Family owned and run
Eco Shine Solar is run by three brothers, Edwin, Sam and Ben, born and raised in the Bay of Plenty. Here’s how a backyard volleyball court turned into a solar maintenance business.
Best Small BusinessSEANZ Awards 2024
PrequalifiedHealth and safety
Our love for the outdoors started young. We grew up in the back blocks of Te Puke and attended Te Ranga School, a few classrooms with about sixty other kids or so. Days consisted of us being outside from sunrise to sunset and being called in every evening with a potent four-finger whistle from Mum.
Our mother worked in kiwifruit orchards. We would spend our holidays with her, clearing kiwifruit rows and exploring the neighbouring farms. As we grew older, our free roaming turned into organised sports. We made the move to Tauranga, to be closer to family and sports practice, which brings us to our next chapter.
We’re not sure how it started, but we got hooked on volleyball. We went from playing over kiwifruit wires to setting up our own backyard court. Then on to winning national titles with Otumoetai College and eventually representing New Zealand internationally for over a decade.
It was a wild ride, spending our winters travelling the world and our summers back here on the beach, working odd jobs to get by. Edwin retired due to a back injury, and Ben and I (Sam) continued on. We had many highlights in our careers. Most notable was finishing up with a bronze medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
Edwin and Ben have worked in the solar industry since 2014. Working for a large installer in Australia, they were both responsible for residential and commercial sales. The question was then first asked: what happens to solar PV systems after installation?
Realising there wasn’t a good answer to this question, Ben started Eco Shine Solar Maintenance. Eco Shine Solar has gone from being a part-time summer gig to a business employing all three brothers full-time.
The brothers have big aspirations for what we would like to see Eco Shine Solar grow into. Transferring our work ethic from the sand to the roofs has come naturally. Our goal is to be New Zealand’s leading solar maintenance company, helping everyday Kiwis get the most from their solar PV investment. We are grateful to the hundreds of customers who have entrusted us with their solar PV systems so far and look forwards to serving many more!
Who turns up
Could you work with your siblings? Well, it’s taken us a long time to get to this point, and we feel like we do it pretty well. Follow us on LinkedIn.
Hi I'm Edwin, the oldest of the three brothers. I'm a keen outdoorsman, fisherman and Father to two little girls. Within the business I take care of operations, making sure we have the latest and greatest and that it's functioning as it should.
Hi, I'm Sam, the middle child. I recently married a very lucky lady. I am continually improving our systems to give our customers the best experience possible when dealing with us. I also act as the mediator between Edwin and Ben.
Hi, Ben here. I'm the youngest of the three and Mum's favourite. I enjoy throwing myself at new hobbies and travelling to new places. Within the team, I handle the marketing and sales, helping share our story and our products to solar owners.
Awards
We don’t chase awards, but it’s nice when the work gets noticed.
Two quick steps, no obligation. A person on our team prices every job, and we answer the phone 7 days.
