What do you get the man who has absolutely everything? Why a bespoke Rolls-Royce of course, what else? The very epitome of luxury, nothing tells the world more about your personality than a Rolls-Royce. Yet, the car maker extraordinaire has taken this personalisation a step even further with the brand new Rolls-Royce Dawn ‘The Kita’. […]
Brad Pitt is one of those guys you just implicitly understand the star power of. He does a bang up job in every role he takes on, and even out of character he is effortlessly cool. You could put him in anything and he’s going to outclass everybody else in the room. In his latest […]
Simrad Yachting’s newest multifunction display (MFD) – Simrad NSX heralds in the next level for chart plotters and fishfinders with a powerhouse of new tech. Available in 7″, 9″ and 12″ display sizes the NSX gets a brand new Operating System with an intuitive touch screen experience and clear images. It packs in new charts […]
From the outside, making movies doesn’t seem that complicated, right? You whip up a script, get thrown a boatload of cash, chuck up a green screen, hire some pretty people to stand in front of camera, a bit of cutting and chopping here and there and voila, a movie is made. If you’ve got a […]
White birch has long been an integral part of Japanese culture and tradition with its brilliant, satin-like texture making it the ideal material for making furniture and flooring in the home. This regularly patterned wood creates not only beautiful veneers, but is also so strong it has been used to create aircraft propellers in the […]
Hidden away in the forest to the east of Lake Suwa in Shinshu, Japan is Mishaka Pond; a beautiful body of water that features a unique verdant green. This colour so caught the eye of the Micro Artist watchmakers in their studio nearby they decided to use it to create this collector’s edition Spring Drive […]
M2 brings you its top watch picks in a series featuring the best of this year’s luxury timepiece releases. A special edition brought out to celebrate 140 years since the creation of the company that would become Seiko. This Grand Seiko Spring Drive chronograph SBGC240 may be the most precise chronograph in the world as […]
Wistfully looking back over the last 16 years does make me feel like an old man, but it is none-the-less an interesting exercise in taking stock of how much things keep changing. I was going to say ‘evolving’ but that would imply a state of improvement across the board. Still, it does feel like we […]
Dropping her new EP REVELACIÓN last month and working on her new Hulu TV show, Selena Gomez isn’t one to rest on her laurels. Selena Gomez has spent almost her entire life in the public eye, and never once faltered. She navigated the waters from Disney Kid to Pop Diva with aplomb, and from that […]
Ah, Coventry. Such a gorgeously brimming and buzzing metropolitan burrow situated a stone’s-throw from London in the UK. Soon it will thrust England into the future later this year with Uber-Air, showing investors how flying taxis can fit into urban centres. Urban-Air Port, a British-based start-up, has partnered with Hyundai Motor to start developing the […]
Recently Elon Musk decided he hadn’t done enough for his online meme community, so he changed his job title to Technoking of Tesla according to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Not only this but his Chief Financial Officer Zach Kirkhorn had also been bequeathed with the hallowed title of “Master of Coin” like Tesla was […]
Every year dozens of great movies fly straight under the radar only to be discovered on a particularly adventurous evening of random movie selection years later. Let this sidebar be a guiding hand for the next time you’re looking for something a little different. Here are our top picks for movies you missed. Come to […]
It’s a sad reality that one of the biggest signs you’re getting old is seeing your favourite entertainers move into the twilights of their careers. This is always particularly painful with athletes; watching a sportsman, who in their prime was practically a superhero, slowly lose their magic and appear human. It is often difficult for […]
Mortal Kombat MA Fighter Cole Young played by Lewis Tan (Wu Assassins, Deadpool 2) has been taking beatings his entire life, unaware that a birthmark has set him apart for a bloodsport as old as time itself between Earth and Outerworld. Joe Taslim (Raid, The Night Comes for Us) plays the legendary Sub-Zero, Outerworld’s champion, […]
As daylight savings kicks on, the big sustainable and financial issue now is how to lower your light bulb use as the days get darker faster. Well, curling up with a good book only uses one light bulb as opposed to a whole room of lights for a dance lesson is perfect! Here are some […]
Uelese Mua, Head Chef at Euro, talks to M2 for the Man on the Street series. What are the top three things on your bucket list? In no real order, I’d love to travel more when the borders allow, learn another language (potentially Mandarin!) on top of Samoan and French, which I’m fluent in and […]
