The Hugo Group
1. Business / Trading Name: The Hugo Group Limited / The Hugo Group
2. Company Number: 4280298
3. NZBN: 9429030352391
4. Entity Type: NZ Limited Company
5. Business Classification: J602030 News collection service nec[1]
6. Industry Classification: J602030 News collection service nec[2]
7. Year Founded: 2013
Frank Holmes founded the Hugo Group in 1983[3]
Certificate of Incorporation reads:
“This is to certify that HUGO CONSULTING GROUP LTD was incorporated under the Companies Act 1955 on the 22nd day of December 1981 and changed its name to THE HUGO GROUP LIMITED on the 24th day of July 1992 and was reregistered to become a company under the Companies Act 1993 on the 22nd day of December 1995 and was removed from the register on the 1st day of October 2015.
There is an entity named The Hugo Group Limited listed in The Company Hub, with
Company with its current leadership incorporated 2013 with the name PS&JW LIMITED (from 11 Feb 2013 to 01 Oct 2015)
https://app.companiesoffice.govt.nz/co/4280298
PS and JW incorporated the business with the name The Hugo Group in 2015[4]
8. Addresses:
Registered Office:
C/- L10, Pacific Radiology House, 142 Lambton Quay, Wellington, 6011
Address for service:
C/- L10, Pacific Radiology House, 142 Lambton Quay, Wellington, 6011
Postal:
PO Box 25120, Wellington 6146, New Zealand
9. Website URL:
https://www.thehugogroup.com
10. LinkedIn URL: No LinkedIn URL for the company but each director has one:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jo-wills-22867817/?originalSubdomain=nz
https://www.linkedin.com/in/pattrick-smellie-618a3a5/
11. Company Hub NZ URL: https://www.companyhub.nz/companyDetails.cfm?nzbn=9429030352391
12. NZ Companies Office URL:
https://app.companiesoffice.govt.nz/co/4280298
13. Social Media URLs: Not available
14. Ultimate Holding Company: Not applicable
Pattrick Smellie (60%)
Jo Wills (40%)
16. Leadership:
• Jo Wills: Director
• Pattrick Smellie: Director
17. Staff: Staff includes Stephen Topliss (Economic Specialist)
There are also ‘panellists’ who put together the tailored in-house briefings for members or their clients, produce fortnightly written briefings[5] which go out to all members both fortnightly and on important events the day they happen. They also sometimes hold extra Panel meetings for members after major events. TBC Arthur Grimes as panellist.
18. Staff that have held previous government roles:
Pattrick Smellie served as a press secretary to Minister of Finance, Roger Douglas.
19. Past Employees: Information not publicly disclosed
20. Clients: Membership is by invitation and includes around 100 of New Zealand’s most significant companies across various sectors. Client list from website:
2degrees Mobile / AA Insurance / ACC / Acumen New Zealand / Agite Consulting / Air New Zealand / Airways New Zealand / Ando Insurance / ASB / Auckland Airport / Auckland Uniservices / Aurecon NZ / Bank of New Zealand / Bastion Shine / BCG / Beca Group / BP New Zealand / BRANZ / Bunnings / CentrePort / Chartered Accountants ANZ / Chorus / Cisco Systems / Clarus / Commerce Commission / Commercial Communications Council / Contact Energy / CPB Construction / Datacom / Dentons Kensington Swan / Downer / EECA / Electricity Networks Aotearoa / Enable Network / ESR / EY NZ / FirstCape Group / Fisher Funds / FMG / Freightways / Genesis Energy / GRC Partners + Porter Novelli / Google New Zealand / Hobson Leavy / IAG / IGNITE Architects / KiwiRail / Kordia Group / KPMG / Lotto New Zealand / Lyttleton Port Company / Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research / McConnell Dowell / Meat Industry Association / Mercury New Zealand / Meridian Energy / MetService / MinterEllisonRuddWatts / Mitre 10 / Mondiale VGL / New Zealand Steel / New Zealand Trade & Enterprise / NZX / OCS New Zealand / OMV New Zealand / Orion New Zealand / PGG Wrightson / Ports of Auckland / Powerco / Public Law Toolbox Chambers / PwC New Zealand / Rio Tinto / Russell McVeagh / Schneider Electric / Seqel Partners / Shanahan Partners / SkyCity / Spark New Zealand / St John / Suncorp New Zealand / Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington / The Aotearoa Circle / The Treasury / Todd Capital / Tower Insurance / Transpower New Zealand / University of Auckland / Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency / Wellington Electricity Lines / Wigram Capital Advisors / Woolworths and “others pending”
21. Industries/Sectors Represented: Diverse industries including: telecommunications, banking and insurance, energy (electricity, oil & gas), transport (airlines, rail, ports), construction/infrastructure, agriculture and food, tech and digital, professional services (legal, accounting, consulting), academia, and government agencies.
