Beyond the Surface

Malindi MacLean is Outward Bound's first female CEO and her journey is anything but conventional. From racing as a professional cyclist sport and representing to New Zealand, to "bluffing" her way into the corporate world without a degree, she's navigated challenges with grit and resilience.  In this episode, we dive into her journey through business and leadership, including becoming a CEO while...

Jacob Mataiti is the founder of Self-Made, a barbershop that has become a staple in Wellington's community. But his journey to success is anything but ordinary. In this episode, we dive into his transformation from fighter to entrepreneur, the mindset that drives him, and the defining moments that shaped his path. We share our Outward Bound experiences and how the 'solo' changed Jacob's perspectiv...

Anna Guenther is the Founder of PledgeMe, New Zealand's first equity crowdfunding platform, which has pledged over $75 million for Kiwi businesses and projects. What started as a master's thesis turned into a mission to change the way people fund what they care about. Anna's journey is one of resilience, from moving to New Zealand after losing her mum, navigating burnout, and returning to lead Ple...

Dan Bradley is the Founder and Director of BPM, a project management company with offices throughout New Zealand that Dan started after blood sweat and tears. Now, Dan's revolutionising mental health and wellbeing for his staff and the construction sector in general. Dan lives by the 75 Hard Challenge, practicing it 365 days per year. An awesome kiwi success story and somebody who is leading by th...

Sat down with Ollie, former professional firefighter turned entrepreneur, taking on a $14b industry with his canned coffee 'Innerbloom'. Such an interesting chat about Ollie's life, life as a firefighter and surf athlete and the reality of bootstrapping a beverage company! Honestly, his coffee Innerbloom is top notch. We ripped into a can at about 7pm for this episode! Make sure you go check them...

Ruben Love is an All Black, plays for the Hurricanes and one of New Zealand's top rugby talents. This episode surprised me, the level of grit, professionalism and intention of Ruben is next to none. One of my favourite episodes to date.  A superstar in the making, I hope this conversation can give you some inspiration and perspective!  hroughout this episode we unpacked Ruben's journey into being...

Kicking off 2025 with Agni Bhorkar, entrepreneur and Founder of the Social Project! Agni has a background in the health and fitness industry, starting his business journey opening a few gyms up north and seeing how many gyms don't do enough to make transformation changes in their members health and wellbeing. Agni addressed this by launching the Social Project, a lifestyle club that's disrupting t...

Merry Christmas whānau, thanks to everyone who's tuned into the podcast this year! Really appreciate the support and I hope these conversations have provided you with a moment of reflection or inspiration. Looking forward to providing you with some more incredible guests and stories in 2025!  These aren't a reflection of my 'favourite guests' nor are they ranked, but they are a nice reflection of...

Macey Fraser is a kiwi football phenom, after a breakout season at the Wellington Phoenix, she broke the A-League Women's record transfer fee signing for the Utah Royals in the National Women's Soccer League.   Macey is super humble and down to earth, we speak about her football career so far, the highlights and the low lights, and the cheeky Canadian football team spying on the White Ferns at the...

So good, we had to run it back twice! This is a re-release of episode #13 with Guy Williams – if you're new to discovering the pod, there's an amazing catalog of timeless interviews with some of New Zealand's biggest names. I remember being really nervous for this ep, as a big fan of New Zealand Today and being quite early in my podcasting journey! The host of the greatest TV show on earth, New Ze...

This episode is dedicated to the late Connor Garden-Bachop, who was taken away way too soon earlier this year and was episode #2 on "Beyond the Surface".  This episode was really speciail, Jackson recently tipped 100 games for the Lions, being the only player since Tana Umanga to reach the milestone. Jackson has now signed with Moana Pasifika, joining Ardie Savea and Tana!  Jackson is one of the m...

Amber is a machine! After setting out her life to become a painter, she decided to study to Computer Science after a fight with her older brother about 'girls not being able to code'. Since then, she's successfully raised over $2.3m for her start-up NextWork and has some ambitious growth plans to make learning a vocational skill and starting a new career easy. Hope you enjoy this conversation! Tha...

Louis Baker is one of New Zealand's finest musicians and a genuine good kiwi. Louis has a distinctive soul, blues and R&B sound that has won numerous national and international awards. This was a really enjoyable episode, detailing Louis's journey into music, his creative process, touring with Fat Freddy's Drop and what's he's got coming up on the horizon! Make sure to go check out his latest EP,...

