Humans Of The Islands - Ray Letoa

Ray Letoa

Samoan, 28-years-old

Award-winning Mixologist

I grew up in Strathmore, Wellington which is generally stereotyped as like the 'South Auckland' of Wellington. I've got 5 sisters and two brothers and we grew up in a 3 bedroom flat - I was sleeping in the lounge, my brother was sleeping in the kitchen and we all crammed into this one place. And with determination and lots of training and just hard work, we've all seemed to come out successful in whatever we do. Our parents are really hardworkers so their work ethic transferred over to us. It was a hard journey and also a humbling one but my siblings and I understand all the struggles and the opportunities that my parents have given us, so we never take it for granted.

Is your upbringing a big motivation behind your success?

Yeah definitely! My mother is now an Early Childhood Education teacher - back in the day it was hard for her to get into University, coming from Samoa and not having much education. And seeing her wake up earlier than me on many mornings and travel over the highway just to get to her first aid training and going to get English lessons and doing all of that just inspired me so much. She was like "You know what, I've raised this many children and I'm really good at it and I'm going to take this passion of mine and raise more children". To see her determination and the time she spent to get educated & trained so she could follow her passion and do what she loves doing, it really humbled me. It inspired me to value education and to seize the moment. She wakes up and works hard and does what she loves and I'm like 'Man that's what's up, I love that.'

What are you doing at the moment with your life and how did you get into it?

Well, I just label myself as a Bartender, but I do a lot of different things. I manage a bar in Wellington but at the same time I do ambassador work for different products. My older brother in Australia, he's in the Hospitality Industry, - he got me in as his dishwasher one day when he was a Junior chef at this random cafe in Karori. I used to think it was so boring and I really undervalued the job. But he was like 'You really got to think about hospitality as if it's home.' and I was like 'What are you on about?' and he goes 'When Aunty and Uncle come over to your house, what do you do?.' I said 'I ask them if they want a cup of tea, if they're hungry or if there's anything that they need' and he goes 'Exactly. Any person coming through those doors, they're like our Uncles and Aunties and Nieces and we've got to respect them like we respect everyone else. They're coming because they want to be looked after.' So ever since then, I've always respected that part of hospitality - caring about people.

There is that element in Pacific Island culture that values serving guests who come to your home, making cups of teas when you're hostinge etc. - has that cultural influence played a big part in your work?

Yes definitely. It's the caring nature that we naturally have. We're charismatic too. When Uncle and Aunty come over and your parents tell you to do a dance, you do a dance and you're happy to show that. We entertain. We always used to have guests over all the time and I learnt that. So I put that on my staff as well. I let them know - that's not money walking through the door, these are people going through life and they want you to look after them. That helps my staff have more passion for it. As long as people walk through that door, whatever they're going through, if they leave with a smile on their face - I'm happy. And then they always want to come over to my parents' house for lunch (laughs). But you know what, that's the Pacific Island way.

So, you are an award-winning mixologist? Tell me about that.

(laughs) Yeah, I try not to ever say that but yes I am. The awards started rolling about 3 years ago when I started getting competitive with it. It started off really just to profile the bar we have here. I've won the Peoples Choice Award and also the Apprentice award at the Diageo World Class competition which is one of the top bartending competitions in the world. I was also chosen as a Wild card for the same comp last year and the year before that. I've won Barcadi's best Daiquiri in NZ, one of the top 3, and I was also a Jameson finalist. Last year I also won the Cocktail competition for 'Wellington on a plate' event.

What are your proudest moments?

When I have staff leave to take up better opportunities and seeing them excel. Those are my proudest moments. Being able to train people here and have them create their own path with the skills that I've given them. I support them in any of their endeavours. I feel like "yeah, my little kids are going, they're doing great stuff. that's what's up!' Just like your parents would be happy for you to pursue your dreams and your careers - that's how I feel about them. Those are my proudest moments.

What do you love most about your life?

My family and the journey that we've been on. It's been a massive adventure. Now we all look back at it, and we're able to celebrate the successes. It's definitely the journey of it all. We've all got our own stories to tell as well and how we got to where we are. My family are the best thing in my life.

By Indira Moala