Our network is full of connected people, but when it comes to knowing who’s who, it’s fair to say Tania is up there with the best.

She has an endless supply of energy for getting involved and helping make things happen within the Kiwi Community in London, Her passion for all things Kiwi is infectious, so it’s no surprise that she has made it to the short list for UK New Zealander of the year along with Comedian Jarred Christmas.

Organised by the New Zealand Society (UK), the winner will be announced at the Waitangi Day Charity Ball on Friday February 7 in London.

Through her role as Kea New Zealand's UK and Europe Regional Director, Tania brings together her passion for people, events and networking to enable Kiwis to succeed globally. Her role is about helping individuals and businesses connect to achieve their goals.

The first buds of Rebecca Page’s entrepreneurial spirit sprouted when at 10 years old she would put on performances at home and sell tickets around the neighbourhood at 50 cents a pop.

With that kind of intrepid approach, it’s hardly surprising that today, three decades later, she has a team of six fulltime staff and a burgeoning online business selling online patterns around the globe.

Online sewing patterns? You may be forgiven for thinking that sounds like an obscure or niche sector but in fact, as part of the sewing sector with an annual value of USD 50 billion, it is anything but. However, the path Rebecca took to marrying her commercial bent with what she previously had considered a mere hobby, was a winding one.
Rebecca set up her first business at age 19 whilst at Auckland University when she noticed queues of people wanting to get their assignments typed and spotted an opportunity. She didn’t actually own a computer so went out and purchased one, thus chalking up her first business expense. She put up a sign offering her services for typing up assignments, which she squeezed in between classes and in so doing, paid her way through university.

As Kiwis we have a certain ridiculousness about us – you just have to look at some of what we report on in the news. What other country running a Penguin of the Year Competition would make international news?

Melissa Roberts reckons it’s something we need to make the most of, especially in the UK office environment. “It’s nice to accept that we are a little odd, but it’s about making it work to your advantage. People find it quite endearing.”

As well as being able to keep her colleagues in the television and advertising production industry amused, Melissa is also one of our invaluable volunteers working on the events side. She helped pull together our amazing birthday event earlier this year, and believes events and production are fairly similar – “it’s often just herding cats.”

And it sounds as though she’s always been good at that. Growing up back home in Auckland, she spent her free time writing scripts for her younger sister to (often begrudgingly) perform while she recorded them on the family’s old VHS camera.