Ways to Wealth

This week on the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie speaks to Will Zhang, CEO of EmoX, an AI mental health companion. Will talks to us about a side effect of AI that nobody in the productivity conversation seems to be addressing: when your team can research in two minutes instead of three days, you end up making 10 to 20 times more decisions per day. You might be creating more value, but your mental health is dropping. His closing advice is two words: just be human.

This week on the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie speaks to Yashar Ahmadpour, co-founder and CEO of Impressive, an agentic AI company based in San Francisco. Yashar was born and raised in Sweden to Chilean and Iranian parents, moved to California to study, and ended up in tech after a degree in literature and writing. About the state of the Ai industry, and the subversive actions startups are taking to rip off investors.

Jon Randles, a business coach who co-founded Mosh in 2009, and spent years growing revenue without keeping any of it. When a business coach came in and helped them go from six figures in debt to six figures in the bank within 12 months, it changed how Jon thought about everything. Three years ago, he drew an org chart on a whiteboard, realised there was no circle that needed him, rubbed out his own job, and stepped away. Revenue went up.

Kim left employment last year to start a boutique agency and expected it would take years to move into fractional marketing leadership. It took months. Small and medium businesses kept coming to her with the same problem: they knew they needed marketing, they had pieces in place, but nobody was connecting the dots or telling them what to actually focus on first.

This week on the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie speaks to Stephanie McKee Wright, founder of Epic People and an HR and leadership development consultant with 30 years of experience. Stephanie spent decades in senior HR roles across public and private sectors before her company was acquired by a global and the job she had built for herself disappeared overnight.

Andy left school and became a mechanic, moved into computing, spent time in corporate, then walked away to retrain as a rugby coach. He coached across New Zealand, Canada, and England before buying a carpet cleaning business, building it up, selling it to his partner, and eventually landing where he is now, helping managers become leaders.

Mindy moved from the US to the UK following a boyfriend, got left behind, and decided to stay. After three redundancies in five years, including being laid off while pregnant, she used her severance as a financial cushion to start her own business. She has since built a career around helping experts, executives, and entrepreneurs get their thinking out of their heads and into books that serve their business.

Julian has spent over 25 years leading cross-border business between New Zealand, China, and the US, managing a $500 million investment fund and advising organisations from Fortune Global 500 companies like Tencent and NTT through to New Zealand health brands entering the Chinese market for the first time.

Joe built six businesses across hospitality, beverages, distribution, and e-commerce before stepping out of his own company and getting a job for the first time in years. The transition from founder to employee raised a question he hadn't expected: can I do this, and who am I without the business?

Peter spent over a decade at the Wall Street Journal, where he was part of the team that won a Gerald Loeb Award for coverage of the 2010 flash crash. He has since moved into Web3 marketing and content, co-authored white papers on blockchain supply chains for the World Economic Forum and writes the w3w newsletter on decentralisation.

Kerri is a two-time karate world champion who has spent most of her career doing one thing: taking ideas that are stuck and turning them into businesses. She ran 42 karate schools, built a consulting business in sports performance, co-founded Performance Lab Technologies, and spent over 20 years in sports tech before the company merged with a US partner in 2020.

This week on the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie speaks to Stephanie Pow, founder of Crayon and former equity derivatives trader at UBS. She studied at Wharton and Harvard, spent years on one of the largest trading floors in the southern hemisphere, and then spotted a gap in financial support that almost nobody was solving. When her first child arrived, she saw firsthand how life transitions change the way people engage with money, and she set out to build something around it.

This week on the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie speaks to Bex and Kate, co-founders of The Better Packaging Co. Bex came from tech startups and IBM. Kate left consulting to launch a magazine. Both stepped away to raise young families before channelling everything into Better Packaging in 2018. They started with compostable packaging, then went back to the drawing board when the science told them it wasn't enough. What they built next was something the industry said couldn't be done.

Sajita is a physician specialising in pharmaceutical medicine, with experience across global organisations including Pfizer and Johnson and Johnson. Now based in New Zealand, she leads research into digital wellbeing and its impact on mental health, productivity and emotional development in young people.

Joost is the co-founder of Nestor, a platform building collaboration software for the next generation of organisations. Born in the Netherlands and now based in New Zealand, Joost’s work sits at the intersection of organisational design, distributed authority, and the future of work.

Alexander shares his journey from corporate finance and financial modelling into biotech, machine learning, and entrepreneurship. After years of building models, working in audit, and pursuing algorithmic trading, he explains why he walked away from trying to beat the market and instead focused on solving real world problems.

Sid has lived on both ends of the financial spectrum. He ran a major equity derivative and algo trading desk in India, then walked away from finance to explore community led, trust-based economics and later returned to build new infrastructure for distributed finance through Sacred Capital.

Matt is an award-winning full-stack marketing and communications professional with a diverse range of experience working with some of the most respected brands within their respective verticals. Matt went from “no real marketing experience” to managing social for the Cricket World Cup, then helped drive 1500 percent growth inside a start-up, and now leads growth at Landlord Studio, a product led company built on SEO, content, and conversions.

Peter has spent decades helping founder led companies, family businesses, and scale ups make better group decisions. He breaks governance down to 4 jobs any board must do well: set direction, build capability, track performance, and stay accountable.

