Our People

A three-time America’s Cup winning team member is back on a boat but in a wooden dinghy.

An Auckland chicken-restaurant chain founded on a wing and a prayer is now one of New Zealand’s fastest-growing businesses thanks to the adaptability  of its owners.

Journalist and art critic Anthony Byrt is doing his bit to make the world – and Northland – a better place.

Art gallery founder Pauline Bianchi has overcome a life-threatening accident to create a meaningful life with her  6 year-old daughter Valentina.

Greg and Rachel Hart share a mission: to connect New Zealanders with what they eat, how they live and with the planet itself.

From a little girl in her mother’s Auckland studio to the big-city stages of the world, ballerina Clytie Campbell’s career has swept from one act to the next.

Breathing new life into an old church has taken more than a decade and cost twice the estimate but the owners are in heaven.

A revelation turned an experienced and successful architect away from the traditional styles in which he’d always worked towards something far more organic.

NZ Life & Leisure proudly supports the annual Outstanding NZ Food Producer Awards. With 150 entries, from the Catlins to Kaitaia, the judges were spoilt for choice.

New Zealand towns and cities are crying out for more town criers. Two sisters are ringing the bell for a proud (and loud) institution.

Golden Bay writer Charlotte Squire learned a lot about life in downsizing her family into a 27sqm home

It’s almost time for the announcement of the winner of the Outstanding NZ Food Producer Awards 2017 so thisNZlife asked the award judges to reveal their kitchen secrets.

Kirsten Gilmour is winning the hearts and stomachs of Scottish food critics one sweetcorn fritter at a time in her cafe in the Scottish Highlands.

Food in a refrigerator won’t last long without power so plan your food usage carefully to avoid contamination.

Meet the selection of creative female go-getters selling their wares at the Rural Ladies marketplace.

From two sprawling high-country stations on either side of the Waitaki River, two young and creative rural ladies are empowering and connecting like-minded women.

An Auckland entrepreneur is earning a crust with a clever bread mix business.

An Auckland-based technology entrepreneur is making going to the doctor as easy as pushing a button

Some businesses are disguising their employees  as volunteers, so are you breaking the law when you host a wwoofer from another volunteer scheme?

Mexican photographer Carla Danieli had never spent time on a farm before her stay on a remote station in the Waihopai Valley.

Chris Parry, drummer for the iconic 1960s band Fourmyula and manager of British bands the Jam and the Cure, left New Zealand 50 years ago expecting never to return. But that was until he found a soul-soaring piece of turf he now calls home.

Two brothers have turned a patch of Wanaka into a lavender business in full bloom.

Although losing her sight meant the end of artist Juliet Jackson’s love affair with painting, it sparked a new-found passion for the written word.

A creative couple has spun a niche business by fusing old-world hand-weaving and modern design.

Amazing Spaces host George Clarke is in New Zealand to build a tiny house with Mitre 10. He weighs in on two innovative tiny homes recently featured on thisNZlife.

Kim Donker has turned a baking hobby into a thriving home business. She shares tips for getting started without breaking the bank.

Friends told Peter and Ellen Jarratt they were reckless, crazy and throwing it all away when they upped sticks to follow their hearts. But they did it anyway.

Reader responses: should we change the school term dates?

In the February Kate Coughlan made a case for shifting the school holidays until February. We had an overwhelming response.

Monique Fiso is one of the most innovative young chefs in Maori and Pacific cuisine, but it took a job halfway around the world for her to discover her true passion.

A love of beautiful things- particularly weddings- has transformed the lives of a Southland family from the ground up.

When a crane swung two shipping containers over the treetops of a cherry orchard it signalled the start of a new way of life for the Heeringa family.

The Mussel Inn beats at the heart of Golden Bay's creative, organic community. Its music-loving owners created it with grit, vision... and a bit of inspiration from Bob Dylan.

Cows and sheep aren’t the only creatures enjoying the bucolic life — holiday-making families can too. as farmers look for new ways to diversify, home-stays and holiday rentals, even posh camping sites – are on the rise.

Surf-loving foodies Jason and Melissa Philips downsized and relocated to the Wairarapa to give their hand-rolled burrito business the best chance of catching a big break.