Shaping up to be a winter of consumer discontent

Media release

Newmarket Business Association

Sunday, 13 June 2010

Shaping up to be a winter of consumer discontent

The cold and wet start to winter, not to mention a slugglish economic recovery, rising interest rates, inflation, and imminent ETS and extra GST costs, are creating a difficult environment for the country’s retailers, claims an Auckland retail advocate.

“It’s not going to be an easy winter. In fact it’s shaping up to be a pretty challenging third and fourth quarter for everyone. Consumer and business confidence is still very wobbly and in Auckland a lot of uncertainty remains as we head towards the biggest local government election in the history of New Zealand,” says Cameron Brewer, chief executive of the Newmarket Business Association.

“Consumers are keeping their hands in their pockets with their spending power being eroded all round the place. Wages and salaries aren’t going up much to compensate because everyone knows there are not a lot of jobs out there. Good news however will come in October with across-the-board tax cuts, but we’ve got to get through this winter first. It’s going to be a tough patch for retailers.

“We’re telling retailers just to be patient. We’re confident the skies will clear in the last quarter of the year, with tax cuts, more certainty around Auckland’s future, and hopefully some strong growth in business and consumer confidence. Much better economic weather is forecast,” says Cameron Brewer.

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