Shar Matafeo is one of five siblings who now look after the Lady Dora's supermarket in South Auckland. Photo / Supplied
Shar Matafeo is one of five siblings who now look after the Lady Dora's supermarket in South Auckland. Photo / Supplied
Fruit and vegetables - with a side of panikeke - served with a smile.
That is what people can find when they step into one of Ōtahuhu's most well-known food markets now run by five Samoan siblings.
They are the third generation of the family that started the Lady Dora's Wholesale Produce Market on Walmsley Rd back in the 1980s.
Chief financial officer Shar Matafeo, 23, described a business that started off like many others - with humble beginnings.
"Lady Dora's started from our grandmother. She had a table set up at the local flea market and would go with a very small van to gather produce from farmers.
"No one took her seriously at the time. She was a grandmother trying to provide for everyone else."
Matafeo describes what his own parents' lives were like at the time also.
"Mum and Dad had to mix formulas for milk bottles while trying to pick onion and potato bags. They gave everything they could to get us to where we are now."
Keeping it fresh: Lady Dora's also head out to the Māngere market at the weekend. Photo / Supplied
When Covid-19 started to sweep the world and restrictions started to change the way many things were done - including business - the family changed tack and decided to bring in the younger generation to take over.
How harnessing social media changed the advertising game
Matafeo is a former Papakura High School head boy and is now a law and business student.
He became the store's chief financial officer; while siblings Lady Dora Jr, Anzac, Sallyann and Williams also took on other roles.
Navigating the business world during a pandemic was no easy task, he said, but social media offered a fresh marketing opportunity.
Sister Sallyann Matafeo is the business director, general manager and brain behind Lady Dora's marketing strategy - taking the business from a flea market stall to a one-stop island food shop all while being watched by thousands of followers.
"[At the market] I would be standing on a crate calling out to people. My voice would echo out and that was our marketing.
"When Covid hit, we needed to find a way to not break the bank and get the word out there," Sallyann Matafeo said.
The siblings moved on to selling produce through Facebook Marketplace - giving a more personal experience and connecting with the older generation of Samoan customers by speaking their mother tongue.
"With Covid, the older generation were forced to use social media to communicate with family.
"That helped us to reach customers that can benefit from the products that we have. For example, the things from (their parents' business in Samoa) Shars Produce Samoa."
Their online presence increased exponentially with the addition of TikTok Live, with hundreds of customers tuning in to hear the daily specials and interact with the team on a personal level.
Lady Dora's has grown from their grandmother's humble stall at the local flea market to a wholefoods supermarket in Ōtāhuhu. Photo / Supplied
The siblings have stayed true to their cultural values, putting community and kindness first over profit.
Before opening their current store in Ōtāhuhu, Lady Dora's would supply other grocers in Auckland, but they were disappointed that their competitively low pricing was not being enjoyed by customers at the final point of sale.
"We're advocating for our people more than ever with the cost of living going crazy," Matafeo says.
"We understand you have to balance overheads and expenses but not to the point where you're making over 120% on the products we're giving you."
"We're really young to the game. The older guys are always about the bottom line and I get that.
"But the bottom line can be satisfied without you rolling around with a Gucci watch. You don't need that. As long as you know in yourself you're doing what's right for everyone else."
Doing what's right at Lady Dora's means giving away meals at the end of the day to avoid wastage, changing the menu and atmosphere in response to customer feedback and even donating to the relief effort in Tonga after the eruption of the Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai undersea volcano earlier this year.
"Business can challenge a lot of Pacific values and pull families apart. Don't let it. Always remember, family is the most important thing.
"It's not like going into business with a business partner. If the ship sinks, you better be on it. Don't jump off that ship. You're in it together."
