STARTUP STORY
HOW FEIJOA TURNED SPARE CHANGE INTO A SMARTER WAY TO BUILD WEALTH
When Mark White-Robinson and the team behind Feijoa first started out, they weren’t trying to build a simple product.
It started as a hallway conversation - about how important KiwiSaver really is in New Zealand, and how much bigger its impact could be over time. From there, the idea quickly grew.
The original concept was ambitious: bring non-financial services businesses into KiwiSaver through a managed investment scheme. It had potential - but it also came with layers of regulation, complexity, and a long path to market.
After months of working through it, the team hit a point that a lot of founders recognise.
This isn’t working.
But buried inside that bigger idea was something that was. A small feature they’d been thinking about as an add-on - rounding up everyday purchases and putting the spare change into KiwiSaver.
“We realised that was the thing people actually wanted.”
So they pivoted.
What if saving could happen without thinking about it?
Feijoa today is built around a simple idea: take the effort out of saving. You connect your bank account, go about your day, and every time you spend, a small amount gets rounded up and automatically contributed into your KiwiSaver.
No big decisions. No behaviour change. No guilt about not saving “properly.” It's working - in the five months since launching, Feijoa has grown to around 2,000 users, with an annualised contribution run rate of about $1.6 million.
But the more interesting part is who’s using it. It’s not just one type of person—it’s a mix:
- Women thinking seriously about their long-term financial position
- Grandparents quietly building something for their grandkids
- People in their 20s and 30s trying to get ahead on a first home
Different life stages, same behaviour—small, consistent contributions that add up over time.
What does it feel like to save while you’re spending?
Before building anything polished, the team built something scrappy - "the ugliest app you’ve ever seen,” as Mark puts it.
But it worked - and more importantly, they used it themselves. The team found that the mental shift to saving while spending changed the way that saving itself actually feels. - a small feature that became the real product insight.
“It’s the shift from a startup to something a bit more grown-up.”
When does a startup start to feel like a real business?
Like many early-stage teams, the first phase was all about building.
Then came real users. Real money moving through the platform. Real expectations.
That’s when things change.
After engaging in Startup Aotearoa coaching with Chris O’Neill, they joined Creative HQ’s Fintech Lab, which has helped the team shift from product builders to operators - navigating customer support, partnerships, enterprise conversations, and the realities of scaling.
Chris O'Neill - Startup Aotearoa Coach
There’s already demand to expand beyond KiwiSaver - but the starting point was intentional, with KiwiSaver reaching around 96% of working kiwi, and remaining tied to emotional purchasing - first homes, retirement, long-term security. The team also noticed that there's something intuitive about rounding purchasing up - a $5.70 coffee already feels like $6, so Feijoa are simply turning that instinct into action.
What does the bigger vision look like?
Feijoa’s long-term vision is to build a system where money flows automatically toward multiple financial goals - a “waterfall” of priorities, running in the background.
That could mean:
- Building an emergency fund
- Maximising KiwiSaver contributions
- Investing in managed funds
- Saving for a holiday or major purchase
All set up once - and then left to run. They’re also building new tools, including a way for self-employed people to automatically contribute a percentage of their income, removing another common friction point. Beyond users, Feijoa sees itself as a connector - working with KiwiSaver providers, brands, and other fintechs to create shared value across the ecosystem.
“It’s been intense, but it’s the best job I’ve ever had.”
What happens next?
With early traction, a growing user base, and partnerships starting to take shape, Feijoa is now raising capital to accelerate growth.
The focus is simple: get the product in front of more people, tell the story more widely, and keep building.
Because at its core, Feijoa isn’t trying to change how people think about money.
It’s changing how money moves - quietly, consistently, and automatically.
And sometimes, that’s where the biggest shifts begin.
Do you have a promising startup idea that could benefit from expert guidance? Follow in Mark's footsteps and book a Startup Aotearoa coaching session today.
Check out Feijoa or contact Mark via LinkedIn