Rimini Street, Inc. (Nasdaq: RMNI), a global provider of end-to-end enterprise software support, products and services, the leading third-party support provider for Oracle and SAP software, and a Salesforce and AWS partner, today announced that University of Auckland, New Zealand’s largest higher-learning institute, has expanded its use of Rimini Street’s portfolio of services to include Rimini Support™ for Oracle software, Rimini Manage™ and Rimini Protect™, becoming one of more than 100 clients leveraging Rimini ONE™, the end-to-end, unified and integration solution for enterprise applications, databases and technology software. This strategic decision has allowed the university to dedicate its IT team’s focus towards its upcoming ERP migration, a transformational project expected to take 10 years for completion across multiple phases, and greatly enhance the end user experience and capabilities for its growing number of students and staff.
While University of Auckland’s core Oracle application was being expertly supported by Rimini Street, the complexity the university encountered of managing competing applications with a very limited number of IT staff, coupled with a shrinking pool of skilled engineers familiar with their current ERP investments, became the catalyst for the decision to review its technology roadmap strategy. Based on a cost and resource needs analysis, the university decided against upgrading its Oracle applications as the ROI was insufficient. Instead, the university elected to migrate to a next-generation, composable ERP platform.
As a trusted support provider with intimate knowledge of their technology landscape and years of proven success, Rimini Street was the university’s first choice when selecting a managed service provider to take on the day-to-day operation of its HR system – allowing the university to re-allocate their IT team’s time and focus to the ERP migration project.
“The value of Rimini ONE isn’t just about enabling the move to a new system, but to build out a roadmap that is proactive and designed to last,” said Jo Batchelor, head of product engineering at University of Auckland. “It’s really empowering to have Rimini Street as a true and trusted partner, giving us greater confidence and capabilities as we go through this complex ERP migration journey.”
Based on Rimini Street’s analysis and Smart Path™ recommendations, the university performed an internal audit of its ERP platforms, learning the scope and amount of data in their HR and finance systems that they would need to protect.
“There is a huge amount of data in our HR, finance and campus solutions that we need to make sure is absolutely safe and secure. The extra layer of security that Rimini Protect provides us is a solution we cannot afford to be without,” said Batchelor.
“Rimini Street is proud to continue partnering with and delivering excellence for the University of Auckland, allowing them to positively impact the community by offering more robust learning programs that greatly benefit the next generation of professionals and members of society at affordable costs,” said Daniel Benad, group vice president and general manager of Oceania, Rimini Street.
Explore the full Rimini Street portfolio of ultra-responsive, trusted and proven support, managed services, security, integration, observability, professional services and Rimini ONE™ outsourcing solutions for SAP, Oracle and Salesforce applications to support competitive advantage, profitability and growth.
Cloud technology plays a critical role in solving complex problems for Aotearoa — across both national and local levels and today, I’m pleased to share that Google Cloud has signed an All-of-Government Cloud Framework Agreement with the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), to accelerate public sector cloud adoption to deliver improved digital experiences for Kiwis.
Simply put, this means that eligible government agencies will have standardised and simplified access to our technology and services so they can modernise their legacy systems and build new applications that serve New Zealanders quickly and securely.
The agreement covers Google Cloud Platform (GCP) including data and analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML) tools, Google Workspace, as well as professional cloud services and Security Operations Services (SecOps).
The Framework Agreement builds on Google Cloud’s deep investment in New Zealand. Last year, Google Cloud announced plans for its first ever cloud region in New Zealand, offering resiliency, low-latency connectivity, and scalability to Kiwi customers. According to a recent Economic Impact Report by Access Partnership, the new Google Cloud region will support the country’s economic growth, with a predicted NZD$4.2 billion in productivity benefits being generated between 2025 and 2030.
Google has been supporting New Zealand businesses and communities since 2007. With government initiatives such as the Google in Schools Agreement, Google Cloud has worked with the Ministry of Education to provide schools using Google solutions, with digital tools that support safe modern digital learning environments. Google is also part of the Digital Boost Alliance with the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), offering digital training and expertise to support the digitisation of small businesses.
