Society Insider: Dominic Bowden’s permanent move to Queenstown; Luke Kilworth, the 21-year-old Lodg CEO, choosing between tech millions and pro rugby

Dominic Bowden and Esther Cronin are enjoying their new life in Queenstown.

The couple have travelled the world over in the past several years, learning from and meeting wellness gurus and visiting iconic wellness and nature spaces, including breathwork practitioner Robbie Bent in New York and Jonathan Leary, the founder of Hollywood wellness club Remedy Place.

Cronin launched her wellness platform Ready&Reset last year, offering 10- and 12-week membership programmes and in-person retreats. Bowden launched his Wellbeings podcast and platform in 2021, in which he talks to scientists, writers and celebrities to find out new ways to improve his health and mindset.

Esther Cronin launched her wellness platform Ready&Reset last year.

Queenstown is the perfect location for the couple to continue growing their brands, with its well-being attractions including world-class spas and retreats like Aro Ha and nature-focused adventure experiences like the Routeburn and Milford Tracks.

“We are renting a great place just outside of town and have just bought a classic Queenstown three-bedroom home, closer into Queenstown, which we will move into next year,” says Bowden.

He says they’ve had a warm welcome from Queenstown’s leading figures and the wider community, many of whom share their passion for wellness.

Dominic Bowden and Esther Cronin are enjoying the best of the South Island.

“One of the first people to ask us out to dinner was Nadia Lim,” says Bowden.

“We both really appreciated that, moving to a new place can be tough. She’s awesome.”

Bowden and Cronin joined Lim and her husband, Carlos Bagrie, and several of their friends at Arrowtown’s Swiftsure by Man O’ War, where Bowden says all the guests kindly gave him and Cronin the lie of the land.

The couple have been engaged for more than three years, and when asked when and where the wedding will be, Bowden says, “Southern Otago is definitely the place … but Esther and I have a lot on our plate, before any planning gets under way.

“Queenstown feels like a great place to bring up a family and start a new chapter.”

They have a busy summer ahead of them, with Watershed planning to launch in mid-December.

Bowden says Queenstown already attracts travellers who want to experience the best nature in the world. Watershed offers something new for those looking to slow down and have a reset as well.

Dominic Bowden and Esther Cronin enjoy hiking in Queenstown’s surroundings.

“International travellers plan their trips now around experiences, not attractions, and we think a floating sauna session on a lake surrounded by mountains will hopefully become one of the Queenstown signatures,” says Bowden.

He’ll be on site over the summer, welcoming guests, and says he’s excited to put his hosting skills, learned over decades of TV presenting and broadcasting, “to use in a very different way”.

Cronin, who is in demand for hosting her Ready&Reset in-person classes throughout New Zealand, will base all her classes in Queenstown this summer.

Bowden’s Watershed business partner, Andrew Glenn, will also spend the summer in Queenstown for the launch and while the business finds its feet. Glenn and his partner, Jonathan Rutherford Best, have years of experience in high-end tourism and hospitality – they developed Waiheke Island’s The Oyster Inn and the award-winning Lantern House.

Andrew Glenn is Dominic Bowden’s partner in Watershed.

The floating sauna combines a large communal sauna and a smaller, private one, with access to private cold plunge pools and dips in Lake Wakatipu.

Located at St Omer wharf in the heart of Queenstown, it looks out at the newly opened, Virginia Fisher-designed luxury lodge, Roki Collection Queenstown.

“We have used only the best, the saunas are the Rolls-Royce in their field, the reception area is luxe, as are the changing rooms and our little retail kiosk,” says Glenn.

A render of the soon-to-open Watershed in Queenstown.

Bowden raised the idea with Glenn two years ago, and the pair quickly decided Queenstown, which Bowden thinks will become the wellness capital of the world, was the perfect place for a floating sauna.

Bowden had already seen some amazing floating saunas around the world. Glenn travelled to Tasmania last year to research some similar business models there, followed by a trip to Oslo, where floating saunas are hugely popular.

Rich-lister Mark Francis, CEO of property investment and fund manager Centuria NZ, is the equal third shareholder.

“Mark joined so organically, he’s a great mate,” Bowden says. “I was at his house and told him what we were planning and asked him if he’d be open to being involved. He said yes on the spot.

“Andrew and Mark have just been the perfect people to have in the boat and build a business that we all feel really proud of.”

Another business titan supportive of the new venture is the founder of Xero, billionaire Rod Drury, who opened Queenstown’s world-class gym space The Mill in June.

Bowden and Cronin are making sure they embed themselves into the local community. They supported behind the scenes at Kathryn Wilson’s charity show for Breast Cancer Cure at Ayrburn on Saturday and caught up with Lake Hawea Station’s Geoff and Justine Ross on Sunday.

Eshter Cronin and Dominic Bowden at Ayrburn.

