The Most FM Business Hour

Sponsored by GQ The Lawyers and hosted by Naomi Harris and Jordan McFadyen, The Business Hour is on New Plymouth's MOST FM (100.4 FM) airs live every Monday morning from 10:00 am to 11:00 am. The show features local business owners, leaders, and entrepreneurs discussing success stories, business growth, and strategies in the Taranaki region.

The Most FM Business Hour is a business podcast hosted by The Most FM, with 19 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

The Most FM hosts The Most FM Business Hour, a business show with 19 episodes published.

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  The Most FM Business Hour

  Jimmy Fastier on Rugby, Community & Taranaki Pride

  Sep 13, 202647 min

  In this episode of The Business Hour, Naomi Harris is joined by co-host Charlotte Giblin to sit down with Jimmy Fastier, CEO of the Taranaki Rugby Football Union - a Taranaki hardcore, born and bred in Fitzroy, and a lifelong amber-and-black supporter. Jimmy shares how a passion sparked on the terraces with his dad during the 1996 Ranfurly Shield era grew into a career in the business of sport. From a commerce degree majoring in sport management, to a 20-hour-a-week ticketing role at the front desk in 2012, to the CEO chair two years ago, his journey has been about the marketing, the fan engagement, and the people who sit behind the on-field action. The conversation moves from surviving years of stadium construction and fragmented offices, to the leadership and governance behind a genuinely community-focused organisation. Together, they explore: Why "nowhere is the game more manifest than in Taranaki" - and how rugby is woven into the fabric of small-town life Stepping into the CEO role during COVID, with the business and team performance both needing a reset Being a visionary leader - creating memorable experiences for players, fans and sponsors alike Building a healthy board: skills matrices, three-year terms, and keeping the ideas and energy fresh The touch-and-go decision behind the $1.4 million Te Whare Pounamu training facility Genuinely leading player welfare - a dedicated personal development manager and protected weekly time for life beyond rugby Navigating the tough, topical subject of head injuries and player safety Balancing the amateur and professional game - the "extra layer" that sets provincial rugby apart from Super Rugby What's coming: big events on the horizon, from a full test year in '28 to a British & Irish Lions tour and Springbok tours in '29 and '30 A warm, insightful conversation about leadership, adaptability, and the quiet work of making a region proud. Key takeaway: "Nowhere is the game more manifest than in Taranaki." For Jimmy, it was never just about the scoreboard - it's about people, memories, and creating experiences that bring a whole community together.

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  The Most FM Business Hour

  Leaving a Legacy: Josh Hickford & Catherine Grogan on Giving Back in Taranaki

  Sep 6, 202649 min

  In this episode of The Business Hour, Naomi and Jordan sit down with Josh Hickford, CEO of the Taranaki Foundation, and Catherine Grogan, a partner at GQ - for conversation about legacy, giving, and getting your affairs in order. Josh shares how a chartered accountancy career at PwC and TSB was upended by a brush with Hodgkin's lymphoma at 27 - a moment that brought his horizon in close and skyrocketed him into community work. Catherine explains why she was drawn to wills and estate planning, and the privilege of the honest, hopeful conversations it involves. Together they unpack how professional advisors and community foundations work hand in hand to turn people's wishes into lasting impact. Together, they explore: Why giving is built into the Kiwi mantra - and how philanthropy is about generosity, not just money The Taranaki Foundation's rise from $1 million to over $30 million under management in five years Why only around 6% of New Zealanders leave a gift in their will - often simply because they've never been asked The staggering wealth transfer ahead: those over 55 hold roughly 60% of New Zealand's $2.4 trillion in net wealth Leading with the story and the "what," not the number - and thinking in percentages, not fixed figures Real legacies in action: Glenn Ferguson's journalism scholarship with the Taranaki Daily News, and donors like Beverly supporting Riding for the Disabled Why roughly half of New Zealanders don't have a will - and how marriage can invalidate the one you've got Building community, not just funding it: Destination Kawarau and Taranaki Outdoor Pursuits Thinking in the "climate of the era," not the weather of the day - the 100-year view A genuinely inspiring conversation about generosity, mortality, and the quiet power of decisions made today that others will build on for decades. Key takeaway: "If everyone just does their little bit, the ripples turn into a tidal wave." You don't have to be wealthy to leave a legacy - and the simplest first step is getting your will sorted.