We’re committed to working closely with the New Zealand Government to provide secure and sustainable solutions to all Kiwis. This government agreement is a welcome addition to Google Cloud's rapidly growing presence in New Zealand's Enterprise, Education and SME sectors and we are aware that security of data and the digitisation of government are critical to building trust in the public sector.
Source: https://newzealand.googleblog.com/
Next stop, the United States of America.
A Hawke’s Bay pet food start-up company, Animals Like Us, only launched in late 2020 but now has its dog and cat food products in hundreds of supermarkets across New Zealand and Australia.
It also has ambitious plans to launch in the US early next year.
The company is turning plenty of heads as a rising Hawke’s Bay exporter, and has been named a finalist in three out of four categories at the upcoming Hawke’s Bay Export Awards being held on August 10. Those awards also encompass Gisborne and Dannevirke.
Animals Like Us co-founder and CEO Rob Achten said the start-up company was “very ambitious with our plans for the US” after rolling out in Woolworths supermarkets across Australia earlier this year.
“A lot of New Zealand companies want to start off small, and we can get criticised a little bit for not thinking big enough, but I hope that does not apply to us.
“We are ambitious and want to grow quickly.”
The company has been named a finalist for the Best Emerging Business Award and Excellence in Innovation Award, while head of operations Rebecca Klee has been named a finalist for the Inspiring Women in Export Award.
Animals Like Us has its headquarters in Hastings and manufactures its dog and cat food products, through a contractor in Waipukurau.
The company decided early on to target supermarkets as opposed to solely selling in pet stores, which Achten said was rare for premium pet food.
“About 75 per cent of pet food is sold in supermarkets but most of it is at the budget end,” he said.
“People said that is not going to work [selling our product in supermarkets] it is just way too expensive. But two and a half years on we are in over 300 supermarkets in New Zealand and we are also in the very best pet stores as well.”
Pet food giant Ziwi also operates out of Hawke’s Bay, having opened its $85 million mega kitchen in Awatoto last year, and Achten said the region “is becoming a good hub in terms of raw material supplies”.
Klee said it was an honour to be recognised as a finalist for the Inspiring Women in Export Award.
“It’s hard to believe that we are not quite three years in and what we have achieved,” she said.
“To be nominated alongside someone like Sally [Gallagher, from The Apple Press] is really humbling.”
Animals Like Us was co-founded by Achten, Jeremy Moon and Craig Hickson.
2023 ExportNZ ASB Hawke’s Bay Export Awards finalists
Best Emerging Business: Animals Like Us (Hastings), Senator Boats (Napier), Wisewool (Gisborne) Rare New Zealand (Hastings) and Nibblish (Havelock North)
Excellence in Innovation: Prevar (Havelock North), T&G Global (Hastings), StardustME (Gisborne) and Animals Like Us (Hastings)
Best Established Business: Pultron Composites (Gisborne), Metalform (Dannevirke) and Fingermark (Havelock North)
Inspiring Women in Export Award: Anna Holdsworth (Pultron Composites), Sally Gallagher (The Apple Press), Rebecca Klee (Animals Like Us), and Sue de Bievre (Beany)
The winners of each business category will contest the supreme award of ASB Exporter of the Year and will automatically go to the New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) International Business Awards in Auckland in November.
Last year’s ASB Exporter of the Year was Rockit Global from Hastings.
