Māori businesses perform strongly despite economic hardships

Māori tourism businesses boost New Zealand’s economy, a report has revealed, but it doesn’t reflect the day-to-day struggle.

The Value of Māori Tourism report showed Māori tourism was in a better position than non-Māori tourism businesses.

In 2023, Māori tourism contributed $1.2 billion to New Zealand’s economy – an increase from $975 million in 2018, with 3595 businesses employing more than 15,000 people across core and general industries.

Core and general businesses include accommodation, transport, car rentals, heritage and physical recreation, creative and performing arts, food and beverage, retail and supermarkets.

Minister of Tourism Louise Upston and Minister of Māori Development Tama Potaka recently visited Te Tai Tokerau businesses. Upston said Māori tourism clearly had a very bright future.

“Our visits in Te Tai Tokerau reinforced to me the passion and commitment of providers there and in other regions. I want to be able to do more to support them and the jobs they create for New Zealanders.

“Māori providers will play a big part in attracting international tourists who want to learn more about our country, our people and our culture.”

Potaka said the report showed Māori tourism was an increasingly formidable part of the engine driving New Zealand’s economic growth.

“It creates jobs, fosters entrepreneurship, and provides a platform for Māori experiences, arts, and crafts. This economic empowerment contributes to the cultural revival, preservation and self-determination of Māori.”

The report showed Māori business owners put “people before profit” and also tend to pay employees higher than in non-Māori businesses.

“Māori tourism thrives on the relationship between Māori, manuhiri [visitor] and the whenua, embodying manaakitanga [respect] and kaitiakitanga [guardianship],” Potaka said. “It sets Aotearoa New Zealand apart from others and is our great point of difference.”

While the Government championed the value of supporting Māori-owned businesses, one business owner said its policies did the opposite. The report only reflects pre-coalition Government times.

Since the introduction of the ACT Party’s school lunch programme, Māori-owned Tika restaurant and cafe in Hāwera, Taranaki has had to let go of four contracts that used to feed local kura.

Tika owner Kiri Erb said the changes had been tough for local businesses.

“We’re the lucky ones to still have two contracts, while my peers have lost theirs.”

“We’ll make lemonade with lemons – my mindset is that I will still push to thrive. It is getting harder and I feel for my peers.”

While losing contracts was a big hit for Tika, it was an even bigger hit for other local businesses, who have had to close their doors.

The school lunch initiative was given to Compass Group, which is wholly owned by the UK-based Compass Group PLC. The $3 meal scheme will save Kiwi taxpayers $130 million a year, while maintaining nutritional standards.

However, on Friday, they celebrated selling 1 million school lunches with pies on the menu.

Erb said, when they made school lunches, it was “its own industry”.

“It was local business that supported local business and created job opportunities. It was also able to provide kai.

“Leftover kai would go out to the community.”

‘Our business isn’t driven solely by economics’

An authentic cultural experience is a selling point for many places in the North Island, but a whānau-owned and driven business based in Kaiteriteri, Waka Te Tasman offers a different lens to te Ao Māori.

Lee-Anne Jago said her and husband Todd’s business allowed people to feel connected to the culture and the elements through paddling in a double-hulled waka.

“Our whānau on Rotorua are beautiful, because it’s really our performing arts. For us, yeah, it’s just another view into another one of our taonga tuku iho [heritage],

“I suppose, paddling and connection – it’s not a performance, we just invite people on our waka and we hold it with tikanga [traditional values].”

“We talk about the importance of whakawhanaungatanga [creating relationships], we introduce tikanga, how we treat our waka, how we treat our equipment, how we support and uplift one another as we paddle and we have karakia before we get onto the water.”

The business is open to international tourists, but schools, community groups and surrounding iwi utilise Te Waka Tasman more.

During Covid, they “linked up with the curriculum” and relied on school groups to get them by, because of border restrictions.

“The schools now are our bread and butter for our business, and the tourism is the icing on the top.

“Tourists and corporate groups pay our retail rate, so that means we can keep the price low for school groups and community groups.”

Jago said there was less money going around New Zealand, so they and other businesses were experiencing a bit of a drought period.

“Our business is a little bit different from a lot of other businesses, but I find that Māori businesses often have a wider lens, not just a financial focus.

“We are driven by other factors, [such as] cultural education, supporting Māori stories to be told, supporting whānau to learn about our beautiful culture, learning about our reo and our customs.

“Our tikanga, is really important to us and we make sure that access to what we do is there.”