The Pahi Coastal Walk is located near Port Jackson.
The Pahi Coastal Walk celebrated another win as the team took out the Supreme Award at the NZI Rural Women New Zealand Business Awards 2024.
In October, the walk already won the Love of the Land category.
Speaking to the Waikato Herald after the ceremony in Wellington last month, where they were crowned the overall winner, Pahi Coastal Walk founder Catherine Ward said she was thrilled.
“It just feels so unreal.”
Ward said she never thought they would win the Supreme Award as the whole group of finalists were “outstanding”.
The Pahi Coastal Walk is a scenic three-day visitor experience near Port Jackson on the northern tip of the Coromandel Peninsula that leads across the 11,000ha farm of sheep and beef farmers Catherine and Zander Ward.
The Wards decided to open the walk in 2022 because they wanted to share the “spectacular views and stunning landscapes” from their farm with the community.
Now, the walk caters for more than 2000 guests a season.
Ward said the award win was not only positive for her and her team but it could also serve as an example for other farmers to see what possibilities there are to get into agriculture tourism.
“This is amazing marketing, and it is really good for our team, as it means that we are doing a good job and [it] gave us great confidence in what we are doing.”
Ward also said working with Rural Women NZ had been great.
“They were really supportive, they celebrated us all and made us feel really good about what we’re doing.”
Rural Women New Zealand president Sandra Matthews said the Pahi Coastal Walk was an “excellent” example of the innovation and entrepreneurism of rural enterprises and their positive impact on rural communities.
“One of the standout features of Cath’s entry was that the growing business has provided an opportunity to employ other women living on and around the farm. The sense of shared purpose for Cath and her team has lifted them all,” Matthews said.
“As the business has grown, the impact on the community has been significant and other local businesses providing bike hire, hospitality and artisan products have all benefited from the walk’s visitors.”
Overall, the NZI Rural Women New Zealand Business Awards received the highest number of entries this year.
“We were particularly impressed by this year’s entrants who showcase that it is possible to build new businesses, create new income streams and build economic resilience in their rural communities,” Matthews said.
The annual Rural Women NZ Business Awards have been developed to encourage and celebrate rural women, strengthen rural communities and nurture economic resilience in the regions.
There were seven award categories this year: Creative at Heart, Emerging Business Award, Innovation Award, Love of the Land Award, Rural Champion Award, Experience Rural Award and Rural Health and Wellness Excellence Award.
Lisette Elisala is a journalism student at the Waikato Institute of Technology.