Source: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/
Indo-Pacific Economic Framework - NZ US Council and AMCHAM NZ Perspectives The NZ US Council and the American Chamber of Commerce in New Zealand partner with each other in pursuit of strong and enduring ties between New Zealand and the United States. The NZ US Council was founded in 2001 as a non-partisan, non-Government organisation, focused on advancing New Zealand’s relationship with the United States. The Council has secured a position as a preeminent policy conduit for business, academia and others invested in NZ US connections, to engage in formal and informal policy processes. AMCHAM New Zealand is an active and much respected champion of companies and entrepreneurs growing the commercial linkages with the United States and building effective networks of businesspeople. Both organisations have been following with close interest the structure and substance of the evolving Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. The economic weight and trade potential of the participants is self-evident. Given current multilateral and geopolitical challenges impacting on our region, we welcome this initiative to reinforce a rules based policy framework. While the level of commitment to more traditional trade access elements of plurilateral agreements is less ambitious and less comprehensive than either of our organisations would ideally like to see, we accept that the process can establish a framework of policy architecture amongst its fourteen participating members. We would like to see this developed and expanded in due course. It remains our enduring goal to have the US reengage with CPTPP in the future. We also support and remain invested in the pillars which address important emerging trade considerations and valid sustainability and labour considerations. The excellent work that has been done on the supply chain pillar is especially valuable for New Zealand. US leadership in guiding the outcome associated with this pillar was greatly appreciated in New Zealand, as an active and outwards looking trading country with diverse economic interests, engaged in many different sectors and constructive partnerships with US entities. We are an efficient and well-respected food producer, but we are also at the forefront (in terms of innovation if not scale) of sectors such as gaming, film, aerospace, medical research, software development and sustainability technologies. We accord immense value to our partnerships with the United States in these areas. It is also crucial that investors in the region can have confidence that there is a manageable level of risk when exploring opportunities in new territory. We see good structure around labour, the environment, efforts to stamp out corruption and support for good governance as critically important confidence building measures. Although we would have liked to see more emphasis on reducing tariffs and addressing non-tariff barriers our support of IPEF remains strong and unequivocal. We look forward to making a constructive contribution to the process in any way we can.
AFT Pharmaceuticals (ASX: AFP, NZX: AFT) announces an extension of its global ecommerce strategy with the launch of online stores on Amazon in the US and Australia. The new AFT Pharmaceuticals-branded stores on the North American-facing https://www.amazon.com/AFTPharmaceuticals and the Australian facing https://www.amazon.com.au/AFTPharmaceuticals sites complement and build on AFT’s global e-commerce strategy. This includes a Tmall site through which AFT sells into China using the cross-border ecommerce platform https://kiwihealthbjp.tmall.hk/ , and the broad online presence we already enjoy in Australia with our own AFT Pharm website shop https://nzshop.aftpharm.com/. The Australian site also supports our extensive distribution network through pharmacies, medical practices and hospitals https://aushop.aftpharm.com/.
AFT has been working with Sell Global, a specialist Amazon agency, to launch on Amazon USA and Australia. The project so far has included researching the market opportunity, understanding the compliance requirements for imports, setting up quality product listings and brand presence, and now advertising and promoting on Amazon. The US and Australian Amazon sites will initially carry AFT’s trusted portfolio of Liposomal vitamins, but additional launches of other products are planned for the Australian store in the coming months and the North American site after the initial launch is satisfactorily completed. The products, which will be available for US, Canadian, and Australian customers, include Vitamin C LipoSachet®, Vitamin C LipoSachet® for Kids, Vitamin D LipoSachet®, and Ferro (Iron) LipoSachet®. AFT Pharmaceuticals Founder and Managing Director Dr Hartley Atkinson said: “The Amazon AFT Pharmaceuticals e-commerce store aims to leverage off the existing strong awareness of Liposomal vitamins in the US. To date this interest has mainly centred around liposomal Vitamin C but AFT will also include both Vitamin D and Iron forms of liposomal vitamins. “The products offer a further growth opportunity for AFT’s international business unit. The US is the world’s largest market for nutritional supplements and is growing rapidly. The North America dietary supplements market size was valued at over USD50 billion in 2020 and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.6% from 2021 to 2028” Dr Atkinson said.
“Building our online presence is a further element of our strategy to extend AFT’s reach around the world. It builds on the strong growth we are seeing in the Australasian business, which is being fuelled by growth from existing products and a planned 68 new product launches through until the end of FY26. “Our ecommerce presence enhances our brand recognitions in key markets enabling us to make our products readily accessible to consumers globally.
“We also see further potential to expand our online presence. Notably, in China we are also working to further build and evolve our existing on-line cross border ecommerce presence through both additional products and e-commerce platforms. “These growth initiatives will also be supported by products emerging from our extensive research and development pipeline.” We have also expanded our operational hubs in Singapore and Malaysia to include Hong Kong and the United Kingdom. This will allow us to add selected products from our new and existing Australasian pipeline to these additional markets” Dr Atkinson said.
