Auckland Grammar School's Ad Augusta May 2023

Article originally posted: Page 45, Ad Augusta May 2023

Colin Thomas '04

Colin Thomas ‘04 enjoys mixing business with making adifference in the community.

“About six years ago, my brother and I set out tocome up with some new ways of supporting charities. After trying a myriad ofideas (and learning what doesn’t work), we’ve honed in on a few things that dothrough our company Raizor. The gap between what charities need and what can beachieved is often quite large, so we created a way to reduce that gap where everybodywins. Our ‘spending giving’ proposition means the customer buys something andgets to support a cause they care about too.”

Colin is now turning his attention to supporting his oldschool.

“When we think of legacy and impact, nothing is more grassroots thanschools. Being an Old Boy of Auckland Grammar was a logical place for me toreach out and introduce a new way of fundraising with our Insurance for Goodprogramme. It’s a gift that keeps on giving every year, and that’s a sustainablelegacy and impact I wanted to get behind.”

The programme works in partnership with insurance brokingfirm Crombie Lockwood, which adopted Raizor’s ‘spending giving’ model tocommercial insurance. Colin sees it as a logical extension of what they werealready doing.

“It was a no-brainer. For many business owners, commercialinsurance buys peace of mind and is a necessary cost of doing business.Fortunately, we work with top brokers to give them the best cover at the rightprice and service to match. Better yet, they can support  Auckland Grammar School with 20% of thebrokerage commission every year they hold cover, being donated to the School astheir chosen charity. This is done at no cost to the client, so why not letthat annual business expense do some good for the School? It’s a win/win!”

With every policy donating 20% of the brokerage fee to a nominatedcharity annually, it is a concept that is starting to really take off.

“Lastyear, we hit nearly $150,000 in donations, and momentum is building!

Auckland Grammar School’s Director of Advancement, Daniel Reddish,hopes the Grammar community will support the initiative.

“If your businessinsurance is up for renewal, the team at Raizor could help you, and you helpthe School as well. Everyone who has signed up so far has received bettercoverage at a comparable or reduced price while providing recurring support forthe School. It works really well for both parties.”

‍

‍