New gift company highlights Hawke’s Bay’s best products with curated giftboxes

Helen Marchal, left, with Fergus and Josh Smith of Hawke's Bay Gift Collective.

• Hawke’s Bay Gift Collective founded by Josh Smith and Helen Marchal curates premium gift boxes.
• The company aims to support local businesses and showcase Hawke’s Bay products to the wider country and world.
• Gift boxes range from $40 to $80 and come in a range of selections.

A new Hawke’s Bay company is creating world-class giftboxes filled with the best products the region has to offer.

Hawke’s Bay Gift Collective, started by couple Josh Smith and Helen Marchal from Havelock North, curates premium gift boxes showcasing Hawke’s Bay products.

Smith and Marchal started the company on “a bit of a whim” when they saw many local businesses struggling from either lack of exposure or lack of sales.

“We’re quite passionate about supporting local businesses and showcasing what Hawke’s Bay has to offer and Hawke’s Bay Gift Collective kind of is a way for us to showcase the local companies in ... a high-quality manner,” Smith said.

“Our moral is ‘don’t forget your roots'. There’s a lot of people outsourcing this sort of stuff, but you’ve got a lot of good talent locally that’s just not getting seen.

“We just want to make it easier for everyone to experience the best of Hawke’s Bay.”

The boxes range from $40 to $80, with options for “absolutely everyone and anything” containing high-end food products, wellness goods, and more.

A gift box from Hawke's Bay Gift Collective featuring products from Te Mata Figs and clover comb honey from Arataki Honey.

“For us we don’t really want it to be for just dates and things like that,” Smith said.

“It can be for special occasions, a thank you, or even just wanting to get a gift for someone to make their day better.”

The couple are currently taking orders via their Facebook and Instagram pages while their website is built.

Smith and Marchal are looking to add to their extensive list of local suppliers and say they are open to hearing from local businesses if they want that extra exposure.

“We’re always looking to add things,” Smith said.

Jack Riddell is a multimedia journalist with Hawke’s Bay Today and spent the last 15 years working in radio and media in Auckland, London, Berlin, and Napier. He reports on all stories relevant to residents of the region.