Source: https://investors.aftpharm.com/
AmChams of Asia Pacific to Meet with Biden Administration and Congressional Leaders to Discuss Importance of Increasing Regional Economic Leadership and Engagement
WASHINGTON, DC (JULY 13): The AmChams of Asia Pacific (“AAP”), the umbrella organization of 25 American Chambers of Commerce (“AmChams”) that promotes trade and investment between the Asia Pacific region and the United States, returns for its annual visit to Washington, DC, from July 17-20, 2023, advocating for policies which will increase both trade and investment in the region.
“As de facto U.S. Ambassadors in a region that contains 60% of global population, AmChams and their members partner with governments and domestic stakeholders to complement the U.S. government’s efforts to advance the country’s economy and national security,” said Steven Okun, Chair of AAP and Senior Advisor, McLarty Associates. Trade and investment dynamics in the region are evolving significantly and quickly in response to changing geopolitical realities and rapidly fluctuating economic opportunities. With both trade and investment core to its interests, the U.S. must work constructively with our partners and lead efforts to write new rules which ensure competition on a fair playing field with robust and rigorous labor and environmental standards. AAP applauds the Administration’s essential efforts to maintain U.S. leadership in the region by setting new trade and investment rules, including through the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (“IPEF”). The IPEF, while not replacing potential membership in the CPTPP, provides an opportunity for the United States to restore its economic leadership in the region. Commercially meaningful, binding provisions in the IPEF will increase the business community’s support. As the U.S. does not offer market access, the incentive for a country to sign-on to the IPEF’s high standards would increase U.S. business investment and engagement. For U.S. businesses to increase investment beyond what they do so otherwise, a meaningful dispute settlement mechanism or another form of enforcement is key. The delegation’s full statement is available here: https://amchamap.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/AAP-Delegation-Statement.pdf Contact: Renee Yuen renee.yuen@fticonsulting.com
London, Washington DC, 12 July: Oritain, the global leader in forensic traceability, has raised USD $57 million in a Series C funding round led by Highland Europe, with Jacob Bernstein from Highland joining the board. The round was supported by Series B lead investor, New York’s Long Ridge. The funding will be used to develop Oritain’s technology and expand into new markets and industries.
Oritain is the global leader in verifying the true origin of products and commodities. Luxury high-end fashion and retail companies, including Lacoste, Supima, and Primark, and food producers, such as A2 Milk and Nescafe, use Oritain to assure customers that the items they buy are genuine and produced from an ethical supply chain. Using technology developed at the University of Otago, Dunedin, the company can create a unique fingerprint from products worldwide and prove its provenance from meat to honey, milk, and fibers.
Building trust in a fragmented market
Fraud and counterfeiting, exacerbated by increasingly fragmented global supply chains, cost the global economy over $500 billion annually, while environmental issues such as deforestation are increasingly top of investor and customer concerns, which can damage brand reputations built up over decades. Oritain provides data-driven insights to help producers and manufacturers to monitor and adapt their supply chain to safeguard and improve transparency and certainty for their clients worldwide.
Unlike traditional traceability methods, which can be removed or tampered with, Oritain’s technology combines cutting-edge forensic science with world-leading data to analyze the intrinsic properties of a product to verify its origin. The company’s global labs can create an Origin Fingerprint of a particular product by analyzing trace elements that are affected by environmental factors such as soil composition, climate, altitude, and precipitation. Once an Origin Fingerprint has been identified, it can never be tampered with or destroyed.
These fingerprints are fed into industry-leading data banks of products monitoring complex global supply chains such as palm oil, coffee, cocoa, cotton, vanilla, and soy and used as benchmarks to audit products at any point in the supply chain. Companies rely on this data to prove the authenticity and quality of their products, reducing risk and fraud.
The need for Oritain’s service is underlined through a client retention rate of over 100% and compound annual growth of 90% year on year over the past six years. With many of the world’s leading brands and trusted food designations as clients, Oritain intends to be the world’s most trusted company for verifying the origin of products and raw materials to create traceable supply chains worldwide.
Supporting the Future of ESG
As well as providing tools to verify the legitimacy and provenance of a product, Oritain partners with companies to comply with ESG criteria, something investors increasingly demand. In addition, countries are creating new transparency and reporting regulations as part of Sustainable Development Goals across the globe encompassing deforestation, forced labor, and product fraud. Companies that can prove the authenticity, quality, and sustainability of their products and the supply chain will gain a competitive advantage by demonstrating to customers and investors that they meet high ethical standards.
