Inside Retail NZ

Books in a Bunnings trolley. Hundreds of them, wheeled 100 metres from the Book Nook’s old premises to a larger home after a move beset by storm damage, building problems and delays. Load after load, strangers and customers ferried the shop’s contents down the road; they painted walls too, some of them having never even met owner Kate Toon. There are customer loyalty programs, and then there is whatever was happening here.

Cartier has opened its first boutique in New Zealand, marking a significant step in the luxury house’s retail expansion across Oceania. Located at 66 Queen Street in the city’s CBD, the 376sqm boutique is Cartier’s eighth location in the Oceania region and expands on the brand’s longstanding presence in New Zealand through its wholesale partner. The boutique occupies a landmark heritage building, formerly the Imperial Hotel, which dates back to 1883.

Retail NZ has named the winners of the 2026 Spark Retail NZ Awards, recognising top businesses and entrepreneurs across the industry. Following the selection of shortlisted finalists in July, the annual event assesses operational efficiency, commercial results, and customer engagement across physical and online channels.

Auckland business confidence has staged a sharp recovery over the past three months, with fewer companies expecting an economic downturn and more preparing to invest, according to the Auckland Business Chamber’s Business Confidence Survey. The share of businesses rating their overall confidence as negative or very negative fell from 54 per cent in May to 40 per cent in August, while positive sentiment rose from 15 per cent to 26 per cent.

Australia has spent the past few years learning to shop by collectable. Labubus arrived sealed in blind boxes, Kmart sells Kuma Paw characters with seven designs and an ultra-rare glow-in-the-dark variant, and this winter Woolworths revived Disney Ooshies with 40 characters to find. Now beauty wants in. Adam and Sally Minto have built the idea into Trouble Maker, their new cosmetics brand aimed at “Gen Zalpha”.

Giordano’s headline decline indicates a widening imbalance across its international business. Asia generates more than four-fifths of sales but a smaller share of profit, while disruption has exposed the group’s reliance on the highly profitable Gulf region as it prepares to launch its Giordano 2.0 overhaul. Overall, for the six months to 30 June, Giordano International’s revenue fell 1 per cent to HKD$1.914 billion.

Victoria’s Secret’s turnaround gained further momentum in the second quarter as profit nearly tripled and the lingerie giant raised its full-year guidance. Yet a narrow sales miss rattled investors, leaving CEO Hillary Super under pressure to prove that the recovery – supported by new products, sharper brand positioning and a revamped fashion show – can deliver lasting growth.

Botany Town Centre has been placed on the market, offered as a complete sale of the entire 61,000sqm complex. Located on a 17ha freehold site, 19km from Auckland’s CBD, the centre generates more than $330 million in annual turnover. Its tenants include New World, Farmers, Rebel Sport, Briscoes Homeware, Hoyts, H&M, Mecca Maxima and Hallenstein Brothers. JLL and Colliers have been appointed to manage an international Expressions of Interest (EOI) campaign, scheduled to launch in September.

Travel 25 kilometres south from Christchurch on the new 110 kilometre-per-hour, multi-million-dollar “road of national significance” and you’ll reach New Zealand’s fastest growing town. Situated within the country’s fastest growing district of Selwyn, Rolleston now boasts a population over 34,000 – predicted to reach 50,000 by 2050. It is already Canterbury’s second-biggest urban area, surpassing Timaru and Ashburton. Rolleston was growing fast before the 2010–11 Canterbury earthquakes.

Foodstuffs North Island has named Stewart Smith as the company’s new COO, effective November 16. Smith will lead Foodstuffs North Island’s core operations, including supply chain, property, wholesale, customer service, and safety and wellbeing divisions. He transitions from his current role as CEO at logistics firm Team Global Express New Zealand, where he oversaw business transformation and turnaround operations.