Unconventional businessman to help Hawke's Bay locals find the fun in work

When starting the Swazi label, Davey Hughes drew on his experiences trapping animals, living in the bush, and becoming expert at getting wet and cold. Photo/Supplied.

If today isn't a good day to die, you just aren't living life to its full potential - says unconventional businessman Davey Hughes.

The founder of outdoor clothing label Swazi promises to help his Hawke's Bay audience find the fun in what they do for a living, every minute of every day, when speaking at the first of Napier City Council's Business Breakfast for 2018.

"Each morning I recite my mantra, 'Today is a good day to die'"," he said.

The so-called "Swazi Man" has packed a lot into his life so far - from working as an animal trapper, to travelling the world hunting caribou in the Arctic Circle and buffalo in Tanzania.

Since starting Swazi in his garage, he has developed and built an acclaimed brand and business.

Among the business learnings he'll share with his audience at the Napier Conference Centre on Friday February 23 is "that people are more fascinating than margins".

"At Swazi, we're whanau, which means that from time to time, we do have the odd barney, but on the whole we watch each other's backs. We feel like we are all in this together, working towards a common goal."

He said the skills learned outdoors were applicable throughout life, and in business too.

"How to skin a mountain lion, how to survive being charged by three grizzly bears at one time," he said. "And how to discern what is important and what is not, how fun has to be your key driver - whether in life or business - and that people matter more than the bottom line.

"Also, that innovation does not have to be a big bang theory but can be a progressive and incremental evolution of ideas, thoughts and failures which lead to eureka moments"

The Napier City Council Business Breakfast is a quarterly networking event hosted by the council's Economic Development team, in partnership with NCC Communications and Marketing.

Tickets are $20 and the ticket price includes a light breakfast. The breakfast begins at 7am and closes at 8:30am.

-Registrations are essential and can be completed through the NCC website: https://www.napier.govt.nz/napier/whats-on/business-breakfast/