Heather shares how she went from building businesses for decades to launching a new product that suddenly took off online. When 8.4 million people hit the page, the hard part was not hype. It was making and shipping the product at scale, without losing quality. Heather breaks down the real work behind the scenes, from setting up an assembly line, to ordering parts in the right volumes, to selling direct to customers in 34 countries.

Nick’s story is not the usual sustainability path. From Timaru and a sports science degree to buzzing around London on a Vespa teaching clients, then a Brazil World Cup and Central America trip that made plastic pollution impossible to ignore. If you have a business, a KiwiSaver, or just want a clearer view of what matters, this episode will sharpen your thinking fast.

Midu is a serial entrepreneur and product builder who grew up in Zambia before moving to New Zealand, then built a career across product, digital, and venture building that keeps looping back to one theme: learn fast, build real things, and stay adaptable. Today he is a co-founder and managing partner at Seen Ventures.

Kelly is the founder and managing director of One Plus One Communications, one of Aotearoa’s leading independent corporate communications firms, and the 2025 PRINZ Large PR Consultancy of the Year.Kelly breaks down what has changed in PR over the last five years and what has not, why local nuance and trust matter more than ever, and why the firms that earn attention through podcasts, op eds, conferences, and consistent thought leadership will keep pulling ahead as search and media keep shifting.

Riley is the co founder and COO at Avatars Global, building cinema quality digital characters and AI agents for brands and modern software experiences. This conversation is the real story behind the highlight reel: the hospo grind, the decision to go back to uni with intent, the leap into emerging tech, and the moment a restructure forced a hard reset that turned into a new company, a new lane, and a much bigger ambition.

Mark is a technologist and long-time Web3 builder who has spent the last decade thinking about a simple problem most systems avoid: how do you get money to the source, fast, fairly, and with proof it was used well. After a turning point at a Bitcoin South conference, Mark pivoted his software company into Blockchain Labs, then later stepped away to focus on something with real social impact: The Wellbeing Protocol.

Victoria has spent the last nine years deep in New Zealand’s early-stage tech scene through her recruitment business Maslow. She has seen what happens inside founding teams when everyone hires from their own circles, and why the result is often the same: homogenous teams, fewer perspectives, and weaker company stories. Her work has been shaped by a clear mission: getting more women into tech, and getting women seen as founders, leaders, and builders, not support roles.

Charlie and Marijke get into the real problem most founders face, not effort, not hustle, but unclear thinking. They break down why small businesses get pulled into tactics, why that gets expensive fast, and how discernment comes from strategy first. Marijke explains why she built The Marketing Collective as a collective, not an agency, and how coaching helps founders either do it themselves properly or outsource with confidence because they know what good looks like.

Madison is a leading New Zealand business journalist and the host of Markets with Madison, now evolved into Business with Madison as she builds the show independently. She shares how the format shifted from macro markets coverage into deeper access with operators, why those founder conversations resonate more than commentary, and how trust and consistency compound into bigger opportunities over time.

In this episode of the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie is joined by Debbie Klintworth! Debbie shares the leap from 25 years in corporate into building Footprint Collective, where she helps New Zealand SMEs sharpen their positioning, retain customers, and build the internal systems that make growth repeatable.

Sean is a Kiwi lawyer and standup comedian who moved to Melbourne for opportunity and stage time, while keeping the day job to stay in the game. They unpack the power of incentives in New Zealand, why housing speculation crowds out productive investment, and what it does to millennials and Gen Z. It is a candid conversation about autonomy, optimism, and what real change would take.

n this episode of the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie is joined by Mike Burke! Join us as they unpack what makes a boutique VC different from a generalist fund, why specialist knowledge of financial business models and regulation matters, and where early-stage capital can genuinely reduce risk for founders.

This episode on the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie is joined by @EarnaBuckNZ (on instagram). They discuss the ins and outs of Giveabuck's journey through the financial landscape of New Zealand. How they got started, where they are today, and how they came to start an instagram channel focussed on helping others make better financial decisions.

Dan Fanti is a serial entrepreneur who started his first business in his early 20s with a vitamin chewing gum that expanded into more than 2,000 stores across Australia, including Woolworths and 7 Eleven. After running into capital constraints and learning some hard lessons about growth, he went on to build trampoline park business Uptown Bounce before launching Phantom Sport, a sportswear brand redefining golf apparel through experience and community.

Mikkel is the founder of Fox Folk, a product innovation company in the mountain bike industry. With over 20 years of experience as a brand designer and creative director across eight countries, Mikkel shares how he pivoted during COVID to pursue his lifelong passion for inventing and commercialising products.

Jessica Manins is the co founder and CEO of Beyond, a virtual world building company specialising in VR and AR games and experiences. With over a decade in the space, including time at Star Now and founding Projector in Wellington, Jessica shares the real story of building a company in one of the most volatile corners of tech.

Melissa Beer grew up in a Mennonite farming community in Canada and now leads a New Zealand based tech company focused on bridging primary sector agriculture with modern data and AI solutions. After starting her first business at seventeen selling grass fed organic beef direct to consumer, she moved to New Zealand and built a technology venture that is designed to help the value chain express and transfer value from farm to consumer.

Lucia is a financial journalist, former economist, and co-founder of Learn Business English at Scripters. She previously worked at the New Zealand Treasury forecasting inflation and operating surplus before spending nearly two decades in the UK and Middle East, where she led a mergers and acquisitions news service across global markets.

