Karamea Co.Starters Graduate with BIG Plans for Business Success
Off the Top of My Head
By Paul Murray
In the small rural enclave of Karamea in a community ravaged by COVID, seven local entrepreneurial ladies graduated from a 10-week Co.Starters business course on May 11, 2022.
About 20 people gathered for the occasion at Vinnie’s Cafe in Karamea to hear business pitch presentations from the respective participants. Heath Milne, CEO of Development West Coast (DWC), which sponsored the programme, attended the event. The participants, facilitators and people of Karamea thoroughly appreciated his effort to come to Karamea from his home near Greymouth for the celebration.

The Co.Starters programme takes a business idea and walks it through a logical series of steps over the course of 10 weeks to prepare the concept for market success. Co.Starters began in an economically challenged community in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The region faced high unemployment and the social issues associated with little hope, penury and lack of life purpose and meaningfulness. The programme was initially run in Karamea in 2016 when the region was facing significant economic challenges. Several new businesses became established, including a Vinnie’s Cafe and a Nature aHead hairdressing salon.
The 2022 course was conducted via ZOOM due to meeting restriction protocols relating to the COVID pandemic. Despite initial concerns, it worked out very well for all participants who could join from the comfort of their own homes. The online forum also permitted guest speakers to access the sessions from afar. Guest speakers zoomed-in from Nelson, Hokitika, Mexico and Japan and shared their knowledge and experience about specific facets of business. Participants could also ask questions and interact with the guest speakers.

The decision to host the programme by ZOOM turned out to have been prudent as halfway throgh the course, many participants, including the facilitators, succumbed to the lurgy and were required to home isolate. However, throughout the course, those who were able got together to discuss the challenges participants were facing and help each other out. The programme’s strength results from the synergies that evolve between the participants and the “better together” concept whereby everyone helps each other out for mutual benefit.
The business ideas were as diverse as the participants themselves, from a night sky star gazing activity (DUSK Dark Unique Skies Karamea) to a peaceful alternative to the Military-Industrial Complex (Peace Inc.). Also, a branch-mulching service (Chip-Chop (We Chip, What You Chop)), Permaculture Retreat (WeatherTop), Hikoia traditional Maori Flax-Weaving, a vegan food cart and artisan cheesemaker Dianne Anderson, who is already winning national awards for cheeses made from her own grass-fed dairy herd.
Seven of the nine starters graduated from the course. It was a great satisfaction for the facilitators to hear the business pitches on “Celebration Night” and recognise how much progress the participants had made in sharpening and consolidating their business ideas into a polished presentation and the confidence they had in sharing their business concepts publicly. Two Co.Starters graduates joined the Celebration Night by ZOOM and did their pitches online.
Liz Kerslake scooped two additional awards for Best Presentation and the Customer Count Award for discussing her business idea with more prospective customers to elicit their feedback. Dianne Anderson won the “People’s Choice Award,” which was voted on by the participants for the best business idea.




