Why Mowbray donates

Nick Mowbray writes:

I’m aware of the criticism we receive for donating to National and ACT. I’m also aware of the false narrative that we lobby the government and expect something in return.

So let me be clear: we have never lobbied the government. Less than 1% of ZURU’s revenue is in New Zealand.

We donate because we care about this country’s future and believe National and ACT have the right talent and strategy to move it forward.

We grew up with that Kiwi number 8 wire mentality. Work hard figure things out and believe you can build something from nothing.

These photos show our second small factory on my parents’ dairy farm in Tokoroa, my brother winning the NZ science fair and our first factory in China. We used fibreglass matting from the Kinleith paper mill as flooring because we had no money. We sprayed weeds and milked cows on weekends to help pay the rent.

Then we moved to China and lived on US$1 a day for many years. No exaggeration. My brother spent close to a decade living in a tiny room inside our first factory. For a decade we worked almost every day from morning until late at night sacrificing pretty much every comfort to keep building.

Today, we compete globally with some of the biggest companies in the world. We employ thousands of people globally including hundreds of Kiwis, and aim to employ thousands more in New Zealand over the next five years. We will surpass NZ$10 billion in revenue next year and are investing heavily back into New Zealand.

That’s the future we want more Kiwis to have the opportunity to build. A New Zealand that rewards hard work and sacrifice backs people willing to take a chance and encourages them to compete globally and bring that success home. A country ambitious about becoming better and more prosperous.

New Zealand gave us a lot. We care deeply about its future. We expect nothing personally in return from any party. We simply want the next generation to have the opportunities we had and the chance to take them even further.

We want NZ to WIN ! build a country of makers not takers 💪

An incredible success story.