Katie Nimon, general manager of her family’s 116-year-old bus transport business, announced Wednesday that Nimons has lost its bid to continue providing Hawke’s Bay school bus service, starting with the 2022 school year.
“We’ve been taking Hawke’s Bay kids to school for over a century – it’s hard to think that we won’t be part of that future past the end of this year,” she said.
And with the international tourism business still in limbo, the future of the company is uncertain.
Whatever the Education Ministry thinks, without any doubt generations of Hawke’s Bay locals think fondly of the Nimon company and family … and their first-class commitment to our community.
The successful tenderer for the Hastings, Havelock North, and Napier clusters, is listed as Tranzit, a Wairarapa-based bus company. Both Nimons and Tranzit are family businesses, where Go Bus, who has retained Central Hawke’s Bay and Wairoa, is internationally owned.
How is this even news?
Service contracts are won and lost everyday.
I guess as a general manager maybe Katie has not cut the mustard?
Matt, it’s news because it’s a 116 year old local company, employing local people. Some competing companies severely undercut their tender, to secure it, only to increase their charges when the completion is folded.
Sorry but your point is invalid, the contract will have included a price increase schedule for the duration of the 12 year contract.
As stated the price was only a 60% weighting of the contract decision.
It is a wonderful opportunity for the GM of Nimons to demonstrate the much touted entrepreneurial skills that have been widely claimed?
Watch this space………
Well done Matt – you managed to totally diss an historic HB company and insult somebody at the same time! Thank God the Knowledge Bank is saving HB history – people like Matt have no conception of what went on in the past or what struggles people had to set up our current lifestyles.
So much for supporting local and building our backyard economy after such a devastating time. Really sad.
Matt,
Could be a mate of Stuart’s by the look of it? Hmmm….. no need for that sort of comment.
All these people that a having a cry Shut the fuck up
Never going to compete with the govt. Seems they have a bottomless pit to outbid anyone they like.
No concern about encouraging local private enterprise.
Have you not read the article? The contract was awarded to another family owned business from the Wairarapa?
This is news because it is a local and much respected company and as a community we should support local business. Owning and running a business such as Nimon’s is not for the faint hearted and I am sure Katie and her Board are doing their very best to ensure the survival of this iconic business and protect the many jobs that are at risk. We wish them luck in surviving this time.
There are no jobs at risk. The new company will simply hire the drivers previously employed by Nimons because they won’t need training.
There are not enough bus drivers at the moment. The privately owned company Tranzit that won the contract cannot magically produce another 20 bus drivers from thin air.
Maybe Tranzit offered to pay their drivers more?
Not wishing to be a conspiracy theorist, MUCH! But Katie Nimon ran for National against Stuart Nash!
Hmmmm, maybe just maybe after Katie Nimon as a National party candidate called for cruiseboats to be allowed back into NZ ports like Napier after we were barely out of lockdown showed a complete lack of concern/understanding for others safety?
Maybe the Ministry of Education decided buses used for school runs in the mornings and cruiseships during the day are a huge risk to students?
Remember it was a cruise boat that bought Covid to HB. This is not not a personal attack on Katie Nimon, but if you want to cry in the media about losing business contracts and not expect any scrutiny around business decisions again shows a clear lack of logic and understanding.
I can’t be a Stuart Nash sympathizer because his comrade leader would tell me to be kind.
I would hope that Tranzit are paying the living wage (not just the minimum wage) to their drivers as I understand Nimons was doing. If not I think the MOE should be challenged about that. Credit to Nimons for this commitment to their employees
When did Nimons start paying living wage ? Lol
Ninoms used to do public transport in hawkes Bay area before they lost the contact to go bus
Very sad – we all caught the bus from Ocean Beach & Waimarama to Te Mata School & high school
I have memories of school camps in the 1970s with Nimons!