As one distribution company manager says, "Why would you not want to live, work and play in Taupō?"
Mike McGrath, manager at Jasco Distributing, says you only have to look out the window to see the advantages of living and working in Taupō.
"The Taupō District has everything you need. For a distribution company, we're not far from anywhere and that's a huge advantage for us. Then there's the work/life balance - which is a big drawcard," McGrath says.
It’s a sentiment Dale Aldridge, operations manager at Terrain Industries, agrees with.
"People think of Taupō as a tourist destination, and it is. But the reason Taupō was established in the first place is because it was built on agriculture and industry - those are still thriving," Aldridge says.
Rather than being in the centre of nowhere, Taupō is actually in the centre of everywhere, Kylie Hawker-Green, Enterprise Great Lake Taupō general manager says.
"With State Highway 1 running right through the centre of the district, Taupō is the perfect destination for industrial or distribution businesses.
"Freight companies drive right past our doorstep," she says.
"We're surrounded by main hubs, and that's a definite benefit," Aldridge says.
And while there may be costs to transport imported products, these are offset by savings in other areas of the business, such as rent.
'There’s more to life than sitting in traffic'
It takes Aldridge around eight minutes to get to work, and he's able to go home for lunch.
"There's more to life than sitting in traffic," he says.
When he was based in Auckland, his twice-daily commute was at least 45-minutes each way, and buying a house seemed like an impossible dream.
"Now we're house-shopping and planning an overseas holiday," he says.
According to economic data, the average current house value was $492,326 in the Taupō District over the December 2018 year. This compares with $680,063 in New Zealand.
McGrath says Jasco is a family-owned business, with family values at its core. He believes the location of the business in the Taupō District helps staff stay connected, avoid burnout and thrive, which helps the business thrive in return.
"Because it's not far to get anywhere, there's not that stress that comes with sitting in traffic - having places to be, but not being able to get there."
In terms of raising a family, the close proximity means parents can be involved in their kids' activities and not miss out on family time.
"Taupō is, of course, a big tourist hot-spot and that suits the locals, too," McGrath says.
With state-of-the-art sports fields, biking tracks, ski-fields and natural attractions readily available, there's no shortage of activities to get involved in.
"Taupō has a huge community focus. When an event like Ironman happens, the whole community gets behind it, businesses included. And that is special - as a business you really feel like you're part of something," he says.
Help getting established
That sense of belonging starts from the moment a business decides to locate to the Taupō district.
“We at greatopportunities.co.nz help bring businesses into Taupō and assist them with things like Council for resource and housing building consents, as well as connect them into the local business network,” Hawker-Green says.
“We’ve helped more than 50 businesses in the last few years make the move here and get established.”
She says there is industrial land available for development, and sites already available for any business thinking of establishing, expanding or relocating.
This article is created for Enterprise Great Lake Taupo
