Screen-print illustration of Martinborough village square — Illustration generated with AI.

41.22° S, 175.46° E. South Wairarapa District, Wellington (Te Upoko o te Ika a Māui)

Microsoft Copilot training in Martinborough

Martinborough wine and visitor teams often move from product files to customer messages. Copilot training can record the approved source, its owner and the check required before a reply leaves Outlook.^1,7,8,13

Enquire Read the local brief

69.2% of Martinborough’s employed residents are in desk-based roles.

	A	B	C	D
1	Role type	Martinborough	NZ	Diff (pts)
2	Desk-based	69.2%	63.6%	+5.6
3	People-facing	7.0%	9.0%	−2.1
4	Hands-on	23.6%	27.4%	−3.8
5	Employed residents	993	2,622,534

About 687 people in desk-based roles. 2023 Census, counted where people live.

Rows 2 to 4: ANZSCO major groups 1, 2, 5, 6 / 4 / 3, 7, 8. Stats NZ 2023 Census, employed residents. Proxy per ILO 2025; not a forecast.

Residents: 1,8802023 Census
Business locations: 375Feb 2025, −3.1% since 2020
Employees (jobs here): 880at local businesses, Feb 2025
Self-employed or employers: 30.2%of employed residents, NZ 16.2%
To Wellington: 56 kmstraight line

What AI means for work in Martinborough

5 findings from Stats NZ data for Martinborough, and what each means for Microsoft Copilot training.

Workforce by occupation group, Martinborough against New Zealand

69.2% of employed residents in Martinborough work in desk-based roles, against 63.6% across New Zealand. Managers stand out: 26.6% of employed residents here, against 18.3% nationally. Desk-based roles live in Outlook, Teams, Word and Excel, which is where Copilot works. A broad rollout has plenty of people to benefit: plan the pilot group and the champions first.

Employed residents by occupation group, Martinborough and New Zealand, 2023 Census
Occupation group	People	Martinborough	NZ
Managers	264	26.6%	18.3%
Professionals	282	28.4%	26.8%
Technicians and trades workers	96	9.7%	12.5%
Community and personal service workers	69	7.0%	9.0%
Clerical and administrative workers	84	8.5%	10.8%
Sales workers	57	5.7%	7.8%
Machinery operators and drivers	33	3.3%	5.9%
Labourers	105	10.6%	9.0%

Desk-based = ANZSCO major groups 1, 2, 5 and 6 (managers, professionals, clerical and administrative, sales): roles where AI assistance is most applicable. Broad proxy informed by ILO 2025; not measured adoption or an employment forecast. People-facing = major group 4. Hands-on = major groups 3, 7 and 8.

Source: Stats NZ, 2023 Census, usually resident employed people; ILO, Generative AI and jobs: a refined global index of occupational exposure (2025).

Hospitality: 25.9% of local jobs, 3.6× the national share

Top employer: hospitality, 230 jobs (25.9%). Heat cells mark industries over-represented against New Zealand. Plan Copilot use cases by department in the largest employers first.

Share of paid jobs by industry, Martinborough and New Zealand, February 2025
Industry	Jobs	Share	NZ	×
Hospitality	230	25.9%	7.2%	3.6×
Retail	120	13.5%	9.3%	1.4×
Farming, forestry, fishing	90	10.1%	4.8%	2.1×
Transport and warehousing	75	8.5%	4.2%	2.0×
Public administration	70	7.9%	6.4%	1.2×
Construction	55	6.2%	8.2%	0.8×
Education	55	6.2%	8.5%	0.7×
Manufacturing	50	5.6%	9.4%	0.6×
Professional services	45	5.1%	8.3%	0.6×
Wholesale	35	3.9%	5.0%	0.8×

Share of paid employees at business locations in the area, by ANZSIC06 industry division. × is the local share divided by the national share.

Source: Stats NZ, Business Demography Statistics, February 2020 and 2025.

Business locations −3.1% and employees 0.0%, 2020 to 2025

Paid employees 880 (2020) to 880 (2025), 0.0% against +5.0% nationally. Business locations 387 to 375. Largest job gain: transport and warehousing (+25). Largest loss: health and social care (−36).

