Retailers Feel Christmas Cheer

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas for retailers as consumer spending increases, Retail NZ says.

New figures from Worldline NZ show that consumer spending across Aotearoa New Zealand was up in the first seven days of December, both on the previous week and on the first seven days of December last year.

Consumer spending processed through all Core Retail merchants (excluding Hospitality) in Worldline NZ’s payments network during the first full week of December reached $818m, up 3.8% on the same week of December 2023.

“It’s wonderful to see that retail sales are picking up, after a tough year for many Retail NZ members. Some of the spending in early December can be attributed to continued Black Friday sales but the trend is definitely improving,” Retail NZ Chief Executive Carolyn Young says.

“Strong pre-Christmas sales are critical to retailers meeting their annual sales targets. We hope that New Zealanders will continue supporting their local retail businesses in the lead-up to Christmas.”

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