Celebrating Twenty Years of Purple Dog Design

Twenty years. Thousands of projects. An incredible journey. Time has flown by at Purple Dog, and we’re ready to blast off into the next two decades!

We are officially celebrating our 20th anniversary. In the world of the internet – where trends change in seconds – I hope you’ll agree it’s an impressive milestone!

This year is a moment of reflection for me, and a chance to say a massive thank you to the clients, partners, and team members who have been part of our journey.

Purple Dog’s 20th Anniversary

Like many great tech stories, Purple Dog started in a spare bedroom! In the early days, it was just me (Sol), a desk, a phone and a vision to provide high-quality Waiheke website design and local marketing services to our unique community.

Building a business over 20 years brings plenty of stand out wow moments, but it also brings the reality of life’s challenges. Along the way, we’ve navigated the same heartaches many of you have. We’ve said goodbye to family members, dear friends, and some of our long-standing clients who have closed, moved on, or sadly lost their health battles. In some ways, owning a communications and IT business provides solace too – as we have always felt the excitement of welcoming new clients, their projects and generating positivity for the future.

The highs and lows have grounded us and shaped our values and mission. It’s why we’ve always made time for charity fundraising, volunteering in the community and advocating for the underdogs. Yes, business is about more than just lines of code and transactions – it’s about the people – the relationships, the conversations and how we can support each other, our teams, clients and the greater good.

Family, Balance, and a Spring in the Step

I am incredibly grateful that Purple Dog has enabled me to navigate the ups and downs of achieving a decent work-life balance, has supported me in growing my family (three teenagers later), and allowing me to continue to stand strong in the face of all of life’s challenges.

I am proud to have been able to work with and assist so many amazing people, their businesses small and large and to help market a diversity of products and services across a range of industries around the world.

As a debt-free and independent business with a small team, we have been able to keep our focus on what matters to our clients, and our people. Today, I still wake up with a spring in my step, excited to get to work after a run or swim. My philosophy is to carry that positive energy into every project we touch – and I’ve built a team who embrace those principles too.

Milestones & Philosophy We’re Proud Of

Across the journey of twenty years, there are some memorable moments, too many to list in full – but here are some that make me appreciative:

• Growing pains: In 2010, we outgrew the house and moved into our first professional office space;
• A Dedicated Space: Ten years later in 2018, we took the leap and built our own dedicated, purpose-built premises – a physical home for our creativity and tech;
• Growing the Team: We’ve evolved from a solo operation to a dedicated, talented team spread across three continents;
• Our Backyard and Beyond: While we are proud to be a leader in Auckland marketing and digital strategy, the “Purple Dog” name now reaches the USA, UK, Australia, and beyond;
• Launching Projects: We’ve literally launched so many websites, apps, email marketing campaigns, spinning up servers, registering domain names, updating software – more than I can possibly remember – and still loving it – it’s never a boring day at Purple Dog;
• Continuous Learning – While advocating for best-practices, we also embrace our human side and accept that nobody is perfect. We are always striving for excellence in everything we do and recognising effort, talent and passion – but we’re also not robots (yet!);
• Having fun & being flexible – Whether solving problems or having meetings on the beach, on the ferry, in the cafe or at the pub – even in the supermarket aisle – and taking work trips to all manner of places near and far – it’s been a fun place to work – and so should it be!

Embracing the Future

The web looks very different than it did in 2006. Our own website has gone through around 5 iterations! To mark this anniversary, we’ve recently launched our new website at purpledog.co.nz with more systems upgrades coming soon, wider expansion plans and future growth.

While we’ve always been known for our New Zealand eCommerce solutions, we are constantly evolving. Today, we’re helping our clients stay ahead of the curve with AI and automation services – ensuring that the next 20 years are just as innovative as the last.

A Special Thank You: Our 20-Year Anniversary Gift

We wouldn’t be here without you, so we’re celebrating our “Platinum” year by giving back. Between 1st June (our ‘birthday’) and July 31st 2026 why not take advantage of the following:

Get Up To 20% Off
If you’re starting a new project or bringing your business back to Purple Dog, during June & July, we’re offering either:

• 2 Month’s Free Bonus (free extension) on Web Hosting, or Club Purple Maintenance plans.
• Or up to 20% OFF your domain name registration or renewal, email marketing, or Marketing Plan*.

To claim your anniversary gift, simply open a support ticket with our team and mention our 20th Anniversary!

Here’s to the next 20!

Whether you’ve been with us since the bedroom office days, you’re a returning client, or you’ve just discovered Purple Dog, thank you for being part of our story.

Sol & the Purple Dog Team

* The Fine Print

• General Terms: Anniversary offers are available for a limited time (June 1st – July 31st 2026) and may be withdrawn or amended at any time without notice. Only one promotional offer per customer or entity. The total combined promotional value may not exceed the retail cost of $400 NZD per customer based on all fees. All promotions are applied strictly as a credit (service extension) or a deduction against a single specific invoice; they hold no monetary cash value, are non-transferable, and are not eligible for refunds.
• Open to All Customers: “New Customers” are defined as individuals or businesses that have never held an account with Purple Dog. “Returning Customers” are those who have not had an active service or account within the last 12 months. The 20% discount applies to the first and single invoice only. After the promotional period, standard rates for the given service will apply. To receive the credit, customers must manually open a support ticket with our team at the time of renewal. Credits cannot be applied retrospectively to invoices that have already been paid.
• Exclusions & Eligibility: Accounts must be in good standing with no overdue invoices. Offers are not valid in conjunction with any other promotion, discount, or bespoke pricing arrangement. All discounts are only applicable to products or services that are being renewed or paid for on an annual basis. Domain offers apply to standard TLDs (.nz, .com, .net, .org);
  Exclusions: Any premium, high-value, or specialized boutique domain; all monthly plans; Basic Web Hosting Plan.