Early each month we release our Retailwatch dashboard that offers a high-level view of retail trends showing customer spend across categories, online and in-store, of the previous month. Get the dashboard and insights delivered straight to your inbox by signing up today.
Despite food festivals' best efforts, spend on eating out stalled in August. Instead, Kiwis chose to end the dry spell for Liquor stores by staying home.
Check out the latest Retailwatch dashboard displaying a high-level view of New Zealand spending. Want to get into the detail? Your granular market share report awaits.
With the rise in healthy lifestyles and alcohol-free preferences, liquor stores were facing a steady decline in sales since Christmas. Until Kiwis decided to pop some corks and open a fresh can at home in August.
Not all will be happy with house parties and drinking at home. The hospo sector put its best foot forward last month with the return of Visa Wellington on a Plate, Beervana and Heart of the City Auckland combining to make a mouth-watering month. However, it seems that New Zealanders and tourists alike didn’t hit the dining halls as expected with Cafes, Restaurants & Bars experiencing a plateau.
Online spending continues to burst through last month’s $1 billion peak as Kiwis favour more variety, cheaper options and convenience from shopping online. When comparing the sales of August 2025 to that of the previous year, nearly all categories have seen large increases, particularly Books & Stationary and Liquor Stores.
This report offers a glimpse into Kiwi’s preferences and why businesses should pay attention. Despite the fanfare of food festivals in the North Island, New Zealander’s are being careful with their money and choosing the comfort of their own homes.
It’s time to understand what your customers truly want. Customer segmentation can give your business a clearer view on who your customers are and their spending behaviours.
Get deeper into the data. Our free Retailwatch is just a taste – get more information on your market share, competitors and share of wallet so that your next marketing event whets your audiences’ appetite.
Our free dashboard helps you track major trends - perfect for Kiwi brands expanding their market share, or Australian companies eyeing New Zealand for growth. Complete the form below and keep an eye on your inbox for the latest dashboard view.
Retailwatch is a joint initiative between Datamine and a Banking and Financial partner. This partner provides Datamine with anonymised and aggregated retail spend data; we apply algorithms and national / regional weightings in order to create the report. Retailer categories are taken from the Merchant Category Codes allocated by MasterCard and VISA. Monthly and Quarterly periods of 28 days and 91 days are used to ensure the same number of weekdays/weekends are included for comparisons.
Please note that the figures within the Retailwatch Dashboard are GST exclusive.