Owners of collapsed Research First company back in business

Friday, 11 July 2025

Carl Davidson and Ann Thompson put their company Research First into liquidation, and are now running The Curiosity Company.

The people behind Research First, the Christchurch market research company that collapsed last month owing more than $3.5 million, are back in business under a new company name.

Research First Ltd, which traded in its last year as Truwind, was put into liquidation on June 4 by its shareholders and directors, Carl Davidson and Ann Thompson.

They are now working as The Curiosity Company, with a handful of workers from their former team of 25.

Davidson and Thompson incorporated the company on February 17, three-and-a-half months before pulling the plug on Research First. Its LinkedIn profile describes it as a market research business and lists five Curiosity Company workers - a mix of contractors and employees - alongside the two directors.

Carl Davidson is now running The Curiosity Company, after Research First went into liquidation owing $3.53m.

Award-winning Research First failed after 19 years in business. It collapsed amid mounting debts including unpaid taxes and penalties, and as Inland Revenue began recovery action. It vacated its leased Sydenham premises at the time of the liquidation.

Davidson said last month their troubles began during Covid. He said the final blow was the United States Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) cancelling $1m worth of contracts they hoped would keep them afloat. Those contracts included research on geo-political issues in the Pacific.

Inland Revenue is owed $2m and is Research First’s largest creditor.

“According to the director, the business had struggled to be economic for some time,” the liquidator’s first report says.

The company’s debts include $2m in unpaid GST, PAYE and penalties owed to Inland Revenue.

Unsecured creditors are owed $1.2m and staff are owed $50,000 in holiday pay.

The Curiosity Company logo.

ASB bank is owed $340,000, and holds securities over the company’s assets including office furniture and computer equipment. These items were auctioned off last week.

There are 32 unsecured creditors including ACC, Business Canterbury, Callaghan Innovation, Contact Energy, Facebook, Harcourts, and Spark.

Along with The Curiosity Company, Davidson and Thompson formed another company, Pacific First, on February 14. Both new companies are described with the Companies Office as business consultant services.

The Curiosity Company's website describes it as a full-service market and social research agency that helps clients uncover insights, supports implementing change, and provides training to clients to foster long-term success.

Neither Davidson nor Thompson responded to questions from The Press, including whether they knew liquidation was a possibility when they registered the new companies, the dates the American contracts were cancelled, whether their current work is for contracts secured before the liquidation, and if so what will happen to those payments.

Under company law, directors must not trade recklessly, but are not held personally responsible for a liquidated company’s debts, unless laws have been broken.

Aside from the United States Government, Research First’s clients included Canterbury University, Ōtakaro, Environment Canterbury, city and district councils, Greater Wellington, NZ Police, the Department of Conservation, and the Crusaders.