Long-established snack-maker says now is the time to start lifting its profile.
Tasti Products began in the Great Depression, with two entrepreneurs - Oswald Lawless and Victor Watson - and £200 in capital.
Today the company is still around and competes with titans of the food industry, such as Kellogg's, Cadbury, PepsiCo and Nestle.
Marketing director Adrian Cook says Tasti's competitors are mostly larger food companies with deep pockets for advertising and promotion. "This has been a challenge for Tasti. We have relied on making products of exceptional quality and investing in stand-out packaging rather than in flashy advertising campaigns."
The company's brand remains mostly under the radar and Cook admits that consumers know more about particular products, such as the Snak Log or Snacking Scroggin, rather than the brand.
"We don't have a high-profile brand with the average consumer but bakers who use our baking ingredients know us very well."
This has not hindered the company, he says, but "the time is right" for it to start building a higher profile.
Snack and muesli bars make up 75 per cent of its business; specialist baking ingredients account for more than 18 per cent and the rest comes from cereals.
The company's success comes from investment in machinery to lift productivity, a flat management structure, developing products that are healthy and catering to the growing demand for "convenience" foods.
In its early days, Tasti made a range of products including glazed ginger. By 1966 it added fruit mixes to its range of glazed cherries, ginger, peel and pineapple. A range of nuts was added and, by 1975, the company had 200 products to its name.
The Snak Log muesli bar was launched in the 1980s, and today Tasti is focusing on developing healthier snack bars; the latest being muesli-style bars aimed at children which carry "Pick the Tick" approval from the Heart Foundation.
Tasti also makes a range of cereals for Weight Watchers New Zealand and co-manufactures products for private labels and international brands.
The Te Atatu-based company started its export journey in 2000, selling its fruit cereal bars to Australia. Cook says exports now account for more than half of its turnover. "Our major market is Australia, with markets also opening in Asia and the Middle East."
But the Australian market also poses some big demands. One major hurdle was earning the Australians' trust. "When we were finally given a chance, we were able to exceed expectations," says Cook.
To ensure a foothold in Australia, Tasti focused first on gaining accreditations. "Tasti was the first company in New Zealand to achieve the Woolworths WQA accreditation in 2007."
In Australia, Tasti also focused on providing a good level of service, always delivering in full and on time. "This has been done by operating a multi-state warehouse system throughout Australia with our logistics partner, UTI.
"We are looking at growing our export sales base beyond Australia but this needs to be done in a focused and sustainable manner and not to the detriment of our existing Australian and New Zealand customers, whom we remain committed to growing our business with."
Strong price competition is putting pressure on margins, Cook says, although at the moment the strong local dollar is providing cheaper imports while the strength of the Australian economy bodes well for exports.
Tasti's absence of organisational pyramids has also served the company well. A relatively flat reporting structure makes for effective decision-making.
Executive chairman Simon Hall, whose father, John Hall, bought into Tasti in the early 1960s, takes a "hands off" approach to the business. Key directors Bryce Howard (chief financial officer), Steven MacLean and Cook have a multi-disciplined senior management team.
"We are all specialists in our own areas and able to make key decisions very quickly, sometimes in a matter of minutes," says Cook.
Owner Hall set up the Forest Life Force Restoration Trust, to do conservation work in the central North Island. This initiative includes the task of breeding brown kiwi. Cook says employees get pride from knowing some of Tasti's profits are being used to help conserve and restore the country's flora and fauna.