Many thanks to DWC for financially supporting the Co.Starters programme and to Amy McLaughlin of Tinker Creative for the $400 branding package (won by Liz Kerslake), Business Mentors NZ for a 12-month subscription (won by Dianne Anderson) and Daimon Schwalger of Nomad Audio and Video for a 45-second promotional video worth over $2,000 (won by Liz Kerslake).
Very special thanks also to Rachel Doolan from DWC for her enthusiastic and professional support and the superb guest speakers who freely offered their time, wisdom and experience to the course participants.
Guest Speakers:
• Don Grant, Penati
• Frank Witowski, Hybrid Bike
• Nadine Hickman, Peptalk Media
• Dave Barrett, Thorvald Cheese, Little River Cheese, Kahurangi Wine, The Junction
• Ali Boswijk, Nelson Tasman Chamber of Commerce
• Miguel Varella-Cid – New Era Imports
• Tash Dellaca – EPIC Westport
• Cindy Hopper, West Coast Scenic Waterways
• Rochelle Crossman – Karamea Village Hotel
Trumpet: The Don Plots Social Media Comeback
Off the Top of My Head
By Paul Murray
Former POTUS Donald Trump is planning a comeback from the social media wilderness to which he was cast after being banned from FaceBook/Twitter/Instagram et al. for repeated indiscretions, violations of posting protocols and for allegedly inciting a red-neck insurrection on Capitol Hill at the end of his White House reign.
Exclusion from social media platforms that gave Trump a voice, effectively silenced him by eliminating his principal means of addressing his followers who were hungry for short, punchy chunks of misinformation, vitriol and rhetoric.
At his prime, Trump had 88 million Twitter followers who were regularly enlightened by random snippets of thought posted from the comfort of his “smart” phone to his enthusiastic MAGA audience. “We live in a world where the Taliban has a huge presence on Twitter, yet your favourite American president has been silenced,” Trump claimed by e-mail.
The social media sanctions applied to Trump have muted his voice and given the world a welcome rest from his persistent bullying of opponents, bombastic misinformation and self-aggrandisement. However, this respite may soon end as The Don prepares for a significant comeback to social media by launching his own platform to circumvent the current and any future attempts to dumb the great man further.
Tentatively known as “Trumpet,” Trump’s planned social media service will open new doors for The Don and his followers. “Trumpet will be the greatest ever,” said Trump in a signed press release received in the mail yesterday. “It’ll be more fabulous than FaceBook, more tremendous than Twitter, Tik-Tok and Tumblr, less fake than FOX and more “IN” than Instagram,” he added.
The governors will definitely be off any Trump posts from a network he owns and controls, not being one for self-censorship, social etiquette, accepted norms, nor verifiable facts. First amendment rights will likely be tested, stretched and plumbed as he trumpets his mind to all and sundry from the safety of his own platform.
Trumpet will, of course, be the “best,” “greatest,” and will cast a dark shade over all other “loser” services. Here is a list of things Trump states he is best at:
Building walls… “I will build a great wall – and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me.”
Creating jobs... “I will be the greatest jobs president that God ever created. I tell you that, believe me.”
Being a defender and a champion… “I will be America’s greatest defender and most loyal champion, believe me.”
Helping women… “I cherish women. I want to help women. I’m going to be able to do things for women that no other candidate would be able to do.”
Not being anti-Semitic… “I am the least anti-Semitic person you’ve ever seen in your entire life.”
Not being racist... “I am the least racist person, the least racist person that you’ve ever seen, the least.”
Having words... “I know words; I have the best words.”
Handling bad stories… “I don’t mind bad stories. I can handle a bad story better than anybody, as long as it’s true.”
Understanding debt... “I’m the king of debt. I understand debt better than probably anybody. I know how to deal with debt so well. I love debt.”
Breaking the glass ceiling… “I was the one that really broke the glass ceiling on behalf of women more than anybody in the construction industry.”
Beating China at things... “When was the last time anybody saw [the US] beating, let’s say, China in a trade deal? They kill us. I beat China all the time. All the time.”
Golf courses… “Obama is going to be out playing golf. He might be on one of my courses. I would invite him, I actually would say. I have the best courses in the world, so I’d say, you know what, if he wants to.”
Social Media Services…” I’m the KING of social media…Trumpet will be bigger, better faster, smoother, louder, punchier, fatter, simpler, fancier, stronger, bitchier and more slanderous than anything ever before.”
Trump followed up with more back patting…”I went from VERY successful businessman, to top TV Star to President of the United States (on my first try). I think that would qualify as not smart, but genius….and a very stable genius at that,” He said.
After making numerous unsuccessful attempts to circumvent his tweeting ban regain his status at the Twitter podium, he concluded that going it alone was the only way to reclaim his social media mantle.
Should Trumpet achieve Trumps self-promotional aspirations, he is apparently planning a full orchestra of self-aggrandising mechanisms, including “Saxophone,” a mobile communications service, “Euphonium,” which will be dedicated to creating euphemisms and “Drum” an advertising and promotional instrument.
A jubilant Trump said in a postcard from Mar-a-Lago, Florida,” I’m totally excited to have this opportunity to again lead the world with my big brain and my little fingers via social media and this time, I will be able to say exactly what I want without pesky censorship or stupid rules and regulations.”
Rate this: