Masport Teams up With Women’s Refuge to Build a Custom-made Mower to Raise Money.

Iconic Kiwi lawnmowing company, Masport, is stepping up their mowing game this Mother’s Day to raise awareness on those who are experiencing family violence. Masport came up with the initiative to partner with Women’s Refuge, a non-profit organisation that is dedicated to the prevention of domestic violence in Aotearoa, to build a custom made Masport x Women's Refuge mower. This mower, along with lawncare products which were kindly contributed by Yates, will be auctioned off on Trade Me, with the winner keeping the bundle and all proceeds of the auction will be donated to Women’s Refuge.

 

The mower had been painted purple to reflect Women’s Refuge’s brand colours, and mower decals that featured the charity’s logos were custom designed and installed on the mower’s chassis.

 

Susan Barker, Fundraising and Communications Manager from Women’s Refuge, says they are “super thankful to Masport for thinking of Women’s Refuge and raising funds to support our work of building Aotearoa free from family violence. This is an awesome opportunity for someone to add stylish colour to their garden shed and support an organisation that helps over 50,000 women and children each year experiencing family violence. A huge thank you to Yates as well for making this possible.”

 

Masport’s Managing Director, Steve Hughes, says “Masport is incredibly proud to support such a valuable charity for New Zealand women and their children in the community.”

 

This is the first time that Masport has worked with the charity, although supporting women has always been a big part of the company. The first employment of women at Masport dated back in 1936, where Masport was experiencing a chronic shortage of labour. Reuben Porter, the CEO at the time and the founder of the company, came up with an innovative solution, and a decision was made to renovate the top floor and employ women to carry out light machining work and core making. Women were also employed for spray-painting and packing, as well as assembly work on the ground floor. In 1938, the “G” Department (or women’s section) became an established part of the company, and Masport became the first company ever in Auckland to hire female factory staff. Today, the company has over 30 female employees across New Zealand and Australia, including casual staff, who each add value to the brand to ensure product quality and customer satisfaction.

 

The charity auction will be going live on Trade Me at 10am Wednesday the 12th of May.