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  The Most FM Business Hour

  Backing Yourself: Alison Bunyan on Building Occupy Property Management

  Aug 30, 202648 min

  In this episode of The Business Hour, Naomi Harris and Jordan sit down with Alison Bunyan, founder of Occupy Property Management - a Midwestern girl with California dreams who found her way, via a fair bit of luck and word of mouth, to New Plymouth. Alison shares a genuinely adventurous path: growing up landlocked in Indiana, driving a week straight to chase the ocean in Santa Cruz, learning to surf, and then landing a one-year working holiday visa to New Zealand that turned into a decade. A chance job on the Kaikōura earthquake rebuild - where she was flown by helicopter to a slip with, by her own admission, no idea what she was meant to be doing - led her to her husband Zac, and eventually back to his Taranaki roots. The conversation moves from surf towns and slip sites to building a business, and the pivotal advice from a lawyer that changed everything. Together, they explore: Learning to take risks — and the freeing power of asking "what's the worst that can happen?" Why failure isn't the end: missing one job in Doubtful Sound led to meeting her husband in Kaikōura The lawyer who looked past the franchise contract and asked "why don't you just do it yourself?" Building Occupy Property Management as a genuinely people-first business Splitting roles with her husband after having their son - and the business that kept growing in her absence The reality of Healthy Homes standards, why so many New Zealand houses are cold, and heating that only covers the lounge New pet rules, and the coming regulation of property managers Learning resilience through sales, and why saying yes to more things (including this show) matters A warm, refreshingly honest conversation about adventure, backing yourself, and building a sustainable business without chasing an empire. Key takeaway: "What's the worst that can happen?" Alison's whole journey — from California to Kaikōura to running her own business — has been built on giving it a go, and trusting that even when things don't work out, they often lead somewhere better.

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  The Most FM Business Hour

  Graham Wells on Work Ethic, Legacy & Letting Go

  Aug 23, 202649 min

  In this episode of The Business Hour, Naomi Harris and Jordan sit down with Graham Wells - founder of the Wells Group and a long-standing champion of Taranaki's trades, engineering, and health and safety community. Born in Hāwera in the 1950s, Graham describes himself as someone who "went to school to eat his lunch" - until an after-school job at an electrical wholesaler set him on a completely different path. From an apprenticeship, to the army (where being thrown in the deep end taught him to rise to a challenge), to founding Wells with his brother on the simple belief that contracting should be done properly, Graham has built a business now spanning some 400 staff and around 100 contractors across the country. Now stepping back into a governance role, Graham reflects candidly on legacy, succession, and what "success" really means when growth was never the goal. Together, they explore: Why being thrown in the deep end - in the army and in business - shaped his work ethic The founding belief behind Wells: do a good job, build the relationship, and look after your people His mother's example after his father died young: roll your sleeves up and don't blame the hand you're dealt The disappearing after-school jobs that once taught young people work ethic - and the impact of social media and gaming today Championing trades and apprenticeships through Engineering Taranaki, the Apprentice of the Year awards, and Taranaki Futures Setting up Be Safe Taranaki and helping spark the national Business Leaders' Health and Safety Forum, now in its 15th year Stepping back from sole director to a formal board - and asking his team to tell him when he's no longer adding value Where the growth is now: electrification, EV charging, solar farms, revenue metering, and the Taranaki Alliance's push into shipbuilding A thoughtful, humble conversation about hard work, community, and building something that outlasts you. Key takeaway: "Money is like oxygen - you need so much to survive, but a whole lot more doesn't make a huge difference." Graham's measure of success was never the balance sheet, but a business that's well-regarded, respected, and looks after its people.

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  The Most FM Business Hour

  Richie Shearer: There's No Such Thing as Can't, It's Won't

  Aug 16, 202653 min

  In this episode of The Business Hour, the tables are turned. Jordan sits down with Richie Shearer - the man who launched this very show back around 2008 and interviewed hundreds of Taranaki business owners over the years - this time in the guest's seat. From a "could do better if he applied himself" schoolboy pointed toward industrial instrumentation by a switched-on careers advisor, to an apprenticeship, an OE that took him from a London pub to oil and gas projects across the UK, Singapore, Indonesia and Australia — Richie's path has been one opportunity leading to the next. Back home in Taranaki, that instinct turned into a string of businesses and a lasting commitment to the community. Together, they explore: Being chucked in the deep end overseas — from 30-input systems in New Zealand to 2,500 in London — and why one year in a fast-growing business feels like ten The "cast-iron bath" lightbulb moment when web hosting revealed itself as a multiplier — and the birth of WebFarm in 1997 Building FreeParking as the NZ domain registry opened up, hitting third in the Deloitte Fast 50 with 550%+ growth, and the 18-month earn-out on exit De-risking the leap by asking "what have I really got to lose?" — and his grandmother's line, "there's no such thing as can't, it's won't" Buying and running QP Sport for nearly 20 years, niche chest-protection gear, and navigating the S-curve as cheap copies bite Rescuing the Most FM from shutdown in 2008 and running it as a community-funded charitable trust How Taranaki Futures was dreamed up live on air — and why the fancy boats at the port belong to the tradies Why the internet's early ethical, open ethos feels a world away from today's big-tech AI era A warm, full-circle conversation about risk, reinvention, and the quiet privilege of sharing other people's stories. Key takeaway: "There's no such thing as can't, it's won't." Richie's grandmother's words — and the through-line of a career built on backing yourself and finding the next opportunity.

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