The Person
My wife, Nicky and I moved to Carterton in December 2022 from Wellington after selling our technology business. We moved to a lifestyle block as Nicky was keen to start a dog breeding business (Rosa Casa) and also wanted space to practice dog sports.
After working hard in my business for 20 years, while I was keen to take a break from fulltime work I wanted to get to know the area and meet people so I took on a part time job driving a school bus for GoBus. I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience of both driving and meeting the school kids and teachers
Hobbies
My main hobby is gliding and I am a member of the Wellington Wairarapa Gliding Club. Seeing the Wairarapa from the air in a quiet glider is an amazing experience. I am a flying instructor at the club and was president for 3 years.
I am also a cyclist (fair weather) which I mainly do for fitness.
Politics
At the 2023 general election, I stood as the ACT candidate for the Wairarapa. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of campaigning. I quickly learnt what the major issues were facing the Wairarapa - including secure water storage and transport.
I do want to assure Carterton residents my affiliation to ACT has no bearing on how I will deal with Carterton issues. I am standing as an independent which I believe is essential for anyone running for council. No one wants Carterton remotely controlled by Wellington.
My Experience
I earned a Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical) with 2nd class honours from Canterbury University in 1982. Prior to that I had a NZ Certificate of Engineer which allowed me direct entry into the 2nd professional year which shortened my university time.
I then became a graduate engineer for Radio NZ. But interest in information systems led me to undertake information technology projects. I applied for and became Information Systems Manager for an SOE called Design Power in 1989.
I moved more into project management and resigned to become an independent contractor in 1992. I undertook project management work for Inland Revenue and the ANZ Bank until I founded an online booking technology company, Seekom, in 2002.
At Seekom I was both the Chief Executive and Head of Sales and Marketing. Seekom grew to become a multinational company with over 20 staff and 2,000 property users. I sold Seekom for our move to the Wairarara to an Australian technology company.
© Simon Casey
