A new duty-free operator at Auckland International Airport is promising a little less of the hard sell that annoyed travellers.

Ailing retailer Pumpkin Patch says it expects earnings next year to be "significantly below" this years - its shares have plunged 12.4pc.

He's the great salesman, but can Briscoe Group's Rod Duke sell his bid to buy Kathmandu? Holly Ryan reports.

If successful the takeover would give Briscoe Group access to the Australian market, where Kathmandu already has 100 stores.

Chief executive of Woolworths Australia announces he is stepping down, as are 1200 unwitting staff members.

Economists expect the pace of economic growth to have slowed when the March quarter national accounts are released on Thursday.

Cooks Global Foods, which is taking the Esquires coffee chain outside New Zealand and Australia, narrowed its annual loss while expanding its global footprint.

Doomsayers claim it is the end of the chapter for bookstores, but Paul Little finds the business of selling books is more of a Neverending Story.

Pumpkin Patch chief executive Di Humphries will leave the ailing children's clothing chain in early November.

New Zealand's wholesale trade shrank in the first three months of the year with a decline in goods derived from the primary sector leading the contraction.

Pumpkin Patch's failure to find a buyer or white knight investor is a bad sign for the struggling children's clothing business, says an analyst.

Pumpkin Patch shares are tumbling today as investors digest the firm's decision to abandon plans to find a buyer.

Financial markets see it as a line-ball call whether Reserve Bank Governor Graeme Wheeler cuts the official cash rate from 3.5 to 3.25 per cent on Thursday.

Don't be so sure Australian retail giant David Jones won't be coming to Auckland.

The embattled children's clothing retailer said yesterday it had canned plans to sell the business.

Children's clothing retailer Pumpkin Patch has canned plans to find a buyer for the struggling business.

Australian retailer David Jones has no plans to move into Auckland - instead wanting to stage its NZ foray from Wellington.

New Zealand's online retail spending now exceeds $3 billion per year according to a new report.

Retailers will be disappointed the Government isn't taxing purchases on overseas websites, Retail NZ says.

Kiwi Property Group's annual earnings increased 4.5 per cent as it seeks to raise $151.9 million to expand Sylvia Park.

Retail sales boomed in the first three months of the year, in what may be an early sign of the "wealth effect" with rising house prices boosting confidence.

Our retail sector was booming at the start of the year, with a record 2.7pc jump in sales volumes.

An alcohol-fueled three-hour long lunch came to a dramatic end when an Australian media tycoon took a swing at the owner of burger chain Hungry Jack's.

An official cash rate of 3.5 per cent, which would have been base camp in previous cycles, is now being seen as the highest it will climb this time.

Outgoing Spark executive Chris Quin has been named as the new Foodstuffs North Island CEO.

Core retail spending (excluding fuel and vehicle-related spending) fell 0.8 per cent in April, the first time since last June.

Australian retail spending has lifted for a 10th straight month, supported by lower interest rates and improved household balance sheets.

Countdown has lifted third-quarter sales by 5 per cent to $1.5 billion in the 13 weeks ended April 5.

Briscoe Group's sales across its homeware and sporting goods retail chains rose 4.3 per cent to $119.8 million in the first quarter.

The rise of online shopping, discount-obsessed consumers - when it comes to trading challenges listed retailers have their fair share. And there's a new one appearing on the horizon. Through a rule....