Above: Samantha Powell (Miss New Zealand 2008), Rebecca Connor (Miss Wellington), Rhonda Grant (second runner-up) and Kylie Anderson (sponsored by C. R. Johnson Ltd., and second runner-up to Miss New Zealand 2006).

I suppose judging Miss Universe New Zealand was technically work. My last trip to Auckland was a full-on one, with clients during the day and, on most nights, spending time with the contestants. Saturday and Sunday were almost spent entirely with the 12 young ladies vying for the Miss New Zealand title, with the latter attending rehearsals. I do not envy pageant organizer Val Lott in coordinating every aspect of the event.
   Some of the reports are at the Lucire blog, but what I didn’t discuss here this year—which I did in 2007—were the principles behind selecting Samantha Powell, Miss Horowhenua, as the winner.
   It was a case of repeating the ideas I had last time around, with finding someone who could represent the New Zealand nation brand successfully. Laural Barrett won in 2007 partly because of her cosmopolitanism. When it came to ‘the Laural Barrett brand’, she had that, and her musical talent, as her differentiating factors.
   What about a year where we had not only cosmopolitan girls who were well travelled (e.g. Pamela Day, for instance, was in Oyster Bay, New York right after 9-11; Michelle Kleinsmith found herself emigrating from Africa) but a bunch who was career-minded (Rhonda Grant is a nutritionist, and two contestants are pursuing legal studies)? If Laural was in this group she would have had a harder fight.
   Specifically, however, Sam was not only a fresh-faced Kiwi girl-next-door born in Paraparaumu, but she showed leadership skills from her work at the Auckland Savings Bank. I believe that helped her tremendously even on her first night of judging, coupled with fluent answers. (I had to bite my tongue a little when I raised a question about bank charges being immoral.) Throughout she had an infectious X-factor: on the final night, I think few could argue that during the Lucie Boshier fashion parade segment, she raised the mood of the audience the minute she came out on stage.
   There is a less clear ‘Samantha Powell brand’: Laural’s had already been partially set pre-pageant last year through her musical work. However, Samantha Powell fits in to what we want Miss New Zealand to express this year at Miss Universe in Vietnam: an infectious, positive mood on top of a firm grasp of fair dinkum Kiwi values.
   It’s like picking an actor to be James Bond: you don’t know what it is going in to the casting process, but you know once the decision is made. It is not post-rationalization, but during the hours you are there, you begin to see what qualities each contestant presents, and just which ones will hold firm and be strong to a grander audience.
   Now I know just how hard each year is—and for the two judges who have been there for longer than me (Yvonne Brownlie and May Davis), I take my hat off to them for consistency when it comes to standards, and flexibility when it comes to considering what the whole group of contestants offers. It additionally confirms that returning contestants have no inside edge.
   Sam has had largely positive press so far—we have not had Australian-owned newspapers do a tabloid hatchet job—and that is a relief for Val and for Sam herself. I’ll be interested to see how she does in Vietnam and whether that X-factor will wow the judges there. I believe she is steadfast enough to remain “being Sam” and keeping it real. Posted by Jack Yan, 09:35  permalink

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