Board Nominations 2025

Mark passionately believes that the Hutt Valley is an amazing place to grow a thriving business and raise a family. He co-founded Red Hot Business Coaching here in the valley 10 years ago and has had the privilege of helping many individual owners remove the barriers to growth in their businesses over that time. Mark’s career has included a number of senior management roles with nation-wide responsibilities.
Mark and his wife Megan have two children, and he has been on the board of Wa Ora Montessori School for the past 7 years. He is known for making things happen.

Dave has had a successful career as a business investor, spotting businesses in need of professional management and robust operating systems. He has bought and sold businesses in the tourism sector, retail sector and the service industry and has extensive experience operating multiple franchise outlets.

With considerable experience as a ‘hands off’ operator, Dave focuses more on the importance of strong business systems and quality training. This experience has helped him identify opportunities to develop the maximum return from his operations and extract the best price for his businesses.

As the Principal of the Wellington office of LINK Business Broking, Dave and his team of brokers are at the forefront of helping the baby boomers exit their businesses and extract their capital from their enterprises.

Since 2000 Sarah has worked as a recruitment consultant, specialising in the manufacturing and trades sectors. In 2018, Sarah established her own business, helping mid-sized, New Zealand-owned businesses to attract, employ and retain the people they need to succeed.

Rather than following the traditional recruitment model, Sarah works closely with business owners to provide recruitment services at every level of their organisations. This has given her a unique perspective on the challenges and rewards that come with business ownership – and highlighted her clients’ needs for practical, meaningful support.

It was Sarah’s commitment to service excellence and her interest in helping others that led to her involvement with Youth Inspire and the Hutt Valley Education to Employment Coordination Service. She’s now a passionate advocate for young people in the Hutt Valley area and thrives on using her professional skills to support them in their search for employment.

Having grown up in the Hutt Valley, Sarah’s determined to help the area to thrive. She’s proud to be associated with the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce – an organisation that supports local businesses with practical and meaningful support.

Mike Hines brings a wealth of hands-on business experience to the Hutt Valley Chamber of Commerce board since his appointment in May 2022. Having lived, worked, and employed in the Hutt Valley since 2015 and with over two decades as a business owner across diverse sectors including IT, telco, professional services, and retail, Mike offers a unique perspective on business growth and operational excellence backed by an MBA, B.Com and membership of the Institute of Directors..

Now a Business Broker with LINK Business, he leverages his comprehensive understanding of the business lifecycle to assist clients in valuing, buying, and selling businesses, especially within the technology and professional services sectors. Mike is deeply committed to the community, also serving on the board of Yellow Brick Road and otherwise can be found exploring the outdoors with his young family.