Our most highly anticipated episode and most recommended guest, Paddy Gower! Paddy is a New Zealand icon, he's interviewed Obama, Donald Trump and has reached the pinnacle of journalism in New Zealand. A larger than life character, known globally for viral "This is the F#$%ing News" skit - I hope this conversations shows you a different side of Paddy Gower. I couldn't think of a better guest to ki...

Jade is an entrepreneur and mental health survivor – he runs the clothing label 'Chad Co' that produces quality clothing goods and gives a portion of the profits to support charities working in the mental health space. An absolutely top kiwi and a keen mental health support advocate after battling with suicidal thoughts and depression, there's strength in vulnerability. Jade is a close mate and we...

Stoked to sit down with the legend and social media sensation, Kiko Kuiti!  If you're on social media and haven't heard of Kiko, you're probably living under a rock. With over 5.1M likes on TikTok and millions of more views, Keeks has established a playtform that is encouraging positivity and good content.  We discuss his life, time in the army and what it means to earn money off social media. Hop...

Nick Hyland is the Co-Founder of Flamingo Scooters, an e-transportation company that provide e-scooters, e-bikes and more throughout New Zealand!  This is an incredible story about risk and turning your ideas into reality. On a side note, 40 episodes! From the bottom of my heart, thank you for all your support. I never would've thought it was possible to get the kind of amazing New Zealanders on t...

David Ball is a striker at the Wellington Phoenix and has played football at the highest levels in the UK, alongside players Robinho and Tevez. The English forward spent the first decade of his professional career in the UK, playing for Manchester City, Swindon Town, Peterborough United, Rochdale, Fleetwood Town, Rotherham United, and Bradford City, netting 83 goals across 373 matches. In 2015, Ba...

Damn, this one was special. Stoked to have the brother Nikau / Casual Healing on the podcast, one of the most talented musicians in Aotearoa who's on a pathway destined for greatness. Nikau recently released his debut album 'Driftwood', that's making waves in New Zealand. Be sure to check it out down below! Hope you enjoy this conversation, CHUR! X Check out our amazing sponsors of the podcast, th...

Sat down with Brooke Roberts, the Co-Founder and Co-CEO at the powerhouse Shareises – one of the most successful start-ups in New Zealand that was recently valued at over $500m and has over 600,000 users! Really enjoyed this episode and talking to Brooke about her journey scaling up Sharesies, the good and the challenging times, and to learn more about Brooke as a human. From surfing, being a Mum...

Messie recently made international headlines, after opening for DJ superstar Fred Again and blowing his socks off at the Coroglen Tavern, he was so impressed that he asked her to open his final leg of the tour in Perth, in front of over 35,000 people! This was Tessa's first time leaving the country since she was a baby and almost didn't make the concert due to an expired passport. Through this epi...

One of the rawest and most vulnerable episodes we've ever recorded. In 2009, after experiencing a mental breakdown following a relationship breakup, Rob found himself in a dark place, seeking an escape from his pain. He called the police, hoping for a violent end, but instead found himself shot through the chest and living to tell the tale.  Now Rob is on a journey to teach others how to better ma...

Sat down for an exclusive interview with Matt Fenn – following his insane attempt to run the length of New Zealand... Twice! All in an effort to raise as much money as possible for Gumboot Friday to support young people with their mental health. Matt is an absolute legend and I hope you got something out of this episode! Check him out below.  Moana Road – https://moanaroad.co.nz/ Beyond the Surfac...

Meet Mahesh, a seasoned businessman with a knack for working with kiwi founders and start-ups to help them grow into world class companies. He was Canva's 25th employee and head Head of People, fast forward to today, Canva is valued at over $25 billion USD!  More recently, he tipped his hat in the political spectrum, running for the National Party in Auckland Central coming second to Chloe Swarbri...

Jess Kerr is a professional cricket player for the New Zealand White Ferns and is the sister of cricket superstar, Amelia Kerr (who was on the show last year). Throughout this episode, we talk about the health complications that Jess has been dealt with and what these have taught her so far. From being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, Bells-Palsy and compartment syndrome, Jess's story of redementio...