Cultural Integrity
Our Commitment to Creating Resources that Support the Learning of Māori Language and Culture
Te Reo Māori
We are excited to be doing our part to get 1 million New Zealanders speaking te reo Māori by 2040. Our range of Learning Toolbox product has been around for a number of years now and is found in classrooms and homes across Aotearoa. We partner with teachers who are passionate about te reo Māori to create this product with the goal of making it fun and accessible.
The Way Forward
In developing products that utilize te reo Māori or reference Māori culture we are looking how we approach this with cultural integrity. Our strategy is to use a sliding scale approach. We are working to improve with each product we do and get as far along the scale as we can.
As we are not Māori owned business we will never get 100% on the scale. But through improving our practices and partnering with Māori organizations, consultants and artists we are confident we will be able to offer a valuable contribution to New Zealand retail with products that are useful, beautiful, and culturally appropriate. We are putting training into place for our entire team to better align with our goals in this area.
Māori Artists
Where possible we are using Māori artists trained and practicing in Māori design principles to create our artwork, particularly where the product is dealing with Māori inspired patterns or te ao Māori concepts.
You can see this in our range of products from Sharmz Waiomio, Twigs, and Isobel Te Aho-White.
Cultural Consultants
Where appropriate, we are using Māori consultants to give ideas and feedback as well assist with market testing. This ensures that the product we produce is not only culturally sensitive but aligned with the products Māori want to see in the market. It’s a win-win.
You can see this in our soft dolls and puppets which were redesigned in collaboration with Takapaukura and market-tested amongst children and adults immersed in kapa haka.