Moataa mango seller tells success story

By Ivamere Nataro 26 November 2018, 12:00AM

Going from selling mangoes on the roadside in Moataa to establishing an employment agency company in New Zealand, Manutui Alesana Talopa’u has come a long way.

Manutui or Alex is the managing director of NZP Connexion Limited—which is a New Zealand-registered company—that connects the Pacific with New Zealand through employment opportunities through the quota system. 

He was born and raised in the village of Satufia, Satupaitea, Savai’i and his family currently resides in the village of Moataa. 

Speaking to the Samoa Observer, he said running a business was in his blood from a very young age and selling mangoes was his very first business activity. 

“I always knew from a very young age that if you want to be something, you need to do something so you can have whatever it is that you desire after,” he said. 

NZP Connexion Limited was piloted for the first time last year, but was officially established last month to fill the void left unattended from the quota agreement that Samoa has with New Zealand.

“The annual quota is 1100 ever year but the number of people who actually end up with job offers to unlock this opportunity is less than half.  So if 1100 are chosen and only 450 get a golden ticket, then our key question is ‘What happened to the other 650?’

“We don’t believe anyone has really looked into this downside of the quota system. So we have taken the time to review and analyse this situation and we believe we have found the opportunity that is firmly locked away in this. 

“Not only that, we are bringing the how to and hence, the birth of NZP Connexion Limited, connecting the Pacific with New Zealand via employment opportunities,” he said. 

Headquartered in Tauranga, Bay of Plenty in New Zealand, they have 33 offices around the New Zealand where they host meetings and meet clients. 

The brains behind the operation of the business assisting Manutui is managing director Ati Aaifou-Olive, with a network of different specialists, including immigration consultants and lawyers,  employers and employment specialists, accountants and financial advisers, cross culture specialists and pastoral care, and the team of administrators.

Ati is a New Zealand-born Samoan from Wellington and a former Manu Samoa player. Recruitment and employment is his specialty. 

“Everything we see around us started with an idea, and out of an idea comes money” Manutui said of the investment that he made in establishing the business.  

“You see, money is the result of success, success is not the result of money. This order needs to be right. We love the concept of starting with no money down and really just allow the ideas to come to life in the form of money. 

“I have invested a lot in my personal development and understanding who I am and why I am here and what good I am supposed to bring to the world.”

Without challenges, we can’t really grow, they are life’s way of teaching us to be better than yesterday and become the best versions of ourselves, Manutui said. 

In the future, he plans to grow his business and help as many people as he can with the service they provide. 

“A win-win situation for everyone involved is our goal,” he added.

By Ivamere Nataro 26 November 2018, 12:00AM
Samoa Observer

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