“It’s been hard at times, but moving and settling south and starting Watershed has been the best thing we’ve ever done for us both,” Bowden says.

Meet the 21-year-old multimillionaire chasing business and professional rugby dreams

Luke Kilworth is the CEO of Lodg.

Luke Kilworth is only 21 but he’s already got six years of hard-earned business acumen behind him. The chief executive of multimillion-dollar tax app company Lodg, Kilworth has worked with and been mentored by some of New Zealand’s wealthiest business leaders since he was 15.

In his downtime, he’s chasing his dreams of playing rugby professionally.

“People always ask me what one I will choose, rugby or business,” Kilworth tells Society Insider. “I turn around and ask, ‘Why not both?’”

Kilworth had made the 1st XV footy and 1st XI cricket at Nelson College when Alistair King, a college old boy and co-founder of Rhodes Pet Science alongside billionaire Nick Mowbray, presented at a prize-giving.

Nick Mowbray and Luke Kilworth.

“I messaged Alistair afterwards and asked if I could work remotely for Zuru for free, while at school,” Kilworth says.

King accepted, and Kilworth impressed him so much that Mowbray then asked him to come to Auckland and work with him during the school holidays. Kilworth instead asked to work at Zuru full-time.

The move to Auckland, the choppers, private golf courses, and the Mowbrays’ Coatesville mansion were “cool and eye-opening” for the then 16-year-old Kilworth, who dropped out of high school for the Zuru job.

He believes Nick Mowbray will become known “as the greatest entrepreneur to come out of NZ” and he is immensely grateful for the opportunity to work alongside the older man. Kilworth says he learned 10 years’ worth of business experience in a condensed period.

Zane Beaty, head of Lodg sales, with Lodg CEO Luke Kilworth and Crusaders player Cooper Grant at the Riccarton races this month.

Kilworth moved back to Nelson two years later, with Mowbray’s blessing, to start his own marketing business. He rode the boom of short-form content creation and had clients with millions of followers, including Mike Thurston, one of the world’s biggest fitness influencers, and Rick Shiels, who has the largest golf YouTube channel.

During that time, Kilworth had a chance meeting in Christchurch with one of the city’s most influential property developers, rich-lister Philip Carter, at his gym IHF Health.

“I had no idea who Phillip was at the time,” says Kilworth. “After my workout, we got chatting about rugby and the work I did.”

Carter, who has gone on to become a good friend and mentor to Kilworth, helped facilitate a meeting with multimillionaire Brooksfield developers Oliver Hickman and Vincent Holloway. Kilworth says the pair have changed his life forever.

Oliver Hickman, Vincent Holloway and Luke Kilworth.

“I asked to work for Oliver and Vincent for free, and did this for about 12 months, flying down from Nelson as often as I could afford to, using up the last of my savings from the marketing agency,” he says.

During that time, many of the Brooksfield contractors were having issues with their taxes, and Kilworth was charged with finding a solution. Together, the trio created Lodg, a simplified tax app for sole traders, which is about to reach sales of $1 million just 18 months after launch. It has a shareholding valuation between $12m and $14m.

Christchurch-based multimillionaire Max Ferguson, the founder and CEO of tech firm Lumin, recently took a shareholding in Lodg. Lumin has more than 100 million users worldwide and will be invaluable with the international expansion of Lodg.

Kilworth is currently working with developers in Vietnam on the next two stages of two new soon-to-launch Lodg platforms for business and property investors.

Kilworth says Lodg is disrupting the tax world, like Mowbray has disrupted toys and FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) markets.

“I would love to have a full circle moment in the future with Nick,” he says.

With a shareholding in Lodg estimated at more than $3m, Kilworth tells Society Insider all his money is going back into the business.

His parents, Amanda and Jason, are his biggest supporters, and Kilworth says he plans to build a huge Brooksfield home near them in Nelson, where all of his close friends and family can hang out.

Proud parents Amanda and Jason Kilworth with their son Luke (centre).

On top of running Lodg, Christchurch and Nelson-based Kilworth is in the Mako Academy, which prepares players for high-performance professional careers in rugby.

Luke Kilworth playing for Marist.

He has come off a standout season as the MVP for Marist, who won this year’s Tasman club competition.

His next big goal is to try to crack pro-rugby next season, but he is well aware of the short window he has left.

“I’d love to do it for the Tasman Mako; however, you never know what doors open. It would be a real privilege to play our national game at a pro level,” he says.

Party People of the Week

Celebrating Aotearoa’s Screen Excellence

The stars hit the red carpet for the New Zealand Screen Awards last Friday evening at Auckland’s Vodafone Events Centre.

The late Lee Tamahori’s The Convert stood as the evening’s most celebrated film, sweeping five major honours.

