Wednesday, November 04, 2026
Only 39.7% of small businesses actually grew revenue last year, Federal Reserve data shows. If growth feels like the fix for your cash, team or time problems, the numbers say otherwise.
Choose an Icehouse programme if you want to learn alongside other owners in a structured, in-person group, and your turnover fits one of its bands. Choose one-on-one coaching if you want a plan built around your business alone, on your timeline, with someone holding you to it. Many owners sensibly do one, then the other.
A disclosure first: Simple-Growth publishes this guide, and Kevin D'Ambros-Smith coaches for Simple-Growth. Kevin is also a partner of The Icehouse and has presented on its programmes, so he is not neutral. That is why this page explains who each option suits instead of ranking them. Everything said about The Icehouse comes from its own programmes page, read on 5 November 2026 (New Zealand time). If something is out of date or wrong, let Kevin know and it will be corrected. Market: New Zealand.
| Icehouse programme (its own page, 5 Nov 2026) | Who it is listed for | Length | Published price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner Manager Programme | Owners with $3M+ turnover | 3 days a month over 5 months | Not listed |
| Business Owner Programme | Owners with $1M to $3M turnover | 3 days over 3 months | $6,295 + GST |
| Smart Governance Programme | Mature businesses with $5M+ revenue | 5 days over 3 months | $7,850 + GST |
| Financial Skills Workshop | Owners, leaders and employees | 2 days | $2,295 + GST |
| Sales Skills Workshop | Owners, leaders and employees | 3 days | $5,895 + GST |
| AI Foundations for Business Leaders | Decision makers in leadership | 2.5 days, residential | $6,995 + GST |
Also listed without prices: the Leadership Development Programme and the Owner Manager Exchange (alumni only). No dates were listed for any programme on the page read, and the page mentioned no co-funding.
This is not for you if you want someone else to do the work. Neither a programme nor a coach can.
"Kevin has some amazing ideas around marketing, things we would have never thought of ourselves. He has gone above and beyond what he needed to!"
Amy Nixon
Tiny Forgages (quoted word for word from Icehouse coaching feedback)
Its programmes page lists $6,295 + GST for the Business Owner Programme and $7,850 + GST for the Smart Governance Programme. The Owner Manager Programme price was not listed on the page read.
Yes. A programme gives you a framework and peers; coaching applies it to your business. Be clear about what each is for, so you do not pay twice for the same problem.
Possibly. The Management Capability Development Fund can cover up to 50% of one-to-one and up to 75% of group training costs, capped at $5,000 per business per year, for businesses with fewer than 50 full-time equivalent staff. Check current rules and eligibility with the Regional Business Partner Network.
No. Clients are chosen by mindset, not sector, across 30+ industries.
Not sure which suits you? A 30-minute conversation will tell you honestly whether a programme, coaching or neither is the right move, and you are welcome to take the answers anywhere.
Sources (checked 5 November 2026): The Icehouse programmes and workshops page (the provider's own listing, not independently verified); business.govt.nz, Management Capability Development Fund (New Zealand). Related: Business Mentors NZ or Simple-Growth? and more growth tips. Last updated 5 November 2026.
Thursday, October 15, 2026
Some SME leaders are already getting a half-day a week back from AI. Here is the simple filter that decides what to automate, augment or leave alone.
Thursday, October 15, 2026
It was not the pitch that killed your last deal. It was the four weeks of silence after it. Here is the follow-up sequence most SME sales teams never build.
Thursday, October 15, 2026
Most SME marketing stops the moment someone buys once. Here is the Value Ladder that gives your best customers an obvious next step, and why 74 percent never get one.
Thursday, October 15, 2026
A growth plan with no diagnosis is just a wish list with a date on it. Here is the three-part test that separates a real strategy from guesswork, before your next budget gets signed off.
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
Everyone in your industry follows the same playbook. Here is why fresh eyes beat it, plus a one-hour exercise to borrow a proven idea from another industry this week.
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
Five lessons from McDonald's own history that a 20-person US business can copy, plus where systems stop and growth questions begin.
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
Different industries hit different growth constraints. Find the Simple-Growth page written for your type of business, plus two free resources on loyalty and exit planning.
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
Nearly a third of small business owners have never taken a full week off, and new 2026 data shows the ones working the longest hours are also the most likely to want out. Here is the three-question test for turning hours into real freedom.
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
Over half of SMEs entering a new market in one UK study hit real problems doing it. The Ansoff Matrix maps the three safer growth routes most owners skip past first.
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
45 percent of business owners in one survey feel trapped running the business they built. Here's how the Theory of Constraints, pointed at the owner instead of the process, finds the real fix.
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
UK SME owners spend six working days a month on admin and 3.6 days on growth, one survey found. Dan Sullivan's Who Not How habit flips which question you ask first.
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
Nearly half of SMEs in a 2026 survey had not raised prices since 2022. Here's the three-sentence script that makes the overdue price conversation simple instead of stressful.
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
76 of 100 B2B brands in a 2026 study fell into a credible-but-indistinguishable Sameness Zone. Here's the four-word positioning test, the Onliness Statement, that pulls a business out of it.
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
Your revenue is up and your margin just fell anyway — here's the planning gap behind it. Four moves that put margin back on the same page as your growth target before next year's numbers are set.
Tuesday, October 13, 2026
A practical playbook for NZ construction and building products owners: the market, the real growth constraints, how to price and win work, and a 90-day plan.