Kohinga
Koha

Ahakoa uhi uhi ngā ngaru
Ka ngaro ka ea, ka ngaro ka ea
Ka whakaea anō te toka a Tirikawa
Irrespective of the waves that crash continuously, Tirikawa rock remains resolute and prominent.

Kohinga Koha is the Māori Economic Summit hosted by the iwi of Tauranga Moana and the wider Te Moana a Toi. Held from 20 to 22 October 2026, it brought iwi, pakihi Māori, investors and Māori economic leaders together to move the kōrero beyond talk and into investment, ownership and intergenerational prosperity.

We created the brand and logo for the summit, and designed and built the Kohinga Koha website.

Services Engaged:

Brand Identity
Logo Design
Brand Guidelines
Website Design and Build
Social Media Campaign
Event Collateral and Signage

The tohu is drawn from the whakataukī of Tirikawa, and its message of resilience.

Ngaru
A strong wave sweeps through the design. It stands for the challenges and adversity our people face, and its curl leads the eye straight to the heart of the tohu.
Te toka a Tirikawa
At the centre sits Tirikawa rock, steady while the waves break around it. A radial gradient brings it forward as the focal point, a symbol of strength and steadfastness.
Mauao
Behind it all stands Mauao, the silent guardian of Tauranga Moana, adding to the sense of endurance and protection.
Kahurangi
The blues represent all of Tauranga Moana, the harbour where the waka arrive.

One kaupapa, every touchpoint

From the first save-the-date to the last feedback tile, every piece came from the same system: the tohu in its white tab, the deep blues of Tauranga Moana, a clear Figtree sans and a single flowing script word to carry the feeling. That consistency let a new summit look established from day one.

A campaign people followed

The Kohinga Koha social pages started from nothing in early September. We designed tiles for every stage of the journey: Early Bird tickets, speaker introductions, the three Whiria pou, partner thank-yous, the Hua Makuru gala, and practical notices such as ticket reminders and getting to Ō Kahika.

Print, signage and screens

On site, the brand worked at every scale: a programme that folds from A4 down to a pocket-sized A6, named lanyards for delegates, presenters and kaimahi, the Ō Kahika dinner invitation and menu, reserved-table signs, award certificates, digital lectern screens at Baypark and the digital billboard on SH29A.

The website

We designed and built kohingakoha.nz as the home of the summit: the kaupapa, the full programme and each Whiria pou, speaker profiles, partners, accommodation and pakihi registration, with ticketing through Humanitix.

Three days in Tauranga Moana

The summit opened with a pōhiri at Hūria Marae, then moved to Mercury Baypark for kōrero, site visits across the whenua and moana, the Toi Hiringa marketplace and the Hua Makuru gala. The moment that travelled furthest was the reel of Te Arikinui Kuini Nga wai hono i te po opening Kohinga Koha. With no paid support, it reached more than 53,000 accounts.