Kind-hearted conservation

In 2004, the Department of Conservation (DOC) had a problem; aside from the resident fur seals and crested penguins, no one lived in Fiordland. Servicing the spring-powered rat traps on the remote offshore islands was proving to be a headache. Design graduates Robbie van Dam and Craig Bond were presented with this conundrum through a connection at DOC. They got to work, brainstorming 50 ways to kill a rat. Out of the design challenge, Goodnature was born along with their flagship trap: A24. The innovative trap auto-resets, clocking up 24 kills before it requires refuelling.

From its testing ground in Fiordland, the trap spread across the country faster than gorse. Now it’s a common sight in the New Zealand bush. Twenty years on, Goodnature has retained its innovative spirit. With the factory and design studio in Wellington, the team has formed a special relationship with the city and draw on its unique offerings. “Wellington is one of the wildest cities in the world,” says CEO Dave Shoemack. “That connection between urban place and nature is pretty awesome. That means the kind of people we attract come with that mindset. They’re clicked into that, they want to make a difference.”

Manufacturing in Wellington has also proved to be a smart play for the company. “The quality we’re able to produce here is really high,” explains Dave. “Years ago, yes, you could get big savings if you made it out of somewhere else, but that’s not necessarily the case anymore.” A SMART factory assessment and LEAN consultancy advice have streamlined the factory floor. A single trap is now assembled in just 42 seconds.

Good design is front of mind for Goodnature. “Our philosophy is, ‘how do we solve the most complex problems?’ The ones that others find too hard, those are the ones that get us excited.” The company’s mousetrap, redesigned from the ground up, epitomises this and has gained recognition amongst the design community.

International interest has also grown and now accounts for 85% of sales. “We sell a lot in Scandinavia, where toxins are more or less outlawed. We’re toxin-free, we’re humane.” Dave points out that these differentiating points are important. Finding humane solutions to conservation problems is vital to the team. “New Zealand leads the world in people’s general knowledge of the connection between controlling pests and biodiversity. Especially in Wellington, everyone here gets it. If you trap a stoat or a rat, in time, you’re going to hear more birds. That’s a bizarre concept [overseas].”

Staying true to that core mission of conservation, Goodnature works closely with projects like Capital Kiwi, an initiative returning kiwi to the Wellington hills. Through their Cahoots programme, Goodnature contributes a second trap free of charge for every trap purchased. “As part of that project, there are 1200 of our traps out there, stretching from Ōwhiro Bay to Mākara.” For the first time in over a hundred years, you can now hear kiwi calls in the hills of Wellington.

Innovators like Goodnature and projects like Capital Kiwi are why Wellington is one of the only cities in the world with increasing biodiversity. Conservation has become a pillar of Wellington’s identity, and Dave thinks that's pretty special. “I don’t think you realise until you get out of Wellington, just how unique all of this is.”

Goodnature's hard mahi has been recognised beyond global sales. In 2025, the team took out the Supreme Gold Award at The Wellington Gold Awards. The event celebrates innovation, resilience, and excellence in the capital's business community.

WellingtonNZ’s Business Growth team has worked with Goodnature over the past 10 years, matching them with support from Innovation Services administered by MBIE. This includes research and development tax incentive support, leasing robots, helping place student interns and special project grants.