About Hot PJ > Our People

Wendy Riley - Principal Designer

Wendy trained in graphic design at the Auckland Technical Institute in the days before the mouse replaced the pencil and scalpel, and began her design career working as an advertising art director in Auckland. She then joined the design studio of a leading typesetting company, Artspec, working her way up to studio manager before heading to the UK and Europe on her 'big OE'.

She returned to NZ in 1992 (when her money ran out) and decided to settle in Christchurch. Apart from the occasional bout of nostalgia for the Pohutakawa fringed beaches of Northland where she grew up, she has not looked back.

Wendy headed the studios of two Christchurch print companies until 1998, when she decided to go out on her own and set up Hot Pyjama Productions. She explains: “I had always had a drive to own my own company because I wanted to work for an organisation where I didn't have to check my ethics in at the door, and where I could deliver a more balanced solution than those I had experienced working in other companies. One that wasn't motivated solely by profit but was also accountable to ethical goals.”

Hot PJ focused initially on design for print-based solutions. However, it wasn’t long before Wendy noticed that many clients with a strong offline identity were not successfully integrating them into their online marketing. After sourcing suitably skilled staff, and upskilling team members, in 2000 she added a range of Web and multimedia services to Hot PJ's portfolio.

Wendy has a particular interest in designing user and search engine friendly websites, based on strong content and unobtrusive design. She takes a pragmatic approach to her work - creating solutions that are more about meeting marketing goals than creating pretty pictures to satisfy creative egos.

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Abbie Pickrill - Client Account Manager

Abbie first joined the Hot PJ team back in 1998 when she was fresh out of design school. She stuck around for four years until it was time for her to see the rest of the world.

While based in London designing became a hobbie so Abbie could pursue the glamourous world of nannying and looking after Air NZ passengers.

Now back in Christchurch with her feet firmly back on shakey Canterbury soil, Abbie is happy to be back at Hot PJ and using kiwi slang again.

She tackles the role of Account Manager and Designer with great flair, but is taking a break to look after her new bundle of joy, baby Marcell.

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Andrew Biddle - Accounts

Andrew’s banking and financial background makes him a dab hand at sorting out the company accounts. Andrew left banking in 1999 to pursue a qualification in computer support and joined Hot Pyjama Productions full time in 2000.

He is the ideal person to have on hand when your computer goes down! Andrew can calmly take over when no amount of bad language and banging on the keyboard will fix the problem.

In 2004, due to family commitments, Andrew's role shifted to focusing solely on managing the company finances and accounts, but he is still called upon to 'do his thing' when the life of the computer/printer/phone is under threat. His favourite expression is “It was an ID10T error!”

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Business Partners

Hot Pyjama Productions also calls on third-party industry experts as required to ensure each client’s job is completed to a professionally high level. Our unique relationship with our suppliers, based on our knowledge and experience of their procedures, enables efficiencies, schedules and prices not normally available, which means we can offer you very real value for money.

We use our extensive industry-based network to source specialists who work behind the scenes on specific tasks including pre-press, printing and finishing, website hosting, search engine maintenance, photography, illustration and copywriting.

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