OUR LEADERSHIP

  • Rachel founded Away We Go ~ Matike Mai in late 2022 and continues to lead its direction and growth. She provides strategic and creative oversight across all clients and works directly with boards, CEOs, and senior leaders to design income diversification strategies, deliver commercial frameworks, and provide governance solutions that drive long-term sustainability and social impact. She also leads new business development and serves as Director of the Pacific affiliate for Local Action Marketing (LAM), creating pathways into FIFA 2026, LA28, and other global events.

    Rachel brings over 25 years of international commercial and marketing experience, including 17 years abroad in Formula 1 and other motorsports, golf, rugby, cricket, and football. She has worked with global corporates such as Allianz, Shell, Ford, and NTT DoCoMo, and with rights-holders including Mercedes, Ferrari, and Renault F1 Teams, FC Bayern Munich, FC Barcelona, the International Olympic and Paralympic Committees, and World Rugby. Alongside this, she has worked extensively in the not-for-profit sector with organisations including the Australian Red Cross, Asthma New Zealand, and the Leukaemia Foundation, contributing to fundraising, brand, and marketing initiatives that strengthened income and community outcomes.

    Inspired by her involvement in the London 2012 Paralympics, she returned to Aotearoa New Zealand in 2014 as Commercial & Marketing Director for Paralympics New Zealand, where she secured $3.5m in funding and national broadcast partnerships around Rio 2016 and PyeongChang 2018. She later served as Secretary General of the International Working Group (IWG) on Women & Sport 2018 - 2022 and CEO of Women in Sport Aotearoa. She led the record-breaking 8th IWG World Conference in Auckland, attended by 1,850+ leaders from 300 organisations across 90 countries.

    Contact:

    +64 (0) 27 546 5836

    rachel@awaywego.co.nz

CEO & Strategic Consultant

  • Melissa provides operational leadership across the Away We Go ~ Matike Mai client portfolio. She coordinates delivery teams and our contractor network to ensure smooth execution and consistently high standards, while also contributing to delivery where her expertise adds most value.

    She manages the planning, delivery, and reporting of client programmes, overseeing timelines, deliverables, and communications across multiple accounts. Acting as the primary point of contact for most clients, Melissa builds trusted relationships with CEOs and project leads, while also mentoring the Away We Go team and contractors, strengthening systems and processes, and embedding consistent delivery practices across the consultancy.

    Melissa brings more than 25 years of expertise in project development, funding, stakeholder management, communications, PR, and brand development.

    Most recently, she was Head of Engagement & Impact at Paralympics New Zealand, where during a 12-year tenure she developed and delivered nationally recognised programmes advancing inclusion for disabled people, including a flagship school education initiative. She also led international and local media for the New Zealand Paralympic Team at Tokyo 2020, PyeongChang 2018, and Rio 2016, managing press operations and communications at the Games. She was instrumental in creating and launching the award-winning Spirit of Gold Initiative, a long-term commercial, fundraising, and communications programme that built sustainable profile and income for the Paralympic movement in NZ.

    Earlier in her career, Melissa held senior marketing and programme roles at EY UK and worked across New Zealand’s Regional Sports Trust network on community sport development, programme design, and delivery.

    Contact:

    +64 (0) 20 4004 4799

    melissa@awaywego.co.nz

CLIENT SERVICES DIRECTOR

OUR SPECIALISTS

  • Asuka joined Away We Go in 2025 and has contributed across a variety of projects and clients. With over 20 years of experience in Marketing and Communications, she brings deep expertise in brand and campaign development, website strategy, social media marketing, and purpose-led marketing initiatives.

    Previously, Asuka spent 10 years as the National Manager Marketing & Communications at the New Zealand Blood Service, where she led acquisition and retention campaigns to strengthen brand awareness and engagement. She was an international board member of the Association of Donor Recruitment Professionals for 5 years, overseeing the global committee. More recently, she joined AUT Millennium as Commercial Manager to develop the commercial programme.

