Queenstown’s Chamber of Commerce is bringing the ‘‘best-of-the-best’’ business brains to Queenstown for a new programme, which they hope will become an annual event.
Chamber membership and development manager Kelly McAteer says Auckland-based Icehouse has garnered a reputation for being the best business facilitators in the country, designed to ‘‘help grow the engine room of the New Zealand economy’’.
Normally, businesses have to travel to them, but for the first time, they’re coming here.
The ‘Business Owner Programme’ comprises one day-long session once a month over three consecutive months, targeting small-to-medium
businesses with three fulltime staff or more and an annual turnover of between $1million and $3m.
McAteer says they’re aiming to reach businesses who have survived Covid, have a few staff, and now need help growing.
‘‘I think it’s been so hard for the past three years, and your heart just goes out to them all; it’s been so tough.
‘‘They’ve all had to work in their business, and now’s the opportunity, hopefully, where some can work on it.
‘‘Any tool that we can supply to help businesses, we’re going to do, and these guys are the best of the best, so that’s why we went with them.’’
McAteer says Icehouse has just run the same programme with Southland’s Chamber of Commerce, attended by a range of business owners running anything from boutique dairy factories to electrical businesses.
Limited to just 15 spaces, McAteer notes it’s also registered with the Regional Business Partners’ management capability development fund.
For more info, or to register, see queenstownchamber.org.nz
