New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern caught up with Ryman Healthcare’s Australia CEO Cameron Holland at a dinner in Melbourne hosted by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise.
Earlier in the day, Ryman hosted the Prime Minister’s trade delegation at the John Flynn Retirement Village in Burwood East, 17km east of the Melbourne CBD.
The delegation, led by New Zealand’s Economic and Regional Development Minister, Stuart Nash, sought to find out how Ryman’s continuum of care is faring in Australia.
Ryman Healthcare is one of New Zealand’s major exports. It has seven operational villages and another seven in its development pipeline in Victoria. Since opening its first Australian village in Melbourne in 2014, Ryman has invested more than $3 billion into Victoria.
“While Ryman is a household name in New Zealand, the delegates were really blown away by just how big and how fast we’ve grown in Victoria. They were also surprised to hear that the New Zealand model of fully integrated retirement living and aged care, which has been the norm there for decades, was so rare in Australia,” Cameron said.
“High quality aged care has suddenly become one of New Zealand’s most important exports, so they came away feeling really proud of what Ryman’s achieving over here.
“Meeting with Prime Minister Ardern was obviously a highlight. She met with Premier Daniel Andrews while she was in Melbourne, and he relayed to her how impressed he was with Ryman’s model when he visited one of our villages recently.
“She was really pleased to see Ryman thriving over here. Prime Minister Ardern knows us well and has been a long-time supporter, so it was great to catch up and talk about the huge opportunity we have in a market that’s screaming out for what we offer older Australians.”