    Asuka holds a conjoint Commerce and Law degree, majoring in Marketing, and is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Marketers.

  • Hayley has been part of Away We Go since 2023, contributing to projects spanning commercial partnerships, grants, research, and analysis.

    With more than 15 years of experience in community sport across Aotearoa New Zealand, she combines big-picture thinking with strong organisational skills and is known for turning strategy into effective delivery.

    She began her career in 2008 as a Sports Coordinator at Albany Senior High School, before moving into similar roles at Diocesan School for Girls and St Cuthbert’s College. In 2016, she joined Netball New Zealand as Community Netball Coordinator, supporting programmes nationwide to grow participation and strengthen delivery. She was later promoted to Membership Project Manager (2018–2019) and then Volunteer Advocate (2019–2021), developing initiatives to support, retain, and celebrate the thousands of volunteers who power sport.

  • Jim joined Away We Go at the end of 2025 as he wrapped up four years managing the on-air talent at Sky TV and producing their rugby show, Breakdown. 

    With 30 years experience in journalism, broadcasting and television producing, Jim brings a wealth of cross-platform experience in content creation, media strategy and crisis communications.

    Having worked with the Mystics netball club, Surf Life Saving New Zealand, FINA, Softball NZ and events like the World Junior Squash Champs and Ocean Swim Series NZ, Jim will add to his knowledge base as the Chiefs media manager for Super Rugby Pacific in 2026 in parallel to his work with Away We Go.

    Those experiences, and a life-long involvement in sport from a personal level to being a Dad to two wonderful, athletic and busy daughters, Jim has real-life knowledge of Aotearoa's smaller, but hugely important sports.

  • Suzanne is a journalist, author and podcaster who works with Away We Go as a storyteller, bringing four decades of expertise across journalism, long-form feature writing, sport, editing and narrative non-fiction.

    She is the founding editor of LockerRoom, Aotearoa New Zealand’s first news site dedicated solely to women’s sport - helping reshape how women’s stories are told and valued, and introducing and mentoring female writers. Widely respected for uncovering the human story at the heart of sport and community, Suzanne works in print, digital and audio.

    She has been awarded Sports Journalist of the Year and Magazine Writer of the Year titles. In 2025, she was made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) in the King’s Birthday Honours, for services to sports journalism and women. 

    Suzanne is the author of two books, Striking Gold and Honey, and leads Reflections, capturing life stories for future generations.

  • Phil is a senior designer and multidisciplinary creative with 25 years’ experience. He first worked with Away We Go in early 2025, and formally joined the team in December.

    He partners with teams in the not-for-profit, social impact and commercial space, like Asthma NZ, Mission Without Borders, World Freedom Network, The Light Project and Better Packaging Co., to shape strategy, build design systems and craft stories that feel human and grounded.

    His work runs from brand strategy, workshops, storytelling and assets, through UX design systems, web design, front-end and CRO, to TVC and event content, case study and interview films, recruitment and drone work, corporate and portrait photography, product shoots and 3D character and animation, always with an eye on how each touchpoint fits together.

    Curious by nature, Phil is known for getting alongside clients to find simple, thoughtful ways to bring complex ideas to life.

  • Sarah has worked on a wide range of projects for Away We Go, contributing across the full commercial spectrum from sponsorship to grants and trust funding.

    She brings more than 12 years of experience in sports business management, with expertise in commercial strategy, revenue generation, and event operations. She also has a detailed understanding of New Zealand’s sporting landscape from community through to high performance, and a track record working with not-for-profits and charities.

    Most recently, Sarah was Marketing Rights Delivery Manager for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023, responsible for planning and delivering rights for partners across the New Zealand programme. Prior to that, she spent four years as Commercial Manager at the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, where she managed, grew, and negotiated all commercial revenue in the lead-up to the America’s Cup 2021.