BNP Paribas Exane acted as advisers on the transaction.
Grant Cochrane, Global CEO at Oritain, said: “Over the past 15 years, Oritain has pioneered groundbreaking forensic and data science to become the world’s most trusted verification partner to leading global brands and institutions, providing them with the insights they need to make the critical decisions on their supply chains. Our relentless focus on data, science, and process integrity has enabled us to become long-term partners with our clients to ensure the integrity of their supply chains, which is increasingly difficult to achieve in globalized and complex markets. We’re delighted to announce this new funding round, led by Highland Europe, to support our expansion plans as we reach new markets and industries.”
Jacob Bernstein at Highland Europe said: “Oritain’s forensic science can take a commodity sample and tell you precisely where in the world it comes from. Does this cocoa come from a deforested national park? Is this cotton from where my supplier says it is? Is this coffee truly Brazilian, as the label says? This groundbreaking technology is a dream solution for sourcing and sustainability leaders at the world’s largest brands who can finally get to grips with the authenticity of their supply chains. We are immensely proud to partner with the Oritain team to revolutionize origin verification.”
Source: https://oritain.com/
DoorDash has landed in New Zealand’s biggest city, giving those who don’t want to brave the weather another option when ordering food to their door.
A year after launching in Wellington and Christchurch, DoorDash goes live in Auckland today - with more than 1300 eateries already signed up and 3000 “dashers” ready to deliver.
DoorDash’s general manager of New Zealand, Australia and Canada, Rebecca Burrows, said the company was intentionally starting big in Auckland.
“It is a big launch for us and we are excited about it,” Burrows said.
“We made the decision to launch North, East, South and West as well as Auckland’s CBD all at once.”
Burrows said the delivery service, which was founded in San Francisco, had been well received in Wellington and Christchurch, and the company had noticed uniquely New Zealand habits.
“New Zealanders really love supporting their local smaller businesses,” Burrows said.
“The bigger fast food places always do well but we noticed some of the smaller local businesses were among the most popular.”
Burrows said the platform was designed for ease of use and showcased a range of eateries to new customers.
“It is a great way for people to get their favourite food but it also allows them to see what new places are out there.
The app remembered past orders and other preferences which made it easier for customers to find what they were looking for.
A range of local favourites already signed up include Pizza Club, Chicking, Sumthin Dumplin, Daily Bread, Duck Island, Tiger Burger and Wise Boys.
DoorDash also included McDonald’s, KFC, Tank Juice and Hell Pizza.
Convenience stores and cafes were also included.
Mitchell Baker, the director spokesperson for vegan burger company Wise Boys, said they were “stoked to be part of DoorDash’s highly anticipated launch” into Auckland.
“By joining forces with DoorDash, we can get our delicious vegan burgers into the hands of even more people, furthering our mission to promote animal- and planet-friendly food options,” Baker said.
Suresh Kodali, the director of Pizza Club, was excited to work with DoorDash in Auckland.
“We had a super smooth experience onboarding with DoorDash and we look forward to having a successful synergy growing our business,” he said.
DoorDash will be available across the Auckland region from the North Shore, across to Central, West Auckland and East Auckland, and south to Drury.
Opening specials included 50 per cent off the first two orders for new customers and free delivery for the first month.
Burrows said staff at the 1200 Auckland eateries and delivery staff had been fully trained and would receive additional support for opening week.
Source: NZ Herald
The Line of Authentic Mexican Rolled Chips Packed With Heat and Flavour Has Quickly Become a Favourite Snack Brand in the U.S.
SAN DIEGO, June 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Chipoys – an authentic rolled tortilla chip packed with bold flavours and fun in every bite – announced today that it has expanded into retail in Australia and New Zealand. La Fiesta Confectionary will serve as the exclusive master distributor, with Aztec Mexican Products distributing the product. The snack brand, which launched in Fall 2021 in the United States, and has since expanded into Europe, is quickly growing in popularity, calling for a more extensive roll out to other countries.