One of the night’s most moving moments came when producers Robin Scholes and Te Kohe Tuhaka – who also starred in the film – took to the stage to accept the Best Director: Drama Feature award on behalf of Tamahori and his whānau. They made a heartfelt tribute to his towering legacy, which has shaped the course of New Zealand filmmaking.

Sir Sam Neill, who got a thunderous standing ovation when he took out the 2025 Screen Legend Award, happily posed for selfies before and after the awards ceremony.

Sir Sam Neill at the NZ Screen Awards at the Viaduct Events Centre. Photo / Robert Trathen

Beloved screen icons in attendance included Rena Owen, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Julian Dennison, Sara Wiseman, Cliff Curtis, Jay Ryan, Taika Waititi, Danielle Cormack, Claire Chitham, Jo Holley, and Shavaughn Ruakere, who took her long-term partner, auto man about town Trevor Rooderkerk.

Rena Owen. Photo / Robert TrathenKeisha Castle-Hughes. Photo / Robert Trathen Sara Wiseman. Photo / Robert Trathen Taika Waititi. Photo / Robert Trathen Jo Holley and Shavaughn Ruakere. Photo / Robert Trathen

Other winners included Antonia Prebble and Kura Forrester for Double Parked, Anapela Polata’ivao and Antonia Eaton for Tīna, Stephen Lovatt for Shortland Street, Peter Hambleton for Happiness, and US actor John Lithgow and George Henare for The Rule of Jenny Penn. Their co-star, Australian actor Geoffory Rush, was also at the event.

With the ceremony finishing just after 11pm, guests mingled in the foyer before peeling off into a series of smaller private after-parties.

Antonia Eaton and Anapela Polata’ivao. Photo / Robert Trathen Geoffrey Rush, George Henare and James Ashcroft. Photo / Robert Trathen Oscar Kightley and Teuila Blakely. Photo / Robert Trathen Peter Salmon and Morgana O’Reilly. Photo / Robert Trathen Laura McGoldrick. Photo / Robert Trathen Fern Sutherland and Neill Rea. Photo / Robert Trathen

Black Grace celebrates 30 years

Black Grace dance company presented its powerful new “double bill” at the majestic Civic Theatre in Auckland last Friday night.

The evening was a celebration of Black Grace’s 30th anniversary with the premiere of a powerful new work, If Ever There Was A Time, by Black Grace founding artistic director and chief executive Neil Ieremia, followed by a new production of US choreographer Paul Taylor’s seminal work Esplanade – the first time the work has been licensed to a company in the South Pacific.

Guests included arts philanthropists Kent Gardner, who is on the Black Grace Trust, and partner Ngaere Duff; former netball great Bernice Mene; performer Edward Cowley; fashion designer Karen Walker and husband Mikhail Gherman; and broadcaster Petra Bagust and her husband, producer Hamish Wilson.

Emotions ran high after the show as Ieremia acknowledged family, the Black Grace board, creative partners, past and present dancers and members of the company, inviting many to join him on stage.

Ngaere Duff, Neil Ieremia and Kent Gardner at Black Grace’s 30th anniversary celebration at Civic Theatre. Photo / Jinki Cambronero Stacey Mowbray and Bernice Mene. Photo / Jinki CambroneroAni O’Neill, Edward Cowley and Sofia Tekela-Smith. Photo / Jinki Cambronero Hamish Wilson and Petra Bagust. Photo / Jinki Cambronero Kiona Ieremia, Aumua Rosetta and Dr Sam Fuimaono. Photo / Jinki Cambronero Kura Te Ua, Richard Chen See and Fuaao Tutulu Faith Schuster. Photo / Jinki Cambronero

BioGaia launches at Redroom

Swedish probiotics leader BioGaia made its official New Zealand debut last Tuesday, celebrating its arrival at Chemist Warehouse with an event at Auckland wellness studio Redroom at City Works Depot.

The intimate launch gathered a curated crowd of influencers, wellness advocates and media, including naturopath Lauren Glucina, Diamond Shop owner Sera Cruickshank and Clique Fitness co-owner Bex West. Guests learned about the science of BioGaia Gastrus Pure Action and put their new knowledge into practice in a Pilates session designed to strengthen the core “from the inside out.”

Sera Cruickshank and Alicia Haszard at the BioGaia launch at Redroom. Photo / Anupam Singh Shannen Frear and Georgia Bradley. Photo / Anupam SinghBex West and Louise Logan. Photo / Anupam Singh Lauren Glucina and Sonia Gouveia. Photo / Anupam Singh Piyara Perera, Jenna Marsh and Brooke Taylor. Photo / Anupam Singh Amanda and Robyn Page. Photo / Anupam Singh

Ricardo Simich has been with the Herald since 2008 where he contributed to The Business Insider. In 2012 he took over Spy at the Herald on Sunday, which has since evolved into Society Insider. The weekly column gives a glimpse into the worlds of the rich and famous.