Will Alexander, General Manager of Property Management at Property Brokers, talks to M2 for the Man on the Street series. What advice would you give your 20-year-old self? You will be a lot different in twenty years time! I would say, others will develop more quickly than you, but eventually, you find your way. And […]
Dean Anderson, CEO of Kernel, talks to M2 for the Man on the Street series. What are the top three things on your bucket list? My goals for the next year are: Continue to grow Kernel, which is what absolutely drives me. Purchase a home in Auckland, currently rentvesting Re-book and complete a planned two […]
Serbian rower Marko Dragosavljević tours the Danube as he practices for upcoming competitions. The shot was taken in the swamps between Krnjača and Pančevo, near Belgrade. His training also took him past Golubac Fortress, a 14th century fortress renowned for repelling over 120 conquering attacks, but also failing enough to change hands repeatedly between Turks, […]
It’s M2’s sweet 16 this issue. So we’re going to take this opportunity to gloat about the 16 world events we’ve managed to survive thus far. 1. 2005 It was a simpler time back when M2 launched. George Bush just got in for a second term, North Korea let the world know they’re working on […]
Beaming onto our TV screens in 1999 as a single season, Popstars quickly rose in popularity to become an integral part of New Zealand reality television history. Devised by producer Jonothan Dowling in a tiny office in Grey Lynn, Auckland, the show’s concept was quickly bought up by Screentime Australia and distributed around the world. […]
In the early evening on March the 14th this year, on an unknown rooftop overlooking the Staples Centre in downtown Los Angeles, a group of music’s brightest stars had gathered. Like a meeting of the deities, the socially-distanced and masked members looked stoic as the cameras panned over their recognisable faces. Whatever they were doing […]
M2 brings you its top watch picks in a series featuring the best of this year’s luxury timepiece releases. Hublot Big Bang Integral Ceramic Love the beauty of luxury watches but not a fan of the feeling of weight on your wrist? Then the Hublot Big Bang Integral Ceramic could be just the ticket for […]
M2 brings you its top watch picks in a series featuring the best of this year’s luxury timepiece releases. IWC Shaffhausen Portugieser Chronograph With Stainless Steel Bracelet Stainless steel – it’s tough and practical, corrosion-resistant and completely unaffected by moisture, sweat and seawater splashes. Which makes it the absolute perfect material for a watch strap […]
M2 brings you its top watch picks in a series featuring the best of this year’s luxury timepiece releases. G-Shock MRG-B2000 Kachi-Iro At one time ultramarine was worth more than gold, as its deep blue colour came from the rare lapis lazuli rock which was only found in Afghanistan. All around the ancient world these […]
M2 brings you its top watch picks in a series featuring the best of this year’s luxury timepiece releases. Tudor Black Bay Chrono Since the launch of the Oysterdate in 1970, Tudor’s first chronograph, the brand has been closely associated with motorsport. Similarly, since 1954 Black Bay diving watches have given Tudor a well-deserved nautical […]
Monti Castello – Winter Wool Nailing the new casual look can be tricky. Direct from Italy, Monti Castello has the ultimate accessory to elevate your style this Autumn. A limited cameo collection of designs is available in knitted wool ties, delivering the perfect textural complement to casual winter jackets and structured knitwear. Complete your look […]
The cool thing about concept cars is that they allow a snapshot into a future imagined by designers without being bound by the realities of production. This allows for some fantastic exploration that pushes the envelope of design. The unfortunate thing about concept cars is that they allow a snapshot into a future imagined by […]
The concept of drawing inspiration from the animal world for industrial design inspiration is of course not a new one, but Italian designer, Piepaolo Lazzarini, has notched that up a level or two with his latest animal-like design. While some designers will take their cues from fierce apex predators like the shark, eagle, jaguar or […]
Jack Jensen is a Kiwi action sports enthusiast and a powerhouse when it comes to building people up and creating communities. His group have torn it up on water, dirt, concrete, you name it, they’ve probably got a shot of them hovering over the top of it on a board or a bike. We spoke […]
Image by Seb Charles shot at Les Mills Auckland City Just before New Zealand’s first Covid lockdown last year, the general public made a run to the supermarkets for toilet paper, flour and other supplies we hadn’t really paid a second thought to before. Not so for Les Mills instructor and Under Armour ambassador, Gary […]
According to a new study of people aged 70-80, drinking beetroot juice promotes healthier blood vessels and brain function. I don’t know about you, but I love my brain functioning, so anything to keep that ticking over in my twilight years would be nice. In the study by the University of Exeter, 26 healthy older […]
