They are in the business of bums on seats — literally.
Dealing with human waste might not appear the most glamorous industry but Shane Carter and his wife Hayley Newlands-Carter provide a welcome service at some of the South Island’s most swanky functions and events.
It has been a milestone year for the Oamaru couple who celebrated 15 years of ownership of their Laser Plumbing business and recently added Awamoa Sanitation to their operation, which includes luxury portable loo business LuxLoos.
LuxLoos started in 2012, originally owned by three couples — including the Carters who now own it outright — to address the issue of guests, particularly women, dreading visits to portable toilets when they were dressed in their best.
The Carters recently added their fifth LuxLoos unit which was like walking into a luxurious bathroom. Forget pumping water with your foot or reapplying lipstick badly in the dark; these well-lit units come complete with flush toilets, mirrors, fresh flowers and hand cream.
A special event could have the best catering and be held in a beautiful marquee but it could be marred by the lack of quality toilet facilities, Mrs Newlands-Carter said.
From the comments they received, having a luxury portable loo unit often meant people were able to relax and enjoy the occasion, Mr Carter said.
The couple saw the potential from the start and they now worked with some of the best in the events and wedding industry.
LuxLoos had been at New Zealand Cup day at Addington for the past 10 years, they were in the VIP area at the Electric Avenue music festival and they had provided relief for the likes of the Foo Fighters and Six60 musicians.
Their biggest markets were in the Queenstown-Wanaka and Christchurch areas and they had units based in both those locations.
LuxLoos had taken the couple “to some pretty cool places”, even Paradise, near Glenorchy, where they were used at a no-expense-spared event for a billionaire Chinese actress. Then there had been a raft of “beautiful” weddings.
Mrs Newlands-Carter was unfazed by cleaning toilets, saying she had always been a hands-on person, and she was doing it for her family.
She loved “the journey”, from answering an inquiry about the loos to travelling to the events and providing a service, including the little touches that people really appreciated.
It was such an interesting industry and it was a service market and the repeat custom was a reflection of the service they provided, she said.
One of the things Mr Carter admired about his wife was her ability to “get things done”.
A former professional rugby player, Mr Carter moved from Nelson to Wellington as a teenager to play rugby and pursue his dream of being a sportsman.
His rugby club got him a job as a labourer at a firm and he grew to love it. He finished his plumbing apprenticeship before turning fully professional. Once his playing days were over, he was able to return to the trade.
There were so many different aspects to plumbing and it involved problem solving on a daily basis, things that fitted his personality even if he did not recognise it at the time, he said.
His wife said he was a good example for young people wanting to be professional sportspeople, who needed to go for their dreams but understand that there were also so many variables involved in such a career, and that a touch of realism was also needed.
In 2005, the couple moved back to North Otago where Mrs Newlands-Carter’s family have been farming at Kauru Hill for 120 years.
Before the arrival of children, they travelled around the lower South Island doing plumbing jobs, with Mrs Newlands-Carter being her husband’s labourer.
Mr Carter joined an Oamaru plumbing firm whose owners then bought into Laser Plumbing in 2007. At the beginning of 2010, the owners approached the Carters about taking over the business.
With 14 staff at Laser Plumbing, Mr Carter was not on the tools as much as he used to be and the couple were grateful for their great employees, some of whom had been with them for a long time.
They trained apprentices to ensure business sustainability and both their suppliers and clients had also been “outstanding”, he said.
He was also working with his wife on LuxLoos and they were now getting their heads around their new Awamoa Sanitation business.
They had retained one fulltime staff member and several part-timers and the acquisition was a good fit with their other businesses and it was the “missing piece” when it came to servicing their clientele, he said.
Potentially, it also provided more options when it came to eventually exiting their business, or provided a good base if any of their children were interested in continuing.
The Carters were strong supporters of the North Otago community and heavily involved in it.
Mr Carter is assistant coach at the Oamaru Rowing Club, the involvement opening his eyes to “something different” and he was learning different skills, and coach of the Waitaki Boys’ High School 1st XV rugby team.
Having coached young people for the last 15 years, it was not always about the game of rugby or the rowing, rather it was about who they were and understanding who they were and “just having a yarn to make them feel comfortable so they can perform”, he said.
Mrs Newlands-Carter is on the rowing club committee, where she is also food co-ordinator, and medic for the Waitaki Boys’ 1st XV.
Their elder son Ned has been named head boy at Waitaki Boys’ for 2026, while his brother Ike was named most valuable player in his North Otago under-16 rugby team this past season. Both boys were rowers, while sister Ede was also rowing.
The family loved living in Oamaru; it took Mr Carter only minutes to get to work, the children could bike to school and, if a city fix was needed, then Mrs Newlands-Carter always enjoyed coming home afterwards.
Mr Carter was on the Waitaki Student Support Trust which ensured students were not deprived of educational, cultural, recreational or sporting opportunities because of their constrained financial circumstances, through the support of local businesses.
Both he and his wife wanted to support the local community and encouraged people to come and talk to them about possible opportunities.
sally.rae@odt.co.nz
