Jimi Kennedy-Grant was born in Rhodesia in 1971, before emigrating to New Zealand in 1978.
The first job he worked was selling clothes and stocking shelves at Barkers on Queen Street when he was still at school. Despite always wanting to become an electrician, Kennedy-Grant worked at Schwarzkopf Professional for many years before taking a 12-month break and then jumping at the opportunity to work for a local manufacturer.
His career at Health Pak began in December 2004, and he’s been there ever since.
On a typical day, Kennedy-Grant is at his desk early, working on products before anyone else comes in.
“I’m at my desk by 0700 and work on long-term product development until about 0800 when the rest of the team arrives,” he said
One of Jimi Kennedy-Grant’s biggest milestones at Health Pak was developing a shampoo bottle made from 100 percent recycled milk bottles.
“We make six shampoo bottles from every 2-litre milk bottle.”
Above all Jimi Kennedy-Grant is a relatable guy – he said the biggest obstacle he’s faced in his career is his “total inability to have a tidy office”
“Without a doubt, the most rewarding part of the job is developing new products, either customised for hotels or our own brands.”
Every element of Health Pak’s products keeps the environment in mind. For instance, all their cotton bud shafts are made from renewable compressed cotton, rather than plastic. All packaging has been chosen to fit the specific product best. They don’t have one cheap environmental fix for their products, instead carefully picking the best solution for the product and how it will be dealt with post use.
“Back in 2005, long before product impact was a big issue, we developed all our liquid and hard soap formulations to be paraben free and biodegradable. Our current formulations are based on those same principals. We do everything in our control to minimise the impact of our products, while still delighting your guests with locally made New Zealand products.”
The Health Pak collection has 16 ranges of soap, hair care and body products which all tell guests a different story, whether that be a massive inner-city hotel, a small B&B or a motel.
To get in contact with Jimi visit www.healthpak.co.nz, call 09 579 6268 or email jimi@healthpak.co.nz.