Business locations: 387375 in 2025, from 2020; −3.1% NZ +9.6%
Employees (jobs here): 880880 in 2025, from 2020; 0.0% NZ +5.0%

Change in employees by industry in Martinborough, February 2020 to February 2025
Industry	2020	2025	Change
Transport and warehousing	50	75	+25
Farming, forestry, fishing	70	90	+20
Public administration	50	70	+20
Health and social care	45	9	−36
Professional services	65	45	−20
Manufacturing	60	50	−10

Geographic units (business locations) and paid employees, February of each year. Small counts are randomly rounded by Stats NZ, so small changes can be noise.

Source: Stats NZ, Business Demography Statistics, February 2020 and 2025.

Remote readiness: work at home and household internet

Remote sessions fit how people here already work, and live training over Teams reaches staff across sites.

27.2%

Mainly worked from home, census day 2023

New Zealand 17.7%

92.7%

Households with internet access

New Zealand 90.5%

Main means of travel to work on census day, and access to the internet in occupied private dwellings.

Source: Stats NZ, 2023 Census, usually resident employed people.

Self-employed and employers: 30.2% (New Zealand 16.2%)

A high share of small operators. Copilot suits organisations on Microsoft 365 Business plans, so check your plan before training; Copilot Chat may already be included.

30.2%

self-employed or employers

New Zealand 16.2%

Employed residents whose status in employment is employer, or self-employed without employees.

Source: Stats NZ, 2023 Census, usually resident employed people.

Copilot for Martinborough’s largest employers

A wine fact sheet and a reservation register serve different purposes and may have different permissions. The worksheet should keep those paths clear through drafting and review.^1,8,13

Wine production

Draft a Word product summary from approved SharePoint wine files, then have the producer verify the claims.^8,13

Hospitality

Use a sample Excel reservation register to prepare an Outlook response, checking dates and guest details against the sheet.^1,2

About Martinborough

Martinborough is a small South Wairarapa town surrounded by vineyards, and its wine-growing area is registered as a geographical indication. Wine production and cellar-door visits form a strong part of the local visitor offer, while the 2023 capacity assessment says South Wairarapa District employment is led by retail, accommodation and hospitality and identifies agriculture as another major sector. The Martinborough Business Association represents more than 105 businesses in the town and surrounding area, and Toast Martinborough's 2026 edition moves to a single site at The Runholder. Employment rankings cited here are District-level; no town-specific industry shares were verified.^2,3,7,8,9

Microsoft Copilot ideas grounded in Martinborough

Viticulture and wine production

Vintage cellar-note handover
A winemaker can use Copilot in Word to turn approved tasting and batch notes into a structured handover for cellar staff and the visitor team. Copilot in Teams can then summarise the agreed tasks for the next shift, leaving the technical owner to check the final instructions.⁸

Why here: Martinborough's producer directory includes small cellar doors where a conversation with the winemaker is part of the visitor experience, so clear handoffs help keep technical and visitor-facing information aligned.
- Microsoft 365 Copilot in Word
- Microsoft 365 Copilot in Teams
Vineyard supply forecast workbook
A vineyard manager can use Copilot in Excel to compare the business's own seasonal input orders, delivery dates and work plans, then draft a short forecast for the next planning meeting. The manager checks assumptions against current supplier terms before committing to any order.^7,8

Why here: The South Wairarapa assessment identifies agriculture as a major District employer and describes local wine as a visitor draw, while New Zealand Wine characterises Martinborough as a community of small vineyard producers.
- Microsoft 365 Copilot in Excel
Cellar-door enquiry response drafts
A winery host can use Copilot in Outlook to draft replies to tasting and group-visit enquiries from approved opening, booking and accessibility information. The host verifies availability and visitor details before sending the response.¹³

Why here: Wairarapa Wine lists Martinborough cellar doors with varied booking arrangements, including appointment-only tastings and group booking requirements, which makes checked visitor information useful for local hosts.
- Microsoft 365 Copilot in Outlook
- Microsoft Graph grounding on company files

Retail, accommodation and food services

Toast weekend staffing brief
A restaurant or accommodation manager can use Copilot in Teams and Outlook to gather confirmed event updates, staff availability and supplier replies into a shift brief. The manager verifies transport and booking details before teams use the plan for the event day.³

