About

Coming from a background as general manager at several iconic Auckland bars, Steve set his sights a little higher when he set up shop with Joylab. Steve kicked off in true form, helping Sale St (now Sweat Shop) win best redeveloped bar and best music entertainment value. Today, he’s proud to be a shareholder of The Elephant Wrestler, Franc's and Regatta.

When he’s not pulling strings at his establishments, Steve can be seen at the baseball field either coaching or playing. If not, he’s probably hanging with the family and cracking jokes to his two awesome kids. If he could, he’d sink a Mount Gay rum with a squeeze of fresh lime with JFK; eager to see what could have been in a world with his continued visionary leadership.

Sarah-Lee has been a winner since birth. Literally - she won a baby contest. She continued that notion through her life, winning sales rep of the year for Red Bull before moving on to become the general manager at several Auckland bars, and now shareholder of The Flying Moa.

Sarah-Lee is a keen social butterfly, darting between staff and customers with her smile dialed in. She also knows Japanese and enjoys learning other languages, which explains her love for travel. Sarah-Lee loves an Earl Grey Martini, and if that isn’t fancy enough she’d like to share one with the Queen of England because she thinks she would be a good laugh.

Lance has a vast suite of hospitality knowledge tucked away in his noggin, which grew over the space of 30 years in the industry (his knowledge, not his head). From handyman services through to fine dining and directing, he’s a true lance-of-all-trades; but his favourite part is watching the people around him grow and succeed. He believes in his work and his people, opting to become a shareholder of Joylab to have a greater input in the business.

Lance is feeling top-notch when he’s with his friends and whanau, especially if he can wrap his chops around a couple of beers. If that picture could get any better, he’d introduce Bob Marley due to his legendary inspiration.

After starting a small weekend job in a bar, Andy's love for the hospitality industry flourished, and he went on to open and own Coyote Street Bar in Tauranga for four years. A return to Auckland saw Andy working with hospitality industry stalwarts for another 8 years before bringing his rich experience to Joylab at Regatta.

Raised on a dairy farm, you wouldn't expect Andy to have grown up as a free diver, scuba diver and fisherman, but his whole family shared a love for New Zealand’s coastline and every spare weekend was spent in or on the water, which is why Regatta’s seafood themes fit Andy perfectly. Although a keen mixologist, Andy loves a good champagne - the endless pursuit of perfection is too good a ride to pass; unless the opportunity to have a beer with Richard Branson came up.

Mark’s hospitality journey started after studying business, where he worked his way up from dishie to catering for corporates at the 2002-2003 America’s Cup. Mark then took off to Edinburgh and London to open and run his own bars, which were so good that they got snapped up by Fullers. After moving back to New Zealand with his now wife, he found his way into Joylab circles, eventually leading to owning a stake in Sweat Shop - which he proudly claims is the best night out in Auckland on a Friday.

Mark can’t get enough of people smiling, both at work and at home. His own smile can be seen stretching far and wide over a good stout (brewed in-house at Sweat Shop), which can only be beaten should it be had in front of a Foo Fighters concert.

Dave boasts over 20 years of experience in hospitality, joining the Joylab team after spending 10 of those with our joint venture partner, DB Breweries. Since then, he’s become a shareholder and helped open several establishments including Garrison, Mama Loco, and Birdie’s. Not a bad effort, so far.

Dave, like many other leaders at Joylab, loves to see his staff grow and better themselves, especially when that growth comes as a positive surprise. Outside of Joylab, Dave is a keen angler and family man. He’s also partial to a classic Appletons and soda with a slice of fresh lime, which he’d share with Bill Clinton to share stories about improving life for others - even if he isn’t perfect (like Dave is).

Scott opened his first restaurant in Queenstown at the age of 24, then moved on to run bars and restaurants across the world in Australia, Spain and the UK. After successfully clocking the planet, Scott returned to New Zealand where he became a shareholder and helped launch The Postman’s Leg, now a local favourite on the North Shore of Auckland.

Scott loves to see a good transformation, but unlike slapping a wig on in Extreme Makeover he prefers to see people’s confidence soar as they work their way through the rewards of hospitality. Scott also loves his family, and takes quickly to anyone with a quirky sense of humour, which also explains why he’s a Dudley Moore fan. Scott is an avid Tiger beer drinker, and reckons it tastes just as good out of a bottle or can as it does fresh out of the tap.

Jamie comes from over 20 years in hospitality, ten of which were spent running bars in England before moving to New Zealand and starting up with Joylab. Soon after, he was appointed as general manager and is now part owner and operator of Moretons.

Jamie is always on the hunt for developing new, transferable skills that can be used in and out of the workplace with his staff. We’re not sure if fishing is that transferable, but it’s something he likes to do in his spare time. He’s also keen on a cold beer, which he prefers to share with his partner rather than his seven brothers and sisters - it’s just easier (and his partner is a barrel of laughs).

