Congratulations to Blythe Rees-Jones and his wife Anna for coming in second place in the ANZ Flying Start Business Plan Competition.

The win was featured in a Bay of Plenty Times article:

A Tauranga couple has taken out second place in a nation-wide business plan competition. Blythe and Anna Rees-Jones won $5000 in the ANZ Flying Start Business Plan Competition for the fledgling business The Little Adventure.

Mr Rees-Jones, a designer at Mount Maunganui company Locus Research, said they had used the competition as an impetus to sharpen a loosely-held idea they had been considering for some years.

The idea stemmed from their own experiences trying to find natural products for their children when they were born.

Beyond merino wool and organic cotton clothing, there weren’t too many natural products on offer for babies and young children, Mr Rees-Jones said.

The Little Adventure wanted to fix the situation by producing products, such as toys and an innovative sleeping basket, made with a new wool material (trademarked as Naturesclip).

The sleeping basket had already received rave reviews from friends and family, and the wider plan had received a lot of positive feedback through the Flying Start Competition process, Mr Rees-Jones said.

The couple planned to sell their products online and through retail outlets, and have export ambitions for the future.

Mr Rees-Jones said coming runner-up in the competition was “fantastic” and he was thankful for everyone who had played a part in the success.

We are excited to see what they come up with for their business - we'll be sure to keep you posted.