Content created in partnership with BNZ
Miria Flavell (Taranaki, Ngāti Rangiwewehi) is the powerful force behind Hine Collection, a Māori-led activewear brand that champions body inclusivity, offering her community of loyal fans (including model Kaarina Parker) a more diverse representation of what a healthy body looks like.
The kaupapa behind Hine started with Flavell’s own fitness journey. Spurred on by a health scare that resulted in surgery, she decided to make a healthier lifestyle change and share the process on social media. For Flavell, it was less about reaching her goals as an individual - she wanted to inspire as many women as she possibly could to take care of their health and wellbeing. Her Facebook group ‘The Hine Movement’ flourished, offering a safe space where eventually thousands of Kiwi women came to motivate each other to get active.
For Miria - who was a self-employed makeup artist at the time - the idea to start her own activewear brand was an offshoot to the community she had built.
“I thought about our women - Māori and Pasifika in particular - who were training, who were taking care of themselves, but at the time it was hard to find clothing that catered to us. Let’s be honest, clothing makes a huge difference for women to feel comfortable enough to even step into a gym and start training. Especially for the first time - I’ve been there, and it’s scary! For me, having that confidence in clothing was really important.”
She knew that if she was feeling like there were no brands catering to her, a lot of other women would be feeling the same way. “Māori and Pasifika women come in so many different shapes and sizes. That’s where the motivation came from.”
Flavell founded Hine Collection in 2018 with very little business experience under her belt, throwing herself in the deep end to build her brand from the ground-up. She did absolutely everything herself (with the help and encouragement of her supportive whanau) - from designing clothes to managing distribution, marketing and accounting - on top of being a māmā-of-two.
After a tough and slow first year, word spread about Hine. Women who had a passion for fitness but felt excluded from mainstream activewear brands were told by Hine, ‘I got you.’ Miria’s business started growing fast - really fast. “It was honestly kinda scary ‘cos I had no idea how to keep up with that growth and I knew I needed help to take it to the next level. I was introduced to an amazing accountant Steve, and through him I met Andrew from BNZ and he has been our account manager ever since. Seriously it would have been really rough if I didn’t have those two to guide me through those years.”
Flavell has always dreamed big, but the support she got from BNZ helped her plot out the steps to get Hine where she wanted it to be. After just four years in business she now employs a team of six full-time staff at Hine, she’s opened a gym called The Movement NZ (managed by her sister, former Tall Fern Matangiroa Flavell, who also trains there) and she’s created her supplement line, LVL UP.
The biggest learning curve for Flavell growing her business was that she needed to have a good five-year plan. She’s learnt that having a plan in place is hugely helpful to stay motivated - but also that life doesn’t always care about your five-year forecast. Dealing with the unexpected curve-ball of Covid, Flavell definitely felt the pressure. “The uncertainty is honestly the hardest part [of being an entrepreneur]... doubt obviously kicks in for a lot of people, myself included.”
When things get overwhelming, Flavell goes back to her kaupapa and takes care of her health - both physical and mental. “Training is my outlet. That’s why I make sure I have one hour to myself every afternoon, after work. At 4.30pm I train.”
It’s true - nothing will get in the way of Miria Flavell if it’s important enough to her. When she wanted to open up a gym right after Aotearoa came out of lockdown, her business advisors warned against it. “If there's one thing about me, it’s that if there's something I really really want to do, and there’s purpose behind it, I’ll go and do it,” she says with a confident grin.
“Opening a gym just weeks after lockdown was probably the stupidest thing anyone could have done. But I think they knew I was going to do it anyway. I suppose they believed in the vision I had. That was important to me and still is.”
Flavell couldn’t wait to see the safe space she had built on social media come to life. “I thought how cool would it be to bring these women together [in Hamilton] and train. Going into a gym can be so intimidating - we’re going to make them feel comfortable and looked after.”
Part of that was providing a place where other aspects of her community could flourish too. The Movement NZ is open to men and tamariki, and it teaches classes in Māori, Miria’s first language. “My kids speak Māori, so I thought how cool would it be to run kids Crossfit classes in te reo. It’s all about getting the whole family involved, so we have the kids' class, then the parents jump in the class after them. It’s pretty cool seeing that…the full circle of seeing kids being inspired by their parents.”
Speaking of full-circle, late last year Miria added to her empire with the launch of supplement range LVL UP “It was the natural next step to assist wāhine in the next step of their health and fitness journey” she says.
Flavell’s passion for community-led projects - even if they might be a risky business decision - shows the integrity behind the mahi that is driven by the desire to contribute to community health and wellbeing. This passion sets Hine apart from other brands that might cast one plus-size model in an ad campaign and call themselves inclusive.
So what’s next for Hine? “I would love to open a flagship store, I want to be in the biggest malls in New Zealand. I want to keep growing Hine internationally, and become a global brand. I want to take The Movement NZ gyms across the country…” As Miria continues to rattle off her next five-year plan, it’s clear that her entrepreneurial spirit isn’t going anywhere. And if there’s one thing she’s certain to manifest into existence, it’s getting Hine to the global Crossfit Games. “I don’t care which athletes wear Hine as long as I see it represented at the Crossfit Games. That would be huge, gosh that would be an absolute dream for me. I would feel like I had made it if that dream came true.”
Miria’s tips for small business owners:
“The best advice I can give is don't think you have to do it all on your own. As wāhine Māori that can be our mentality; we’re quite staunch in that way. The reality is in order to grow a business we need the right people surrounding us to support our dreams. It’s so important to seek help if you’re serious about it. I’m usually pretty confident that I’ll achieve my goals, but having those key people around me that say it’s possible and then help me achieve them - that’s a game changer.”
- Don’t do it by yourself
- Dream big - but make a plan to get there
- Take advice on board, but ultimately trust your instincts
- Surround yourself with people who share your kaupapa
Miria Flavell photographed for Ensemble at home wearing Hine Collection. All photography Ash Muir.
Any views expressed in this article are the personal views of Miria Flavell and are not necessarily shared by BNZ or anyone else. This article is solely for information purposes and is not intended to be financial advice. If you need help, please contact BNZ or your financial adviser. No party, including BNZ, is liable for direct or indirect loss or damage resulting from the content of this article.