Alex is a French designer and serial entrepreneur who relocated to New Zealand 11 years ago. As co-founder of Le Velo Studio, he has spent nearly four years engineering what has become the world’s lightest e-bike, weighing just 12 kilograms. Drawing on decades of carbon fiber experience across automotive, aerospace, luxury goods, and performance sport, this marks his fourth invention and a return to bicycle design after first building a bike in his early twenties.

Carl shares his journey from robotics student to multi million dollar business owner, including the periods of severe anxiety and depression that shaped his approach to entrepreneurship. He tells the story of raising capital while mentally struggling, the lockdown yoga retreat that shifted his life, and why he chose to build BioGold without selling a single share of equity.

Jahred is one of New Zealand’s top jiu-jitsu competitors and a black belt under Pedro Fernandes at Tukaha. But beyond the medals and mats, his story is one of discipline, humility, and transformation. From growing up in South Africa and finding purpose through martial arts, to balancing teaching with elite-level competition, Jahred shares how jiu-jitsu became the defining force that reshaped his life.

Yaela’s journey is one of radical honesty, courage, and reinvention. Originally from Amsterdam, she built a multi-million-dollar marketing agency across five countries before realising that success — as the world defined it — left her completely disconnected from herself. After selling the business and walking away from everything she’d built, she began a new mission: to help women redefine what it means to be powerful, successful, and fulfilled on their own terms.

Matthew’s story is one of reinvention, courage, and conviction. From creating one of New Zealand’s first streaming platforms that challenged the global media industry. Now, as co-founder of Alimentary, he’s tackling one of the world’s biggest problems — waste. Inspired by the biology of a cow’s stomach, his team is developing bioenergy systems that turn organic waste into clean power, fertiliser, and profit.

Sanjeev Jangra’s story is one of relentless growth and reinvention. Arriving in New Zealand 17 years ago, he started out working night shifts at a gas station before moving into banking, where he learned the ins and outs of lending from the inside. In 2020, at the height of Covid, he left the comfort of a stable corporate role to start his own mortgage advisory business—with no clients, no network, and no guarantees. Just a few years later, he’s built one of New Zealand’s top-performing mortgage

Vanesha is the founder of Role Call Recruitment and the tech start-up Birdeey, where she’s reshaping how companies hire and scale their teams. She shares her journey from 18 years in recruitment to building a global product from New Zealand, tackling the deeper issues behind hiring inefficiencies.

Anthony unpacks the latest shifts in monetary policy, interest rates and the ripple effects of the US Fed’s unexpected rate cut,shares his perspective on how New Zealand’s housing-driven economy compares to the more dynamic US market, and why falling mortgage rates might not mean what most think. The pair also explore how immigration, private credit, and global money flows are shaping what could be a decade-long economic realignment.

Dave is New Zealand's leading fixed income professional, having managed billions of dollars successfully over a 25 year career around the globe.

Liam is a self-taught cinematographer and director working with agencies and production companies across a wide range of projects. His skills span filming, editing, directing, color grading, and drone operation. Recently, he has been involved with major productions like Minecraft: The Movie, working behind the scenes alongside Jack Black and Jason Momoa. Beyond film, he is passionate about health, fitness, and is currently writing his own feature film.

Steven is a recruitment executive with an international career spanning Silicon Valley, Japan, and New Zealand. He has worked with major tech companies like Apple, Taiwan Semiconductor, and Huawei, and even placed candidates who interviewed directly with Steve Jobs. After time in Japan teaching English and starting a family, he returned to New Zealand where he launched his own recruitment company while raising two young sons.

Chris is the co-founder of SetSeed, a platform designed to create smarter websites without the heavy reliance on plugins. His entrepreneurial journey began in marketing, moved through graphic design training, and eventually into self-taught web development. After seeing a product from a previous company go global, Chris was inspired to build his own venture, teaming up with UK-based partner Ben Vallack to launch SetSeed.

Brent runs a fast-growing YouTube channel dedicated to educating New Zealanders about personal finance, covering saving, investing, and money management. With a finance degree and international experience, including two years at a Singapore-based family office, Brent brings both practical and global perspectives to his content.

Vinay is a former lawyer turned entrepreneur whose career collapsed after a Law Society complaint saw him struck off the legal roll in 2009. Coming from a prestigious legal family, he practiced law for 20 years before facing bankruptcy and personal ruin.

Tom Hern is a New Zealand film and television producer, writer, and director who began his career as a junior TV reporter at just 13. After leaving school at 15, he moved from acting into producing and went on to found Four Nights Film in 2010. He has since produced major projects including The Dark Horse and the TV series Madam starring Rachel Griffiths and Martin Henderson.

Jamie McKenzie is a UK-born video production business owner and creative director who has been operating in New Zealand for 22 years. After training in London and working on TV shows and documentaries, he moved to Auckland and founded his production company, targeting the early gap in business video content when the market was still dominated by VHS tapes and CD-ROMs.

Murphy O’Neill is the director of Adaptable Structures in Auckland, where he is developing what he claims is the world’s first “design for industrialisation” construction system. With roots in his family’s construction business, he has spent the last 10 years self-funding this venture after being inspired by the urgent housing needs following the Christchurch earthquakes.

