Tony was born and raised in Hastings, Hawke’s Bay. He left the Bay as a 17-year-old to study Japanese at Massey University in Palmerston North with the hopes of becoming a teacher. However, once there he found his academic destiny lay in another direction, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English.
After moving back to Hawke’s Bay, he trained to become a teacher before eventually (and rather randomly) opening a plant nursery and learning the ins-and-outs of the garden centre industry. The administrative and financial management skills he picked up in that role led him to a job with Inland Revenue in Napier where he was part of the Return and Debt collection team.
From Inland Revenue, Tony became interested in other areas of government operations and applied for a Wellington-based position with Immigration New Zealand. He moved to Wellington in 2008 to become an Immigration Officer and has been involved in the immigration industry ever since.
Tony joins Woburn International
Tony joined the Woburn team in 2024 – a team he first interviewed to become part of in 2011, before ultimately choosing to relocate back to Hawke’s Bay soon after.
Outside work, Tony enjoys reading, collecting books and vinyls, and playing guitar. His ultimate goal is to become a professional session musician.
