Local Company is Sustainable, Excellent, and Supreme.

10
Oct

Dive! Tutukaka won the Supreme 2009 Westpac Northland Business of the Year at the Business Excellence Awards on Friday Night, amongst 500 of their peers and against 45 businesses in the Northland region.

The family owned company also won the Excellence in Tourism Category, as well as the coveted Sustainable Business Award.

Tony Collins, CEO of the Northland Chamber of Commerce, said that the awards were a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the success of many Northland businesses. The one thing they all had in common was their passion for what they were doing and their commitment to succeed.

Kate Malcolm, Sales and Marketing Manager, paid tribute to the passion of her staff, and acknowledged not only the people and their stories but also the unique specialness of the place in which they operate. “The Poor Knights Islands Marine Reserve are our turangawaewae, our place to stand, and they are truly a taonga for everyone. We would not be here, if they were not so special.”

The company, celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, is the largest dive charter operator in New Zealand, with five boats encouraging over twelve thousand visitors annually to visit the Tutukaka Coast and Whangarei region.
It has added another level of service that involves snorkeling and kayaking at the Poor Knights Islands marine reserve with its eco-tour Perfect Day, which impressed the judges in the further development of the marine interaction experience.

Owner and director Jeroen Jongejans was especially pleased with the Sustainable Business award from the Northland Regional Council by saying, “to be recognised locally is very important to us, it is encouragement and recognition that we are doing things right not just by us, but by our community and stakeholders.”

The Northland Regional Council Sustainable Business Award is awarded to the Northland Business who best epitomizes an overall commitment to sustainable development, and all businesses entered in the NBEA are automatically entered into this category.

Staffed with 10 FTE and up to 40 crew peak season, the average tenure is eight years, and this close knit crew injects something special in what they do every day. Says Kate, “We are good people, doing good things. We are all passionate, and believe in doing it right. To celebrate this win, is to celebrate who we are as a coastal community.”

In 2006 they scooped the top awards in the New Zealand Tourism awards, taking out their sub-category, major category, the inaugural Conservation in Action Award, and also Supreme.

For more information

Northland Chamber of Commerce

Fraser Hurrell comments in hsi blog about the NBEA 2009

Northern Advocate Coverage