Build an app around a real need.
A customer service, a staff workflow or a new product idea. We shape and build custom apps and progressive web apps (PWAs) around the people using them, with the data, permissions and business rules they need.
Custom business systems · Tauranga, New Zealand
Custom systems that move your business forward.
Disconnected information and repeated admin can hold a business back. We connect with your people, listen to how the work happens, and build custom apps, dashboards and integrated systems that help it run more efficiently.
Connect. Listen. Solve.
Connect. Listen. Solve.
We start with your people and the work. Together, we decide what a useful first version needs to do.
Built around the way
your business works.
Give people a clearer way to do their work, bring the right information together, or turn a new service into something they can use.
Talk about your projectBring the right information together.
A dashboard for the decisions your team needs to make, or a portal where customers and staff can find information and complete their part of the work. We define the views, access and data connections around your requirements.
Connect the way your business works.
Information shouldn't need to be entered again at every handoff. We map the workflow and build the backend services and integrations needed to move it between the systems your business relies on.
See what we
can build.
A storefront, a product launch or an app that brings people together. Explore the work and imagine what we could build for your business.
Homeware website
Stillwood
A homeware storefront with a distinct product and browsing experience. Imagine the order and fulfilment workflows your version could connect to.
Product landing page
Resonant
A product landing page built to showcase your brand. Immersive visuals and clear product storytelling put the headphones at the centre of the experience.
App and dashboard
SeasonReady
A worker app and employer dashboard for seasonal work in Aotearoa. Explore how notices, shifts and reports connect the two sides of a season.
In their words
A website they own.
A partner they trust.
“We reached out to Kory when we were struggling to get ownership of our website from a provider who had stopped responding. He helped us understand the process, guided us through each step, and ultimately helped us secure ownership before building us a new website that is much easier for us to manage.
What we appreciated most was Kory’s ability to make a challenging situation feel manageable. He was responsive, transparent, and genuinely took the time to understand what we were trying to achieve, ensuring the new website reflected our kaupapa as well as our practical needs.
We now have a website that we own, control, and can manage ourselves. Reflecting his values, Kory continues to make himself available whenever we need advice or support, meaning we’ve gained not only a website, but also a trusted collaborative partner.”
Senior Research Fellow, AUT
Have an idea for an app
or a new service?
Tell us who it's for, what it should help them do, and why it matters. You don't need a technical brief. We'll explore the idea with you, identify the important assumptions and agree a useful first scope.
Talk about your project
Based in Tauranga.
Built around your people.
You'll work directly with Kory Ihaia, with specialists brought in to suit the project. We work with businesses and organisations across New Zealand and remote clients where the project is a good fit.
Meet Kory ↗Your questions, answered.
What does MindLabs build?
Custom apps and PWAs, dashboards, portals, backend workflows and integrations. We also design and build websites. The starting point is what your people need to do and how the system needs to work.
Can I bring a new idea?
Yes. Tell us who it's for and what it should help them do. We can help shape the idea and decide what to explore or build first.
Can the system connect with tools we already use?
We look at the tools your business already relies on and the information that needs to move between them. We agree the connections, access requirements and business rules before building and testing the integration.
How much will a project cost?
Every project is scoped around what you need. We'll talk through the idea, agree what's included, and give you a quote before work starts.
How do we begin?
Talk about your project. If you're still exploring recurring admin or disconnected work, the Free assessment is an optional starting point. You don't need to complete it before contacting us.
Free assessment
Find a starting point
for work that could run better.
Seven questions to explore repeated admin, disconnected information or an idea that needs a clearer plan. You'll see a first perspective before we ask for your email.
Have a project you'd rather discuss directly? Talk about your projectYour first insight appears before we ask for your email.
Time-cost calculator
Put a rough value
on repeated work.
Estimate the time used by a recurring task using your own figures. It can help frame a conversation about what is worth improving.
Estimated annual time cost
8 people × 3 hours × $45 × 46 weeks
This estimates the value of time used. It is not a forecast of savings or revenue.
How we work
Start with the people
and the work.
A new app idea, an outgrown system or information that doesn't join up. We start by understanding what you want to achieve, then agree the right next step.
Built around your requirements.
We map how your people work and what the system needs to help them do. The workflows, data models, permissions, business rules and integrations are shaped around those requirements.
We agree the scope, ownership, access, handover and ongoing responsibilities for your project before work begins.
A quote around your requirements.
Every project is scoped around what you need. We'll talk through the idea, agree what's included, and give you a quote before work starts.
The number of workflows, user roles, data sources, integrations and hosting or support requirements all help shape that scope.
Bring the idea. We'll work through the next step.
Tell us what you want the system to do, even if you're still working out how it could happen.
Talk about your projectOur Mahi
Good seasons
start with
connected people.
SeasonReady
A worker app and employer dashboard designed around seasonal life in New Zealand.
In development · Coming soon
Read the SeasonReady story →Your assessment summary
Your assessment summary.
