Local Link: Mike Pero Real Estate

Angela Wain and Andrew Steens.

Angela Wain and Andrew Steens are one of the original franchise owners with Mike Pero Real Estate. After just five years, their business is now one of the leading real estate agencies in northern Rodney. They support many community organisations and activities and firmly believe in paying it forward wherever possible to build stronger communities.

How do you choose which charitable groups, not-for-profits, or schools in the community to support?
Our first preference is to support schools, sports teams and organisations that provide support to families, as we believe this strengthens communities for the good of all.

What form does your support take?
We provide lump sum grants, one-off sponsorships or donations, ongoing scholarships and assistance with fundraising efforts.

Is there a special moment you can share that highlights the importance of being a sponsor?
A special moment for us was a quiet donation we made of $1000 that went to a man with terminal cancer to assist him to make the journey home to the islands to be with his family when he passed away.

Do you get many requests for support and do you have to turn many down?
We get regular requests and as yet we haven’t turned many down, however a few large donations to hospice and Plunket that are coming up will empty the coffers a bit.

How many people do you employ locally?
We have 10 people that work for us – some part-time or on flexi-time, which we like as it enables them to still have time with their families.

Are you confident about doing business in your town?
Very confident. We love this area, it’s growing fast enough to generate lots of business, but not too fast that it becomes unliveable.

Do you think it’s important for locals to ‘shop locally’ and do you use / support local businesses for your products and services?
Shopping locally is important – wherever we can we use local contractors and other businesses for our work. Aside from our charitable donations, a lot of our income gets pumped back into the local economy.