Innovative collagen company, Adashiko came up with a no-waste way to package and store their Collagen Cleanse product. This cleansing bar is laden with amazing skin-loving ingredients, with a moisturising Squalene base, Collagen Peptide (of course!), Hyaluronic Acid & CoQ10. All put together to give you the ultimate in a luxury cleanse to wash off […]
As a tallish/largish person, I sometimes feel that the world is not designed for me. Hanging lights seem to hover in the twilight zone so as to be invisible but not avoidable when walking into them. As does the bottom edge of kitchen cabinetry and the top edge of an aircraft entrances – luckily the […]
When we celebrate success, too often our attention is pulled towards the flashy reality show known as Los Angeles and the Silicon Valley full of nerds and eccentrics. On the other side of the planet, the occupation of the billionaires change. Europe’s richest man, Bernard Arnault (estimated worth: 160.6 billion USD) wheels and deals in […]
In the lifestyle media world, the word utility seems to have a bad rap, even by extension to call something utilitarian, implies that it is somehow void of everything else. I think the word is totally underrated and I am here to present a case for it using the all-new Hyundai Palisade as exhibit A. […]
After a globe-trotting career around the world, David Banfield landed in New Zealand in 2014 as the Group CEO for NZX-listed Methven. In January of 2020 he took the helm at Comvita, an iconic New Zealand honey brand founded in 1974 to connect people to health and nature. This approach has never gone out of […]
Last year, I wrote a book called How to Get to the Top of Google Search for Penguin Random House New Zealand. It remains the bible that small businesses across New Zealand and Australia use to dominate search rankings. This month, I’ve had several requests from businesses to provide some tips they can use to […]
Team engagement delivers the good feels… and some great business results. I’m not usually someone who likes to look in the rearview mirror however, in business sometimes you have to look back in order to move forward. The end of the financial year provides a natural time to pause and take stock; what did we […]
It is not surprising in a time of incredible pressure that my clients say, I just want you to help with my biggest problem. Of late that has been consistently, “I need more customers”. We know that this is just the start of their issues and to really make a sustainable difference, we will need […]
Kept awake all night by the blood curdling wails of the tourism sector, Saint Jacinda and Sco-mo have finally decided to extend the bubble to more than just deportations Australia doesn’t want to deal with. M2’s travel articles dried up quicker than the movie section during our many lockdowns, but it looks like we might […]
To make something truly great you need to take risks, and risks are usually things no one else is doing. Would you put your business on the line for greatness? Yalumba did, and it paid off. In the 1970s Yalumba saw Viognier being grown in the appellations of Condrieu and Cote Rotie, France. It’s a […]
As yet more clusters are found, you might be finding yourself on the couch a little more than usual. Here’s our recommended time killers of new games to get your hands on: Jurassic World Aftermath Out on the Oculus Quest, Jurassic World Aftermath successfully recreates the fear of getting chased by a velociraptor around a […]
Gamestop and its resulting fallout has overshadowed r/Wallstreetbets for months now. But I think we should celebrate the real heroes who made the sub what it is. That’s the plucky users with little understanding about what they’re even doing and strategies that are so undercooked you get food poisoning just reading them. This is the […]
Above: Adam Hannett, Bruichladdich Head Distiller. Transparency, we demand it from our bosses, politicians (fat chance!), accountants and possibly most of all, from our food manufacturers. Why? Because we want to be able to trust that what we are spending our hours on, paying our tax dollars for and actually putting into our mouths – […]
2020 was a total write off for red carpet looks; do you remember the bizarreness of the Emmys when people in hazmat suits would wave goodbye to the losers? But now we’re in 2021, vaccines are rolling out and we can finally start kidding ourselves that the worst is behind us. The stars are out […]
Ever wanted to know how basic your listening habits really are? Well, fortunately for you, we’ve set the most powerful AI algorithms in the world on to finding the answer to that very question. “How Bad Is Your Spotify” is a project developed by The Pudding. It analyses your Spotify account and gives you an […]
If you have a football fan in your life, they’ve probably been a complete raving mess over the last few days, bleeding on about something called a ‘European Super League’ and how it’s practically the end of the sport as we know it. If you’re not invested neck-deep in the goings on in European football […]