Start with one recurring workflow.
Write down each step, who touches it, and where time disappears. A clearer picture starts there.
A starting point based on your answers, with a suggestion for what to explore next.
A self-assessment, not a tailored diagnosis.
Your assessment summary is ready to download.
Your details and assessment answers have been saved. Download your assessment summary below.
Want to work through it together?
About MindLabs
Kia ora, I’m Kory.
Here’s a little bit about me and my story.
I’m Kory Ihaia, the person behind MindLabs. I live in Tauranga Moana with my partner and our two kids. Family is at the heart of why I do what I do.
I called Australia home for 18 years before returning to New Zealand in 2017. Coming home wasn’t easy. It took time to find my feet again, but I’m now grounded here, enjoying life back home and raising my family.
My digital journey began in 2010, importing products from China and growing a successful eBay business. In those early days, I also started an SEO company while working full-time. That curiosity has carried me into marketing, design and building custom digital systems.
Along the way, I spent 14 years as a chef. Running a business, working in busy kitchens and raising a family have all shaped the way I work: stay practical, care about the people involved, and keep moving forward.
I’ve worked with many different businesses, from corporate organisations to restaurants, across different kaupapa. I’ve met some amazing people, and every experience has reinforced the value of listening and understanding what matters to them.
I love giving back and helping people see what’s possible within their own business. That’s what MindLabs is here for: bringing ideas to life and building something useful around the people who will use it.
The journey isn’t always easy, but it’s worth it.
What I can help you build
From your idea to a system people can use.
You might have an idea for a new service, information your team needs to bring together, or a process that keeps passing through spreadsheets and disconnected systems. I help you work out what a useful solution needs to do, then shape and build it around your people.
Apps and PWAs for a real need.
A service customers can use, a workflow staff can complete, or a new product idea worth developing. We define the important users, actions and requirements for a useful first version.
Dashboards and portals that help people act.
Bring the information people need into a clear workspace. We work through what should be shown, who should have access and what they need to do next.
Backend workflows and connected systems.
Work out how records, requests and tasks should move through the business. We scope the data, business rules and integrations that support those handoffs.
The complete system
The experience people see.
The systems behind it.
A storefront, product landing page or dashboard is where people interact with your business. Behind it are the information, permissions and processes that make it useful.
The right starting point might be a reusable interface or an existing code foundation. We adapt what fits, then scope the backend, data and connections around your requirements. Explore Atlas and SeasonReady below, and imagine what your own version would need to do.
Illustration of how a custom system fits together
- People
- Experience
- Workflow
- Connected information
Explore the work
See what that can look like.
Project workspace
Atlas
Explore how tasks, calendars and team views can come together. Your organisation’s shared records, permissions and data connections are the next requirements to define.
Concept showcase · Sample content
Worker app and employer dashboard
SeasonReady
Explore how notices, shifts and reports can connect the two sides of a season. A commissioned version would be scoped around your people, records, access and operational requirements.
Working demonstration · Illustrative client and briefWorking together
Connect.
Listen.
Solve.
You’ll work directly with me. We start with your people, the work and what you want to make possible. When a project calls for specialist input, we agree how that fits into the delivery.
Connect.
Bring the idea or a real example of how the work happens. We talk through the purpose, the people involved and whether the project is a good fit.
Listen.
Explore the workflow, existing systems and constraints. Agree what a useful first version needs and which assumptions need testing.
Solve.
Agree the scope and responsibilities, then build and test. Handover, ownership, hosting and ongoing support are part of the project discussion.
In their words
What working together
feels like.
“Kory did an exceptional job on our recent project. Working with him, I found a partner with great knowledge and a deep understanding of modern solutions. Kory is an innovative strategist who has the ability to make good, sometimes bold decisions. I thoroughly enjoyed working with him on the various projects we took on. He is incredibly collaborative and never refuses when you ask him for help.”
AI Consultant, Digital Marketing Consultant & Chief Content Officer
Your next step
What would you like your business to make possible?
Tell me who it’s for, what should become easier or possible, and what the system needs to connect to. You don’t need a finished technical brief. We can work through a useful next step together.
Talk about your projectTalk about your project
You don’t need
all the answers.
A new app or service, a dashboard your team needs, or systems that should work together. Tell us what you have in mind and what you'd like people to be able to do.
Your enquiry has been received.
No payment or booking has been made.
SeasonReady — in development
← Back to Our MahiMore than a season.
A human connection.
An app and employer dashboard exploring how seasonal workers and employers can stay better connected in New Zealand.
Seasonal work is about people.
Workers need practical support in a new place. Employers need a clearer way to stay connected throughout the season.
Listen to life on both sides.
Built with an industry-informed partner, around Pacific seasonal workers and RSE employers.
One connected experience.
A worker app and employer dashboard, designed to bring support and information together.
In development · Coming soon
Have a challenge that needs a clearer direction?
Let’s talk ↗
