53rd WMS Case Competition 2025
Join us for the grand final of New Zealand's longest-running business case competition - live in Hamilton on 8th October! 🎤🔥
Four top teams of Waikato Management School students will pitch their bold, innovative strategies for taking the iconic Kiwi spread Pic's Peanut Butter into the future. 🌍 🚀
Enjoy all the action at the ultimate battle of entrepreneurial wits!💡
Pic's Peanut Butter, the homegrown spread on toast, started in a humble Nelson kitchen in 2007. By 2025, it had grown into New Zealand's market leader, exporting to Australia and China from its state-of-the-art factory and tourist hub, Peanut Butter World.
With new CEO Aimee McCammon at the helm, and a major investment from Australia’s Scalzo Foods, Pic’s is now ready for its next big chapter - international expansion.
But where to next for this iconic Kiwi brand? Find out as the four finalist teams tackle Pic’s future, while competing for a place in WMS history.
The WMS Case Competition is proudly sponsored by PWC, with a $2,500 prize on the line - and eternal bragging rights!
Everyone is welcome to attend this flagship event - Waikato students, alumni, family, friends and members of the public. Come and cheer on our talented students!
👉 Register now to secure your seat and support the next generation of business leaders.
Event details
📅 Date: Wed, 8 October 2025
⏰ Time: 6pm – 8.30pm
🍿 Please arrive at 5.30pm to grab some snacks and find your seat.
📍 Venue: The Pā, The University of Waikato, Hamilton
🎟️ FREE, but please register for catering purposes.
About the competition
Launched in 1996, the Waikato Management School Case Competition is the ultimate test for our Bachelor of Business students. It's a hands-on, real-world assignment that forms part of their capstone paper, MNGMT321 Applied Business Challenge.
Over two action-packed weeks, student teams step into the role of management consultants. Their task? Analyse a detailed case study of a real New Zealand company and create a five-year strategy to grow sales, profits and market share.
Each team also writes an in-depth business report about their strategy for the judges to consider.
Other companies involved with the WMS Case Competition in previous years have included the likes of Zealong Tea, Zuru Toys, Annah Stretton Fashion, Yealands Wine Group, and Tainui Group Holdings Ltd, to name just a few.
How the competition works
It all builds up to "Super Friday", when each of the competing teams delivers a polished presentation about their strategy to an internal judging panel.
The best four teams are then chosen for the grand final of the Waikato Management School Case Competition, held the following week.
In the final showdown, each team gives a high-stakes, 10-minute presentation in front of a live audience. They also respond to some tough questions from an external judging panel of industry leaders.
After some healthy debate, the judges choose a winning team based on a 50:50 weighting of the written reports and presentations.
At the end of the night, the winning team is announced and walks away with the trophy and a cash prize, proudly sponsored by PWC.
52nd Case Competition 2024 - Ozone Coffee
Trailblazing Kiwi company Ozone Coffee wanted an innovative strategy to help them expand globally over the next five years. The winning team, Aotearoa Advisory, was made up of Hayden Collier, Alysha Gill, Bennett Greenough, and Jared Lines. Their strategy involved developing a new mobile app for customers and acquiring smaller coffee roasters in the UK.
51st Case Competition 2023 - Waitomo Group
Tasked with making the most of a Commerce Commission enquiry into retail fuel and subsequent legislation, students tried to plot a new course for the Waitomo Group. Tryptic Consulting wowed the judges.
50th Case Competition 2022 - Fonterra
After posted Fonterra a healthy profit of NZ $583 million for its 10,000 dairy farmer shareholders, competitors were asked to envision what the company's next 20-30 years would look like. Dynamic Consulting put forward the best strategy.
49th Case Competition 2021 - Shift72
Video on demand platform Shift72 was a global player before Covid hit but suddenly the firm was involved with film festivals like Cannes, Sundance and South by Southwest. Competitors were asked how best to take advantage and Prestige Strategies triumphed.
48th Case Competition 2020 - Boating and Outdoors
Formed in the early 1990s as a buying group, by 2020 Boating and Outdoors had 24 stores across the country — and an opportune moment to step back and decide on future operations. Triple J Consulting best plotted a course that would deliver success.
Previous competitions 2018-2019
46th Case Competition May 2019 - ZURU Edge
ZURU Edge launched Rascal and Friends nappies in 2017 planning for global success across multiple consumer categories — the goal was "five billion dollar brands in five years". Watch how 303 and Me set out their impressive business case.
45th Case Competition Oct 2018 - Allbirds
Shoe company Allbirds arrived on the scene intent on disrupting the industry with a small range of products made from sustainable materials. How could they scale up and have the impact they wanted? Watch Optimistic Idiots' plan to feather their nest.
44th Case Competition May 2018 - Xero
Accounting software firm Xero had been focussed on beautiful accounting software but was planning to target beautiful business. Tehy needed to know how cloud software could help small businesses? Watch Dream Strategy deliver on their name.
43rd Case Competition Oct 2017 - Zealong
After eight years developing the Zealong brand, the tea industry was on the cusp of a renaissance. Competitors were tasked with navigating this opportunity, while expanding the revenue generated from their existing services. Watch Settlers of Catan plan.
42nd Case Competition May 2017 - ZURU Toys
From its NZ origins, Zuru had ridden meteoric growth to become a China-based business with revenues of NZ$500m and climbing by 2017. Management felt ready to make a quantum leap in how they operated. Watch Elite Consulting lay out their winning plan.