Naadia Jackson is an online marketing expert specializing in small business development. Starting her entrepreneurial journey at 19, she has built multiple businesses including database creation, event management through Wakahama Club, and currently runs marketing services for small businesses. She also serves as treasurer of Wakahama Club and is developing a new program called "Own Your Uniqueness," aimed at helping women over 40 start their own businesses.

Belinda Thomas is an executive coach and facilitator who works with leadership teams globally. A former competitive fly fisher who represented New Zealand internationally, she transitioned into coaching after experiencing its transformative power through her own mental strength sports coach. With a background in organizational psychology, she has built a leadership practice spanning over nine years, working with both individual clients and teams across multiple industries.

Leighton Wilson runs Ladder & Co, a performance-focused digital marketing agency based in New Zealand. After a decade in finance at ANZ working on database mining and wealth products, he transitioned through two marketing agencies before launching his own business in March 2020. Ladder & Co now helps SMEs achieve measurable growth through analytics-driven strategies.

Serdar Kabul is a Turkish-born business broker who moved to New Zealand in 2013. After starting two import businesses, he discovered his passion for selling businesses during his own exit process. This led him to join Link as a broker seven years ago, specialising in manufacturing, engineering, and import/export businesses.

Lisbeth Jacobs is CEO of Gallagher Animal Management, a Belgian engineer with a PhD who has built an international career spanning R&D, venture capital, and technology leadership. Her journey led her from Belgium to New Zealand via marriage, then to China where she headed R&D for a steel multinational, before returning to New Zealand in 2012.

Darren Wright is a chartered accountant turned entrepreneur who grew up on an orchard and parlayed his farming background into a successful business career. He's currently a managing partner at William Buck, an accounting firm with 100 employees, and serves as a director at an IT company with 40 staff members.

Daniel Walters is a seasoned technology leader turned consultant and CTO coach based in Auckland, New Zealand. His career journey began with aspirations in film and television before pivoting to technology, leading him through roles at companies like Hitwise (acquired by Experian) and Seek, where he served as CTO overseeing their JobsDB and Job Street acquisitions across Southeast Asia. After a decade in Malaysia, he relocated to New Zealand during the pandemic to be closer to family.

Steve Campbell, co-founder of a New Zealand–based youth development charity, has dedicated over 25 years to search and rescue, emergency management, and community service with YSAR. With a background spanning farming, policing, and regional council work, Steve’s driving force is altruism, legacy-building, and empowering the next generation.

Dr. Nick Edgar is the Chief Executive of the New Zealand Landcare Trust, with a PhD in freshwater ecology. Originally focused on scientific research studying aquatic ecosystems, he transitioned to applied environmental work, leading a team of coordinators across New Zealand who collaborate with farmers, landowners, and rural communities to improve waterway health through practical conservation efforts.

Will is a recruitment professional and business partner at The Pond Recruitment, who recently completed a transformative three‑month executive coaching course. After experiencing a failed business venture in 2008–2009, Will spent years working for others before buying into an established recruitment company, gaining “skin in the game.”

Lloyd is a senior partner at RSM, one of New Zealand’s largest international accounting practices with 19 partners and 180 staff nationwide. With over 35 years in the industry, Lloyd specialises in business succession planning and exit strategies, helping SME owners prepare for retirement using tools like B‑Star evaluation software.

Juan is a Venezuelan‑born entrepreneur and leadership coach now based in New Zealand. With an MBA and a former career as an electronic engineer, he has built a diverse investment portfolio spanning property, angel investing, and cryptocurrency. As a coach, he works with both corporate leaders and emerging entrepreneurs, focusing on mindset and leadership development.

Gary is a seasoned entrepreneur and recruitment industry veteran who built his wealth through calculated risks and relationship‑driven strategies. Starting from humble beginnings without university education, he launched his first insurance business at 21 using his final paycheck, later scaling and successfully selling the company. After relocating to New Zealand in 2015, Gary co‑founded a boutique recruitment firm specialising in banking, financial services, and insurance.

Brett is a serial entrepreneur who views entrepreneurship not as what he does, but as who he is. Coming from modest beginnings without significant family wealth, Brett has built a career around identifying market gaps and creating value through private capital allocation across multiple ventures and industries.

In this episode of the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie welcomes back Anthony Sage! Anthony is a New Zealand‑based financial adviser specialising in lending and mortgages, with growing expertise in KiwiSaver and investments. Half American and half Kiwi, Anthony recently earned his Brazilian Jiu‑Jitsu black belt and became a father five weeks ago.

Adam is the founder of Tītoki Landcare, a specialist ecological restoration company restoring forests and wetlands across Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Auckland, and soon Wellington. He also founded Kāmahi Foundation, a not‑for‑profit where profits are reinvested into nature conservation. With a background as a consultant ecologist, Adam saw gaps in the restoration industry and decided to take full accountability for delivering long‑term environmental outcomes.

Tracey is a leadership and team coach, consultant, and facilitator who helps organisations create healthy and productive teams. Originally from South Africa, she moved to New Zealand 10 years ago and transitioned from corporate work to entrepreneurship to find flexibility as a parent while building a purpose‑driven career.

Rachael is an experienced people leader known for her work in organisational culture and leadership. She has held senior roles at Xero, BNZ Digital, Cogo, and HainesAttract, and now serves as People Director at Emerging Engines, where she supports scaling businesses with tailored people and culture strategies.

