Our Kōrero
OUR KŌRERO
FROM CRE-EIGHT TO MAHI WAIRUA
Our story didn't begin with Mahi Wairua.
It began with CRE-eight.
Founded in 2024, CRE-eight started with a simple desire to create — combining design, technology and imagination to turn ideas into something real.
What began with printing grew into something much bigger.
Over time, we expanded our mahi into apparel, UV printing, embroidery and personalised pieces. We learnt new skills, invested in new equipment and slowly built a business from the ground up.
But as CRE-eight grew, so did our understanding of what we wanted the future of our business to represent.
We wanted something closer to who we are.
Something grounded in our whānau.
Something that acknowledged where we come from while giving us the freedom to create where we are going.
From that journey came Mahi Wairua.
THE MEANING OF MAHI WAIRUA
Mahi speaks to work, action and creation — the mahi of our hands and minds that transforms an idea into something tangible.
Wairua speaks to spirit, essence and the deeper meaning carried within people, places and what we create.
Together, Mahi Wairua represents the philosophy behind our brand:
To create with purpose, identity and wairua.
For us, a piece should be more than something that looks good.
There should be a story behind it.
A connection.
A reason for creating it.
That belief sits at the heart of Mahi Wairua.
OUR WHAKAPAPA
Mahi Wairua is grounded in the whakapapa of our whānau.
Our journey brings together connections to:
Ngāti Porou
Ngāti Hikairo
Ngāti Kahungunu
Each carries its own whakapapa, whenua, histories and identity.
Mahi Wairua does not seek to combine those identities into one. Instead, we acknowledge each as part of the whakapapa carried within our whānau and part of the foundation from which we create.
Our whakapapa reminds us that what we build today does not begin with us.
We stand upon generations who came before us, and we have a responsibility to think about the generations who will follow.
That is why whakapapa sits at the beginning of our kaupapa.
OUR TOHU
The Mahi Wairua tohu was designed to carry our story visually.
At its centre are the letters M and W — Mahi and Wairua — woven together as one.
But their meaning goes deeper than the name alone.
The peaks within the design acknowledge the maunga carried through our whānau — two representing the whakapapa carried by Jovan and one representing the whakapapa carried by Kirsten.
They stand together within one tohu, representing two people, their whakapapa and the whānau they have built together.
Within the letters are flowing forms inspired by Māori pattern and the koru — representing whakapapa, growth, connection and continuation through generations.
The elements are intertwined because none of these parts of our story exist separately.
Whānau. Whakapapa. Mahi. Wairua.
Each strengthens the other.
The pounamu appearance of our tohu reflects something precious and enduring — something that can be carried forward.
It represents not only where Mahi Wairua stands today, but what we hope to leave for those who come after us.
WHY WE EVOLVED
CRE-eight will always be part of our story.
It is where we learnt.
Where we experimented.
Where we made mistakes, developed our craft and discovered what we were capable of creating.
Mahi Wairua is not about forgetting CRE-eight.
It is about building upon it.
As our creativity became increasingly influenced by whakapapa, Māori design and our desire to create meaningful pieces for whānau, we realised the identity of our business needed to grow with us.
Mahi Wairua became that next chapter.
That is why you will still see:
POWERED BY CRE-eight
It acknowledges where this journey started while allowing Mahi Wairua to become what comes next.
WHERE WE ARE GOING
Today our mahi spans clothing, printing, embroidery, personalised creations and taonga for the home.
Tomorrow it may take forms we haven't created yet.
But as the tools and technology evolve, our kaupapa remains the same.
We want to create pieces that our whānau and customers are proud to wear, display, gift and eventually pass down.
We want to respect the knowledge and creativity that came before us while exploring what Māori creativity can look like today and into the future.
And most importantly, we want our tamariki and mokopuna to see that whakapapa is not something that only sits in the past.
It lives.
It grows.
And it can inspire what we create next.
MAHI WAIRUA
Inspired by Whakapapa. Created with Wairua.
Our past grounds us.
Our whānau drives us.
Our mahi expresses us.
Our wairua gives it meaning.
This is Mahi Wairua.