Mike Marr: How the NZ Entrepreneur Built TPT Group From $500

The Pukekohe businessman went from electrical apprentice to CEO of a New Zealand group spanning security, IT, communications, finance and property.

NZ Beat Editorial Team September 9, 2026Last Updated: September 9, 2026

41 7 minutes read

Mike Marr NZ entrepreneur and TPT Group CEO

Introduction

Mike Marr is a New Zealand entrepreneur, co-founder, CEO and Managing Director of TPT Group. His business story started in 1999 with his wife, Terese Marr, a modest car and just NZ$500 in working capital.

The scale looks very different now.

As of September 2026, TPT says Marr has led 10 start-up companies and 17 completed acquisitions during more than 26 years in business. The group employs hundreds of people and owns businesses working across electronic security, IT, data communications, security monitoring, finance and commercial property.

Marr is still running TPT Group. He also joined the WEL Networks board in July 2026 and chairs both Innovation Franklin and The Runway Foundation.

Quick Facts About Mike Marr

Fact	Information
Name	Mike Marr
Company-record name	Michael John Marr
Born	Pukekohe, New Zealand
Profession	Entrepreneur, executive and company director
Known for	Co-founding and leading TPT Group
Current TPT role	CEO and Managing Director
Business started	1999
First business	MJM Electrical
Start-ups led	10
Completed acquisitions	17
Current WEL Networks role	Director
Innovation Franklin role	Founder and Chair
The Runway Foundation role	Co-founder and Board Chair
Wife	Terese Marr
Children	Two adult children
2020 recognition	Blake Leader Awardee
2017 recognition	Beta Gamma Sigma Medallion for Entrepreneurship
2014 recognition	EY Entrepreneur of the Year NZ finalist

Who Is Mike Marr?

Mike Marr is the NZ entrepreneur behind TPT Group, a privately held family-owned business group.

But he didn’t begin in finance.

He started as an electrical apprentice.

WEL Networks says Marr began his working career at Counties Energy before later leading electricity-distribution contracting divisions at United Group and Electrix. That gave him years of technical and management experience before he started working for himself.

Then came 1999.

Marr left his desk job. He and Terese started a small electrical and security contracting company. That business became the starting point for TPT Group.

A $500 start became much bigger.

Mike Marr’s Early Life and Education

Marr was born in Pukekohe, New Zealand.

He attended Pukekohe High School, a detail recorded by TPT Group, The Runway Foundation and Innovation Franklin.

His career followed a hands-on route.

He trained in the electrical trade and worked as an apprentice before moving into management. TPT lists his qualifications in:

Electrical Trade
Electrotechnology
Advanced Diploma in Business
Diploma in Management
Diploma in Integrated Risk Management
Diploma in Project Management

That technical background stayed relevant. Years later, many TPT businesses would still sit around security systems, communications and technology services.

The $500 Start Behind TPT Group

The TPT Group story dates to 1999.

Mike Marr and Terese Marr started with only NZ$500 in working capital, a modest car and a small contracting operation called MJM Electrical. Mike had traded his office job for hands-on business work.

It was a family business early on.

Mike’s father, Bob Marr, became the first employee.

The first years were small. The company worked in electrical and security contracting. But Marr didn’t keep the business limited to that first model.

Buying other companies became part of the plan.

The 2002 Siemens Security Deal

One early deal changed the direction of the group.

In 2002, TPT bought Siemens’ electronic-security business in New Zealand. That operation later became Advanced Security. TPT describes it today as one of New Zealand’s larger security integrators.

This gave Marr a business that could grow well beyond local electrical contracting.

More companies followed.

TPT started Technology Leasing. It moved into commercial and industrial property through Promessa Property Group. It also kept buying businesses in fields that could sit beside its existing operations.

The pattern became clear.

Start companies. Buy selected businesses. Keep building around related services.

Mike Marr and TPT Group Today

TPT Group now works through a mix of operating companies and family-office investments.

Its technology businesses sit under Advanced Group, including:

Advanced Security
Advanced Digital
Advanced Communications
Advanced Command
Advanced Innovation
Advanced Secure Projects

Those companies work in electronic security, IT, communications infrastructure, monitoring and related technical services.

Outside that group, TPT interests include Technology Leasing, Promessa Property Group, Trade Rentals and other family-office holdings.

TPT said in February 2026 that, since starting more than 26 years earlier, the group had recorded 10 start-up ventures and 17 acquisitions.

Its own history page now shows work under way on acquisitions 18 and 19. They should not yet be counted as completed deals.

That distinction matters.

The current completed total is 17.

Recent Business Growth

Marr hasn’t stopped buying businesses.

TPT bought Tauranga IT company Synergy Technologies, which later became part of Advanced Digital. The group also kept reshaping its technology companies under the Advanced Group name.

Another idea took much longer.

