Tā mātou korero….

Back in 2017, Chris recognised that Cantabrians were still suffering the aftermath of the Canterbury earthquakes and wanted to be part of doing something ‘positive and uplifting’ for our beautiful city of Ōtautahi. At a time when business owners were being asked to be brave and invest in the new look, new feel CBD, he decided that opening a health and fitness centre was a good way to support whānau to prioritise their health during the rebuild phase.

“Good health is a gift”, and part of our kaupapa is to bring the gift of health to the people of Christchurch while engaging in the concept of ‘koha’. 

The name ‘Koha’ was chosen because koha implies an exchange - something of value given in exchange for something else of value. And of course, the value does not only have to be money. We want the centre to be an active contributors and to be able to give to the community in many ways.  We share knowledge, facilities, time, acts of service, or the gift of events to support local charities.

The building we are in – Te Urutī, is part of a unique and special Ngāi Tahu offering to the city. We didn’t want to disrespect this taonga by bringing a cheap, cookie cutter franchise to the area. Our intention is to create something that was a bit special, and something that reflected who we are - local, multicultural, and fresh.