Hawkes Bay Today
  • Hawke's Bay Today home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Havelock North
  • Central Hawke's Bay
  • Tararua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Gisborne

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Hawkes Bay Today

Joining together to help the good of the business

By by Patrick O'Sullivan
Hawkes Bay Today·
16 Nov, 2015 09:27 AM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

SORTED: Stevie Rangiawha (left), Margaret Taylor, Glenda McCleland and Sandra Jimmieson are the new owners of Tangaroa Seafoods. PHOTO/DUNCAN BROWN

SORTED: Stevie Rangiawha (left), Margaret Taylor, Glenda McCleland and Sandra Jimmieson are the new owners of Tangaroa Seafoods. PHOTO/DUNCAN BROWN

THE DAY Margaret Taylor left to go on a trip-of-a-lifetime to Route 66 in the United States she found out she wouldn't have a job when she returned - Tangaroa Seafoods was closing.

It was formed five years ago when, after 16 years of running Pacific Trawling, Chris Robinson and Sue Taylor partnered with fish filleting expert Kelvin Gattsche to supply the Hawke's Bay market with quality local fish.

Based at the end of industrial Tangaroa Rd in Ahuriri, it processed its own catch and supplied restaurants, opening its own shop a year later.

Pacific Trawling was still recovering from a joint-venture partner pulling out in 2004 and the fleet built up again without support from banks.

A catastrophic engine failure to its main trawler in 2011 put the fishing arm out of action but, despite owing no money on the Tangaroa Rd property, the banks did not assist.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

In 2012 the decision was made to put the business on the market or sell assets to clear debts, but their customers protested loudly.

"I guess I just got pissed off and had enough, but since that decision we had so much support from customers," Mr Robinson said at the time.

"They are saying, you can't do this, our fish is just so much better, consistent and reliable and our ordering system is great," Mr Robinson said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"The support we have had has been terrific."

The business continued but its primary source of fish was from outside Hawke's Bay.

With overheads on the large Tangaroa Rd property outweighing income from the shop, and Mr Robinson pursuing engineering opportunities, the decision was again made to close Tangaroa Seafoods' doors.

The four staff that ran the shop had other ideas.

Discover more

Business

Kiwi drone company really taking off in the US

16 Nov 09:49 PM

Property company NPT appoints new CFO

17 Nov 01:00 AM

"This is a good business, with good clientele," Glenda McCleland said.

"We've had good feedback, it's a good product and with no complaints."

She suggested they run the shop themselves and a call to their airport-bound colleague made the decision unanimous.

They approached Mr Robinson who said it was a good idea.

"I have never owned a business, Glenda hasn't, Sandra hasn't, Margaret had a dairy years and years ago - 30 years ago maybe - so it was a bit of a scary situation," Stevie Rangiawha said.

"He gave us all the phone numbers and a lesson on how to order the fish, who to talk to and what times to ring. We have to do that every morning to make sure we get fresh fish every day."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

He suggested Ray McKimm for additional business advice.

The McKimm family bought the former British American Tobacco site in 2007 as a base for their BigSave Furniture business, becoming the largest landholder in the Ahuriri commercial property precinct.

Ray McKimm is more a father figure than landlord to new businesses in his nearby Ahuriri Business Park.

"We showed him all the figures and told him what we were going to do. He did a bit of a business plan for us - he worked it all out in a couple of days - and he said, you have a good little business going."

They closed the doors for a week.

"We had to shut the shop because none of us knew what we were doing. We had to get our head around the fact that we were going to own the business and we needed to go and see people about it - accountants, lawyers, all sorts of people. We had signs of the window saying, sorry we are closed for a week, and we did lose customers."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

On October 13 they re-opened and haven't looked back.

"We went without wages for the first two weeks, we all agreed to do that. It was very hard but we are getting a wage now, making money and paying our bills."

Ms McCleland suggested they also stock eggs and vegetables, which now accounts for 30 per cent of turnover.

"The amazing thing is we have always only sold fish but within hours customers were asking, 'May I have lettuce, may I have tomatoes?" she said.

Shortage of local fish supply continues.

The majority is couriered overnight from throughout the country.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Honestly, you have to race to get the fish. We have to ring at a certain time and if you don't, you miss out. There is just not enough fish out there," Ms Rangiawha said.

Their former boss, now landlord, continues to help them. "Chris is been showing us how to fillet ourselves, and eventually we will fillet our own, that way will be even cheaper for the customer."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Business

Premium
Hawkes Bay Today

$30 billion blast-off: Why Rocket Lab just hit an all-time high

08 Jul 03:33 AM
Premium
Opinion

NZ is in economic purgatory, and indicators are flashing red

27 Jun 06:00 PM
Premium
Opinion

Nick Stewart: What if you die with a big KiwiSaver balance?

30 May 08:43 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Business

Premium
$30 billion blast-off: Why Rocket Lab just hit an all-time high

$30 billion blast-off: Why Rocket Lab just hit an all-time high

08 Jul 03:33 AM

Recent US political developments impact Rocket Lab, Infratil and Allbirds.

Premium
NZ is in economic purgatory, and indicators are flashing red

NZ is in economic purgatory, and indicators are flashing red

27 Jun 06:00 PM
Premium
Nick Stewart: What if you die with a big KiwiSaver balance?

Nick Stewart: What if you die with a big KiwiSaver balance?

30 May 08:43 PM
'She is not going to prison': Woman avoids jail after cousin's fatal mattress fall from car roof

'She is not going to prison': Woman avoids jail after cousin's fatal mattress fall from car roof

26 May 07:00 AM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Hawke's Bay Today e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Hawke's Bay Today
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP