Diane Foreman
CEO Emerald Group
Vice Chairperson of the New Zealand Business Roundtable

Achievements

Diane Foreman was put in the commerce classes at school, as it was believed that she was not good enough academically for other subjects. She left school at the age of 15, with no formal qualifications. Later in life she became involved in Trigon Industries, a company which produced specialised plastic products, including the first plastic envelopes now used by courier firms and banks. Trigon began in a rural shed with only $100 capital, yet by 1990s had evolved into an organization employing 750 staff, produced in factories around the world and annual sales of approximately $140 million. When she sold the business it was one of the biggest private sale deals in New Zealand.

Diane founded the Emerald Group after she got bored and felt the need for a new challenge. She used her capital to assist entrepreneurs as an investment company. Emerald Group controls the New Zealand Natural and Movenpick ice-cream brands, the Mercy Ascot Hospitals, a property portfolio including a hotel on beautiful Takapuna beach, as well as a furniture manufacturing and a retailing business venture in the United States.

Diane shared with us her five rules of entrepreneurship which are

  1. Have fun and find your passion. When you have fun you will be highly motivated and want to develop your business.
  2. We, as New Zealanders, need to celebrate failure. We need to take risks and have a go. The “tall-poppy” culture in New Zealand needs to be addressed and dealt with. The main point is to learn from your mistakes; next time you will be more likely to succeed.
  3. You must LOVE people! It is very important to not only look after your customers, but also your staff. These people are the embodiment of your business, especially as you expand.
  4. Celebrate success. We need to celebrate with successful business people just as we would with successful sports teams, such as the All Blacks.
  5. Take domestic success offshore. You need to compete to win on a world stage!

Quotes
“To succeed you need to make quick decisions, be able to handle any ‘curve ball’ thrown at you…and keep an eye on the scoreboard.”
“Great business requires great workers.”

Contributed by: Jane Exeter and Mark Coppell

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