Resene was started in 1946 by an Eastbourne builder, Ted Nightingale, who needed an alkali resistant paint to cover his concrete buildings. There was nothing available at the time, so, in typical Kiwi style, he developed his own, called Stipplecote – in a cement mixer in his garage.
In 1951, Nightingale launched the first waterborne paint in New Zealand under the brand name Resene – a name derived from the main ingredient of paint, resin.
In 1972, Tony Nightingale, Ted’s son, took over the operation of the company and today, it’s run by Tony’s son, Nick. In 1975, the company opened its first retail stores and now has 650 employees in New Zealand, Australia and Fiji.
Resene diversified into the liquor business in the mid-1990s thanks to Tony’s passion for wine, purchasing Cellier Le Brun in Blenheim, before selling the vineyards to Cloudy Bay in 2007.
Nick has a 51% shareholding and had his eyes set on a banking or broking job before following his father into the business.
Resene leads the local market, with a 36% share of the decorative paints sector against international giants such as Dulux and Wattyl. Resene has also led the trend away from solvent-based paints and 90% of its range is now waterborne.
Resene assists a wide variety of charities and events such as Plunket, Children's Art House, Arts Access and Ronald McDonald House.
Photo: Stuff
2018: $135 million