The Red Barn

What The Red Barn does

The Red Barn is a boutique private event venue and function centre sited on a 500-acre working dairy farm in Karapiro, Waikato, New Zealand. The O'Sullivan family has operated the venue since 2008, housed in a heritage barn originally built circa 1900 as a livery stable. The property carries 550 A2 dairy cows supplying Synlait and provides the operational and scenic backbone for an agritourism business serving the Waikato and Bay of Plenty catchments, with drive-time access to Hobbiton (15 minutes), Cambridge (20 minutes), Hamilton (45 minutes), Rotorua (50 minutes), Tauranga Port (50 minutes), and Auckland (2 hours).

The product portfolio comprises five core offerings: guided dairy farm tours with morning/afternoon tea (1 hour, 20-60 pax); the Taste of Waikato five-course regional degustation dining priced at NZ$159 per person (private groups 30-60 pax or public scheduled sittings); cruise ship shore excursion packages for Waikato/Bay of Plenty itineraries (20-80 pax, price on application); business events and conferences across the main barn (up to 140 guests) and the newly added The Shed meeting space (60-120 delegates with AV and connectivity); and destination weddings accommodating up to 140 guests with full in-house coordination including flowers, photography, catering, transport and music. Culinary leadership sits with multi-award-winning Head Chef Harry Williams (Matariki Dish Challenge 2019, Beef + Lamb New Zealand Ambassador Chef).

Commercial mechanics: corporate events, weddings, and cruise excursions are sold via direct enquiry through phone (027 REDBARN) and email to the owners; public dining events are ticketed through an integrated online shop with Stripe checkout; marketing runs through the website, email, and Facebook. There is no disclosed external funding, no parent company, no app, and no API surface — the operation is bootstrapped, founder-owned, and regionally focused, with twelve employees.

Name

The Red Barn

Legal name

The Red Barn

Website

https://redbarnexperiences.nz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Red Barn is a boutique private event venue and function centre on a 500-acre Waikato dairy farm offering farm tours, premium group dining, corporate events, destination weddings, and cruise ship excursions to groups of 20-140 guests across the Waikato and Bay of Plenty regions of New Zealand.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agritourism Venue and Event Hospitality

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Agricultural Prod-Livestock & Animal Specialties (200)

akta.pro primary industry

Farm-to-Table & Agritourism Dining Experiences (Farm Visits, Harvest Meals) (THAJAGAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Private Culinary Experiences (Chef’s Table, Home Dining, Market-to-Meal) (THAJALAH)

Keywords

• Agritourism venue
• Destination wedding venue
• Corporate event hosting
• Farm tour experiences
• Degustation dining

Headquarters

HQ city

Karapiro

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Event Venue Hire & Catering: Primary revenue from hosting private events including weddings, corporate functions, and celebrations. Venue hire includes full catering team with professional service. The Red Barn can accommodate up to 140 guests for sit-down meals with various menu options from plated dinners to buffets.
2. Taste of Waikato Degustation Experience: Premium five-course degustation dining experience showcasing Waikato region produce. Available as private group events (Min 30/Max 60 pax) or public scheduled events. Includes optional wine matching. Primary revenue stream at $159 per person.
3. Farm Tours: Guided dairy farm tours lasting approximately 1 hour, including morning/afternoon tea with home-style baking. Min 20/Max 60 pax. Combines with country-style lunch menus featuring farm produce.
4. Cruise Ship Excursions: Curated Kiwi hospitality and farm experience packages for cruise ship passengers visiting Waikato/Bay of Plenty regions. Min 20/Max 80 pax. Priced on application.
5. Destination Wedding Services: Full-service wedding venue offering ceremony, reception, catering, flowers, photography, transport and music coordination. Indoor capacity 140 guests with outdoor ceremony options and helicopter arrivals.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Red Barn is a boutique private venue and function centre located on a 500-acre working dairy farm in the Waikato region of New Zealand, offering group dining, guided farm tours, cruise ship excursions, corporate events and destination weddings. The business provides full on-site catering with a multi-award-winning head chef, accommodating up to 140 guests for sit-down meals and events, with bookings handled through direct enquiries and a public online shop for scheduled dining experiences.