Fiona is the founder of Sorted Out, a bookkeeping and business consultancy service that blends financial clarity with mindset coaching. With a background in corporate recruitment, entrepreneurship, and training under Tony Robbins and Chloe Madanes, Fiona supports small business owners in managing both their finances and their personal growth.

In this episode of the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie is joined by Agne Nash! Agne is a seasoned technology executive with extensive experience as a CIO and CTO across industries including telecommunications, professional sports, insurance, government, and major corporations like IBM. Known for translating complex technical concepts into accessible language, Agne has built her career on adaptability and systems thinking.

In this episode of the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie is joined by Wade Jackson! Wade is a high‑performance coach and founder of the Covert Theatre in Ponsonby, Auckland, which he operates as a charitable trust. With over 30 years of experience in improvised comedy, Wade has built a career that bridges performance art and corporate development.

In this episode of the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie is joined by Wendy Yang! Wendy is the founder of Recruitme New Zealand, bringing a diverse career background that spans early childhood education, hospitality ownership, and now recruitment. Her journey from teacher to restaurant owner to recruiter reflects a consistent passion for developing talent and helping people grow professionally and personally.

In this episode of the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie is joined by Sam Raines! Sam is the founder of The Web Guys, a digital marketing agency he launched in 2013 at the age of 22. After leaving school at 14 to pursue DJing and working in various sales roles, Sam recognised a gap in the emerging digital marketing space and started his own agency.

Ray is the founder and director of Protech Solutions, an integrated security solutions business specialising in physical security and commercial cleaning services. With extensive experience in Australia’s facility services industry, Ray returned to New Zealand in late 2023 to launch his self‑funded startup, which now employs around 50 guards primarily operating in the Bay of Plenty region.

Richard is a health and wellness professional who transitioned from retail management in the UK to becoming a personal trainer and health coach in New Zealand. He now runs his own gym and specialises in corporate wellness programs that help organisations improve employee health and productivity.

Tim is the founder of NetPotential and the newly launched GrowthSprut. With over two decades of experience in web development, Tim shares his journey from building custom-coded websites to creating scalable, AI-powered digital marketing systems focused on automation, lead generation, and delivering real results.

Andy is the founder of Predictive Performance, a consultancy helping businesses optimise recruitment, team performance, and staff retention using behavioural profiling tools. With over 30 years in HR, Andy discovered the power of tools like the Predictive Index while working in the UK—where he famously reduced vacancies from 350 to zero and turnover from 20% to single digits in just six months.

Robbie is the CEO of Icehouse Ventures, a leading New Zealand venture capital firm that has invested over $530 million into more than 350 early-stage companies. Originally from North Carolina, Robbie moved to New Zealand in 2008 and began his journey in VC by working for free—proving his value and building a career from the ground up over 17 years.

Mike is the founder of Point16, a growth consultancy that has evolved into a multi-faceted investment and advisory firm. What began as a solo consultancy now spans business strategy, private equity through the Sustainable Lifestyle Fund, and early-stage venture capital via the New Zealand Fintech Fund in partnership with Icehouse Ventures.

Richard is a seasoned entrepreneur and founder of Budgee, a modern financial planning tool built to replace clunky spreadsheets and help businesses model cashflow with operational clarity. His journey began in academia, where he and his peers set out to commercialise their postgraduate research—eventually leading to the creation of ecoPortal, a health and safety platform now used by major enterprises across New Zealand.

Marcos is an SEO expert and digital strategist originally from Argentina, now based in New Zealand, who helps businesses climb Google rankings through thoughtful, trust-focused SEO. With a background in web development and an early fascination with Google’s algorithms, Marcos has built a successful SEO consulting business while raising a young family and embracing entrepreneurship.

Will is the co-founder and operator of Orchid, a New Zealand-based software development agency focused on bespoke systems for businesses and start-ups. After beginning his career as a freelancer, Will acquired Orchid from its original founders and has grown the team from 2 to over 10 staff.

Steve is a seasoned sales consultant with nearly 30 years of experience working across the tech sector. After decades in corporate sales roles, he transitioned into fractional leadership—helping businesses implement robust sales processes and strategy without the need for a full-time head of sales.

Keaton is a partner at McDonald Vague, one of New Zealand’s leading insolvency firms. With over 15 years of experience—including time as an official assignee managing bankruptcies—Keaton brings a grounded, inside view of what really happens when businesses go under, and how they can sometimes be turned around.

TK is a Chinese entrepreneur and founder of Epic Sourcing, a supply chain business operating across New Zealand, Australia, and the UK. After arriving in New Zealand just six years ago, TK has grown his company to a 15-person team with global reach and operations recently expanding into Vietnam.

Paul is the Chief Operating Officer at Meredith Connell, with a 30-year career in professional services that spans PwC, KPMG, and major law and engineering firms. Originally from Newcastle in the UK, Paul now calls New Zealand home and brings a unique mix of sales-driven growth experience and values-led leadership.

Dave is an entrepreneurial leader and the CEO of CarbonClick, a climate tech company focused on high-quality carbon offsetting. With a career spanning aviation, business turnarounds, and social enterprise, Dave brings a uniquely practical perspective to building and deploying wealth.

Richard is a British entrepreneur who spent nine years in Brazil before relocating to New Zealand with his Kiwi wife and two sons. His international career spans renewable energy projects, oil and gas, and executive search. He now works with Voluntas, a firm dedicated to elevating founders and reimagining business impact.