If you’ve been road running for a while, you may be ripe for a change of scene just to freshen things up a bit. You could just try driving somewhere else to go for your run – or you could try something far more radical like cross country running. This isn’t just road running on […]
Remember how you grew up watching shows like the Jetsons, where robots did all the housework and everyone flew around in spaceships – and you’ve always wondered ever since; ‘when is THAT future gonna turn up?’ Well, wonder no longer, that future is officially here! Okay, so there may be a slight wait on the […]
It’s hardly controversial to say 2020 was a tumultuous year for everyone. Virtually every day heralded some new craziness for us to cope with from the sky-darkening Aussie bushfires to Trump’s dialogue. In amongst it all of course were the scenes of Covid-19 lockdowns and street protests inspired by Black Lives Matters and LGBTQ rights, […]
Early in April, the government released new tax policies that specifically targeted the housing sector. The new laws are intended to slow down house prices growth rates across New Zealand in an effort to make it easier for first home buyers to get into the market. The changes are broad and cover an extensive range […]
We’ve pulled together our top consumer tech picks so far this year. GilletteLabs Heated Razor Starter Kit Gillette has found a way to fold a warm towel into a razor. A heating pad on the razor itself can heat up within a second and can produce two heat options of 43 or 50C. This gives […]
Pictured: Matthew McConaughey with his range of Scotch At this stage, we really shouldn’t be surprised when a random American celebrity pops up as a potential political candidate. From Ronald Reagan to Jesse Ventura to Arnold Schwarzenegger to Stacey Dash to Kanye West to that guy on The Apprentice who wore that red hat (whatever […]
Stand up comedy. Quite possibly the most polarizing combination of three words in the English language. People either hate it – or love it, there doesn’t seem to be much by the way of middle ground. I possibly fall into the former category due to my role in life as a humourless automaton, aka website […]
We’re not sure what it is, but there’s just something about a good zombie movie that gets us all fired up. Maybe it’s the longing for a reason to band together against a common enemy. Maybe it’s the desire to project ourselves into the film (could we survive this zombie apocalypse?). Or maybe we just […]
What’s the most you’ve lost in a 48 hour span? $50? $100? Maybe $500 if you’re a bit of a Saturday night high-roller at the SkyCity Casino? Whatever the number, what you’re about to read will probably make you feel a lot better about your setback, because I’m pretty sure it isn’t as high as […]
Every now and again a story pops up about a human being displaying a level of endurance that makes us think “how is that humanly possible?”. We hit a fitness goal and feel bloody proud of ourselves, only to see in the news that some athletic freak has accomplished something in the same field we […]
There’s a breed of business thinking that is not only about making money but also making a positive impact on the world. And Oz Jabur from Future Co is this breed of entrepreneur, helping to drive those other metrics of success. We talk to Oz about the future of active wear, sustainable sportswear and how […]
There’s never been a bad time to be a billionaire, but the last year might’ve been the best time for a long time. While the COVID pandemic sent the vast majority of the world into a financial tailspin, the lucky few billionaires at the very top saw their wealth skyrocket, resulting in some staggering figures […]
No matter your opinion of Kanye West; musical genius, insufferable egomaniac, misunderstood intellectual, self-righteous hypocrite, messiah, moron; chances are, you probably have an opinion of him. For almost two decades the hip-hop icon has been one the most talked about figures in modern entertainment. There’s just something about the combination of immense talent, unfiltered eccentricity […]
The last few years have seen some fascinating development in the tech industry. The uptick in businesses turning to automation and increasing their presence online, both internally and externally, has seen the industry grow exponentially. This was true even before we all spent the last year working from home and so many businesses were forced […]
Doesn’t it seem like we’re having to fight off an awful lot of species threatening problems nowadays? Admittedly, most of them of our own doing, but I’d argue that a massive asteroid crashing into our planet which is just over here innocently minding its own business isn’t really our fault. Thankfully, an asteroid that has […]
The year was 2010. The 00’s had left us in a fascinating place in personalised tech and the mobile phone industry was on fire. That cute little Apple logo was fast establishing a presence in every household in the country and teachers were confiscating iPhones and Androids left, right and center. 2010 was the year […]
