Our Whakapapa
Georgia's Kōrero
A Daughter's Story
In April 2019 my tumuaki (principal) from kura (school) told me about a wānanga (place of learning) in Rotorua that taught mau rākau (martial arts) and the ways of our ancestors for young Māori girls. The only problem was that she said I had to pay $600 dollars to attend this wānanga. So I went home and asked my mum and she told me I had to fund-raise myself, as we were off to Rarotonga in just three weeks.
I knew I couldn’t get a part time job after school as I am only twelve. So mum suggested I make poi (a ball like object, to which a cord of varying lengths is attached) as a fundraiser. I had made them in the past for presents for friends and whānau (family).
On a Saturday morning mum posted a message on Facebook for me as I was too young for my own page, explaining my need to fund-raise on how I really wanted to go to the wānanga and then mum and I went on with our day. We went to two opp-shops and brought a lot of wool and a large pillow for stuffing for $6. Then we brought bio-degradable plastic bags from the Warehouse. We headed home and almost immediately and in just three days we had made $1000 dollars.
So I went on my trip and also brought a GoPro to take on my trip to Rarotonga. Now mum and I are keen to pursue whether we could take our fundraising idea and make it into something bigger and greater
Anna's Kōrero
A Mother's Story
I am the mother of three inspirational children. My goal is to help them make their dreams come true. When Georgia first approached me with her need to make money fast, I knew she could do it. And as we began to make poi we became more clear that each and every one needed to be unique and special for each of her customers. We also began to think about a unique name for our mahi and what our core beliefs and values were.
As we began to start posting poi around Aotearoa and Australia, we felt it was important to use brown paper bags and I designed a logo to create a brand that our customers could become familar with.