Business in Between

This is something a bit different. We're talking about the business of poker. Our guest Chris Moorman is one of the most successful poker players of all time. He has won over $42 million dollars playing cards and is widely considered to be the best online tournament player ever, but he's also crossed over successfully into live tournaments – winning over $1 million on three separate occasions. At one point, Moorman was also one of the biggest 'backers' in the online poker scene, and tells the incredible story of how some amateur money-management and sloppy decision-making cost him around $3 million. Chris is a poker legend; and in this one we hear all the most incredible stories from his 15 years as a poker pro - and how he turned his talent into a business. This conversation was recorded in July of 2022, and first published on the Between Two Beers Podcast channel.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Marc Ellis was always a dream guest for us, and he delivered the goods in our original episode recorded back in early 2023! It’s been our most popular episode to date and if you listen back to the conversation in its entirety you’ll understand why. His unpredictable brand of hijinks and gags came to life after years out of the spotlight, and his infectious personality rubbed off on us both. But behind the laughs and wild stories is an incredibly driven, successful, thoughtful guy. Marc said that his life can be viewed in chapters and he’s probably done enough in his life to have a podcast episode dedicated to each. He played rugby for Otago, North Harbour, the Blues, the Highlanders and the All Blacks, then he crossed codes to rugby league to play for the Warriors and Kiwis; after sport he was one of New Zealand’s top television stars for over a decade with Matthew Ridge, before fading into anonymity. For this episode of Business in Between we focus on the chapter dedicated to the story behind the rise of Charlie’s Juice – which Marc co-founded and eventually sold to Asahi for $129 million after 10 years in business. We pick up the conversation with Marc talking about what life looks like for him now. There's still an exciting opportunity available to sponsor this channel, if this interests you, please get in touch. Follow and subscribe to this Business in Between channel in your podcast app. We’ve got big plans to grow this space, so following, liking, subscribing and all that stuff means the world to us. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hamish Pinkham is the co-founder and director of Rhythm and Vines and Endeavour Live - NZ's friendliest promoter of live events. When we recorded this Between Two Beers episode in 2023, we were in the process of transitioning into a business, so to hear insights on how Hamish and two of his flatmates from the University of Otago had turned their idea of a party for their friends at a Gisborne vineyard into New Zealand's premier live music festival was inspiring. R&N turned 21 last year and it is now a part of the events portfolio that Hamish has been able to build which includes a sister New Year festival – 'Rhythm and Alps' in Wanaka, and the Phoenix Summit - a one day meeting of creative minds held in Auckland. He is passionate about the development of the music, events, tourism and creative industries and has conceived and delivered some of the country's best loved music events and international tours over the last 20 years. But the story of how R&V grew from a gathering of 1,800 mates to a sold out 30,000 revelers at its peak remains one of the greats. If you’re not familiar with back story we’ve got it for you here in detail, and after confirming Shay and I weren’t too old to attend R&V we start this episode of Business in Between at the beginning of the origin story in Dunedin. We're also super stoked to have Hamish on the books of B2B Speakers, so if you like what you hear in this episode, and would love her at your function or event, flick us a message by going to B2B Speakers – Podcast, Speakers & MCs. Finally, there's still an exciting opportunity available to sponsor this channel, if this interests you, please get in touch. Follow and subscribe to this Business in Between channel in your podcast app. We’ve got big plans to grow this space, so following, liking, subscribing and all that stuff means the world to us. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Business in Between we hear from Cassie Roma. The American-born kiwi is an award-winning global thought leader in creative ideation, media, brand strategy, digital innovation, and executive leadership. She's also an author, brand ambassador, storyteller, broadcaster, emcee, and keynote speaker. For over 20 years Cassie held high-flying marketing roles at big-name businesses including Air New Zealand, ANZ Bank, The Warehouse Group, Mighty River Power and NZME (New Zealand’s leading newspaper, radio, and digital media corporation). After leaving the corporate world, Cassie became a household name thanks to her appearances on The Apprentice Aotearoa and Celebrity Treasure Island, and went out on her own, launching CR & Co and relocating the States. But she’s back in New Zealand and brings business lessons to us, all underpinned by kindness and her love of connecting with people across ideas, channels, and communities. We're also super stoked to have Cassie on the books of B2B Speakers, so if you like what you hear in this episode, and would love her at your function or event, flick us a message by going to B2B Speakers – Podcast, Speakers & MCs. Finally, there's still an exciting opportunity available to sponsor this channel, if this interests you, please get in touch. Follow and subscribe to this Business in Between channel in your podcast app. We’ve got big plans to grow this space, so following, liking, subscribing and all that stuff means the world to us. