Photography: Kellie Blizard.
His dad is cricket legend Adam Parore, while his mum is interior designer and TV star Sally Ridge, but it was clear from a young age Astin Parore wanted something different. Growing up in Auckland, the entrepreneur jumped at any opportunity to make a buck.
“It sounds cliché, but I did the lemonade stand, plus I’d sell muffins and cookies around the streets,” Astin, 22, tells Woman’s Day.
“I’d go to my grandma’s and she’d ask if I wanted to go the zoo, but I’d say, ‘No, I want you to bake stuff and we can go sell it!’”
While the rush of closing a deal was addictive, it was getting to know his customers that Astin enjoyed most. By 14, he was rising at 4am to start shifts at Pak’nSave, savvily depositing his pay cheques straight into a savings account.
“Earning my own money was great, but I liked to save,” Astin smiles.
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“That’s why I’ve been able to start my own businesses now. The only thing I splurged on was food!”
From lockdown idea to online success
He launched his first company during the COVID lockdowns after he noticed Sally and her friends struggling to find a specific type of garden gnome, which he imported and sold through his online business Essentials NZ.
By the end of his first year, it had made six figures and the experience supported Astin to complete a conjoint degree in business and property, all while he was working as a delivery driver for New World. Today, the entrepreneur’s new company Mr Grocer is a business partner of the chain, selling helpful products for shoppers, such as reusable grocery bags.
Success on his own merit
Some people might cite his famous surname, but he built relationships in the fast-moving consumer goods sector entirely on his own.
“People aren’t going to do business with you because of your last name,” insists Astin.
“It’s definitely been hard making connections, but it’s allowed me to do something on my own merit.”
Age has also proved an obstacle, with Astin frequently feeling like he’s not taken seriously.
“Society’s getting better about young people doing business because a lot of founders under 25 are killing it, but it’s been a mental struggle and I felt a bit of impostor syndrome,” he explains.
Family support and inspiration
His dad Adam is helpful when it comes to dealing with the doubters.
Astin shares, “He says, ‘Take what people think with a grain of salt.’ He’s all about giving it 100%, so that’s what I’ve been doing.”
However, it’s Adam’s father Ric who was the inspiration behind his grandson’s successful venture. While lugging groceries up to his Auckland apartment, Ric “was talking about how the string handles of grocery bags dig into hands and affect his circulation”, recalls Astin.
Familiar with the challenges of juggling shopping bags thanks to his job delivering groceries to supermarket customers, Astin set up Mr Grocer and created CarryBuddy, a tool to handle multiple bags. Six months and six prototypes later, the product can hold up to 25kg and is now sold online, plus in store at New World, Pak’nSave and Four Square. It’s no surprise Ric’s his proudest customer.
First sale excitement
Astin grins, “He went to his local store to be the first sale, even though I’d already given him four!”
Astin’s also drawn on his mum Sally’s creative eye. Keen to create a new product with an arty twist, he recently launched an eco-friendly, reusable grocery bag in four designs.
He shares, “She’s super-creative, so when I come home to air ideas, she’s like, ‘Have you thought about this?’ That’s been pivotal because I’m more business-focused and lack her eye. Her experience with design has helped create some pretty good-looking bags!”
Giving back through Mr Grocer
Having delivered groceries to the Child Cancer Foundation’s Auckland office for 18 months, Astin recently decided that 50c from each Mr Grocer bag sale would go to the charity. The cause is something that’s extra-meaningful to Astin, who lost his paternal grandmother Julie to cancer.
“My nana had lung cancer in 2017, which was a big thing for everyone in the family,” he explains.
“Being able to give back to children with cancer is just huge.”
Astin’s Los Angeles-based half-sister Jaime Ridge has a full set of the bags.
He smiles, “She got them two months ago and has been like, ‘When can I post about them?’ She loves them and is super-supportive.”
The ultimate cheerleader
However, Astin’s greatest cheerleader is his girlfriend Amelia Beder, who also has a business degree. The high- school sweethearts have been together for four years.
“She’s been the rock for all of this,” admits Astin, who is back working for New World as a delivery driver while continuing to grow Mr Grocer. “It’s been incredible having someone to bounce what’s going on in my head because there are 100 things in there and I’ve been super-anxious about managing the launch.
“It’s scary because you have to be on form, get orders out fast and make sure everything’s perfect. I’m a one-man show and it’s a lot of work, so being able to talk to someone about it is huge.”