Product overview

The Red Barn is a boutique private venue and function centre offering a portfolio of hospitality experiences centered around group dining, farm tours, and event hosting on a 500-acre working dairy farm in the Waikato region of New Zealand. The core offerings include Farm Tours (guided dairy farm experiences with butter churning and morning/afternoon tea), the Taste of Waikato (a premium five-course degustation dining experience), Cruise Ship Excursions for tourist groups, Business Events & Functions including conferences in The Shed meeting space, and Destination Weddings for up to 140 guests. The company operates as a unified hospitality venue with on-site catering and full-service event coordination.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Shed: A newly added venue space at The Red Barn, originally used as the farm's calf rearing facility. Now renovated into an authentic, rustic yet modern meeting and function space with hi-tech connectivity and state-of-the-art audio-visual equipment. Maximum capacity of 60 delegates seated, expandable to 120.

Products and services

• Farm Tours Guided tours of a fully functioning 500-acre dairy farm in the Waikato region, featuring a 35-minute guided tour, butter churning experience, and morning or afternoon tea with home-style baking and local produce. Designed for group bookings of 20–60 pax, with optional country-style lunch add-on.
• Taste of Waikato Degustation Experience Premium five-course degustation lunch or dinner showcasing the best of Waikato's naturally produced food and wine, featuring locally sourced ingredients and stories of the region's food trade. Available as private group events (min 30 / max 60 pax) or public scheduled events at $159 per person, with optional wine matching at $50 per person.
• Cruise Ship Excursions Authentic Kiwi farm tour experiences combined with quality hospitality for cruise ship passengers as part of greater Waikato or Bay of Plenty excursions. Group capacity of 20–80 passengers per excursion, priced on application through cruise line partnerships.
• Business Events & Functions Corporate event hosting including conferences, seminars, gala dinners, and team building activities at the main Red Barn venue and The Shed conference facility. Includes full catering, modern connectivity, and state-of-the-art audio-visual equipment.
• Destination Weddings Exclusive private wedding venue on a rural Waikato farm, accommodating up to 140 guests with full wedding services including flowers, photography, catering, cake, transport, and music. Outdoor ceremony options with helicopter arrivals available.
• The Shed Sub-brand venue space originally used as the farm's calf rearing facility, renovated into a rustic yet modern meeting and function space with hi-tech connectivity and state-of-the-art audio-visual equipment. Maximum capacity of 60 delegates seated, expandable to 120 with hired furniture.

Named customers2 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mudbrick Vineyard & Restaurant: Waiheke Island vineyard and restaurant hosting weddings, group dining, and tasting experiences in a premium rural setting — directly comparable business model of rural venue + dining + weddings.
• Markovina Estate: NZ destination wedding and events venue in Kumeu/Huapai; comparable in offering full-service wedding hosting with on-site catering and rural setting for premium couples.
• Walter Peak High Country Farm (Real Journeys): Operates farm tours, BBQ dining, and farm demonstrations on Lake Wakatipu, Queenstown — combining a working farm setting with group hospitality, very similar business model to The Red Barn's farm tour + dining offering.
• Agrodome (Rotorua): Rotorua-based farm experience venue offering guided farm tours, sheep shows, and group hospitality packages; comparable in being a working NZ farm that monetizes through tourist experiences and group bookings.

Regional players

• Hobbiton Movie Set Tours: Major tourist attraction located 15 minutes from The Red Barn in Matamata; while a movie set tour rather than a farm experience, it dominates regional tourist flow that The Red Barn captures through partnerships and itinerary add-ons.

Broad incumbents

• Kauri Cliffs (Rosewood): Luxury NZ lodge in Bay of Islands offering high-end dining, weddings, and group experiences in a premium rural/coastal setting — comparable positioning as a luxury rural NZ venue, though at much larger scale with lodging.
• Te Puia (Rotorua): Large NZ cultural and geothermal experience venue offering group dining, cultural performances, and tours — operates at significantly larger scale than The Red Barn but in the same group-experience hospitality category.
• Huka Lodge: Iconic luxury NZ lodge in Taupo offering premium dining, weddings, and private events; comparable as an exclusive rural NZ venue for high-end group experiences, though includes lodging.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/redbarnexperiences
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/red-barn-business-events-and-functions

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Red Barn