Kōrero with Diva, owner and operator of Beau

In the lead up to Kirihimete, we’re taking a moment to talk, listen and learn from some of the incredible Pakihi Māori who inspire us!?

This week, we spoke with Diva Giles (Ngāti Whātua), owner and operator of Beau, a neighbourhood restaurant in the heart of Ponsonby, about whanaungatanga, learning to run her business with a Māori mind set, and the importance of having a good team around you.

Kia ora Diva,

Thank you for taking the time to korero with us!?

First off, can you please tell us a little about who you are, where you’re from and what you do for mahi?

Kia ora! Ko Diva toku ingoa. Ko Ngāti Whātua toku iwi. Ko Te Uri o Hau toku hapu. Ko Waihaua toku marae.

I was born and raised in Ponsonby in Tāmaki Makaurau where I grew up watching the huge changes that created the Ponsonby that we all know today. I own and operate Beau, a neighbourhood restaurant in the heart of Three Lamps with my business partner Logan.

What motivated you to open a restaurant / start your own business?

I started working in hospitality when I was a teenager and then moved to London at 19, where I fell in love with kai and the power that hospitality can have in people's lives.?In London, Logan and I would eat lentils for breakfast, lunch and dinner to save our 7 pounds an hour wages to go to incredible restaurants and bars. We would dream up the restaurant that we would one day own and all the things we’d do. Eventually that became a more serious conversation and developed into an actual goal.

I wanted to create a space that my friends and whānau would want to go. A place that had a strong sense of community, a place for people to gather and leave feeling even better then when they walked in. To be completely frank, mostly, I was just young enough, naive enough, and arrogant enough, to believe that I could do it.

What experience did you have when you first started out (both business and practical)?

I learned everything I know from growing up working in restaurants, some of which are still institutions today, like Prego. Most of my experience has come from working as a waiter for years, reading books about hospitality and always surrounding myself with smarter and more talented people than me, so that I get to learn from them everyday.

When Logan and I felt ready to open our own place, we began looking at sites. But we quickly realised that as much as we had learnt about food and hospitality, we knew nothing about actually running a business. So we opened a small, hole-in-the-wall cafe. called Freaky, named by my 2 year old niece. There we learnt how to actually run a business which was the best decision. It was like doing a crash-course degree.

If you had to describe BEAU in 5 words, what would they be?

Whanaungatanga, Delicious, Inclusive, Charming, Evolving.

What’s one piece of advice you’d give to a Pakihi Māori, that is just starting out.

Be brave, but be vulnerable. Allow yourself to make mistakes, and when you do; learn from them and do better. Know that it’s okay, you are going to mess it up sometimes, but you learn and you grow. You never have to be the same person as yesterday.

What is one challenge that you have overcome, in your business? Can you tell us about it?

Learning to run our business with a Māori mindset rather than the pakeha way that dominates our industry. When one of our team members passed away we approached the situation with tikanga rather than business. This changed who I was as a person and a business owner. We could have said, ‘we stay open and we keep going’, because that is what is good for business. But we chose to shut our doors for a few days, to awhi our team and take time to breathe and process.

Having your own pakihi can be hard. What motivates you to keep going?

First and foremost, our team. I am very lucky to have a team of people who surround me in being all that I can and on my worst days, still see the best in me. Secondly, our incredible customers, who give back more to my business and my life, than I ever would have thought possible.?

My relationship with my team and our relationship with our customers, is very much a two-way street. We get just as much from them as we give. That, I believe, is whanaungatanga.?

What is the most rewarding part about being a Māori business owner?

The privilege of creating a space where other Māori can gather, share kai, be together and relax.?

Are there any Pakihi Māori or Māori business owners that have inspired you along the way? If so, who and why?

Karl Johnstone and Jo from Haumi once said to me, “You’re doing the mahi.” I didn't understand until they looked at me and said “You’re decolonising Herne Bay.”?I think about this often and when I think about it now, I realise how much this has stuck with me and guides the way I make decisions.

Another couple of wahine that I have had the privilege of connecting with along the way, are Bo (Bo Runga Jewelry) and Renata ( Occhiali Optometrist ). All of our businesses are in the Three Lamps area of Ponsonby which is awesome, go Wahine Māori!

Do you have anything else to add / Advice to share?

I changed kura in intermediate, meaning I left the reo environment. My colleague Jo and I share some whakamā about our distance from Te Reo and Taha Māori.

But we are doing our best to be a safe and vibrant space, to learn and grow, to share as we grow. Some aunties, mana wahine, wahine toa, dine with us and inspire us. Their tautoko means the world. My great aunty, sitting out the front of Beau one day told me, “Whatever happens, whatever they say. You, are a daughter of Te Uri o Hau.”

I cling to that and being Beau, we want to gift our team, and our customers, that same belonging, whoever you are, just as you are.