Face Value: Money not the motivator
Thursday, 14 May 2015
You're known as the founders of Kidicorp, but how did you get started in business?
We married very young and started having our 5 children soon after.
We both came from humble beginnings with lots of love and support from committed families. Chloe was the main raiser of our children and I worked to make money to support us.
Wayne started in Lower Hutt as a lawn mowing contractor - a job which progressed to a general contractor, specialising in the manufacture and construction of crib retaining walls in the lower half of the North Island.
We started our first kiwifruit orchard in Te Puna Tauranga in 1975 and then progressed to being a major syndicator of kiwifruit orchards until the government of the day changed the rules on tax deductibility in 1982.
That same year Chloe designed, and we had built, our present home in Omokoroa. In 1978 we started a company in Escondido southern California making and building crib walls in California. Seven years later, with Kiwifruit in dire straits we sold out of that and our other interests in NZ and moved with our family to Austin Texas and expanded our cribwall company across America and into Mexico.
In 1990 we started a telecommunications company in Mobile Alabama, which was the start of VOIP technology we all take for granted today. When Chloe graduated from the University of Texas we sold all our interests in the US and moved back to Omokoroa. Later, we found early childhood education and it has been our major passion ever since. We have always been passionate about giving children the best start in life
We have a big family of our own and understood early on that the formative years in a child's life are the important ones. We could see that we could really offer New Zealand children something very worthwhile by starting Kidicorp. This will now be preserved for future generations with the company's move to a not-for-profit foundation, where the focus will be on quality and reinvestment in more centres, particularly in areas where the needs are greatest.
Were you motivated by money in the early days?
No. We were motivated by interesting possibilities. Money was an outcome, but not the driver. This is still the case.
Do you think you have to be financially savvy to succeed in business?
Either that or hire the people that are.
Have you made any bad financial decisions?
Yes, but one can only make decisions based on what is known at the time. We have become less trusting of people's presentation and motives as we have progressed through life.
And any particularly good ones?
Yes cribwalls, kiwifruit and telecommunications. We've always discussed new ventures and make joint decisions on courses of action.
How did your upbringings shape your attitudes to money?
We learned the necessity to work in our childhoods. Our expectations were not great, so they were easily achieved. Boy Scouts moulded Wayne's life skills and a big family moulded Chloe's social conscience. Chloe is the visionary and Wayne is the doer.
Did you pass on any money lessons to your own kids?
Yes. They have had lemonade stands, grown vegetables, been busking and such. We've always supported and guided them in their endeavours and they have all become self-sufficient and confident contributors to society.
How did you feel about transferring Kidicorp to a charitable trust?
We feel great about it. We felt the many years we'd put into building Kidicorp to better the lives of young children around the country, had really come to fruition.
In fact we started Kidicorp with the purpose of improving the lives of children around New Zealand, by helping them to achieve their full potential. We have consistently reinvested surpluses into opening new centres, particularly focussing on lower socio-economic areas where the needs are greatest.
This move has been in the pipeline and our thinking for many years. We've been operating in the spirit of a not-for-profit structure for some time, and so this simply makes it official and clear in terms of our ethos and intentions at Best Start. Now felt like the right time and we're excited about it. The new name is intended to wipe out concerns that the previous Kidicorp name sent a confusing message to parents, staff, academics and regulators. The Best Start name better reflects the goals and objectives of the company.
Are you spenders or savers?
Never been a saver. Cautious spenders. Investors really, particularly in the children and their families of our country.
Do you have the Beamer, the boat and the bach?
Apart from our few years in Texas we've lived in our family home in Omokoroa since 1982 and expect to be here for many years yet. Our family underpins all we do, so adventure family holidays take the place of things like boats, planes and a bach.