The announcement follows the Zuru CEO’s win earlier this year of the New Zealand Young Entrepreneur of the Year award.

Nick’s recent win of the EY accolade is the first time in the awards’ history that a young entrepreneur has also won the New Zealand honour. Nick will now go on to represent New Zealand at the 2019 EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year awards in Monte Carlo.

The EY Entrepreneur of the Year is considered to be one of the world’s most prestigious business awards, taking place in 145 cities in more than 60 countries. More than 1,500 dynamic business people in Australia and New Zealand have been recognised since 2001.

Zuru, which 33 year old Nick founded with siblings Anna and Mat, is now a +500m company with more than 5,000 employees across 18 countries, producing 500,000 toys a day and distributing to most major retailers in over 120 countries. Zuru’s brand portfolio now includes names such as Bunch O Balloons, X-Shot, Robo Alive, Smashers, 5 Surprise and Metal Machines.

The recently launched Rainbocorns are seeing a triple-digit increase in re-orders one month after launch. Almost half a million of the animal-themed innovative plush have been shipped across the globe in the last three months, and with sales exceeding expected volumes and targets, there are high hopes for the autumn/winter period.

A decade after its creation, Zuru has formed partnerships with leading entertainment properties including Nickelodeon, Disney, Universal Studios and DreamWorks as well as successfully building its own global brands. With a strong commitment to the community, Zuru supports Captivating International, local China orphanages and also student development programmes in Asia and in New Zealand.

Nick commented: “Although I’m honoured to have won the award, much of our success has been down to our people. Our team is full of vibrant, intelligent individuals with a passion for doing things better and disrupting the world around them. We greatly value each and everyone one of our team.”