Will is a partner at Meredith Connell, where he specialises in fraud, civil recovery, and white-collar crime. With more than a decade of legal experience, he shares his unconventional path through the legal profession—starting in regulatory and criminal prosecution before moving into complex financial misconduct cases.

Jono is a young entrepreneur and the founder of Lloyd-West Tax & Advisory, as well as co-owner of a catering supplies business. Now based on the Gold Coast, he manages both ventures remotely in New Zealand. Jono’s journey began with side hustles at university and has since evolved into building two profitable companies before the age of 30.

Anil is the Executive Director of eMental Health International Collaborative (eMHIC), a global organisation dedicated to improving access to mental health support through digital innovation. With a background in counselling, family therapy, and psychology, Anil has spent more than two decades working to bridge the gap between need and access in mental healthcare.

Andrea is Executive Director at Primary ITO, the vocational training arm of Te Pūkenga focused on the primary industries. With more than 30 years of experience across education, governance, and hands-on farming, Andrea brings a unique perspective to the future of New Zealand’s food and fibre sector.

Sarah is the founder of Anadyne IQ, an AI consultancy that helps businesses adopt artificial intelligence in ways that deliver real-world outcomes. With a PhD in mechanical engineering from Caltech and a background in high-level data science leadership, she brings a unique mix of technical depth and strategic thinking to the conversation.

Emily is an organisational psychologist who transitioned from traditional consultancy firms to running her own practice five years ago. She specialises in helping businesses tackle strategic challenges related to hiring, retention, leadership development, and organisational change. Emily is also the co-founder of Stones, a leadership development platform built for modern leaders in small to medium enterprises.

Tina is the founder of The Attention Agency, a New Zealand-based B2B marketing firm helping businesses grow through strategy, creativity, and consistency. Originally from Hawke's Bay, Tina moved 41 times by the age of 41 and has built her career from the ground up—starting as a “dog’s body” at Remix magazine before becoming editor and, later, launching her own agency.

Nathan is the co-founder of Backbone Marketing, a creative-led, performance-driven agency he runs alongside his wife and business partner Lucy. Together they’ve built a business that prioritises both commercial results for clients and long-term wealth creation for themselves. Nathan shares his entrepreneurial journey from selling at farmers’ markets at 15 to growing a social media start-up into a highly profitable agency.

Natasa is a Serbian entrepreneur who moved to New Zealand six years ago with her daughter to create a more stable, opportunity-rich future. After running a successful accounting agency in Serbia for 20 years, she made the bold decision to start fresh in a new country.

Jeremy is a partner at MinterEllisonRuddWatts, one of New Zealand’s leading law firms, and is widely recognised as an expert in financial services, fintech, funds, and crypto law. His career has spanned traditional commercial law and offshore finance in Guernsey and the Cayman Islands, as well as emerging frontiers like blockchain and digital assets.

Susan is the Director of the Freedom Wellbeing Institute and the New Zealand Curriculum Design Institute. Since 2008, she has focused on preventative wellbeing, helping people feel better every day instead of waiting for crisis points. Her work promotes “universal wellbeing,” a framework built around six interconnected dimensions: social, physical (including financial), intellectual, cultural, emotional, and spiritual.

In this episode of the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie is joined by Miriam Chancellor! Miriam is the founder of Naked Audience, a public speaking and presentation coaching consultancy helping high-performing professionals overcome communication barriers. A former president of Auckland Toastmasters, she has spent the last five years coaching executives through one-on-one sessions, corporate workshops, and masterclasses—recently expanding her business to Sydney.

Andrew is an electrical and electronic engineer turned entrepreneur whose career spans medical devices, robotics, and software. After early roles at companies like Fisher & Paykel Technologies, Andrew launched a robotics start-up that didn’t succeed, returned to corporate life, and is now building his second venture, Casary—a tax automation platform for property investors—alongside his wife, a tax accountant.

Marc is a Chartered Accountant and Financial Advisor who co-founded Bullot & Rankine alongside his wife, Greta. After nearly two decades in senior corporate roles at Coopers & Lybrand, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and Westpac, Marc was made redundant just before COVID—a pivotal moment that led him to acquire a book of accounting clients and build a financial advisory firm from the ground up.

Sameer is a seasoned business leader who moved from India to New Zealand 30 years ago. After completing his MBA at Sydney University, he led a refrigeration company as CEO for two decades, expanding it from 15 staff across five locations to over 300 employees operating in New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, and India. He currently serves as Chairman of Bank of India New Zealand and mentors young entrepreneurs while managing a diverse investment portfolio.

James is the CEO of Ag First, a primary industry advisory firm with 12 regional offices across New Zealand. He has led the company for 22 years, starting by building the Waikato branch from the ground up before becoming CEO of the entire organisation. James has deep expertise in agricultural consulting and business development.

Dave is a father of three based in Auckland with a diverse background in law, entrepreneurship, and venture capital. He has played key roles in scaling tech companies such as 90 Seconds, which raised Series A funding from Sequoia Capital, and Cover Genius, a unicorn company. After losing his home in Cyclone Gabriel, Dave relocated from Hawke’s Bay to Auckland, where he currently leads revenue and growth at Extraordinary, a payments technology company.

