NEED TO RECHARGE?

WHEN THEIR LIFESTYLE GOT OUT OF KILTER, HĀWERA COUPLE TESS AND BEN ANNABELL WERE INSPIRED TO MAKE MAJOR CHANGES – AND TAKE TIME TO RECHARGE.

That’s the name of their business, which is dedicated to supporting tradies, especially those in business or those wanting to move into their own operation.

The one-year-old business provides financial support from Tess, a chartered accountant with a solid background working in finance, and business advisory and mentoring support from Ben, who is a qualified plumber, successful business owner and Prekure health coach.

“We both love helping people and I think we have got something very valuable to offer tradies,” he says.

Tess and Ben run Recharge Group from their country home outside Hāwera, where they’re also raising their family – Ivy, 6, and Freddie, 3. However, many of their meetings with clients are held off site.

Recharge also runs four-day Wellness Retreats for Tradies facing burnout and fatigue or those who just want a break from their busy schedule and need a chance to rest and reset. The retreats are held on a 2500-acre (1011.7-hectare) farm at Whakamara, 20 minutes south of Hāwera.

There are also two-day team alignment retreats to get staff and business owners on the same page in terms of the company’s vision, mission, goals, and objectives. “We also work on company goals and personal goals and we identify how both the company and the employee can help each other achieve these goals,” says Ben.

There is also an overnight offering, which is more like a work do where attendees go bush, enjoy claybird shooting and knife making.

The wellness retreats were inspired by one Ben attended in 2021. “Tess booked me on a retreat at Tairua up in the Coromandel and it was life changing.” At the time he was burnt out running their business Evergreen Plumbing, and struggling with a debilitating back injury.

In 2018, Ben tripped over on a cattle stop and tore and prolapsed a disc. “In 2020, I had a spinal fusion, which was a disaster. I guess, 18 months after my surgery I was in that much pain and trying to run a business with 15 staff . . . it was super difficult. I hit near rock bottom with burnout and fatigue.”

The Tairua retreat got him back on track. “We had good conversations, learnt good strategies around dealing with how I was feeling . . . and more importantly made some good decisions while I was there and came to some conclusions or realisations that what I was doing was not sustainable.”

He also had a revelation. “I knew I had to come back here and recreate it (the retreat) because it was so powerful,” says Ben. “It’s not just me, Tess is in the background of these retreats doing a lot of helping out as well. The food on these is super important and Tess nails all of that, looks after me and the kids.”

Activities on the tradies’ retreats include going bush, motorbiking, clay shooting, making salamis and knife making. “We also learn about yoga, breathwork, meditation and ice baths. It’s all about lifestyle medicine, so it’s given me all those tools to help people get back on track.”

While the Wellness Retreats for Tradies are special offerings from Recharge, Tess’ main job is to provide support and advice on finance, and Ben’s role is as a business adviser, calling on his own background. Ben built up their business, Evergreen Plumbing, to be a highly successful operation employing 15 staff, bringing in shareholders and hitting record profits year after year.

“This was due to being systemised, well managed and having great staff in the right roles,” he says. “And from engaging my own business mentors and advisors over the years who I was able to learn from, to craft our business into a well-oiled machine.”

This successful experience has built the foundations of Recharge Group, where Ben can help other business owners through financial understanding, systems and productivity, sales, marketing, team management, leadership and planning.

In 2021, they sold Evergreen, and two years later Ben had a successful spinal fusion from an Auckland surgeon. Sometimes he still gets back pain, but has developed tools to help get through these tough patches.

Preparing for his business advisory role at Recharge, the 38-year-old spent 18 months writing six books, on: financial understanding, team management, systems and productivity, sales, marketing, and leadership and planning. “They have everything I would like to have known from day dot,” he says. “All of our clients get these books, along with a load of other resources from calculators, to charts and other very useful templates.”

Tess’ academic foundations began with the sea. At Victoria University, she gained a Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology, and then went overseas with Ben, first to Australia and then the UK. The 37-yearold’s interest in finance came when she landed a job with London investment company, Future Capital Partners, based in Mayfair.

Back in New Zealand, Tess began working as a receptionist for Hāwera accounting firm Peter Filbee and Associates and began studying accounting through Massey University. “Peter Filbee was an amazing support,” she says.

After gaining her degree, Tess worked towards becoming a chartered accountant, graduating in 2020. “Because of my accounting knowledge in general, and because we have owned a trades business, I know the information and I know how they need to understand their financials in order to run a successful trades business,” says Tess.

She and Ben meet new clients together to hear their needs and if Recharge can help people, including those who may be facing financial difficulties. “You don’t need to feel too embarrassed or proud to come to us – that’s literally what we are there for,” she says.

Next step is to choose one of three packages, which offer different levels of accounting and business advice and tools. “Seeing a healthy business and happy business owners – that’s what we aim for. If we achieve that, we have cracked it.”

Recharge has just become a supporting partner, with the Taranaki Health Foundation, of the Network of Trades, run by the Chamber. Get togethers are held on the second Tuesday of the month, alternating between North and South Taranaki.