Meet your NZ Wineries Team

Nick joined New Zealand Wineries in 2013 as an Assistant Winemaker and has since been promoted to Client Winemaker.

Nick’s first job was at Cloudy Bay as a cellar hand back in 2011.

Originally from England, he moved to NZ in 2006 and after some travelling around he settled in Blenheim with his family.

Nick enjoys working in the client winemaking environment, saying it gives him the opportunity to experiment with a range of different wine making approaches for the same variety of grape.

Nick’s most memorable wine experience is drinking 100 year old Champagne with his friends back in England.

Hiro joined Mud House Wines in 2009 and subsequently moved to New Zealand Wineries after the sale of the Mud House brand in 2013.

Hiro was inspired by New Zealand Pinot Noir when he was still working as an IT professional back in Japan. This inspiration led Hiro to explore the completely new world of winemaking when he moved to Blenheim in 2008. After his arrival, he attended NMIT and finished his Oenology degree at EIT. Hiro enjoys client winemaking as it gives him the opportunity to encounter new methods, ideas, philosophies, and technology from working with other winemakers.

Hiro enjoys dry wines, especially cool climates reds. His most memorable wine is Costanci from the Rhone valley.

Steven Ginders, our Engineering Manager, joined us in July 2020 following twenty-plus years working offshore in senior positions within the energy industry.

With a high level of experience and expertise in both engineering and project management, Steven offers a fresh perspective to our industry as his previous wine industry expertise was as a consumer.

This new approach has resulted in a number of critical equipment reliability upgrades that have brought improvements to both our plant and production systems, delivering considerable cost reductions to the company.

In addition, the knowledge he has gained during his career made him uniquely qualified to lead our energy saving projects during the Riverlands winery site revamp and upgrade projects and, working alongside our Chief Operations Officer, for the new winery site expansion works in Kendrick Road.

Steven’s emphasis on sustainability, energy efficiency and cost reduction continues in 2024, with a major focus being the reduction of water usage, LPG usage and the improvement of our waste management systems.

With over two decades of experience in New Zealand’s wine industry, Mike Treloar brings a wealth of expertise to his role as Grower Liaison at NZ Wineries. 

Starting his career in 1999, Mike managed vineyards for 20 years, gaining hands-on knowledge in vineyard operations and business management. Today, he provides invaluable advice and consulting services to clients on every aspect of vineyard and business management, helping growers maximize both quality and efficiency.

Mike and his wife, Trudy, are deeply connected to the industry and own their own vineyard block. They take great pride in contributing to the excellence of New Zealand wine. For the past six years, Mike has been an essential part of NZ Wineries, building strong relationships and supporting growers in their craft.

Outside of work, Mike is passionate about the outdoors and enjoys spending time on the hockey field, both playing and coaching officials. He and Trudy have two adult daughters, Molly and Allie, who share their family’s appreciation for the wine and agricultural community.

Since 2007, Simon McGeorge has led the winemaking and facility management at NZ Wineries’ Waipara facility. A North Canterbury native, Simon’s extensive experience spans winemaking roles around the globe, enriching the character and quality of the wines crafted from Waipara's vineyard blocks.

“I’m a passionate advocate for the Waipara district. The wines here have a unique character and personality that simply can’t be replicated. As the vineyards have matured, I’ve seen the region truly come into its own, and I’m excited to be part of its continued growth and success.”

MJ has held senior management, CEO and GM roles in primary production and food and beverage industries since 1998. He has spent almost 15 years in the wine industry, leading wine businesses in New Zealand and North America.

He joined Aotearoa NZ Fine Wine Estates in 2021, and after three years as founding CEO he then established Bragato Research Institute - the New Zealand wine industry's research institute here in Marlborough.

He has had an association with New Zealand Wineries since 2011 when he was CEO of the Mud House Wine Group and joined the Board in 2016 when he returned to NZ from the USA, where he was General Manager Americas for Accolade Wines.

MJ is a member of the IoD and serves on the boards of a range of other commercial and community organisations.

Marcus graduated Lincoln University 2002 and joined the NZW team in 2003. During this time he developed and managed 400Ha of vineyards throughout the South Island as Vineyards Manager for the NZW Group for 8 years.

In 2008, Marcus and good friend Nigel George co-founded the KLIMA vine pruning system that has changed and continues to change the way people prune vineyards, driving labour costs out of pruning for growers all over the world. As a grape grower himself, Marcus has a passion for helping fellow grape growers to grow their businesses.

These days, Marcus shares his time between New Zealand Wineries as a director, the KLIMA business (trellis division) and his family business, Ormond Nurseries Ltd, where he is General Manager. In his spare time, Marcus coaches rugby and enjoys the outdoors as well as sharing a Chardonnay with friends.