A Hawkes Bay business dedicated to “powering up your day, one bite at a time” is the Supreme Winner of the New Zealand International Business Awards 2022, announced recently at the Awards’ first in-person event since 2019.
The Supreme Award winner, Rockit Global, is an apple company whose unique product – miniature apples – is now sold in more than 30 countries and grown in 10. Operating for more than 20 years, Rockit Global employs unique growing methods and technologies that are breaking new ground for their business and industry.
As well as the Supreme Award chosen by a panel of judges, Rockit Global also won the category award for Best Large Business.
Judges described Rockit Global as a worthy Supreme Award winner, due to an inspiring team with great global expertise that has successfully built their brand around a product that does not typically have a brand.
One judge commented that “Rockit Global have a good awareness of the risks they face and a deliberate strategic focus on managing issues such as maintaining consistency across different product sources. They’ve executed this so well that they can partner with big global brands and beat other apple products significantly, which is great evidence of success.”
A record 57 finalists made it through to the last stages of the Awards for 2022, following a rigorous application and judging process. Finalists represented a wide range of sectors, spanning digital services, food and beverage, consumer products, agritech and more, with a strong showing from regional New Zealand.
Winners across 10 award categories were chosen by an independent panel of judges with extensive experience in growing businesses internationally.
The gala ceremony in Auckland, attended by more than 550 guests including finalists, business leaders and VIPs, was the first in-person presentation of the New Zealand International Business Awards since 2019. No awards were held in 2020, and the 2021 ceremony was delivered as a live online broadcast.
A new award for 2022 was presented at the ceremony: Excellence in Brand Storytelling, sponsored by New Zealand Story. The inaugural winner was Bay of Plenty-based UBCO, manufacturer of utility electric vehicles. Judges commended UBCO for nailing their storytelling around purpose, people, and product.
A special award was also presented to VeVe for Extraordinary Growth in Emerging Business, alongside the overall winner for Best Emerging Business, Nui Markets. Minister for Trade and Export Growth, Damien O’Connor, presented the award for Best Medium Business to Dawn Aerospace and the award for Excellence in Innovation, won by Parkable, was presented by the Minister for Economic and Regional Development, Stuart Nash. The Minister for Māori Development, Willie Jackson, presented the He kai kei aku ringa for Māori Excellence in Export to Kiwa Digital.
David Downs, convenor of judges for the Awards, said: “These businesses have shown true spirit in navigating the challenges of the past few years. It was a pleasure to be able to recognise our extraordinary finalists and reveal the winners of this year’s awards.
“Doing business internationally is never easy. Throw in COVID-19 disruptions, supply chain issues and rising costs: companies which have navigated all of this, and then some, deserve to be celebrated. And for New Zealand, the determination and ingenuity they’ve shown has never mattered more.
“We’re genuinely privileged as judges to hear from these remarkable people and businesses. And the number of finalists in this year’s Awards – exceeding the record set for 2021 – is testament to the standards being set by exporters. They represent the hard work and the contribution that export businesses make to our economy and the communities we live in.”
For more information on the awards visit www.nziba.co.nz.
The New Zealand International Business Awards 2022 winners are:
Supreme Award, chosen from the winners of all categories: Winner: Rockit Global (Napier) www.rockitapple.com
Best Emerging Business: Winner - Nui Markets (Auckland) www.nuimarkets.com
Extraordinary Growth in Emerging Business: Winner - VeVe (Auckland) www.veve.me
Excellence in Integrating Digital Commerce for Growth: Winner – MitoQ (Auckland) www.mitoq.com
Excellence in Sustainability, brought to you by ANZ: Winner - Ethique (Christchurch) www.ethiqueworld.com
Inspiring Women Leaders, brought to you by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade | Manatū Aorere: Winner - Frances Shoemack, Abel Odor Limited (Wellington) www.abelodor.com
Excellence in Innovation: Winner – Parkable (Auckland) www.parkable.com
Leveraging Investment for International Growth, brought to you by Invest New Zealand: Winner -Auror (Auckland) www.auror.co
He kai kei aku ringa for Māori Excellence in Export: Winner - Kiwa Digital (Auckland) www.kiwadigital.com
Excellence in Brand Storytelling, brought to you by New Zealand Story: Winner – UBCO (Tauranga) www.ubco.com
Best Medium Business: Winner - Dawn Aerospace (Christchurch) www.dawnaerospace.com
Best Large Business: Winner - Rockit Global (Hawkes Bay) www.rockitapple.com