Have you ever wanted to go glamping in a physical embodiment of the international relationship between New Zealand and Australia? Well as bizarre as it sounds, you literally can. Giving you the opportunity to make the most of the soon-to-be-opened Australia New Zealand travel bubble, Bubbletent Australia offers a luxury camping experience like no other. […]
With the rapid approach of the cooler weather, increasingly I’m finding myself looking forward to finding my spot at the bar, watching the rain endlessly lashing the windows and swirling the finger (or two) of warming amber liquid in my whisky glass while I work on solving the world’s problems with my friends. This year […]
Every time a travel bubble has been even considered for a moment, someone has literally exploded because they’re so full of Covid, starting a new cluster and putting a kibosh on the whole thing. But not this time, Jacinda Ardern has announced that the Australia/New Zealand travel bubble will be opening Monday 19 April. Potential Future […]
“Unfortunately, we’ll all have to start traveling to all these cities again. But that’s the right thing to do.” Those were the words of the often controversial but never shy UFC President, Dana White, when asked about the UFC’s decision to open the gates to the paying public for the first time in over a […]
So you’ve finally made the plunge into VR with your Quest 2. Maybe it’s your first time, maybe you’re upgrading up from the Gen 1 tech and are having your mind blown at how far we’ve come in terms of resolution and framerate. There’s no two ways about it, the Quest 2 has become the […]
The golden days of morning runs in actual daylight, bodysurfing down at the beach and a barbecue to finish are behind us. There’s still a bit of heat in that sun – at least until it disappears behind those western hills, which is happening earlier every day that passes. So that offers enough of an […]
As Chief Investment Officer of a company that handles thousands of clients and is responsible for over $1 billion of their money, Pie Funds’ Mark Devcich is a voice worth hearing when it comes to investing. We talked to him about the strategies that go into investing, the challenges and opportunities brought on by COVID, […]
A few months ago Beeple, a prolific artist who has been pumping out work every day for over 14 years finally became an overnight success. A collection of his pieces sold as NFTs (along with a physical digital display case posted out) and made over $3.5 million in a weekend. NFT is a hot new […]
The best thing about being an amateur runner is that there are no restrictions. I don’t have any dietary plan or training obligations – aside from getting out of the scratcher as soon as humanly possible and getting the T shirt and shorts on (which is easier said than done some mornings, depending on the […]
I might be pointing out the obvious when I say that building 130ft tall rockets designed to carry 8,000kg payloads into outer space takes a whole lot of knowledge, hard work, ingenuity and yes, a whole load of cash. With that squarely in mind, Rocket Lab CEO (and 2019’s M2 Man of the Year) Peter […]
We seem to be getting daily headlines about exorbitant prices paid for Auckland villas at the moment. But while residential investment might be getting harder, many people are finding new opportunity in the world of commercial property outside of the main centres. With a career spanning property finance, development and sales, Waikato/Bay of Plenty Property […]
We’re once again in the thick of film awards season and the biggest prize on the board, the much coveted Oscars, is back up for grabs. That’s right, it’s time once again to get passionately worked up about the award show that often confounds us with its questionable taste, yet has us crawling back and […]
When Under Armour set out with the mission to create the fastest running shoe, they weren’t going to cut corners. But they DID reconsider whether those corners should even exist in the first place. After three years of testing, 17 rounds of raw material tests, nine rounds of biomechanical testing, 15 rounds of shoe testing […]
The America’s Cup, alongside ‘Covid’; ‘lockdown’; and several other angry adjectives; are the words everyone seems to be using at the moment. But while the America’s Cup sailing is the Big Show, it is not the only form of the sport out there, as you can compete in everything from dinghy to giant catamaran racing […]
Just because we are in isolation doesn’t mean your exercise routine should be in isolation too. Sit down and plan your weekly routine/daily structure with your work (if you are working from home), exercise and meals. It is a perfect time to really focus on you and your wellbeing. Personally, I am treating this time […]
Located on the Sunset Strip in Hollywood, California stands one of the most famous nightclubs in the world. Perhaps in history too. Not so much for its appearance than its star-studded notability, the Viper Room has had its fair share of celebrity occupants. Regulars have included Toby Macguire, Leonard DiCaprio, Jared Leto and Jennifer Anniston. […]
