Trineo a great example of post-quake success

Christchurch software development company Trineo has moved back to the city for the first time since the 2011 earthquakes which inadvertently steered them in a new direction, resulting in huge business growth and international success.

Trineo was a small business with only six staff when the February 22 earthquake unexpectedly caused disruption to their Madras Street office. Since then the company has conquered the international market by expanding to Australia and the United States, twice been listed among the Deloitte Fast 50 and is ranked 320 in the 2016 Asia Pacific Technology Fast 500. 

Co-founder and chief operations officer Dan Fowlie says employees’ homes and personal lives were turned upside down by the earthquake and while their New Zealand business continued, the earthquakes steered Trineo down an unexpected path.

“Our chief executive and co-founder, Abhinav Keswani, had to cope with a badly damaged family home and his family moved temporarily to live with relatives in Sydney.  

“Over the next few months and with the success of securing clients in Australia, our Australian company Trineo Pty was established. Trineo’s reputation grew along with the business and two years later Trineo Inc was established in the United States where Keswani now resides.

“We have made things work for us – and most importantly for our clients – because Trineo assists clients to drive their customer acquisition and retention strategies, and use digital technologies to open new doors to their suppliers and customers,” Fowlie says.

Trineo specialises in integrated customer relationship management (CRM), specifically Salesforce and bespoke cloud software development. They are experts at developing enterprise-level application programming interfaces (APIs), managing identity and delivering a variety of web or mobile enabled bespoke applications. 

Fowlie says Trineo’s expertise in these and other areas is recognised by their major clients who rely on them to provide impetus for greater business innovation and technological delivery than they can achieve with their internal teams. 

“We deliver in a reliable, cost-effective fashion and prove our worth to our clients on every engagement. Trineo has secured significant clients like Fonterra and Fulton Hogan and our reputation is growing internationally with clients like Clear Channel Outdoor, Intrawest and Amaysim experiencing the benefits of our innovations,” Fowlie says.

Trineo moved 22 employees and contractors into their new High Street office location in Christchurch’s innovation precinct recently and they are proud to be back where it all began.

“The city core is really starting to feel like an inner city again with the hustle and bustle of a busy CBD taking shape around High St where our building is nearing completion. More tenants are moving in and the surrounding area is filling up with cafes, bars and restaurants.  

“It is so positive for Trineo to be back and we are excited to be part of Christchurch’s hub of innovation. The location provides exposure and proximity to working alongside other like-minded local businesses in the precinct.

“We feel a sense of pride in having started as a very small business in 2007, in a tiny office in High St, and now to be back in the same area as a medium sized employer in the Canterbury tech sector and part of a global company operating in NZ, Australia and the US,” Fowlie says.

Photo: Trineo CEO and co-founder, Abhinav Keswani and COO and co-founder Dan Fowlie.