Why here: Toast Martinborough's 2026 event is at The Runholder and will use shuttles to Martinborough Square, giving local hospitality operators a specific visitor-flow context for planning shifts.
- Microsoft 365 Copilot in Teams
- Microsoft 365 Copilot in Outlook
Visitor-night sales snapshot
A shop or accommodation operator can use Copilot in Excel to compare its own sales and booking data across event and non-event periods, then build a short PowerPoint update for its owners. The operator checks dates, privacy settings and seasonal factors before drawing conclusions.^7,15

Why here: The District's 2023 assessment links South Wairarapa's leading retail and hospitality employment to tourism, while the 2026 awards treat visitor events as part of the District's seasonal economy.
- Microsoft 365 Copilot in Excel
- Microsoft 365 Copilot in PowerPoint
Waihinga function run sheet
An event organiser can use Copilot in Word to turn a confirmed Waihinga Centre booking, supplier contacts and room requirements into a run sheet for staff and contractors. The organiser checks the hall booking and equipment plan with the council before the document is shared.^5,6

Why here: The council lists Martinborough Town Hall as a hireable performance and event venue with a raised stage and kitchen facilities, giving organisers a concrete local setting for event planning.
- Microsoft 365 Copilot in Word
- Microsoft 365 Copilot in Outlook

What Martinborough does

Viticulture and wine production. Martinborough wine businesses grow grapes, make wine and host tastings. New Zealand Wine describes the area as a small-producer subregion, and the South Wairarapa District capacity assessment identifies Martinborough and its wine industry as a visitor draw; that assessment does not provide a town-only employment share.^7,8,11,13 Named in public sources: Ata Rangi¹¹, Palliser Estate¹³, The Runholder¹³.
Retail, accommodation and food services. The 2023 assessment identifies retail, including accommodation and hospitality, as the largest employment sector across South Wairarapa District and links that pattern to tourism. Martinborough's business association lists accommodation, restaurants, retail, events and professional services among local member businesses; the employment ranking is district-wide, not town-specific.^2,7,13 Named in public sources: Margrain Vineyard¹³, Martinborough Business Association members², Palliser Estate Cellar Door and Kitchen¹³.

Organisations are named for local context only. No relationship with them is implied.

Training venues in and near Martinborough

Most training happens at your own workplace. For a public workshop day or an off-site session, these places hire out rooms.

Waihinga Centre, Martinborough Town Hall⁵

270 people, largest layout

Council lists 270 for meeting/theatre seating; the dining/cabaret maximum is 218.
- Raised stage
- Kitchen facilities
- TV screen with laptop HDMI screen sharing
8 Texas Street, Martinborough

From the venues’ own public listings. No booking or relationship is implied.

In the local business news

26 Mar 2026
Economic Development Fund awards support South Wairarapa events South Wairarapa District Council
The District's 2026 awards included funding for Martinborough Business Association's Pour & Explore and the Martinborough Music Festival. The council described the events as part of its effort to bring visitors to the District during quieter winter months.
1 Jul 2026
August is your opportunity to try something new Martinborough Star
Martinborough Star reported that the second Pour & Explore programme had over 70 events, from food and wine experiences to creative workshops and outdoor activities. Its coverage described a local effort to extend visitor activity into winter.
17 Jun 2026
Toast Martinborough announces a single-site festival for 2026 Toast Martinborough
The festival's organiser announced that the November 2026 event will be hosted at The Runholder, with regional wineries, food, gin and live music. The official FAQ describes shuttle links to Martinborough Square and the change from the previous multi-venue format.

Around Martinborough

Martinborough Branch 01 by Matthew25187 ( talk ), CC BY-SA 3.0.

About 56 km in a straight line to Wellington, the nearest large centre. Dots are towns covered on this site.

South Wairarapa District and Microsoft Copilot training across Wellington, or Wellington. Distances are straight-line.

A Martinborough workplace session could map a cellar-door question and a booking update from source file to final sign-off.^1,8

Public Microsoft Copilot workshops near Martinborough

There is no public Copilot workshop near Martinborough on the calendar yet. Register interest below and we will tell you when one is scheduled. Organisations can book private training for their own staff at any time.

Tell me when there is a workshop near Martinborough

We will email you when a public workshop is scheduled nearby. No other mailing.