Who we are.
The story of two mates, two cities and one fresh idea.
The Great Fruit Revolution
Back in 2008, two longtime mates, Kanu and Terry, were doing the corporate shuffle, bouncing between offices in Wellington and Auckland. Every office, every lunchroom, every Monday morning had one thing in common: a lonely fruit bowl filled with bruised apples, battered bananas, and the kind of pears that probably shouldn’t be eaten without a tetanus shot.
One day, standing around yet another sad snack table, Kanu looked at Terry and said, “Mate, what if someone actually delivered good fruit?”
Terry raised an eyebrow. “You mean like, fresh fruit?”
“Yeah,” Kanu nodded. “Like, stuff people actually want to eat.”
And just like that, the seeds of Fruit Runners were planted.
The early days of Fruit Runners
They didn’t have investors or a brand strategy. But what they did have was hustle, heart, and a serious commitment to delivering fruit people didn’t have to apologise for.
Kanu got things rolling in Wellington, teaming up with Wairarapa growers and packing boxes in a Petone garage that smelled permanently of apples and ambition.
Meanwhile, Terry set up shop in Auckland. His headquarters? A weathered shed. His delivery van? An old ute that wheezed up hills but got the job done. He hit the South Auckland markets at dawn, packed boxes by hand, and made deliveries himself – sometimes with his dog riding shotgun.
They called themselves Fruit Runners. And their mission was simple: Deliver fresher, tastier, healthier fruit to workplaces, and make it easy.
At first, it was small. A few clients here, a few there.
But then… something strange happened. People ate the fruit. Like, actually ate it.
Offices noticed. Staff noticed. The bananas were perfectly ripe. The apples? Crisp. The mandarins? A hit. There was no mystery mush, no forgotten kiwifruit turning into biology experiments.
By 2010, Fruit Runners had grown into small depots in both cities. They had a handful of staff, a few second-hand trucks, and a growing list of happy customers.
They said milk?
We said yes.
Fast forward to 2018.
“Hey, can you do milk too?” It was a question they’d heard a hundred times. So they figured, why not? The same philosophy applied: local suppliers, consistent quality, and none of the usual delivery drama. Suddenly, workplaces could get their fruit and milk from the same trusted team. It was a small change that made a big difference to busy offices.
12,000 Pieces Later...
Today, Fruit Runners delivers more than 12,000 pieces of fruit and thousands of litres of milk every week to offices across Auckland, Hamilton and Wellington.
From tradies and tech teams to lawyers and landscapers, Fruit Runners has become a small but mighty part of the Kiwi workday. They’re not trying to be flashy, they’re just really, really good at showing up with the good stuff.
And through it all, one thing hasn’t changed.
At Fruit Runners we are still talking to growers. Still checking every box. Still driving through the rain to get the fruit on time.
All because of that one question back in 2008:
