Everything began in 2024 when Stephane's wife was on our school’s PTA.
The PTA was trying to raise funds for new picnic tables, umbrellas, and sports equipment.

She searched for an online platform to help promote their fundraising efforts to a wider audience, but most options were either too expensive or simply not suited for school fundraising. She could not find any New Zealand website dedicated to school fundraising. 

So, they stuck with the usual methods: running countless sausage sizzles at Mitre 10, organising raffles, and selling items generously donated by local businesses. By the end of the school year the PTA team had spent a lot of time and energy for a relatively small amount of money.

That’s when Stephane and Greg realised: there has to be a better, easier, and more efficient way for schools to fundraise.
They researched fundraising trends around the world, spoke with dozens of parents and PTA members, and even reached out to businesses that donate year after year. One year later, the Toko Project was born.

"Our goal was simple: bring together everything schools normally use for fundraising, platforms like 32Auction, Kindo, Trade Me, Givealittle and combine them with the most common fundraising activities (Buy Now, auctions, donations) all in one place, and make it completely free for schools and add new features such as a ticketing tool so schools can sell entries for events like discos or balls.

So as well as having all the tools in one platform, the real benefit for schools is reach. With Toko, they can connect with a much wider audience than their usual local supporters. Every auction, “buy now” item, or donation opportunity is visible to all visitors on the site. People can browse by region or even by a specific school, and distance is no barrier. Grandparents, extended family, and friends living far away or even overseas can contribute just as easily as locals. Best of all, it’s completely free with no commission, 100% of the money goes straight to the school.

Right now, Toko is in the exciting stage of going live. Stephane and Greg are actively emailing and visiting schools across the region. 

"Our goal is simple: get as many schools as possible registered on Toko. The more schools join, the bigger the audience and the more successful every fundraiser becomes."