Retailers wary of longer hours

Some retailers are warning that shopping mall giant Westfield's move to extend trading hours by half an hour could inflate costs - with no guarantee it will help profits.

Westfield has put back the close for shops in its 11 malls to 6pm on weekdays, from 5.30pm, but left the weekday start unchanged. Industry plans to review trading hours were first disclosed in the Weekend Herald in October, with Westfield research that found six out of 10 retailers wanted to trade later than 5.30pm.

Hallensteins Glassons managing director Cliff Kinraid said an extra 30 minutes trading would add tens of thousands to the company's annual wage bill, but it was yet to be seen if it would also bump up revenue.

He had supported later trading hours, but had wanted a later start as well. "All they've done is put another half hour on to our costs," he said. "It depends if we get turnover - we'll be looking to see whether it just spreads the [same] turnover over the day."

Gary Hobbs, whose shop Mississippi was a tenant of Westfield Pakuranga, said he was for a change of hours but unhappy with the decision made. "I don't believe adding half an hour on to the day will do anything for my business other than add extra costs for staffing it."

Hobbs, who in October was admitted to the retail Hall of Fame in the Auckland Top Shop awards, wanted trading between 10am and 7pm - and late nights dropped. Hobbs was hopeful Westfield's move would spark debate.

Meanwhile, chains won't necessarily move to make the hours operated uniform across their stores. Kinraid said Glassons had always operated different hours in different locations and that would not change.

Pumpkin Patch executive chairman Greg Muir, who did not want a change in mall trading hours, said the childrenswear retailer would not adopt the hours outside the malls.

But many believe Westfield's move will bring other retail districts into line. That is what has happened in Christchurch, where Westfield malls have opened until 6pm for several years. Cameron Brewer, head of the Newmarket Business Association, said customers and retailers increasingly wanted later hours. "It's the big boys that are going to force the smaller players into line."

In central Auckland, at least 50 per cent of traditional retailers already close at 6pm, says the CBD's business association, Heart of Auckland City. Chief executive Alex Swney said that reflected the central city's apartment culture and international trends. He believed even later hours were in store. "It is developing quite a bit of traction because of the traffic peak," he said.