Introducing Andrew Parkinson

Hi, I'm Andrew Parkinson

I’m the Owner and Practice Manager of Bay Financial Partners Limited.

I believe that when it comes to investing everyone’s needs are different. Some people are comfortable investing in the share market, and others aren’t, some are prepared to take a risk and others aren’t. It depends on each person’s circumstances, their experience and knowledge. But it's not only their financial situation that's important but also their emotional make up. There is no point losing sleep over your investments, if you are, you’re invested in the wrong place.

I believe an important part of our job to assist people make informed decisions about their financial future. No one should invest in anything they don’t understand and I enjoy helping people understand. Our industry is very good at hiding behind jargon but my experience enables me to talk to people in a down to earth manner. I’ve presented to board members of listed companies, managed staff, helped bring up two daughters, and I’ve run my own business so I can help you cut through to what’s important so you understand the potential risks and likely returns from a given investment.

I can answer your general questions and help point you in the right direction. With the assistance of my colleague Johnathan York, we can help you with your financial planning needs.

You can contact me on 07 578 3863 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

I'm proud to be a Bay of Plenty local and love living here. When I was born my parents lived right next to the golf course at Omanu, which probably helped form my sporting interests, surfing in the summer and golf in the winter. And of course like many Kiwi’s I’m a keen All Black supporter. I'm very proud of my daughters who are are now independent young women forging their own paths in life.

My parents bought a motor camp at Ngunguru in Northland when I was 8 and we lived up there until I was 15 when we returned to Tauranga and I completed secondary school at Tauranga Boys College.

I graduated from Waikato University in 1984 with a Bachelor of Management Studies Degree with an emphasis on Accounting and Finance. I then joined the ANZ Bank’s graduate recruitment scheme. After three months giving out cheque books at Tauranga branch I was "offered" a job in the Investments Department in Wellington as an Equity Analyst. The next few years were an exciting time as the bull share market run of the 1980’s unfolded and I was right there in the middle of it. I was attending meetings with the “movers and shakers” and being wined and dined by share brokers both locally and overseas.

I progressed to the role of Assistant Manager Investment Portfolios where I was responsible for managing the investments of the Bank's high net worth individuals' portfolios and assisting with the investment of pension fund and institutional investments. The October 1987 crash was an astonishing event. Fortunately I worked in a conservative institution and whilst our client’s share portfolios were of course hit hard our clients came out of the crash better than most.

I became increasingly disillusioned with the industry’s response to the events after the share market crash of 1987 and I took 12 months leave travelling in Europe and working in London. During this time I realised that New Zealand was a pretty good place to live.

Upon returning from overseas I went back to the ANZ and spent the following years in various managerial administrative roles supporting the ANZ’s retail bank network, Investments, UDC and Cards departments. My roles had a common theme, gathering data then interpreting and presenting information to help people make better decisions.

By 2000 I’d lived in Wellington for 15 years, I'd married Deborah who worked in International Settlements at ANZ for five years, Kate was three and Sarah was on the way. Whilst I was paid very well I really didn’t enjoy my work any more and didn’t seem to have any time for family. So I left the ANZ and we all moved down to Christchurch to be closer to my wife’s family and look for a new direction. After about a year doing consulting work we applied to buy a computer rental franchise, but as Canterbury was taken we were offered Bay of Plenty, I was ecstatic, home at last! It took Deborah a little longer to come around but now she loves the Bay of Plenty (but of course she'll always support the Canterbury and Crusaders rugby teams).

After five years renting computers I sold the business and after another brief hiatus I joined the current company where I’ve been since 2007. In August 2012 I purchased the business and renamed it Bay Financial Partners Limited.

I work with some neat people and I consider it a privilege to be in a position where people trust me to help them achieve their financial goals.

My Financial Services Provider Register number is SP55083 

You can email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or ring me on 07 578 3863  - except Thursday afternoons as I'll probably be playing golf!