Rotorua’s Rumaki Cafe has become the first pakihi to seek funding through Aotearoa’s kaupapa Māori peer-to-peer koha-lending platform, Te Whare Manaaki, as it works towards opening its fully immersive reo Māori cafe.
Rumaki Cafe, which has already attracted national attention for its plans to create an everyday environment where te reo Māori can be lived, spoken and heard, is seeking $15,000 through Te Whare Manaaki to support its opening.
Its move onto Te Whare Manaaki marks another significant step towards opening its doors, while also making Rumaki Cafe the first venture to put IndigiShare’s new kaupapa Māori koha-lending model into action.
Developed by IndigiShare, Te Whare Manaaki connects Māori business with investors through zero-interest, repayable loans, creating a structured pathway for individuals and collectives to put their pūtea behind Māori ventures they believe in.
IndigiShare founder and CEO Maria Ngawati says welcoming the first business onto the platform is a significant milestone after almost a year of development.
“Te Whare Manaaki was created because we know there is both a need for more accessible pathways to capital for pakihi Māori and a genuine desire within our communities to invest in the aspirations of our people.
“Rumaki is an incredible kaupapa to begin that journey with. It brings together cultural impact, entrepreneurship, and a clear vision for what thriving Māori enterprise can look like.”
Te Whare Manaaki is currently operating as a pilot under the Financial Markets Authority (FMA) Regulatory Sandbox, providing IndigiShare with an opportunity to test and refine its lending model in a controlled environment.
Unlike a donation platform or traditional crowdfunding model, investors pledge towards a business’ funding goal. Once the goal is reached, pledged funds are collected and provided to the business as a zero-interest loan. When the loan is repaid, investors can choose to receive their investment back or pay it forward into another business.
Ngawati says the model also creates a structured mechanism for organisations that want to directly support Māori enterprise.
“Across Aotearoa there are individuals, whānau, trusts, organisations, hapū and iwi with both the desire and the resources to support Māori enterprise, but there hasn’t necessarily been a kaupapa Māori platform or framework through which they can do that using repayable lending.
“Te Whare Manaaki creates that pathway. The ambition is that pūtea doesn’t create impact once and disappear. It can be returned, recycled and put behind the next pakihi, and then the next, creating a circular model of intergenerational wellbeing.”
Rumaki Cafe has already built a strong foundation towards opening, with $118,000 invested into the business, alongside $28,000 raised from local and international donors.
The kaupapa has secured premises on Fenton Street in Rotorua and attracted local, national, and international support.
Rumaki Kaiwhakahaere (Executive Director) Miraka Davies developed the concept in response to the need for more everyday environments where people can continue speaking and strengthening their reo outside formal learning and immersion settings.
Davies’ vision is for Rumaki to become a place where going for coffee or a meal also creates an opportunity to engage naturally with te reo Māori, with the environment designed to support people across different levels of reo capability.
Ngawati says Rumaki demonstrates the wider impact that can be created when capital is placed behind Māori enterprise.
“When we talk about investing in pakihi Māori, we’re talking about much more than the success of an individual business.
“Rumaki is already creating employment, supporting Māori suppliers, strengthening the everyday use of te reo Māori, and all of that will contribute to the economic resilience of whānau. That collective impact sits at the heart of Te Whare Manaaki.”
Registrations are now open for Kaituku Pūtea (investors), who can register through Te Whare Manaaki before exploring Rumaki Cafe’s full pakihi profile: https://tuku.tewharemanaaki.co.nz/register
