From aspiring veterinarian to a key leader in a billion-dollar global business where he met Novak Djokovic and worked with Khloe Kardashian, Liam Whittaker, former Chief Operating Office at Zuru Edge shares his pivotal moments, leadership lessons, personal growth, and advice for young professionals navigating their own paths.
Q: What did you want to be growing up?
A: From the age of 5 to 17, I wanted to be a vet because of my love for animals and science. However, Year 13 physics and chemistry humbled me badly, making vet school seem unattainable. I visited a career advisor in Hamilton who conducted psychometric testing and behavioural interviews alongside reviewing my grades. Their top recommendation was to become a patent attorney because of my ability to think both micro and macro while being persuasive yet technical—qualities not often found together.
Q: You studied law and business and got a job at Chapman Tripp. What happened there?
A: I studied law and business at the University of Waikato and secured a summer job at Chapman Tripp, which was the firm and the partner I wanted to work for. However, after just three days, I realised it wasn't what I expected. This led to a bit of an existential crisis because I had achieved what I wanted, but it didn't feel right.
Q: How did you get involved with Zuru?
A: I went back to university not knowing what to do for my last year. A guest lecture by a guy called Nick Mowbray, which only seven people attended, sparked my interest. I had no interest in toys or nappies, but I fundamentally believed in what Nick was talking about, and was drawn to his ambition and global perspective. While most New Zealand businesses aim for local success or expansion into Australia or China, Nick envisioned disrupting industries globally.
I emailed him afterward offering to work for free with a great attitude if any opportunities arose. He responded within 20 minutes and invited me to meet him and his brother. During the interview—which was mostly table tennis—I got badly beaten but secured the role. Two weeks later, I was working remotely while finishing university and soon found myself on a sales tour across Europe.
Q: From employee number four to COO—what enabled your rapid rise?
A: A mix of external factors like timing and internal qualities helped me succeed. The Mowbrays valued adaptability over experience—they gave young people significant responsibility based on willingness to learn rather than age or tenure. For example, when plans for me to lead business development in London fell through due to logistical issues with Tesco’s supply chain, Nick asked me to stay in New Zealand instead. That pivot allowed me closer involvement with special projects and manufacturing.
Personally, I focused on reliability and curiosity—always showing up prepared, asking smart questions, and treating the business as if it were my own. Leadership meant solving problems hands-on while supporting teams effectively. Barack Obama once said he’d prioritise one doer over ten talkers; that philosophy resonated with me deeply.
Q: What was a typical day like during peak workload periods?
A: It varied greatly depending on circumstances. During COVID-19, we sourced PPE for the New Zealand government—a project requiring around-the-clock effort for two-and-a-half weeks straight with 20-hour days. Outside crises like that, I routinely worked 80-hour weeks or more but didn’t feel burnt out because I loved what I did.
As I became more senior, my role shifted toward serving others—helping team members unblock problems during meetings while reserving mornings or evenings for my own “day job.” At Zuru Edge, work-life balance wasn’t emphasised; instead, we focused on harmonising work with passion so that hours felt less relevant.
Q: Did you believe in working weekends, or only if you had to?
A: I wasn't really fixated on hours. In a private business, it's about getting the job done, not rounded billable hours like in corporates. I tried my best not to work weekends because I worked so hard during the week. However, my philosophy was that if a job needed to be done, it needed to be done, regardless of the day. So, I worked some weekends, but the majority I didn't.
Q: Some people talk about work-life balance, while others talk about work and life harmonising. Where do you stand?
A: Ultimately, it comes down to who you are. My mum, a career nurse, has no interest in my lifestyle; her success is working 8 to 4, Monday to Friday, and leaving work behind. For me, I never really left my job; my phone was always on. For people like my mum, that separation works. I probably "live to work" more than I “work to live”. For those on my side of the camp, the biggest focus should be finding something you're passionate about. Again, it's about inputs and outputs; if you're working hard but not fulfilled or challenged, especially for our age group, the ownership piece is crucial. If you don't feel like you own something, it's hard to be passionate and motivated. I challenge people to be curious, listen to podcasts, and find things that interest them, and let that dictate where they go.
Q: What was your most successful time and worst time at Zuru Edge?
A: Two standout wins were launching PPE during COVID-19 within just 21 days (sourcing materials globally amid fierce competition) and entering joint partnerships like our Walmart consumer goods deal projected to reach USD $1 billion revenue within three years. A personal win was meeting Novak Djokovic and sitting in his for the Australia Open semi-final against Roger Federer.
