Hi, I’m Rose, the founder of Rosie’s Kiwi Pantry, although you’re more than welcome to call me Rosie.
I recently became a mum, and somewhere in amongst that huge change in my life I realised there probably isn’t a perfect age or a perfect time to start building the life you’ve always imagined. I’d spent years thinking about the things I might do “one day”, and becoming a mum made me think a lot more seriously about what I actually wanted that one day to look like.
I’ve always had this dream that eventually I’d own my own little diner or delicatessen somewhere in New Zealand. In my head I’m a bit older, partially retired, but still pottering around helping run the place, meeting new people and hearing stories from travellers who have somehow heard about our little diner in the middle of the wop-wops. At the same time, I’d want it to be somewhere the locals genuinely love too. Somewhere with really good food, a lovely atmosphere and the kind of place people are always happy to come back to.
For a long time, that was just my “one day” dream.
Then I thought, why does it have to start one day?
I might not be opening a diner in New Zealand tomorrow, but I can start small. I can start from my own kitchen, build something I care about, learn as I go and see where it takes me.
And that’s really how Rosie’s Kiwi Pantry began.
I’ve always loved cooking and baking. It’s just been a really fun pastime for me. I also love finding beautiful places to eat, travelling around and exploring places I’ve never been to before. Food is such a big part of how I experience a place and some of my favourite memories are tied to it.
Living away from New Zealand has also made me realise that you don’t really hear all too much about our cuisine and culture. There are some wonderful Kiwi cafés in London and familiar products to be found if you know where to look, but I’ve always imagined creating something a little different. Somewhere that you could really identify with. Somewhere that feels beautifully curated and inspiring, and celebrates not only what comes from New Zealand, but the creativity, culture and stories behind it.
So I thought, why not try to build it?
My background is actually nothing to do with hospitality. I’ve spent my career working in telecommunications and finance, so this is a completely different world for me. But I’ve learnt a lot over the years about business, people, technology and how to build things, and now I’m taking those skills and putting them into something I’m really passionate about. I have absolutely no idea how big Rosie’s will become, but I’d love to look back one day and realise that this little business I started from my kitchen… grew into something that lots of New Zealanders, and all our friends along the way, can be really proud of.
And my dream for Rosie’s goes much further than the things I can bake myself.
I really want to support Kiwi businesses and our local communities, and create opportunities for people with a passion. To share what they love, nurture their ideas, and turn them into something they can be really proud of.
I’d love to find beautiful handmade crafts from Kiwi makers and help get their work in front of people around the world. And if Rosie’s grows enough to do it, I’d love to fund and support projects that help Kiwi art, creativity, fashion and cuisine grow and thrive globally.
There is so much more to New Zealand than the few things people tend to recognise us for. I want Rosie’s to showcase our incredible nature and beautiful places, but also our people, our creativity, our way of life, our cultural diversity and all the different things that make New Zealand feel like New Zealand.
More than anything, I want to see New Zealand continue to grow and prosper. I want to be able to return home one day and hear beautiful stories about what people have created, the businesses they’ve built and the ideas that were given a chance to become something.
Maybe Rosie’s can play a little part in some of those stories.
And maybe one day I’ll finally get my little diner in the middle of the wop-wops too.
For now, Rosie’s Kiwi Pantry is starting from my kitchen. I’m starting small, figuring things out as I go and seeing where I can take it.
And I think that’s quite a nice place for a big dream to begin.