22. Publicly Disclosed Engagements: Hugo Group operates under Chatham House Rule, so its activities are rarely publicized. However, ministerial diary releases show frequent engagements. For example, in May 2018 Finance Minister Grant Robertson’s diary noted he gave a speech at a Hugo Group breakfast at the Wellington Club and attended a Hugo Group breakfast in Auckland the next day. Similarly, Health Minister David Clark’s diary shows he was a guest speaker at a Hugo Group breakfast (Wellington, 7 Nov 2018). More recently, ministers in 2024 (e.g. Hon. Andrew Bayly) have “Attend: Hugo Group Breakfast” listed in their official schedules. The group also holds an annual off-the-record CEO Retreat (e.g. at Millbrook Resort, Queenstown) for members and their partners.
23. Affiliations:
Jo Wills is a member of an Advisory Group to the Business and Advisory Committee of the OECD
Jo Wills is Chair of the Trust Board of Motu
Jo Wills is Chair of the Trust Board of Samuel Marsden School
Association with the “Sir Frank Holmes Prize” for top economics students. Perhaps historic.
24. Sponsorships / Collaborations:
In 2020 produced a ‘digital campaign briefing’ in collaboration with controversial advertising agency Topham Guerin.
25. Events (held or organised by this organisation): Regular confidential briefings and discussions involving members and experts
26. Political Donations: No record of donations. Influence is exerted through meetings rather than funding.
27. Controversies: The Hugo Group has faced criticism for operating in opacity – a form of “secret lobbying” by elite businesses. Critics note that government agencies and regulators (like the Commerce Commission and Treasury) paying to join a private forum with corporates is a potential conflict of interest. Transparency advocates have raised concerns that Hugo Group’s closed-door meetings undermine open democratic dialogue, as policy ideas and regulatory stances may be shaped in off-record discussions with no public scrutiny. The group largely avoided media attention until recent debates on lobbying transparency (2022–2023), when it was highlighted as an example of influential networks operating outside proposed lobbying registers. Its Chatham House rule policy means there are no public minutes or accountability for what is said, which has been described as an accountability gap in NZ’s policy process. However, because it does not explicitly identify as a lobbying firm and does not make representations in its own name, it has so far skirted formal regulation. This “under-the-radar” status has itself become controversial in the context of calls for greater lobbying disclosure.
28. Other Information of Note: Membership is restricted and by invitation only, with an annual fee of $9,000 (plus GST).
Dun & Bradstreet estimates Hugo Group’s annual sales around NZ$1.7 million
The Commerce Commission joined in 2014 and by 2023 had spent $83,500+GST on fees.
29. Recipient of Wage Subsidy Scheme: No record of this.
[1] https://www.companyhub.nz/companyDetails.cfm?nzbn=9429030352391
[2] https://app.companiesoffice.govt.nz/co/4280298
https://wellington.scoop.co.nz/?p=39578
[4] https://app.companiesoffice.govt.nz/companies/app/service/services/documents/9E1477614F52BB5D1573E2546132A20C/CertIncorporation_4280298_31March2025.pdf
[5] 2023 example of Hugovision, fortnightly ‘confidential’ newsletter: https://www.thehugogroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Hugovision-September-1-2023.pdf
[6] https://www.thehugogroup.com/our-value/
[7] https://www.beehive.govt.nz/sites/default/files/2019-05/Hon%20Grant%20Robertson%20-%20October%202017-December%202018.pdf#:~:text=23%2F05%2F2018%2007%3A10%20,Terrace%20Hosted%20by%20Hugo%20Group
[8] https://www.beehive.govt.nz/sites/default/files/2019-05/Hon%20Grant%20Robertson%20-%20October%202017-December%202018.pdf#:~:text=24%2F05%2F2018%2007%3A10%20,prep%2Flunch%20Beehive%20Office%20staff%20All
[9] https://www.beehive.govt.nz/sites/default/files/2019-05/Proactive%20Diary%20Release%20Hon%20Clark%20for%202017%20and%202018_0.pdf#:~:text=7%2F11%2F2018%2007%3A15%20,Committee%20Parliament%20Buildings%20Attending%20Health%2FAssociate
[10] https://www.beehive.govt.nz/sites/default/files/2024-06/Proactive%20Diary%20Release%20May%2024%27%20Hon%20Andrew%20Bayly%20%281%29.pdf#:~:text=ATTEND%3A%20Hugo%20Group%20Breakfast%20Wellington,Phone%20Kathryn%20Ryan%20Commerce%20and
[11] https://www.thehugogroup.com/how-we-work/#:~:text=CEO%20Retreat
[12] https://www.thehugogroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/TG-x-Hugo-Group-28.01.2020.pdf
[13] https://comcom.govt.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/321010/OIA-22.198-Membership-of-The-Hugo-Group-28-June-2023.pdf#:~:text=2023%20comcom,2%20how
[14] https://www.beehive.govt.nz/sites/default/files/2025-02/Doocey%20-%20Ministerial%20Diary%20December%202024.pdf#:~:text=,9%3A45.%20AM
[15] https://www.dnb.com/business-directory/company-information.media_streaming_distribution_services_social_networks_and_other_media_networks_and_content_providers.nz.greater_wellington.wellington.html#:~:text=,FREEMAN
[16] https://comcom.govt.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0007/321010/OIA-22.198-Membership-of-The-Hugo-Group-28-June-2023.pdf#:~:text=3,since%202014%20and%20each%20year
Spot anything in this entry that is wrong? Please either leave a comment at the end or email, in confidence: bryce@democracyproject.nz