Boxing Day sales draw not just locals, but visitors, to Napier

Emerson Street in Napier was packed with both Hawke's Bay locals and visitors from around New Zealand. Photo / Paul Taylor

It wasn't just the locals, but visitors who flocked to Napier for the traditional Boxing Day sales.

Retailers in the twin cities region had the sound of the tills opening and closing ringing in their ears, and while official data on spending won't be out until later in the week, anecdotal evidence suggests it was a particularly strong day for Emerson St.

Glen Chan from Cooltoys hobby store said their shop had a very successful day off the back of their sales.

He said people were in and out of the store throughout the day, although the previous Saturday ahead of Christmas was their busiest day of the year.

Chan said Cooltoys weren't too badly affected by supply chain issues due to Covid, and they were happy to have about 80 per cent of the inventory they wanted.

"A few of the larger remote control cars ran a little dry, mainly because the suppliers' stock was just floating around on the Hauraki Gulf," he said.

Harvey Norman in Hastings was full of people hunting a bargain too. Photo / Paul Taylor

Chan said it was good to see his store and the streets of Napier busy with visitors from other parts of the country.

"Hopefully that holds through summer," he said.

Steve Holyer, who owns gift and fashion accessory store Adore Collection said it was a good strong trading day for them, with both local shoppers and domestic visitors.

"There were a lot of people in town and we did very well," he said.

Holyer said they did not have any special sales on the day because of the nature of their business.

"Our product is fast moving, so we get it in, we put it out at the best price and it sells, and that's worked for us for the last 30-odd years.

"When there are more people in town, more people enjoy us."

Boxing Day remains a cornerstone of the Napier retail calendar. Photo / Paul Taylor

He said Adore Collection had a better day than usual with the extra domestic visitors in town, but it was not on the level of days when cruise ships are in port.

"We've had to completely change our business, so 40 per cent of our trade was based on the international visitor," Holyer said.

"Because there are none of those we've had to change our product mix, and tweak the way we do business."