Marr first thought about a specialist rental company for tradespeople around 2010. TPT eventually launched Trade Rentals NZ in 2024, roughly 14 years after the first idea.

That’s a useful detail about the way Marr has built businesses.

Some moves came through acquisitions. Others sat on the shelf until the timing worked.

What Does Mike Marr Do in 2026?

As of September 2026, Mike Marr remains CEO and Managing Director of TPT Group.

TPT again named him in those roles in its February 2026 announcement about Gary Elmes joining the board.

Marr also holds a newer electricity-sector board position.

WEL Networks appointed him as a director in July 2026. The company points to his 26 years with TPT Group and his earlier work in electricity distribution at Counties Energy, United Group and Electrix.

That appointment takes him back close to where his working career started.

Mike Marr’s Board Roles

Marr’s work now stretches beyond running TPT.

His current publicly listed positions include:

CEO and Managing Director of TPT Group
Director of WEL Networks
Chair of Innovation Franklin
Board Chair of The Runway Foundation

TPT also records several earlier governance posts.

These have included Deputy Chair of Waipā Networks, an elected trustee of Counties Energy Trust, a member of the AUT Business School Advisory Board, Chair of Rhema Media, and an independent director of Eqalis Pharmaceuticals.

Awards and Recognition

Marr has received recognition from several business and leadership organisations.

Beta Gamma Sigma Medallion for Entrepreneurship

In 2017, Beta Gamma Sigma named Mike Marr as a recipient of its Medallion for Entrepreneurship.

This award has a direct source.

Beta Gamma Sigma’s own records list Mike Marr, CEO of TPT Group, alongside Becky Levin as recipients for that year. Marr was nominated by Auckland University of Technology.

Blake Leader Award

In 2020, Marr was named a Blake Leader Awardee.

The recognition appears on his current TPT Group and WEL Networks profiles.

EY Entrepreneur of the Year

Marr was also a finalist in the 2014 EY Entrepreneur of the Year Awards in New Zealand.

Reporting from the time linked the recognition to his work leading TPT Group and Advanced Security.

Mike Marr’s Wife, Terese Marr

Mike Marr’s wife is Terese Marr.

She is closely tied to the TPT story.

The couple founded TPT Group together in 1999. Current company material describes Mike and Terese as its founders and owners.

Terese previously worked as TPT Group’s HR manager and now has a non-executive role connected with the TPT Family Office. She also co-founded The Runway Foundation with Mike.

The Runway Foundation says the couple have two adult children.

In the 2026 King’s Birthday Honours, Terese was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) for services to ADHD help and philanthropy. That honour belongs to Terese rather than Mike.

The Runway Foundation

Mike and Terese Marr founded The Runway Foundation in 2015.

Mike now serves as Board Chair.

The organisation works with children, young people and families affected by ADHD. Its programmes include family help, education, mentoring and youth activities.

The foundation grew from the Marr family’s own experience with ADHD, according to its official website.

For Marr, this work sits beside his business career rather than inside it.

Innovation Franklin

Marr is also the founder and Chair of Innovation Franklin.

The organisation works with businesses, students and young entrepreneurs around the Franklin area.

In 2026, Marr appeared as a judge in its Shark Tank programme. His official profile for the event listed him as TPT Group CEO and credited him with 10 start-ups and 17 acquisitions.

The local link is easy to see.

Marr was born in Pukekohe. He went to school there. Years later, he became involved in programmes aimed at local businesses and young people.

Mike Marr Net Worth

There is a credible published figure, but the date matters.

In May 2023, New Zealand business publication NBR placed Michael Marr in its “One to Watch” coverage and attached an approximate figure of NZ$90 million. NBR placed him in its Tech & Services category.

So the careful wording is:

NBR estimated Mike Marr’s wealth at about NZ$90 million in 2023.

That isn’t the same as saying his net worth is NZ$90 million in 2026.

TPT is privately held, and Marr’s present personal wealth cannot be calculated reliably from public market data. The 2023 NBR number should stay tied to its original date.

From Apprentice to Company Director

Marr’s career has moved through several distinct stages.

He started in the electrical trade.

Then came management roles.

After that, he became a small-business owner. TPT grew. Acquisitions followed. He moved into group management, investing, governance and charitable work.

Yet parts of the early career still connect with what he does now.

His July 2026 appointment to WEL Networks brought an entrepreneur with decades of business experience back into the electricity-distribution sector where he first worked.

And TPT is still buying.

Its current history shows work on the group’s next two acquisitions after 17 completed deals.

Final Thought

Mike Marr’s business story started with very little capital.

NZ$500. A modest car. An electrical business.

That was 1999.

By 2026, Marr was still leading TPT Group after 10 business start-ups and 17 completed acquisitions. He had also joined the WEL Networks board while continuing his work with Innovation Franklin and The Runway Foundation.

The scale changed.

The hands-on business roots didn’t disappear.