To say Chris Joblin has big ambitions for the Waikato region, is like saying the All Blacks are okay at rugby. The chief executive of Tainui Group Holdings does not do understatement. His vision is vast and involves Hamilton becoming New Zealand’s second biggest city, feeding off the powerhouse of the region.

“We are limited only by our own imagination,” he says. “If you can stand in the centre of an open field and visualise an inland port, then drive that through to reality, nothing can stand in your way.”

Chris was appointed to TGH’s top job last year, after five years as the company’s chief financial officer. He oversees an enterprise that has an extensive commercial reach in the Waikato and beyond, with projects like New Zealand’s largest shopping centre, The Base, on Hamilton’s northern boundary; the Novotel Auckland Airport Hotel and – coming over the horizon – a 480ha inland port and commercial hub on the eastern flank of Hamilton.

In the past decade, the company’s assets have grown by more than $500m to $840m in its role as the inter-generational investor for the people of Waikato-Tainui. The pace is picking up. Chris sees a lot of “displacement and growth” out of Auckland, leading to a growth in jobs, businesses and populations in the Waikato. “The challenge for us is to embrace it. Imagine picking up Penrose (Auckland’s industrial hub) and putting that in the Waikato. If a port is located in the Firth of Thames, which is on the cards, that port activity will largely happen in the northern Waikato, which enhances the region’s distribution opportunities. If we want that to happen, we can make it happen.”

The vision is driven by commercial imperatives and strong values. TGH was formed following the Treaty of Waitangi financial settlement with the Crown for injustices over land confiscations in the 1860s. Today, 68,000 members of the tribe benefit from its success. Dividends are invested in health programmes, education, trade training, language initiatives and environmental projects.

Chris says the business is based around partnerships at every level. “All our futures are intertwined.” He says people in the Waikato have a different approach from other places. “We are more positive, free-thinking and practical.”

The father of two, who graduated from Waikato University in accounting and finance before working in the UK, says the region’s commercial buoyancy will have a powerful social impact. “Our hope is to help drive that.”

www.tgh.co.nz