The Makers and Creators of the Rangitīkei District

Some businesses are inspired by where they live; Honest Wolf is inseparable from it. Husband-and-wife team Sam and Sophie Hurley founded this Hunterville brand with an ambitious goal: finding a better future for New Zealand wool. Their answer was to create beautiful, functional products that showcase one of the country's greatest natural fibres while telling the story of where it comes from.

That story begins just up the road at Papanui Estate, the Hurley family's third-generation sheep farm, where the wool used throughout the collection is grown. It gives every bag, cap, and accessory an authenticity that's difficult to manufacture. The bestselling mini totes, everyday bags, and weekenders are robust enough for life on the farm but equally at home in the city, while thoughtful details - like the map of Papanui Estate printed inside every bag - subtly celebrate their origins. Beyond fashion, the showroom explores the many possibilities of wool through slippers, cushions, lampshades, hot water bottles, and homewares, all reinforcing the idea that one of New Zealand's oldest materials still has an exciting future ahead.

The best local cafes often reflect the people behind them, and The Duke's Roadhouse does exactly that. Owners Rob and Laura have built a kitchen around one simple principle: make it themselves. Along with their house-made pie fillings, slow-cooked pulled beef, and spice blends, their range of hand-crafted relishes and legendary hot sauces are revered in Rangitikei and beyond.

The pair have developed recipes unique to Duke's, meaning there's little chance you'll find the same flavours elsewhere. Seasonal fruit is preserved throughout the year, ready to reappear in dishes long after harvest has passed. Meanwhile, shelves stocked with house-made condiments invite visitors to take a little slice of the kitchen home with them. It's a reminder that craftsmanship isn't reserved for galleries or workshops - sometimes it comes served on a plate or in a bottle.

For the Carpenter family, wool is not a by-product of farming, it is the beginning of the story. At Ruanui Station, the rolling hills of Rangitikei shape every stage of production, from the sheep that graze the farm to the finished garments that leave it. The family established the brand to create premium wool products with genuine traceability, allowing customers to follow the fibre all the way back to the land it came from. 

The wool is carefully selected from the station, then washed, spun, knitted, and finished through a network of specialist New Zealand manufacturers, ensuring the fibre remains within local production systems. The result is a collection of blankets, throws, and knitwear that feel distinctly connected to place: soft, durable, and made to be used for decades. 

That connection to the Rangitikei landscape runs through the entire brand. The understated aesthetic echoes the river terraces and big skies that surround the station, while the family's hands-on involvement at each step gives the products a rare sense of authenticity.

MOOMAA feels like the natural evolution of one family's creative history. The building itself has worn many hats over the decades, first selling electric fencing equipment through Archwrights, then becoming Something Special, where Emma Shannon's mother-in-law combined floristry with Devonshire teas. Today, Emma has reimagined it once again, drawing on her background in interior design to create a destination where hospitality, retail, and thoughtful design all sit comfortably under one roof.

The cafe has earned a loyal following thanks to generous cabinet food, seasonal dishes, homemade baking, and famously good cheese scones, but lingering is all part of the experience. Visitors can browse carefully curated furniture, lighting, artwork, and homewares between coffees, with many pieces created by New Zealand designers and makers. 

Few businesses demonstrate the relationship between landscape and product quite like Rata Olive Oil. Hamilton and Gaylene McConachy planted their first 550 Tuscan olive trees in the Rangitikei River valley in 2003, adding another enterprise to the family's working sheep, beef, and dairy farm. More than two decades later, the grove has expanded to well over 1,700 trees, thriving in a unique microclimate shaped by warm summers, mild winters, and constant river breezes.

Alongside traditional extra virgin olive oil, the McConachys use the Italian agrumato method to press locally grown lemons, limes, tangelos, rosemary, and garlic alongside the olives, creating distinctive infused oils. Harvest remains a family affair, drawing relatives and friends together each winter - proof that some traditions are worth holding onto.

Few businesses have done more to champion New Zealand wool than The Wool Company. Founded more than six decades ago by Gordon and Janet Riach, the business began by buying wool before evolving into one of the country's most respected specialists in merino, possum, and natural fibre knitwear.

Today the company is led by Gordon's daughter Margot Riach, alongside her husband and their sons, continuing a legacy built on innovation and genuine passion for wool. Traceability sits at the heart of everything they do, with knitting yarn sourced from Timahanga Station and premium merino coming from carefully selected South Island farms known for sustainable farming and exceptional fibre quality. Even as the business has grown to reach tens of thousands of customers across New Zealand and overseas, its philosophy remains unchanged: celebrate local growers, add value to one of the country's finest natural resources, and ensure every garment tells the story of where the fibre began.

The shortest journey from paddock to plate often produces the best results, and that's exactly what drives Pine Park Produce. This family-run business grows fresh vegetables and herbs throughout the Rangitikei and Manawatu regions, harvesting only when orders come in to ensure maximum freshness.

The changing seasons dictate what fills the fields, with each crop reflecting the fertile soils and favourable growing conditions of the district. Regular deliveries to homes and businesses keep locals stocked with produce picked just hours earlier, while the weekly Feilding Farmers' Market offers another opportunity to buy directly from the growers themselves. It's a refreshingly straightforward model built on the simple satisfaction of knowing exactly where your food has come from.