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tim Brown had been a dream guest for us since we started the Between Two Beers podcast in 2019 – and he didn’t disappoint when we recorded with him at the end of 2023. This is one of our favourite episodes and we left this original recording feeling incredibly inspired. Tim was a professional footballer who played 112 times for the Wellington Phoenix and earned 30 caps for the All Whites. But at the same time, he was forming an idea for a woollen, environmentally friendly, sustainable shoe. That idea became Allbirds, and nine years after co-founding the company it went public on the Nasdaq with a valuation close to $4 billion US dollars. In this episode we talk about the realities of being the CEO of a billion-dollar company, all the most interesting steps on his journey from a Wellington flat to worldwide footwear industry leader, partnering with Leonardo di Caprio and meeting Barack Obama, the challenges the company faced in 2023 and why he stepped down as co-CEO. Since recording this in 2023, Tim’s co-founder Joey Zwillinger has followed in his footsteps, with a team of executives with more traditional footwear and retail roles steering a restructure at Allbirds. Meanwhile Tim has also joined Icehouse Ventures as a Venture Partner focusing on US businesses and has became a minority shareholder at Auckland FC, the newest professional football franchise in New Zealand where his sporting insights will be invaluable. For this episode of Business in Between we pick up our conversation with Tim after he had retired from football at the age of 31 to pursue a master’s degree in management at the London Business School. There's an exciting opportunity available to sponsor this channel, if this interests you, please get in touch. Follow and subscribe to this Business in Between channel in your podcast app. We’ve got big plans to grow this space, so following, liking, subscribing and all that stuff means the world to us. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of Business in Between... it's our new series, on our new podcast channel, that features long-form chats with NZ's most interesting business minds. This week we hear the incredible story of how a Kiwi entrepreneur turned an idea for a fitness goal setting app into a global business with customers in over 150 countries and revenue exceeding $80 million a year. It’s the story of Adam El-Agez and his app called The Conqueror. Adam started his fitness goal setting app in 2012 after 10 years of being an entrepreneur with limited success. The idea was relatively simple, instead of ‘just’ going for a run, walk, a ride or swim, you’re working towards a virtual fitness goal, immersed in community and with a tangible race medal delivered on completion. Over six years and hundreds of thousands of dollars later the app was floundering. All the signs were pointing to giving up all together and he even started getting his CV together and applying for jobs. Then, in 2019 he met Raul, a “marketing guy”, online. In a bizarre series of events, he ended up hiring Raul, who lived in Romania, to run the digital marketing with immediate results. Raul started growing sales and from an annual revenue of under $100k they grew to $2m in the first year. The next year they did $40m and $75m in the following two, having secured licensing agreements with franchises like The Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, Star Wars and Harry Potter. The business has now expanded globally with around 70 staff in 6 countries with customers in over 150 countries. Adam’s story – and the growth of his company – is insane. We talk about navigating a cyberattack, how they built their Facebook community with 378,000 people in it, and why they were spending $250,000 a day on marketing. This story will blow your mind - and it’s the first time it’s been told. Come for the storytelling and stay for Adam’s brilliant business lessons at the end. This is an ep not to be missed. There's an exciting opportunity available to sponsor this channel, if this interests you, please get in touch. Follow and subscribe to this Business in Between channel in your podcast app. We’ve got big plans to grow this space, so following, liking, subscribing and all that stuff means the world to us. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the latest episode of Business in Between... it's our new series, on our new podcast channel, that features long-form chats with NZ's most interesting business minds. This week we're dipping back into our Between Two Beers archives and getting business lessons from Steve Dunstan. Steve is the co-founder of Huffer, one of New Zealand’s most loved fashion brands. He started the company as a 21-year-old and over 20 years grew it into a multi-faceted business with stores across New Zealand and in Australia. Since recording this episode back in 2023 Steve has taken a back seat in the operational running of Huffer but remains a minority shareholder while he looks at new and exciting opportunities. But in this episode we talk about the humble beginnings of the Huffer story, the Orlando Bloom moment in front of 200,000 people in Wellington, taking on America, hitting rock bottom and nearly losing it all and the 10-year salvage mission that got the brand back to where it is today. Steve is a Kiwi icon, a thoughtful, humble, optimistic winner, who’s epic story of business success is as entertaining as it is inspiring. There's an exciting opportunity available to sponsor this channel, if this interests you, please get in touch.Follow and subscribe to this Business in Between channel in your podcast app. We’ve got big plans to grow this space, so following, liking, subscribing and all that stuff means the world to us. