Published: 2 October 2026
A simple idea on the road home from a wānanga has grown into something special at Wainuiomata Marae – a place where washing, whānau and whakapapa come together.
Waiwaka is Aotearoa’s first marae-based self-service laundromat, combining high-tech machines with tikanga, community connection and a distinctly Wainuiomata story.
For one of the founders Nathan Waitai, the story is deeply personal.
Nathan’s whānau grew up around the marae, where their mother and nannies were kaikaranga and weavers. Their whānau also helped create tukutuku panels for the wharenui.
Nathan originally investigated opening a commercial laundromat. But while returning from a wānanga in the Far North, a conversation about a laundromat serving a papakāinga (Māori housing community) at the marae changed his thinking.
Rather than paying rent to a commercial landlord, Waiwaka decided they could instead pay rent to help support their marae.
That kaupapa, or purpose, runs through Waiwaka.
Three tōtara beside the laundromat have been retained as its centrepiece and hold deep meaning for Nathan’s whānau. They helped inspire the laundromat’s tohu, or symbol, and connect the new building to whakapapa and te taha wairua, its spiritual dimension.
Inside are 20 washers and 20 dryers, with detergent added automatically, cashless payment and an app that tells customers whether machines are available and when their washing is almost finished.
The laundromat also uses ozone-treated water which rapidly destroys pathogens and breaks down pollutants.
While the washing spins, or driers roll, whānau can settle into a complimentary massage chair, grab a cuppa and have a kōrero.
“It’s about how we can give all whānau a premium experience. Not just somewhere to do their washing but somewhere they can feel a part of the community and social hub,” Nathan says.
Open daily from 7am to 10pm, Waiwaka is already bringing new people onto the marae and creating a regular income stream to help support it.
The idea could also travel well beyond Wainuiomata.
Five marae have contacted Waiwaka after seeing the kaupapa on Te Ao Māori news and are interested in exploring a similar model of their own.
Waiwaka’s aim is to refine what they have learned and create a model other marae can adapt.
“If we get the tikanga right, everything else will follow,”