Brett spent 47 years in the retail industry, rising from apprentice butcher to General Manager of Store Operations at Woolworths Supermarkets. In this conversation, he shares how he rewrote his future through discipline, planning, and mindset. Growing up in a dysfunctional home in South Auckland, Brett learned to rely on hard work and purpose to drive personal growth. Now retired from corporate life, he now runs My Purpose Ltd!

Marie is the founder and managing director of Team Recruitment, a specialist firm placing white-collar professionals in New Zealand’s freight, logistics, and supply chain sectors. With over 30 years in the recruitment industry, Marie brings deep experience and hard-won insight into what it takes to build and sustain a service business through economic cycles.

Starting as a freelancer frustrated by corporate limits, AB built a team of over 20 developers serving global clients. In this episode, AB shares his journey from freelancing to entrepreneurship, the challenges of scaling a service-based business, and lessons from his family’s business in India that shaped his diversified investment approach, including property, SaaS, and manufacturing.

Jacqui Ansin is the founder of Lily & Louis, a boutique PR agency known for bold, creative campaigns and long-standing media relationships. After a decade leading Publicis Mojo’s PR division, Jacqui launched her own agency 18 years ago—naming it after her dogs and taking a leap by investing in a premium office space from day one.

In this episode, Michelle shares how early business setbacks almost stopped her, until stories of resilience—like Walt Disney’s—reignited her drive. She reflects on her time running workshops with Kikki.k, and how the challenges of 2020—including Kikki.k’s closure and her husband’s redundancy—pushed her to build a new venture: Dreamers Collective.

In this episode of Ways to Wealth, Charlie Meaden speaks with Tamara Liebman, a business lawyer dedicated to helping small businesses and not-for-profits thrive. After starting in litigation, Tamara shifted her focus to proactive, practical legal support—especially for digital-first and e-commerce ventures.

James is the founder of Previously Unavailable, a creative consultancy and venture studio based in Auckland. From high school dropout to award-winning ad exec and start-up co-founder, James has built a career around creativity, innovation, and long-term thinking. In this episode, James and Charlie discuss building “forever companies”, businesses designed for lasting impact rather than fast exits.

In this episode of the Ways to Wealth Podcast, Charlie sits down with Kate Martin, the founder of Let’s Market, a digital marketing agency helping small to medium businesses grow through practical and performance-driven marketing strategies. Charlie and Kate also dive into alternative wealth-building paths, like buying undervalued New Zealand businesses and challenging the national obsession with property investment.

Matt shares insights on living sustainably while working within existing systems, building separate structures including a family yurt, and developing their business Kaingaroa Plant Lady. The discussion touches on family relationships, Māori cultural influences, and Matt's vision for community living inspired by his grandfather's dreams.

Nicole has focussed her passion and energy to drive culture and leadership in all the businesses she touches. Nicole is currently focussed on the business she co-founded called ‘ColourHR’, a Human Resources Organisation that Analyses, identifies and resolves the key issues faced by small and medium NZ businesses to start businesses to scale successfully!

James is a Top 10 Google Publisher in New Zealand and currently has over $100,000,000 of directly attributable sales value and over 10 million users reached through creating 200 international websites over the past 15 years. He also has had an incredibly large impact on the businesses he has worked with, utilising his amazing attitude and skills to give everyday individuals the tools they need to realise their potential.

Dave founded Flow Marketing in 2016 with the sole focus of building his marketing agency, with a vision to be NZ’s strongest digital lead generation agency for high-ticket services. Flow Marketing has now grown to 15 highly skilled and ambitious digital marketers who've also received numerous awards and affiliations, enforcing their track record of creating outstanding marketing material that goes above and beyond expectations.

Igor is an accomplished and proven leader in the New Zealand tech industry. With a track record of co-founding successful technology companies, he has demonstrated his expertise in developing innovative technological solutions that resulted in multiple internationally successful products. Besides his impressive business track record, Igor has also helped thousands of companies implement technology and has held many posts in various IT industry bodies.

With over 2 decades of experience in a broad range of sectors and domains, Reg’s career has led to him mastering providing his detail-oriented approach for strategic direction, continuous growth and innovative change within companies. His experience at leadership, senior executive, board roles and consultancy enable his ability to understand and deliver solutions to organisations so they can run more effectively and efficiently.

Kim has been working in the Tech industry for over 25 years, with roles ranging from Legal, to Governance, with a focus on Developing and executing strategies, managing complex multi-party programmes, governance, dispute resolution and transformation. Kim has a focus on serving on boards and trusts within the not for profit and public sectors, bringing her passion for work and professionalism to uplift all the companies that she touches.

Jeremy is an experienced and knowledgeable business owner and start-up founder, successfully launching and bringing his businesses into success through his knowledge of the startup ecosystem and serious business acumen. Learn all about the successes, hardships and experiences that Jeremy has learnt along his journey to becoming a successful entrepreneur.

Erin is an innovative, effective and result-focussed executive with copious experience in technology and financial services, change management, organizational design and leading complex multi-disciplinary initiatives and programs. Erin has been working for the last two decades in company defining roles like the the VP and Head of legal at State Street Australia and the Senior Director of Global Product & Engineering at Paypal

Sam is currently Chief Operating Officer and Co-Founder of Autowhale, a bespoke web3 trading infrastructure platform, designed for digital asset funds. Where they provide seamless & fast portfolio management and execution tools, alongside low to mid frequency trading strategies, all in one simple solution. Saving funds save up to 2 years in development time, and reducing infrastructure costs by up to 60% compared with traditional vendors.

