After travelling overseas, he launched the Brakenridge Impact Group (BIG) last year and has begun working in a support and solutions role with food and fibre businesses.
Partnerships with overseas companies include prototype work mainly at this stage in horticulture and possibly aquaculture, as well as supporting on-shore businesses.
Mr Brakenridge said he started the company following a "curiosity quest", travelling to countries such as the United States and parts of Europe to meet business leaders.
Initially, he was considering a clean break, but part way into the travels found himself wanting to still be involved with top New Zealand and overseas businesses and groups such as Stanford University.
"I was just being curious and it was great not sitting there trying to close deals or do anything, but just understand what was happening in business around the world and areas that might interest me.
"During that period I realised it would be good to work with a select number of companies in ways we could come in and bring impact to their ambitions.
"The areas that most interest me are in the value place."
Corporate and other leaders revealed both their business direction and pain-points.
Mr Brakenridge said knowing their obstacles helped to find solutions for them from New Zealand.
He said KPMG estimated New Zealand’s $50billion of export products turned into $250b by the time they hit consumer level.
"So it gets you really curious about how good we are at value-chains and extracting more capital and that’s within commodity markets.
"What if we were more differentiated, more segmented, better at our story-telling, better at our quality differentiation, better at our intellectual property then how much extra capital could be accumulated for the country and from that, how can farmers be better rewarded."
He said BIG would be based around the food and fibre intersection and their innovation.
Partnerships would range from billion-dollar multinational companies to start-ups open to new ideas.
"Over time there could even be some equity participation opportunities.
"[Disruption] is sort of a misunderstood word.
"It’s more around ambition and being prepared to change and grow and, if required, to transform your model.
"There’s so much opportunity and to [close the gap] from $50b to $250b is going to require new thinking and transformative plays to realise that back to the country."
He said New Zealand needed to bring in this revenue to carry out important social and environmental work.
There was much to learn from international luxury markets — the sophistication of their stories, segmentation, branding and intellectual property — to apply towards putting premiums on New Zealand products.
"Forbes magazine identified last year the wealthiest person in the world and it wasn’t Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos, it was Bernard Anault ... chairman of the LVMH group with its Louis Vuitton and other brands.
"We find that interesting because they are not really selling handbags and bottles of drinks, they are selling status and self-actualisation and a sense of belonging, if we dig into it. But we are not particularly good at understanding the psychology of this story and what consumer needs are."
Mr Brakenridge received the Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the New Year’s Honours for services to the food and fibre sectors and contributing to re-shaping the merino industry.
The honour had arrived at a pivotal point in his life when he could "step back and step in" to continue contributing.
During 27 years as NZM co-founder and chief executive, his leadership became known for its innovative approach.
NZM evolved into an integrated sales, marketing and innovation company for ethical wool production.
Industry thinking and business models were turned over with premiums placed on previously commodity-driven products. NZM estimates more than $500million in additional value went to growers and brand partners.
Links were formed with future-thinking companies and customers to find new markets at first in outdoor garments.
More value was brought to merino farming by emphasising its environmental credentials, animal welfare integrity and pioneering regenerative agriculture in the wool industry.
Mr Brakenridge founded Te Hono in 2012, bringing together leaders from food and fibre companies, iwi and government agencies and establishing a partnership with Stanford University.
The partnership represents more than 80% of New Zealand’s primary sector, with a goal to shift commodity-based trading to a high-value model.
He received the outstanding contribution to international business award in 2013, while NZM was honoured with the supreme award in 2019, both at the New Zealand International Business Awards.