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to episode 5 of our new show: Accidental Business Owners. It's a podcast about business, life, mindset, relationships and the inside story of a pretty wild last 12 months. This is the fifth episode in the series, but they are all standalone – so you don’t have to go back to the start and follow along. My name is Steve Holloway and alongside my best mate Seamus Marten, we started a podcast called Between Two Beers nearly five years ago in my Hamilton garage. In quite a surreal series of events, it’s turned into our fulltime job – and along with the podcast we’ve also started two side businesses. In November last year, I was feeling pretty overwhelmed with what my new world was looking like, and so I connected with a business and mindset coach who specializes in helping Accidental Business Owners find their way. Her name is Di Foster – and as you'll soon discover, she’s a bit of a weapon. In this episode the theme is ‘The Price You Pay’, and we talk about some of the unexpected impacts owning a business has had on our personal lives. Lastly, before we get into it - there's a really exciting opportunity available to sponsor this show. I could be talking about your business right now. If this interests you, please get in touch. Also, please follow and subscribe to this Business in Between channel in your podcast app. We’ve got big plans to grow this space, so following, liking, subscribing and all that stuff means the world to us. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the first new episode of Business in Between... it's our new series, on our new podcast channel, that features long-form chats with NZ's most interesting business minds. This week we're getting business lessons from Matt Stark. For those outside of Hamilton, Matt could be described as a super successful business buyer, builder, investor and leader. For those inside of Hamilton - Matt Stark is the guy transforming the city. With his team at Stark property he's built, innovated and designed many of Kirkiroa's most impressive developments. He's responsible for the Riverbank Lane Project and the Tristram Precint, Panama House, The HIlls Development, South Block. And he’s also our landlord for our own office at MADE in Hamilton East! In the words of Mike Neale, Harcourts Hamilton's managing director 'his impact is everywhere you look'. In this episode we learn why he left school at 16 to pursue a building apprenticeship, how he lost it all in the GFC, his lawn mowing business, the role his wife Jamie has played in it all, personal values, $100 million dollar deals, lifting Hamilton's gaze, and why transforming the city is important to him. Matt is a private guy, and this is the first time he's shared his story in detail - and his first podcast. And we love it - Matt is such a humble, thoughtful, likeable guy - and we learned a lot in this one. If you enjoy this episode, please follow Business in Between in your podcast app - and share with a friend. We've got big plans for this space and will have plenty more long-form interviews coming with NZ's most insightful business minds. There's also an opportunity available to sponsor the channel - if you'd like us to be talking about your business here - please get in touch.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to episode 2 of our new show: Accidental Business Owners. It's a podcast about business, life, mindset, relationships and the inside story of a pretty wild last 12 months. My name is Steve Holloway and alongside my best mate Seamus Marten, we started a podcast called Between Two Beers nearly five years ago in my Hamilton garage. In quite a surreal series of events, it’s turned into our fulltime job – and along with the podcast we’ve also started two side businesses. One is B2B Speakers – which brings the guests you hear on Between Two Beers to your live event as MCs or Speakers, and the other is called Reflections where our storytellers are available for hire to capture your families' private stories to pass down through generations. In November last year, I was feeling pretty overwhelmed with what my new world was looking like, and so I connected with a business coach who specializes in helping Accidental Business Owners find their way. Her name is Di Foster – and as you'll soon discover, she’s a bit of a weapon. This podcast tells our story, and hers - because shes been juggling parenthood, wellness and a growing business also. It all comes out in these 30 minute, live coaching sessions. Through the series there are laughs, tears and some pretty brutal honesty - but it's something we're all really proud of. Hope you enjoy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Business in Between we revisit our chat with Raelene Castle from earlier this year. Raelene is the CEO of Sport NZ, and one of the most accomplished and experienced administrators in NZ sport. She spent six years as CEO of Netball NZ, before becoming the first female CEO of an NRL team, when she led the Bulldogs for six years. After that she smashed another glass wall, becoming Rugby Australia’s first female CEO in 2018. In this episode we talk about the challenges of the Israel Folau saga, when she found herself at the centre of one of sports biggest controversies at Rugby Australia, how she got the job at the Bulldogs, her relationship with Des Hassler and the most insightful memories from six years inside the NRL, lessons in leadership, how she got her start at Netball NZ, her return to New Zealand and the challenges facing sport here. After listening to this, you’ll get a taste for why Raelene has had the career she has. She’s the real deal, full of energy, sharp as a tack and doesn’t miss a beat. This was a lot of fun and we're so stoked to be able to bring Raelene’s story to you in full. We're also delighted to announce Raelene is part of our business at B2B Speakers. If you'd like to hire Raelene, or one of our other guests to speak at your function or event, flick us a message by going to B2Bspeakers.co.nzSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode of Business in Between we revisit our chat with Duane Dalton. Duane is the founder and Director of Pita Pit and the 20 minute conversation you’re about to hear was plucked from our 90 minute episode on the Between Two Beers podcast. Duane tragically lost his wife, former Silver Fern legend Tania Dalton to a brain aneurism in 2017, and the first part of the recording focused on life after loss.But the second part was all business and Duane shares his story of how and why he brought Pita Pit to NZ, how it grew a cult following, early hiccups, steep learning curves, smart partnerships and opening in the recession. Duane was one of our favourite guests on the Between Two Beers podcast, and if you want to check out the full ep – find it by searching Between Two Beers. Enjoy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.