Go Local: New Plymouth children use time in lockdown to start a business

Hudson Adams (9) and Mckayla Davis (9). Photo / Supplied.

While many people used their free time during the lockdown to relax, two children used their time to establish a business.

New Plymouth siblings Hudson Adams (9) and Mckayla Davis (9) started "Harvest", a feijoa chutney business.

Mum Lisa Garvey says she wanted to teach her children the skills to sell a product.

"I wanted to teach them the basics of running a business and how to know they're delivering a sustainable product.

"I had plenty of time on my hands during the lockdown so I thought it was a great time to teach them."

Lisa used Monopoly to teach the concepts.

"It taught them how to get money, what to spend their money on and how to pay tax."

Lisa is an accountant for Finance Colab, looking after small to medium sized businesses. She says her involvement in business is why she wants to teach her children some relevant skills.

"I think it's important children learn the skills to maintain a business. It sets them up to be successful."

Hudson and Mckayla sell kilo bags of feijoas. She says they wanted to come up with a byproduct so they could use the feijoas that are to small to sell.

"We have 40 feijoa trees on our property and the children go out and pick the fruit multiple times a day.

"We decided chutney would be a great idea as it has a long shelf life."

While Lisa helps the children make the actual chutney, Hudson and Mckayla came up with the design for packaging, the name of the brand and the logo.

"They had a lot of fun learning how to design a logo and how to communicate with buyers."

During alert level 4, two batches of the chutney were sold across the country, reaching as far as Otago.

"This taught them about the cost of freight and other contributing factors when selling a product."

She says the children initially started the chutney business as a hobby.

"We never expected it to get this much traction. I'm so proud of Hunter and Mckayla."

Lisa says there has been a lot of positive feedback.

"People love the chutney. We posted about it in a couple of Facebook groups and the response has been amazing. The children are so excited by all the feedback."

The money raised from the business goes into saving, maintaining the trees, reinvestment and giving back to the community.

"This year the children are donating to the Shoebox Christmas charity. They wanted to help children in need have a great Christmas."

She says supporting small local businesses is important.

"We've had a lot of support from the community. I'm passionate about supporting local businesses as they're an important part of our economy."