The biggest mistake involved partnering Dose & Co supplements with Khloe Kardashian—a decision rooted in leveraging her massive reach (200M followers). While Khloe exceeded all deliverables professionally as an equity partner, lack of authenticity hurt brand perception compared to its original New Zealand naturopath founder whose messaging resonated better digitally.
Q: How did you handle stress during high-pressure roles?
A: Stress management involved focusing only on controllable factors while letting go of what couldn’t be changed. Problem-solving came naturally—I broke down issues into actionable steps by identifying levers I could pull and assembling subject matter experts where needed.
Thriving in crises required embracing discomfort; whether dealing with recalls or major manufacturing challenges (even once handling fallout from a factory explosion), staying composed was critical. Doing postmortems after tough situations helped refine processes for future improvement.
Q: You didn’t do an OE (Overseas Experiences) until now. What are your thoughts on OEs? Have your thoughts changed?
A: My sister took a gap year after high school that transformed her perspective—she returned more independent and mature before pursuing university and aligned with her passions rather than rushing into debt without direction. Seeing her growth made me realise how valuable worldly experience can be.
While traditional OEs happen right after school or university graduation, mine came later as part of taking time off after leaving Zuru Edge. There’s no perfect timing—it’s about backing yourself when the opportunity feels right.
Q: There are probably many people reading this who are in limbo about whether or when to go on an OE. What's your advice?
A: There's no perfect time. I've mentored people going into university who ask what majors they should choose to work at a company like Zuru, and my answer is, "who cares?". There's no perfect time or perfect answer. If you follow your passions, apply yourself, and work hard, everything will come to fruition. Surround yourself with good people; that's another big one for me.
Just back yourself and go do things; there's no time like the present. The worst thing is to sit back. My recent health challenges, while frustrating, might end up being the best thing that happened to me because I had a significant realisation at 29, which some people don't have until they're 60. There's always a silver lining.
Q: How important are personal branding and networking?
A: Personal branding is crucial but shouldn’t feel artificial—I never cultivated it superficially through scheduled LinkedIn posts but instead focused on building genuine relationships at work by being approachable (e.g., handing out Subway cookies playfully).
Networking matters immensely too—but quality outweighs quantity in connections; surround yourself with smart individuals who challenge you positively rather than broad superficial links lacking substance.
Q: Do you set goals?
A: Not rigidly—I prefer macro-directional thinking over prescriptive targets because dynamic environments often render specific goals outdated quickly anyway. For example: improving health broadly by sleeping better or regaining energy mattered more than hitting numeric weight-loss milestones.
Q: Zuru's finished, and you're going on a bit of travel. Do you have any idea where you want to be or what you want to be doing afterwards?
A: Yes, a little bit. At a macro level (using that word again), I'd like to start mentoring people. This ranges from those considering university to those starting small businesses in New Zealand and Australia with bigger ambitions. It might take the form of some consulting, but I'd probably hate not being directly involved in delivery. I've really enjoyed property, so doing some property development in my "spare time" is something I want to do. It could also be rewarding to apply the model that I know and start my own FMCG business down the line.
Q: A lot of the audience will be a few years into their career and probably starting to think about their financial futures. As someone whose financial journey has moved faster than others, do you have any wisdom or advice for the younger generation?
A: Early in your career, focus less on money and more on gaining exposure, mentorship opportunities, and experience that builds skills long-term. For example, my graduate contract at Zuru initially paid NZD $42k annually—not much considering Auckland living costs—but the knowledge gained far outweighed immediate financial rewards.
Conversations around compensation should centre on value creation rather than dissatisfaction masking deeper issues like misalignment between values or roles. If you excel at creating value consistently early on, financial growth will follow naturally.
Q: What advice would you give your younger self?
Take every opportunity—be a yes person willing to commit fully whenever saying yes.
Learn to be comfortable being uncomfortable; uncertainty drives growth.
Surround yourself with ambitious people aligned with your values.
Focus daily on continuous improvement—even small gains compound significantly over time.
Q: If neither time nor resources were constraints—what ultimate dream would you pursue?
A: Owning an NBA franchise or representing top global talents as their agent would be incredible—creating brands similar to Nadal or Jordan. But in general, it would be doing something similar what I’ve been fortunate to do, maybe on a bigger scale, although the scale was already quite large. I don't know if I could handle much bigger, to be honest!
