For Chanelle Armstrong, 31, creating her family business Stay Native was a chance to turn a growing New Zealand tourism industry into an opportunity to promote self-reliance among the Indigenous Māori. Many Māori businesses aim to help their community. “Being a social enterprise is nothing new to the Maori,” she said.
Stay Native is an online platform and business that consists of Chanelle, Chanelle’s husband Te Ara Armstrong, mother-in-law Pam Armstrong, sister-in-law Chala
Chase, and cousin Eliza Leuluai.
The basis of the business is a single website that connects locals and international tourists with authentic cultural experiences in New Zealand. The visitor becomes immersed in a unique cultural experience involving the host. The visitor and the host communicate through the website and payments are all arranged online. The hosts are not performers and do not rehearse the experience beforehand. It is a completely authentic experience where the host shares their own knowledge of their culture.
View the entire PDF here: Profiles – Chanelle Armstrong – 3
