Chair

Jason, a fourth-generation Managing Director, leads a family retailing business with seven department stores, two outdoor stores, and two Mitre 10 MEGA stores in Queenstown and Invercargill. He joined the H & J Smith Holdings Limited Board in 2003 and the Mitre 10 Board in 2017, actively pursuing development opportunities through the Institute of Directors and other programs.

As a passionate family business advocate, he focuses on long-term development for people and the business to benefit future generations.

Director

Ross is a Partner at McCulloch and Partners, Chartered Accountants with offices in Invercargill, Queenstown and Te Anau. Ross provides business advisory services to a wide range of clients throughout New Zealand and overseas. He is a Chartered member of the Institute of Directors, is Chairman of Platinum Villas in Queenstown and holds a number of private company directorships and Board Advisory roles.

He was a Trustee of the Community Trust of Southland until June 2018 and is an independent member of the Audit and Risk committee for Invercargill City Council.

Ross has a long involvement with the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants (now Chartered Accountants Australia New Zealand) and was President of the organisation in 2011.

Outside of business, Ross actively participates in Masters cricket having played in tournaments in South Africa and the West Indies.

Director

Bridget Unsworth is the Operations Director at the Angel Association of New Zealand, where she supports those with an interest or involvement in early-stage investments. Prior to this, she was Investment Director at New Zealand Venture Investment Fund, and has worked for MVision Private Equity Advisers in London.

Bridget currently serves on the board of TracPlus Global, a provider of real-time asset-tracking solutions. She holds a Bachelor of Physical Education and a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Otago.

Director

Fraser is the current CEO of Pioneer Energy, a position held since 2010 as well as Director of Pulse Energy, a subsidiary of Pioneer Energy. He holds directorships with Mainpower NZ Ltd, Ecogas Ltd and Southern Generation GP Ltd. Fraser has over 25 years' experience in the energy sector starting as an energy sector consultant in South Africa before moving to New Zealand and being involved in the wider energy industry including distribution, generation, retail, thermal, biomass and waste to energy.

Director

Mel lives in Central Southland and is the financial controller at ILT Stadium Southland. Mel is also the manager of the Southland Indoor Leisure Centre Charitable Trust, owns a rural contracting business alongside her husband, is the chair of a local rural primary school, and was a director of Invercargill City Forest for four years. She was appointed to the Board as Community Trust South representative in 2022.

Director

David Wallace is Managing Director of Armillary and has a background in asset management, investment banking, equities research and corporate treasury, with 30 plus years of experience working in the capital markets in New Zealand. He has held corporate treasury roles for Winstones, NZ Steel, and Clear Communications and worked for JP Morgan (formerly Ord Minnett) as an equities analyst

Throughout his career he has overseen a broad range of transactions including IPO’s, debt raisings, MBO’s, mergers, acquisitions and divestments, and has been a rated equities analyst for the telco and IT sectors. David is currently on the boards of NZ Crane Hire and Startup Queenstown Lakes. He also has key responsibility for managing the Unlisted Securities Exchange (a prescribed exempt financial product market) and Crowdsphere (a licenced equity crowdfunding and peer-to-peer lending platform). David splits his time between Auckland and Wanaka.

Chief Executive Officer

Prue is the Executive Officer at Invest South, collaborating closely with investee company management teams to define and execute their strategic direction. With a strong regional and national network, she enables the necessary outcomes for commercial success.

Prue brings extensive experience in business development, marketing, and general management across various industries, both in New Zealand and overseas. She holds a BA Hons from the University of Otago and an LLB from Victoria University of Wellington.

Senior Investment Associate

Mike has over 15 years’ experience in finance and investment related roles across New Zealand and the UK.

He joined the Invest South team in 2021 as a Senior Investment Associate, where he focuses on identifying and analysing investment opportunities, conducting financial modelling and valuations, performing due diligence, and contributing to investment portfolio management. Mike holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree from the University of Auckland and has successfully passed level 2 of the CFA exam. He is also a member of the Institute of Directors and Business Mentors NZ.