Hoturoa Kerr, a New Zealand Māori with deep connections to the Cook Islands, has outlined his plans for the Sands of Rarotonga accommodation and the well-known Lazy Trout restaurant in Avarua, Rarotonga.

Kerr, 65, is no stranger to Rarotonga, nor to the local landowners who have entrusted him with the use of their ancestral land.

His link to the island goes beyond business. It is rooted in genealogy and long-standing relationships with local families, including the Pittman family.

“There's a bit of a family connection between our family and the landowners here, Tua Pittman and his brothers, their grandmother is from Aotearoa and so we are connected through her,” Kerr told Cook Islands News.

“Tua and his brothers are also shareholders in a land block in Aotearoa that they came to approach us. They look after the income that comes off the land block in Aotearoa, and they asked if we would be interested in trying to see if there was any business opportunity here because 10 years ago, this place wasn't a restaurant or anything, so it was just a rental accommodation.”

That opportunity led to the development of what is now the Sands of Rarotonga – a boutique accommodation located near central Rarotonga – and the Lazy Trout restaurant, which has become a known to locals and visitors alike.

The name “Sands of Rarotonga” aligns with Kerr’s other properties across Aotearoa. “We have hotels in New Zealand that are sands of whatever town they're in… there's Sands of Kawhia, Sands of other places. So then we just call this one Sands of Rarotonga as a part of our collection of boutique hotels.”

Initially a low-profile accommodation targeting government and business travellers, Kerr says the property is starting to expand its reach.

“We hadn't really advertised our accommodations that much and only this year we've just sort of expanded that a little bit more,” he said.

Their clientele has included land court judges and New Zealand foreign affairs officials. With its central location, Kerr hopes to gradually grow its capacity but stresses the importance of building relationships with the right people.

“We'd like to expand accommodation or try and get opportunities with maybe some of the other land here to build more accommodation right in town here. But trying to meet all the right people is a big job,” he said.

The Lazy Trout restaurant, like many others on the island, was heavily impacted by COVID-19.

“We totally shut down and closed right through COVID. Then we tried to open up again in that second round then COVID came again and so we had to close it all up again,” Kerr said.

Since reopening, the restaurant has bounced back with popular breakfast and lunch menus. Now, Kerr has his sights set on dinner service – something customers have been asking about since the restaurant reopened.

“At the moment our biggest plan is to try and move into dinner service… but to do that we need another chef. Otherwise our one chef, he's got to work all day and all night.”

Despite staffing challenges, Kerr is optimistic. “We're confident that we'll find some people. It's just a matter of taking a bit of time.”

In all his ventures, whether in Rarotonga, Aotearoa or previously in Fiji, Kerr emphasises the importance of quality.

“We don't want to sort of rush in and do stuff, and then it's not to the standard that we would like. And that's why we're very fortunate here that our chef and our staff are all very concerned about making sure that they bring high quality and well-presented food to our customers and that makes them want to come back too.”

Above all, Kerr acknowledges the trust the landowners have placed in him, and his responsibility as a Māori working on Cook Islands land.

“I’d like to say thank you to all the people from Rarotonga who support us and the landowners for allowing us to do the best that we can with their land and hope that they're happy with the fact that we try and look after it.”

“I'm just Māori from Aotearoa. But one of the landowners, or some of the landowners, they're Cook Island Māori and New Zealand Māori and that's how they're related to me, from the New Zealand Māori heritage.”

Kerr shared that the vison is with local families to grow opportunities on land that continues to sustain generations.