Saturday, November 14, 2026
The New Zealand Government is paying for AI tools that find a small business's biggest constraint and write an action plan. Here is what they do, what they cannot do, and how to choose between an AI check, a mentor and a coach.
Last updated 15 November 2026. Published by Simple-Growth (Motherbase Limited). Market: New Zealand.
This is a story about an owner who's been told that loyalty is bought with discounts, and who suspects it isn't. You can't always out-price a bigger player. You can out-care one. Here's what that looked like for one struggling solo mum, and for the team that looked after her.
Kevin D'Ambros-Smith and his team ran online retail businesses for new parents. Their purpose, from the start, was to help new mums and make their lives easier. Selling products was how they paid for it, not why they got up in the morning.
That purpose showed up in small, human habits. Writing a personal card was part of how the business operated. It was part of the culture, not a marketing campaign.
One mum was a struggling solo parent. She needed help more than she needed another product. So one of the team, Penny, kept talking to her on the phone. It wasn't a sales call. It was a conversation.
Afterwards, Penny followed up with a handwritten card, so she'd know someone cared.
She became a customer for life. In her words: "I thought no one cared. Then I got your note."
Other mums said something similar: "You make me feel like I am your only customer, even though I am not."
A discount tells a customer you want their money. A card tells them you noticed them. Kevin's businesses gave a gift with purchase instead of a discount, and the eleventh box free, because rewarding the people who love you builds something a price cut can't. A competitor can match a price by tomorrow. They can't match a culture.
This matters when the big players are priced hard against you. You don't have to win their game. You can play one where scale doesn't decide the winner.
You can't write a card for every customer yourself, and you shouldn't have to. The point is to decide what your business stands for, then make it normal for your team to act on it without asking permission.
"Kevin doesn't just present — he electrifies the room and drives massive, real-world value! He drops game-changing insights and actionable shortcuts that show businesses exactly how to turn everyday customers into raving, loyal fans — and acquire new ones faster than ever thought possible."
Gareth Bayliss
Sales Manager, The Icehouse
This isn't for you if you see customers as transactions and plan to keep it that way. It's for the owner who started the business to help someone, who senses that care is the real edge, and who hasn't yet built it into how the team works.
On its own, no. It worked in Kevin's businesses because it was backed by a purpose and a team that cared, and followed a real conversation. The card is the proof, not the strategy.
Start with one habit and one customer segment. Let a simple system flag who needs attention, then write or call personally.
The principle holds. People still remember who noticed them when they needed help.
If your customers deserve to feel noticed, your next step is to build care into how the business runs.
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