But for red tape and bureaucracy award-winning Wellington craft brewer Pete Gillespie may have written an Australian success story – not a Kiwi one.
Gillespie, co-founder of Garage Project, one of New Zealand's most well-known craft beer brands, tried to start his business in the Blue Mountains near Sydney in the early 2000s.
"I was living in Australia working as a brewer and was looking at setting up my own brewery," he says. "I tried for three years to get it going but the bureaucratic hoops I had to go through were so mind-boggling that I eventually reached the end of my tether," he says.
It was on a visit back to his home-town of Wellington in 2010 when, with encouragement from his brother Ian and friend Jos Ruffell, he decided to try setting up there instead.
It is a decision he has never regretted. "The difference with New South Wales was like chalk and cheese; when I checked with the local council in Wellington they essentially said 'what a jolly good idea'.
"At the time, 57 per cent of all craft beer in New Zealand was consumed in Wellington but there were no breweries in the city. It seemed like an incredible opportunity."
Garage Project has gone from humble beginnings to being a major player in the New Zealand craft beer industry. But Gillespie believes the support he has received from the community in Wellington has been one key to his success.
"Wellingtonians love anyone trying something a bit audacious or different," he says. "This is why there are so many creative people here and I'm sure it helped us launch the business so quickly."
Garage Project is one of a number of successful Wellington-based businesses featured in the 'Imagine This' podcast series produced by the regional economic development agency WellingtonNZ.
Josh Gardiner, acting GM Marketing and Communications at WellingtonNZ says the podcast series was created to showcase the region's innovative business leaders and, through them, the great things happening in Wellington.
He says the chart-topping series (it reached number 1 on the Apple Podcast Entrepreneurial Charts for New Zealand and currently sits at number 3) provides people around the country, and the world, insight and inspiration in their own business journeys.
"Imagine This is also live to reinforce the pride Wellingtonians have in their city by highlighting what a great place it is to live, work, invest."
Gardiner says the podcasts feature businesses who are making a difference to their industry and "putting Wellington on the map as a place to follow your dreams.
"A wonderful entrepreneurial spirit exists here and Wellington lends itself as the perfect location to push boundaries," he says. "Cutting-edge industries here include film, tech, fashion and gaming all of which are backed by a supportive community, easy access to government support, research and development and a can-do attitude running through our universities."
Gillespie says Garage Project was launched in 2011 in an old disused service station in Aro Valley: "When we started we were small, it wasn't even micro brewing, it was just a tiny pilot plant. We had very little money but we liked to push the boundaries."
In Gillespie's case this involved producing a new beer every week for 24 weeks. "We sold it at a tap bar in the city's downtown and we very quickly developed a cult following and things grew from there."
Despite the fact Gillespie now oversees a commercial-sized brewery (he is head brewer and Ruffell is the head of development), he believes staying connected to the community is a key business strategy. At the Aro Valley Cellar Door people can come in, get a sense of the brewery experience, and "see the theatre of brewing.
"If we are having fun others will enjoy it too," he says.
Other companies featuring in the podcasts include Weta Workshop, Hnry, Mevo, Sharesies, Dinosaur Polo Club, Storypark, Fix & Fogg, Six Barrel Soda, Froth Technologies, DignityNZ and Humble Bee.
Listen and subscribe to Imagine This at www.wellingtonnz.com/imagine-this/links.