The American brand dedicates itself to providing customers with high-quality ingredients in the unique rolled tortilla shape for added crunch. In the standard 56.7 and 113.4-gram bags, the snack has 140-160 calories, two grams of protein, with no trans-fat or cholesterol. Even more, Chipoys is proud to be free from artificial flavours, colours, and preservatives, already meeting the higher regulations needed regarding dyes and colouring in Australia and New Zealand.
"We are excited to bring Chipoys to a new audience worldwide!" emphasises Erick Kozin, Co-Founder of Chipoys. "After a successful launch in the United States and Europe, it is a priority to establish our brand as a worldwide household name and go-to snack for consumers around the world. We look forward to continuing our expansion and growing the popularity while offering customers more product options."
All four flavours are included in the expansion – Original, Spicy Ranch, Chile Lemon, and Fire Red Hot – with new flavours currently in development that are set to continue to challenge the snack industry.
Adds Haich Sleiman and John Christodoulou of La Fiesta/Aztec Mexican Products, "Chipoys has quickly become a fan favourite in the competitive United States and United Kingdom snack markets." He continues, "And after trying the line of flavours, we knew that this would satisfy the consumer craving in Australia and New Zealand for bold, new products. We look forward working together as Chipoys continues to innovate."
Retailers are encouraged to contact sales@lafiesta.com.au for orders and additional details.
For more information about Chipoys, including all their flavours, visit their website at https://chipoys.com/.
About Chipoys
Chipoys is more than just a chip, it's a lifestyle! Our mission is to create an authentic rolled tortilla chip packed with bold flavours and fun in every bite. We are dedicated to preserving traditional Mexican flavours, while constantly evolving to bring you new and exciting tastes! See more about Chipoys including all its flavours at www.chipoys.com/. Follow us @eatchipoys.
Source:
Cordis Auckland has won yet another prestigious accolade for its exceptional events, conference and banquet facilities.
If you are looking for a superb venue with bespoke cuisine and service to hold your next Meeting, Incentives, Conference and Event, then look no further than the luxurious, award-winning Cordis Auckland. The dynamic and innovative 640-room hotel has just won the 2023 award for Best MICE Hotel in New Zealand, as voted by Australia’s Spice Magazine readers in the latest Spice News Hot 100 Hotels & Venues list.
Home to some of New Zealand and Australia’s biggest conferences, business meetings and gala dinners, including the annual Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year Awards, Managing Director Franz Mascarenhas and his dedicated colleagues are both delighted and humbled to receive the recognition.
“It is always a great honour and we always feel humbled to receive an award, especially when our esteemed guests have kindly voted for us,” says Mr Mascarenhas. “We pride ourselves on delivering an exceptional heartfelt experience for every event we host and we are delighted to have been awarded for this.”
The secret to Cordis Auckland’s success lies in its flexible event spaces with 18 venues to choose from, live conferencing facilities and advanced technology, all complemented by personalised Events Executives and a dedicated on-site audio-visual team.
From the Boardroom to The Great Room, Cordis Auckland has a space to suit everyone whether it’s a meeting for 12 or a lavish gala dinner for 800. Executive Chef Volker Marecek and his talented team of multicultural chefs also deliver fully customisable menus of mouth-watering dishes with perfect pairings of fine wines, beers and other beverages, making Cordis Auckland the perfect place to wow every guest with a memorable event.
About Cordis AucklandCordis Auckland is part of a collection of 5 star timeless hotels by Langham Hospitality Group. The hotel is surrounded by a vibrant neighbourhood in the heart of Auckland at Symonds Street. The hotel has 640 rooms and suites, an exclusive Club Lounge, the largest curated locally commissioned art collection, state-of-the-art meeting spaces, a fitness studio, swimming pool and the award-winning Chuan Spa. Perfect for gatherings, Cordis Auckland features the city’s favourite, Eight restaurant, a unique interactive dining experience with eight specialist kitchens, each dedicated to a different cuisine hosted by an expert chef, the Chandelier Lounge which serves High Tea by Cordis with TWG, and Cordis Auckland’s newest destination bar, Our Land is Alive, offering the best of New Zealand made food and beverage. Cordis Auckland has been an EarthCheck accredited hotel since 2006, receiving Master Status in 2022. www.cordishotels.com/auckland
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