining the growth that fuels a thriving business. Lane notes, “Growth at a high level doesn’t necessarily reflect the effort that goes in to get to that point, nor the effort to maintain it. For any business that has hit the Fast 50 index, it likely hasn’t been smooth sailing.”
In line with its Fast 50 results, Night ’n Day has continued its growth trajectory. “If we’re talking footprint, we’ve increased by about 10 to 15% in terms of number of stores, but, excitingly, we’ve seen an acceleration of growth within those stores. I’m proud to watch them go from strength to strength,” says Lane.
Entries for the Deloitte Fast 50 2025 programme are now open, inviting the business makers of tomorrow to take their place in the Deloitte Fast 50 hall of fame. More information about this year’s programme, including entry criteria, entry forms and key dates, can be found at fast50.co.nz.
