Alumni Profile – Marewa Sutherland

Alumni Profile:

Marewa Sutherland A pure stroke of brilliance

Little did Marewa Sutherland (Kraak) realise that her formative years rowing at St Margaret’s College would have such a profound effect on her life.

The sports and exercise nutritionist co-founded PURE Sports Nutrition and traces her path back to her rowing days at school (2002-2005), where SMC had a clean sweep in Maadi across consecutive years.

“In Year 13, I rowed for the New Zealand U21 academy. During this time, I saw Kat Darry for nutrition advice on how to fuel through the fairly heavy training and racing load. Kat was just so inspiring to me during very casual consultations at her dining room table. Her small children were running around the house, and have now themselves come through the sporting ranks at SMC and beyond which blows my mind.”

After a gap year at St Margaret’s College in Edinburgh, Marewa enrolled at the University of Otago to study the new BAppSc degree – Sports and Exercise Nutrition.

“My brother, Simon, and I were heavily into cycling when I finished university and really struggled to find nutrition that was easy to get in, especially when racing. After a year of obsessively researching, we saw a gap for nutrition with a higher level of quality.”

Thus PURE sports nutrition was born.

“We soon worked out the science was important for performance, but just as much so was the taste and usability of the products. So we essentially ‘test drove’ our products with every athlete we could find. By the time we brought our products to market, we already knew that they performed – which is a large piece of the puzzle,” Marewa recalls.

“We literally started our business in the garage, before sneaking into a commercial kitchen at night. From stickering bags to sales, marketing and dispatching, it was all us in those early days. Ten years on, we now have an in-house factory that manufacturers and dispatches our range domestically and internationally. We started with one hydration range and we now have around 50 products across three sister brands.“

At the outset, PURE was predominantly aimed at endurance athletes. However, its natural ingredients have attracted a large customer base of generally active people wanting to lead healthier lifestyles, including young athletes.

Outside New Zealand, PURE’s main markets are Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong and United Arab Emirates.

“It’s a wild ride starting your own business. We went in very fresh with high energy to do what we needed to do to succeed. As the business continues to grow, experience and expertise drive our decision-making process so it’s very different from the early days.“

Life is a juggle for Marewa today. Three children and co-owning PURE feels like a circus at times, however she maintains her active life fuels her energy and drive.

She is also unequivocal in encouraging young women to pursue their dreams.

“Don’t be afraid of giving an idea you have a go, pick up the phone and don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Most success stories sound glossy but you can be assured there will most likely be many failures along the way. There are so many knowledgeable people around, so don’t be afraid to reach out and get insight into what interests you.”