Far North residents Karen Edwards and Leigh Rockell are doing their bit to help the local economy.Photo / Jenny Ling
Far North residents Karen Edwards and Leigh Rockell are doing their bit to help the local economy.Photo / Jenny Ling
Hitting the shops was out of the question due to strict Covid-19 restrictions earlier this year - but that didn't stop Northlanders from doing plenty of retail therapy.
The trend to shop online showed no signs of slowing as the country moved down alert levels either, with many continuing tobuy their groceries, alcohol, gifts and other household items from the comfort of their homes.
New research by NZ Post, which looked at how the Covid-19 response affected the way Kiwis shop online, revealed online shopping in Northland increased 65 per cent during April, May and June this year.
That's significantly higher than the national average of 46 per cent and that of Auckland (53 per cent) and Wellington (52 per cent).
Shoppers in Northland had an average basket size of $106 per transaction during lockdown, spending a total of $55.7 million over the three-month period.
"Early indications signal that Covid-19 has forever changed the way Kiwis shop, with online shopping remaining about 30 per cent up on this time last year," said NZ Post's general manager of business marketing, Chris Wong.
"Buying your groceries and other everyday items online and having them delivered has become the new norm for many."
Ōkaihau resident Karen Edwards didn't shop online before Covid, admitting she used to regularly duck into The Warehouse or the big chain stores.
But with four kids in the house and only the local dairy to frequent during lockdown, she dusted off her computer and began seeking out New Zealand companies.
Edwards has continued to shop online from family-owned businesses for birthday gifts, and for plants, bulbs and seeds for her garden.
"I started looking at which businesses and stores were New Zealand owned," she said.
"I'd rather support the New Zealand economy so the benefits stay in the country."
Kerikeri resident Leigh Rockell said she has stopped buying from international companies online because she would rather support the local economy.
Online shopping in Northland increased 65 per cent during the lockdown months of April, May and June this year. Photo / Michael Cunningham
She now chooses local shops such as Makana Confections and Pallet Design to buy gifts from instead of Wish, an American online e-commerce platform.
"It's made me think, why support overseas businesses when New Zealand was suffering," she said.
The eCommerce Spotlight research, conducted with Datamine, was released on Wednesday.
It shows that after a small decline at the start of lockdown, overall online sales in New Zealand saw a huge increase.
Nationally, online spend peaked in late April, with Kiwis spending more than $200m online as the country moved to alert level 3.
NZ Post's general manager of business marketing, Chris Wong, said Covid-19 has forever changed the way Kiwis shop. Photo / Supplied
This resulted in NZ Post receiving more than 3.5 million parcels in the first two weeks of level 3 – about 200 parcels per minute.
Northland Chamber of Commerce chief executive Steve Smith has seen evidence of the trend locally.He was riding his motorbike on the back roads near Mangakahia just west of Whangārei three weekends back and noticed seven courier vans in the space of three hours.
"This was way out in the sticks; I can't recall ever seeing courier vans in that setting," Smith said.
"There's definitely a massive uptake in Northlanders buying online."
In Northland, the fastest-growing online shopping categories were homewares, appliances and electronics, which grew a massive 126 per cent across the three months.
Spending on DIY materials and supplies experienced exponential growth of almost 350 per cent and speciality food, groceries and liquor grew 77 per cent.
Wong said the hike in DIY spending speaks to the lifestyle change we all experienced, where suddenly we had more time at home to work on outstanding tasks.
NZ Post drivers and staff have been frantically busy as more Northlanders continue to shop online following Covid restrictions. Photo / Michael Cunningham
One trend retailers will be happy about has been the continuation to buy local, with domestic online sales making up 71 per cent of all online shopping.
"This is a trend that we expect to see in the months ahead, particularly as the rest of the world continues to deal with the pandemic," Wong said.
NorthTec business tutor Peter Bruce-Iri said that before Covid online shopping was dominated by international websites such as Amazon and Ali Express and national chains like The Warehouse.
"Lockdown spurred innovation, as crises often do," he said.
"This commercial shock is not going to go away quickly, and local businesses will be thinking about how best to build resilience into their business models, and having online channels is a good start.
"What is encouraging is the magnificent way Kiwis have responded to the need to support our own businesses.
"There have been 'buy local' campaigns before, but it has taken a crisis to get traction. This is an opportunity we can't waste."
Smith said the challenge for retailers is to maintain their new customers and to build on their new spending habits.
Northland businesses have been "a little slow" to join in with the commercial trend, he said.
"There's still a high percentage of Northland businesses that don't have an online presence, but that is changing as a result of Covid.
"If you don't have an online presence the market you can service is so much smaller. If you do, not only can people find you more easily, you're able to work with a much larger population."
Hey big spenders
What Northlanders are spending up large on:
DIY materials and supplies: up 350 per cent
Homewares, appliances and electronics: up 126 per cent
Speciality food, groceries and liquor: up 77 per cent
