Angel Awards 2026 Announced Jamie Beaton, Crimson Education and Janine Manning recognised – Puawaitanga Award

At its 2026 summit at Puketutu Island in Auckland, Angel Association New Zealand announced the winners of the Puawaitanga Award – recognising founders and investor directors who exemplify what can be achieved when committed people draw on their collective skills and experience – and the Kotahaitanga Award – recognising people in the angel community who have made an outstanding contribution to the industry.

The Puawaitanga Award has been presented to Crimson Education founder Jamie Beaton and his team and Auckland and internationally-based angel investor Janine Manning, who has been the lead investor and chair of the early angel backed startup.

Crimson Education is a global education consultancy that supports students to gain admission to the world’s most competitive universities, including Harvard University, Stanford University, Yale University, University of Oxford and University of Cambridge. The company provides personalised tutoring, mentoring and admissions support, charging fees for its services to help students compete successfully against thousands of global applicants.

Janine was the initial lead investor for investment group Ice Angels, joining the board as its inaugural chairperson and has continued to serve on the board through numerous capital raises both here and internationally. As Jamie said in a recent LinkedIn post, “Janine, as our first investor in our seed round in New Zealand, had the courage to back three eighteen year olds whose only paid work experience was Oporto’s, a chicken burger shop in Mission Bay, a Chinese takeaway and some tutoring.” Janine is the first investor to have won the Puawaitanga award twice, first winning in 2021 alongside Fuel50.

Crimson Education is the world’s leading college admissions consultancy, with over 1,490 Ivy League offers and 2,410 to the US Top 15. Crimson helps ambitious students gain admission to the world’s top universities through expert-led guidance and proven, data-driven strategies. Crimson students are 7x more likely to get into the Ivy League than their peers.

Crimson is backed by leading VC firms, including Tiger Global, Heal Partners, IcehouseVentures, and Movac, and recently closed a USD $40M Series D funding round at a USD $640M valuation. The business has grown 60% in the last financial year, nearly 400% over the past 4 years, and now operates across 21 markets worldwide, including the US, Canada, UK, Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand.

In acknowledging the award, Angel Association Chief Executive, Bridget Unsworth said Jamie and Janine demonstrate a partnership at Crimson marked by extraordinary commitment and collaboration over many years, exemplifying what it means to be a founder-investor team. While the journey has brought significant successes and milestones, it has also demanded sustained effort and resilience. It’s clear that the impact of this partnership has been long-lasting and truly exceptional.

“We have this saying in the company that we want to paint the world ‘Crimson’,” says Manning. “We want to become the No.1 education brand in the same way that Apple and Coca-Cola are in their fields.”

Former Angel Association Chairperson and Crimson Education seed investor, John O’Hara echoed Unsworth’s sentiments. “Janine embodies the definition of an active, engaged and value-adding angel investor – resilient and experienced in navigating the tough times that all startups, even the successful ones, face and overcome. I know first-hand she has gone above and beyond over more than a decade and it’s no wonder with that support that Crimson Education has become an icon of kiwi entrepreneurial success.”

Richard Coon received the Arch Angel Award which was first awarded in 2009 to Sir Stephen Tindall. See separate release.

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For more information, please contact Bridget Unsworth, CEO Angel Association

mob: 021 555 563 or email: [email protected]

The Angel Association New Zealand (AANZ)

The Angel Association is an organisation that aims to increase the quantity, quality, and success of angel investments in New Zealand and in doing so create a greater pool of capital for innovative start-up companies. It was established in 2008 to bring together New Zealand angels and early-stage funds. AANZ currently has 50+ members representing over 900 individual angels associated with New Zealand’s key angel networks and funds. AANZ works closely with NZTE (New Zealand Trade and Enterprise), NZ Growth Capital Partners and MBIE and a number of private sector partners including PWC, Avid Legal, Hudson Gavin Martin, NZX and BNZ. For more, please visit: www.angelassociation.co.nz

The Puawaitanga Award recognises the founder and investor-director who best exemplifies what can be achieved when committed people draw on their collective skills and experience. This award celebrates an angel-backed venture achieving world class success. This venture has excellent governance, a compelling business proposition and a well-defined strategy for exponential returns.

Puawaitanga – ‘best return on integrated goals’.