Recorded At Red Nine

What if a boozy rosé lunch and a magnitude 7.1 earthquake were the unlikely origins of a children's book business? That's exactly the story Hannah Davison tells in this episode. Hannah is the co-founder of My Big Moments — a range of children's books backed by neuroscience, child psychology and play therapy, designed to help kids aged 2–7 navigate the big milestones and challenges of early life. T...

Dr Catherine Leonard, co-founder of Māori-owned research firm Ihi Research, has spent 13 years studying the hardest problems in New Zealand society — youth crime, drug harm, family violence, mental health, and poverty. In this episode she cuts through the noise: what does the evidence actually say about boot camps, ram raids, and drug checking? Why do simple solutions to complex problems almost al...

What does it actually take to run a professional netball franchise? Kate Agnew — General Manager of the reigning ANZ Premiership champions, the Mainland Tactix — has spent over two decades in the sport, from delivering the 2007 Netball World Cup in nine months to helping save the Tactix from liquidation during COVID. In this episode, Kate unpacks the business of live sport: how she thinks about th...

James Gough was elected to Christchurch City Council at 25 years old. Two months later, the earthquake hit. In this episode, James takes us inside the rebuild of one of New Zealand's most iconic cities — from his uncle Anthony's decision to pour everything into the Terraces when the banks were begging him not to, to the behind-the-scenes fight that saved Christchurch Stadium from being cut by 5,00...

Jessica Pullen is a town planner and founder of LG Consulting — a Christchurch-based planning firm that helps developers, homeowners, and businesses get through the council approval process. In this episode we get into what's really going on behind the scenes of building and development in New Zealand right now. Why the granny flat law isn't what you think it is, what happens when the rules change...

Lucas Cawte didn't grow up planning to run one of Canterbury's most recognised irrigation companies. From servicing medical equipment in London hospitals to becoming CEO of Rainer Irrigation, his journey is anything but straight line. In this episode we talk about the Briggs family legacy, how Mid-Canterbury went from flood irrigation to spray, why farmers are doing more for the environment than t...

What if you never had to worry about tax again? In this episode, we sit down with Luke Kilworth, the founder of Lodg, a New Zealand startup solving one of the biggest problems for self-employed people: tax. From dropping out of school and working for free for 18 months… to losing an entire dev team overnight… to building a platform now used by thousands of Kiwis — this is a real, unfiltered look a...

Member of Parliament Nicola Grigg joins Andy Rowe for a candid conversation about motherhood, politics, public pressure and representing one of New Zealand’s fastest-growing regions. From the reality of mum guilt and juggling life with a toddler, to handling social media abuse, imposter syndrome, Parliament, the National Party and the rapid growth of Selwyn, this is a really honest look at what li...

What would happen to your business if everything went wrong tomorrow? In this episode, we sit down with the Ollie Law from Fixinc to break down the reality of crisis management, business risk, and why most companies fail when it matters most. From real-world examples like the Christchurch mosque attacks to the very real threat of a tsunami hitting New Zealand, this conversation explores how unprep...

What if leadership development didn’t feel boring, forced, or forgettable? In this episode, Andy Rowe sits down with Kaila Cobin, founder of BOMA, a leadership development organisation focused on building intentional, intelligent, and courageous leaders. Kaila explains how BOMA uses sport to teach values-based leadership, and how their partnership with the Crusaders led to the creation of the Crus...

How do you go from one spray truck in 1975 to a transport business with around 250 trucks and 300 staff? In this episode, Andy Rowe sits down with Philip Wareing to unpack the story behind Philip Wareing Limited — from the early days of buying his first spray truck, to building a transport group through acquisitions, hard work, community support, and long-term thinking. Philip shares how the busin...

What happens when personal crisis turns into a business idea that explodes? In this episode, Tim Bateman shares the full story behind O-Studio — from his wife Laura’s health battle to building one of the fastest-growing recovery and wellness businesses in New Zealand and Australia. We dive into the reality of performance, stress, work ethic, and why putting your health first might be the most impo...

She went to Harvard and is now helping build one of Christchurch’s most interesting biotech companies. In this episode, I sit down with Kimberley Bray to talk about women’s health, perimenopause, biotech innovation, and the startup journey behind Tertiary Extracts Ōtautahi. We talk about why women are still underrepresented in medical research, what really happens during perimenopause, and how Ter...

How do you go from nobody knowing your product to 1 million users in a month? In this episode, I sit down with the founder of Lumin to talk about building a product from Christchurch that now helps businesses around the world create, edit, collaborate on and sign documents online. We talk about: - how Lumin started - how they found product-market fit - why solving visible frustration online can le...

What actually IS cryptocurrency? In this episode we sit down with a crypto expert from Cryptocurrency NZ to break down how Bitcoin works, why people mine crypto, and whether it's actually the future of money. We talk about: • What cryptocurrency actually is • How Bitcoin mining works • Why people lose access to their crypto wallets • Paying rent using cryptocurrency • Why New Zealand might be fall...

What does it actually take to run one of the most successful rugby teams in the world? In this episode, Andy Rowe sits down with Crusaders CEO Colin Mansbridge to talk leadership, business, and the reality of running a professional sports franchise. Colin explains how he went from head of agribusiness at BNZ to running the Crusaders, and what business leaders can learn from the culture of one of t...

Di Foster is known for giving direct, no-fluff business advice — but this conversation goes far deeper than business. In this episode of Recorded at Red Nine, Di shares the mindset that helped her navigate life, business, and being diagnosed with terminal cancer. From resilience and parenting to accidental business ownership and motivation, this is a conversation about doing something with the day...

In this episode of  Recorded At Red Nine , Andy Rowe sits down with mortgage advisor and  Fresh Moni  founder  Willie Leota . Willie shares his powerful story growing up in a family of seven kids sleeping in a garage, learning the hard lessons of money, and eventually building a career in banking and finance. Today, he’s on a mission to help  Pacific and Māori communities...

In this episode of Recorded at Red Nine, we sit down with one of the founders of Partly — the Christchurch-based startup transforming the global automotive supply chain using AI. If you’ve ever had a car repaired, you’ve experienced the inefficiencies firsthand. Wrong parts. Delays. Supplementary orders. Wasted time. Insurance costs blowing out. Partly is solving that. By using AI to identify the...

Amy from Addie & Lou joins us on Recorded at Red Nine to share the real story behind building a boutique retail business. From growing up in Kaikōura and working as a radiographer, to opening a homewares store that now has locations in both Kaikōura and Christchurch, Amy’s journey is full of lessons, risks and a few hilarious mistakes along the way. Including the time she accidentally ordered...

Recorded at Red Nine is Canterbury's home for real business stories. From iconic organisations like the Crusaders and the Canterbury Tactix, to the founders quietly building world-class companies from the Canterbury Plains — we sit down with the people behind the businesses, dig into the stories that don't make the highlight reel, and pull out the advice that could change how you grow your own. Th...