Obituary: Celebrating the life of auctioneer with flair

Laurence Redshaw in action at a Stortford Lodge stock sale three years ago. He died at home in Havelock North on Friday after more than 50 years in the stock and station industry.

Hawke's Bay livestock industry and horse racing identity Laurence Redshaw died on Friday at his home in Havelock North.

Mr Redshaw spent more than 50 years in the livestock business, being well-known as an auctioneer. Having been a long-standing member of the Hawke's Bay Jockey club committee, he was a founding director of Hawke's Bay Racing Inc when racing clubs in the region merged in 1993.

He was also a successful racehorse owner and breeder.

Raised in Wairoa, he worked as a stock agent for Hawke's Bay Farmers in Wairoa and Gisborne and was a Wairoa Racing Club committee, before moving to Havelock North, where he established his own firm, L I Redshaw Ltd, in 1985.

A majority interest was sold last year to NZ Farmers Livestock, but he remained as managing director of the operation now known as Redshaw Livestock.

His flair as an auctioneer was particularly well-known, whether it be at the Stortford Lodge sales or at such events as the Hawke's Bay Rescue Helicopter service, Cranford Hospice charity auctions, and the Hawke's Bay Charity Wine Auction. He had been a racehorse breeder for more than 20 years, having his first big success when Vegas won the Telegraph Handicap at Trentham in 1998.

A decade later he was a nominee for New Zealand thoroughbred racing's Breeder of the Year title, after a string of successes including the win by Kibbutz in the VRC Derby, during the 2007 Melbourne Cup carnival at Flemington.

Mr Redshaw had some of his best moments in racing this year with Mime, one of the country's top three-year-old fillies of 2015-2016, with more than $164,000 in stakes, from 11 starts and four wins. The performances included back-to-back wins in the Group 2 Sir Tristram Fillies Classic at Te Rapa and the Group 3 Sunline Vase at Ellerslie, and then fourth in the New Zealand Oaks at Trentham.

Survived by wife, Fay, daughter, Shayne, and sons, Vaughan and Mark, a celebration of his life will take place on Friday at St Luke's Anglican Church, Havelock North.