Profiles of Air New Zealand New Zealander of the Year Award finalists (in alphabetic order)
Kent Gardener
Kent is a founding partner and chief executive of property fund manager Evans Randall. The company has £4 billion of assets under management including the iconic Gherkin building in London and landmark properties in Munich, Stuttgart, Amsterdam, Brussels and Moscow. Kent’s London based team includes a number of talented expat Kiwis.
Kent started his career with New Zealand law firm Russell McVeagh and holds Bachelors of Commerce and Law from the University of Otago. In London, Kent is a Commissioner of the Crown Estate Paving Commission, a trustee of the UK Christchurch Earthquake Appeal and has been a major fundraiser for Christchurch. Kent is an investor in agriculture and viticulture in New Zealand and in a number of start-up companies.
Kent is passionate about New Zealand and advancing the interests of New Zealand from abroad. In May last year he created Step Up 4 Christchurch, a charity stair run up London’s Gherkin office tower, which raised £325,000 for those affected by the Christchurch earthquake. Kent has also been working to create ways in which New Zealand can maximise its exposure in Central London and to encourage strategies and ideas that will lead to increased investment and participation in New Zealand by both foreigners and expat Kiwis.
Born and bred in Dunedin, Kent is one of 11 children. Kent has been in London for the last 10 years and lives in Regent’s Park with his wife Gaye and their three young sons, Freddie, Harry and Will.
Bronwen Horton
Bronwen was born and raised in Christchurch, New Zealand and has spent the last 4 years in the UK. In October 2011 Bronwen travelled to Washington DC to receive an international award from TIAW, the International Alliance for Women. Being 1 of just 100 people bestowed this honour for the economic empowerment of women. Bronwen is the founder of the New Zealand Business Women’s Network, a Project Manager, mentor to young people and has been involved in over £3 million worth of fundraising for Canterbury Earthquake Fundraisers in the UK. Bronwen has had a hand in many of the UK based charity events for her home city after the devastating earthquakes there.
Bronwen studied at Canterbury University and obtained a double degree in Law and Commerce and is a qualified Barrister and Solicitor. She currently works for Credit Suisse as a Project Manager within their Private Banking division.
After organising the Step Up 4 Christchurch Charity Stair Climb event www.stepup4christchurch.com (where she was Project Manager). Bronwen continues to juggle her full time work, overseeing the NZ Business Women’s Network events and Christchurch Earthquake Appeal fundraisers including the upcoming Memorial/cinema screening of ‘When a City Falls’ for the event ‘Christchurch – A Year on’ on February 22nd this year.
Paul Kendrick
Paul is a founding partner and chief financial officer of property fund manager Evans Randall. The company has £4 billion of assets under management including the iconic building, the Gherkin in London and land mark properties in Munich, Stuttgart, Amsterdam, Brussels and Moscow.
He grew up in Stratford and New Plymouth and later earned a BBS from Massey University before qualifying as a chartered accountant with KPMG in Wellington. In the late 1980’s he travelled extensively before settling in London where he worked in investment banking for County NatWest and Bank of America.
Like most kiwis, Paul was touched by the tragic events in Christchurch. Led by his fellow partner Kent Gardner, ER created Step Up 4 Christchurch, a charity stair run up the Gherkin which saw 1,000 participants join together to raise £325,000 for those affected by the earthquake
Paul is married to Gill and has two children, George and Mollie. They live in Horsell Common near Woking in Surrey.
He supports and is involved with a charity in Surrey called Eikon that helps local under privileged and troubled teenagers