South East Asia: Health Matters

One of the more comfortable (and often quickest) ways to travel from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore is by luxury bus. The plush seats are reminiscent of business class when flying with the added bonus of WIFI. The bus I covert the most, however, is the massage bus. Visualise the coin-operated massage chairs you see in airports ready to sooth weary travellers and put 40 of them on a bus with passengers enjoying their mechanically operated movements for the duration of the journey. The bus encapsulates something not well known about Asian countries - health and wellbeing are priorities that many consumers are prepared to spend over the odds for.

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New Zealand cuisine has come of age

When I was growing up in New Zealand, restaurant culture was just beginning and eating out was considered to be an indulgence, a rare treat. Ironic really, considering that, as I remember, most of the restaurant offerings were pretty terrible: hardly a treat at all, more like some sort of culinary punishment. ("If you don't behave, I'll take you out for dinner!")

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Indonesia Trade Mission, April 2012

This blog comes to you from Jakarta, mid-way through an intensive visit with Prime Minister John Key, Trade Minister Tim Groser and 26 New Zealand business leaders. It's proving to be a very worthwhile trip for those involved.

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My inaugural visit to India

I recently visited India for the first time, joining an inspiring group of New Zealand tech companies at NASSCOM 2012 - a large Indian ICT industry event. It proved to be an excellent chance to build a better understanding of the rapidly growing market, and the opportunities and challenges it presents.

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BBD Summit 2012 - Day 2

The second and final day of the 2012 Better By Design CEO Summit took us into the realm of 'corporate iguanas', a company asking its customers not to buy stuff, big questions about our impact on the planet, and live examples of how New Zealand companies are putting design ideas into practice and making a difference to their businesses.

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