Combining her experience in the business world, with a strong passion for the planet, Jessie launched ‘Good Grub’ in 2021, which combines a love of food and branding that consistently delivers on-trend sustainable innovation that meets real consumer needs. ‘Good Grub’ is a business with a focus on emissions and sustainability, with the mission to create low carbon sustainably produced protein to nourish animals and the planet.

Sameer shares his amazing ability to analyse and be objective with his investment decisions, built from years of experience, tune-in as he shares key information from his experience, from his successes, setbacks, failures and challenges that he has steadfastly moved through, and how it has shaped his view on what being wealthy truly means.

This week on the Ways to Wealth Podcast, we’re talking about the new and exciting Employee Financial Wellbeing Program! Charlie and his team have been working hard at researching and analysing the impacts that a lack of financial wellbeing has in the life of employees.

In this episode of the Ways to Wealth Podcast, we’re joined by Sarah Hutchins, Founder of Orsini Fine Jewellery. Using the expertise of iconic Italian master Jewellers, combined with years of experience and relationships with heritage artisans has helped Sarah grow Orsini into the stand-out boutique that it is today!

In this episode of Ways to Wealth, we’re thrilled to welcome Guy Day, the Managing Director of Potentia, New Zealand’s leading independently owned tech recruitment company. With over 12 years of industry expertise, Guy isn’t just a celebrated recruitment leader; he’s also the RCSA Recruitment Leader of the Year for 2024, a title that underscores his impact on the industry.

Starting his career as an Esports professional, founding his own jewellery company! Using the proceeds from his first company, to retrain and make change, founding his first true start-up, ‘Uproar.gg’. After achieving a successful exit, Charlie delved deep into the world of investing, which showed him the pain-points of the industry that so many others are experiencing every day! Leading to him to co-founding and leading eccuity!

Auriga is an ‘innovation catalyser’, and a ‘people first leader’, with more than two decades of experience in technology leadership from many varying industries like online education, film, robotics, aviation, finance, and more!

Royden is part of a rare and valued profession and is one only 350 certified financial advisors in New Zealand! Through learning, giving advice, and sharing his knowledge for over two decades, he has helped to build peoples financial literacy, and give them help on their own financial journeys! Building on his amazing financial knowledge for so long has led to Royden building a groundbreaking financial modelling and analysis platform called ‘Planolitix’.

In this episode, we’re joined by the extremely successful and intelligent Jason Holdsworth, Who after closing the chapter of his life, achieving a great exit on a start-up he founded over 18 years, is embarking on a new chapter, dedicated to establishing a purpose driven collective, focussed on empowering entrepreneurs and professionals to achieve their life-long goals through the founding of the ‘Voluntas Group’.

In our eleventh episode, we’re doing something exciting! Introducing and letting you learn more about our host Helena Singh! Helena has been fulfilling her goal of supporting others to learn new skills and techniques to take care of their health and wellness through her holistic approach. Helena has been in the health-coaching game, using her amazing abilities as an empath for the good of others.

We’re joined by Neville Pinto, a start-up saviour with copious experience across the healthcare, government, banking and telecommunication industries. Currently acting as a project director for the Manukau Health Park expansion programme. Neville is a natural born leader, with copious years of financial expertise. Driving him forwards on his journey to wealth.

Eli has been impacting the health industry though technology, AI and developing partnerships with others to drive him, and All Health Medical forwards! A true empath, with a focus on creating wealth, not as a goal, but as a way of improving the lives and livelihoods of others.

Charlotte has been an accountant for over twenty years! Providing extreme levels of knowledge to all her clients and working tirelessly to improve not just her own life, but the lives of those around her. Which, with time, has led to fully actualising her dreams for both a financially, and holistically wealthy life.

In our seventh episode, we're joined by the experienced, persistent and intelligent Tony Walker. Tony has been a financial well-being specialist for over a decade, providing extremely valuable advice to his clients, at ImPower Limited.

Cornelius moved with his with to New Zealand in 2001, but his days of business began long before that. An extremely talented marketing focused investor who's built a life around what they prioritize, Their physical and monetary health, and their family.

The child of Generational Kiwi fruit farmers, Thomas is disrupting the New Zealand Agricultural industry through his start-up TerraSync. Thomas is already ahead of the curve with his property and stock investments, his intimate education of finance, and philosophical views on Wealth and the future.

we're joined by the Incredibly intelligent and motivated Mahesh Muralidhar Listen in, as we dive deep into the journeys that shaped Mahesh's financial success, as he shares invaluable tips, tricks, experiences, learnings, goals and ideologies that are sure to help you on your own journey.

In this episode of the Ways to Wealth Podcast. Jiya Rana, a recent graduate, who shares her ideas and perceptions around Wealth as someone who has only recently started their wealth creation journeyTune in as we dive deep into the journeys that shape financial success. Jiya shares valuable tips, tricks, experiences and learnings which will drive her forwards.

In our second episode, we're joined by mortgage advisor, jiu-jitsu enjoyer and business owner, Anthony Sage

In our very first episode, we're joined by the incredible mortgage advisor and esteemed podcast host, Darcy Ungaro.