Her last name might also be a first name, but that’s just because Lisa is first in everything. She has managed events at Austins, everything at Kingslander, HR at Millennium Hotels and Resorts, while also holding a Diploma in Early Childhood. Aside from racking up all that experience, Lisa also dabbled in writing policies and even selling Lions tour packages to overseas clients.

At work, Lisa loves a full, pumping venue to manage and a bunch of chuffed grins on the faces of everyone. When the door closes, Lisa might be found with friends and family, travelling, or watching live sports. In fact, she loves a good Sol beer as it reminds her of old road trips with the girls. We wonder if she is ever reminded of the fact that she performed in the Nutcracker as a youngin?

Ben started out by washing dishes in Dunedin at the age of 15, then worked his way up the country and the ladder. From being the Assistant GM of a hotel in the Fox Glacier to a Food & Beverage Manager at a resort in the Cook Islands, then several other GM roles in Auckland and beyond - Ben knows his stuff.

He also knows how to make his guests happy, which is why they always come back. He follows a similar strategy at home, making the kids laugh (and ideally coming back too?). He loves a good gin and tonic, citing their classic and simple combo - unlike the people he would want to share one with - the drummer from heavy metal band Slipknot and the singer of Metallica.

Jay Zeylemaker has certainly made it - he started off in the hospitality industry with some part-time bartending while he studied, then fell in love with the industry and never looked back. A few jumps and skips later, and he now leads Goode Brothers in Botany with a smile on his dial.

That smile can be upgraded to a full-on grin when it’s a busy night and the team are bringing their A-game. Everyone’s stoked, staff and customers alike. Afterwards, you might catch Jay sinking a beer, hanging with his dog Bentley, or admiring the work of Leonardo DiCaprio in the Titanic (we don’t blame him).

Mike hails from London, UK where he spent 14 years learning the hopes of hospitality. Apparently he’s also a miracle worker, taking a failing business and turning it around within 1 year to be hugely successful. Like that turnaround, he loves to see staff starting off and working their way up to become confident people, both in and outside of work.

Mike is a fan of the world at large, hoping to see as much of it as possible - and if he can’t, he wouldn’t mind catching up with Neil DeGrasse Tyson to help him learn about the rest. An instant spot in the good books if you can get a smooth 20 year Tawny Port in front of Mike.

Jordan’s BA/BCom from the University of Auckland started him down a path of hospitality management; working his way up from kitchen-hand to general manager within 10 years. His experience even saw him run pop-up establishments from sunrise to sunset, single-handedly running the show to impress curious passersby - and impressing Joylab in the process; where he took on the role as Business Leader at Goode Brothers, New Lynn before jumping into our Viaduct hotspot, The Lula Inn.

Jordan’s favourite part of his role of Business Leader is seeing his team work closely together, as if a family. His love for tight-knit people follows him home, where he’s always keen to spend time with mates over a couple of drinks. He’s also keen on coffee, swearing by it for his daily routines - routines he’d gladly leave behind for the day if he could spend it with Robin Williams for a drink and a laugh.

John made strides in hospitality after working his way up the Skytower (literally), from bartender to manager. With his diploma in Hospitality Management in hand, he then took to the seas, where he managed food, beverages and bars on various cruise lines. John’s skills reaped rewards, with a creative streak that saw new wine pairings increase wine sales over 25% (among other achievements).

John is now heading up one of Joylab’s newest establishments, The Gipsy Moth - where his creative prowess will bring a splash of fresh air to the Auckland Airport. John’s affinity for people works wonders, among staff, friends and family alike. He’s partial to an old-fashioned, which he would share among close friends because “you can laugh with them, admit your sins and be fully yourself without any act”. Wise words.

Praveen is cool, but not too cool for school. He studied a Degree in Hospitality Management with majors in Food & Beverage, so he definitely knows his stuff. It was a smart move, because he quickly landed top-notch jobs at Rydges Auckland, Assistant Manager for VIP at a casino, owning his own cafe, then business leader at Basalt. That’s a bloody good roll call.

It wasn’t just an on-point degree that got him here. He loves the work because every day is different, and working with a diverse crew keeps him on his toes. When it’s time to give those toes a break, you might find him hanging out with his son, ogling at cars, or sipping on a CC and dry with a couple of mates.

Jason could give Jack a run for his money as a man of all trades - spanning across the last 40 years, Jason has been dipping his toe into all pools of the hospitality world at some of New Zealand's most iconic restaurants and across some of the largest world events held in New Zealand, a highlight being the Rugby World Cup 2011. Can we unofficially say that Jason had a hand in winning us the World Cup? Maybe not, but we will anyway - thanks Jason.

Jason sees operating a venue like a rough gem, no matter what angle you look at - it's bound to sparkle and Five Knots has plenty of that! While he always goes the extra mile to make your day, what makes Jason's day is spending time with his lovely partner and son, even watching grass grow would be time well spent with these guys. He's a big New Zealand Pinot Noir fan and wouldn't mind sharing one with Elon Musk - we'll see what we can do Jason.