(Translated by https://www.hiragana.jp/)
Business | The Spinoff

Business

Pacific profiles: Meet Ken the barber, who does more than cut hair

'With some of my regular clients, I often wonder if they even talk to their partners when I hear some of the things they say to me. It’s like counselling.'

By Litia Tuiburelevu | 16th August, 2024

A thank you to our interest rate-cutting heroes, the unemployed

First we tell people they need to stop working to bring down inflation, then once they do, we tell them they’d better start working or else.

By Hayden Donnell | 16th August, 2024

New report reveals Auckland still has no idea what it wants to be when it grows up

Mayor Wayne Brown says the report is worthless. Duncan Greive disagrees.

By Duncan Greive | 14th August, 2024

Our electricity market is short-circuiting. Can it be fixed?

Small retailers argue we’re paying way too much for power. Big ones say the system is working just fine. Who are we to believe?

By Duncan Greive | 12th August, 2024

There’s chaos on global markets. What’s driving it? And should you panic too?

The latest market plunge has eerie echoes of 87. Here's what you need to know.

By Duncan Greive | 6th August, 2024

The case for selling (some of) Kiwibank

The case for selling (some of) Kiwibank

Is it less scary if the government sells it… to the government?

By Duncan Greive | 31st July, 2024

Steve Jobs and Jeff Bezos

20 years ago, Apple won music and Amazon won books. How’s that working out?

Book publishing, video games and recorded music all faced the enormous power of the internet 20 years ago. Their financial fates have wildly diverged.

By Duncan Greive | 30th July, 2024

Death is as natural as going to your local chippy, but without the same consumer guarantee.

Zero stars: Rating the experience of death and dying in Aotearoa

Having a Yelp for death doesn't just force us to talk about dying - it might just improve the quality of death, too.

By Lyric Waiwiri-Smith | 26th July, 2024

The more you know about AI, the more helpfully boring it becomes

The more you know about AI, the more helpfully boring it becomes

Bearing the scars of the social media hype cycle, a sceptic immerses herself in an AI bubble.

By Anna Rawhiti-Connell | 19th July, 2024

Stripey polyprop, L-R: In Utah in 1999, in a Kathmandu promo pic in 2014, in the Himalayas in 2007 (pictures courtesy Emily Lane, Kathmandu, Kaaren Mathias respectively)

Rainbow warmth and garish colours: When did stripy polyprop disappear?

New Zealand used to be a country of vibrant synthetic striped polyprop. What happened?

By Shanti Mathias | 8th July, 2024

Hanging lights in a tree on Courtenay Place. Photo: Joel MacManus

Windbag: Holy shit, there are hanging lights in that tree!

Courtenay Place is dead. Long live Courtenay Precinct.

By Joel MacManus | 8th July, 2024

Wellington editor

Death of a newsroom: If only Newshub’s closure was mismanagement

Death of a newsroom: If only Newshub’s closure was mismanagement

The former chief news officer at Newshub reflects on, and explains, the end of a news era.

By Hal Crawford | 4th July, 2024

Contributing writer

Dunedin’s Kmart is back from the dead

Dunedin’s Kmart is back from the dead

For four long years, Dunedin has been without a Kmart. Hera Lindsay Bird marks its return.

By Hera Lindsay Bird | 3rd July, 2024

Contributing writer

Judith Collins at a Parliament press conference, August 31 2021 (Photo: Mark Mitchell – Pool/Getty Images)

What might Judith Collins’ abrupt shutdown of one small agency mean for NZ business?

The swift demise of a business support agency suggests a sharp change in the view of how government should relate to industry.

By Duncan Greive | 27th June, 2024

The first Climate Tech Summit Aotearoa was held at St James Theatre on June 20

Windbag: Wellington thinks it has found its next superstar industry – climate tech

At a flashy conference at St James Theatre, the capital pitched itself as a future global hub for hi-tech climate action.

By Joel MacManus | 24th June, 2024

Wellington editor

Pacific profiles: The man behind Junk & Disorderly and the Central Flea Market

Pacific profiles: The man behind Junk & Disorderly and the Central Flea Market

The Pacific profiles series shines a light on Pacific people in Aotearoa doing interesting and important work in their communities, as nominated by members of the public.

By Litia Tuiburelevu | 22nd June, 2024