Monique moved to London in the early 1980s only to be told by a prospective employer that she should be working in a pub! However, with a wealth of experience behind her in consumer insight and product management, she was quick to bounce back.

Monique describes growing up all over the North Island. She was born in Auckland, spent her childhood in Hamilton, went to school in the Hawkes Bay and started her studies at The University of Auckland. Her father was a journalist and he had a newspaper that ran in Fiji, so it wasn’t until her parents eventually moved back to Wellington, that she spent her last two years studying at Victoria University.

Graduating with a Bachelor of Arts, Monique went into consumer insights. She acknowledges that very few people go to University with the view to becoming an insights specialist. Whilst doing research for Bonds Hosiery in Porirua, Monique was soon approached for a product management position, where she would oversee the launch of their women’s range.

When Kiwis move to the UK there is little in the way of cultural disparities that come as a shock. Throw a discussion around pie eating etiquette  into the mix, however, and you will ignite some very heated opinions that set our two nations apart. 

Katy Loudon and Steph Armstrong are the two female powerhouses behind the team at Friday pies – the company that has made it part of their mission to set this record straight. After a prolonged period of British lockdowns, it could come at no better time, when so many of us Kiwis are craving that little slice of home.

Both from Auckland and eager to pursue the bright lights and vast opportunities of London, Katy arrived in 2018, with Steph not long after, in 2019. The pair met whilst living together at their North London flat, which has been the home of Friday Pies’ test kitchens, pie storage facilities and pick-up operations for the past 5 months.

As a child, Jessie knew that she one day wanted to make the world a better place. Arriving in London with just £500 in 2005, armed with a positive attitude and a wealth of friendships from her travels, she set off to make this dream a reality.

She embraced the harsh reality of a cold and dark British winter and saw the beauty in the daily London commute that so many of us love to hate. “I remember smiling and looking at the grim tube and thinking it was just the best thing ever!” With a tight purse, she was quick to land a temp job in PR and later worked her way into the digital marketing world.

Fast forward 5 years and Jessie found herself making the move back to New Zealand, in what a good friend described as her “OE from her OE”. Determined to experience New Zealand through fresh eyes, she moved in with a bunch of Irish housemates in a large flat share in Auckland. It was during this time back home that Jessie met her partner, who funnily enough, was British. He was due back to the UK as his visa was up, and Jessie made the decision to move back as well. She explains, “I still had my working visa and loads of friends and connections, so I thought I would just go back there and see what happens”.