Amidst a tough retail environment, Kathmandu chief executive Peter Halkett has led the company through a solid year of growth.

Baaa-humbug. A fall in lamb numbers because of the worst drought in 70 years may result in higher prices for this year's Christmas roast.

Retail spending went from strength to strengthen last month as the plastic got more of a workout.

In a UK first, shoppers in South Yorkshire are being offered food at up to 70 per cent of normal prices - but they have to prove they're on benefits to get the bargains.

New Zealanders have been spending up on food and liquor in the lead up to Christmas, according to Paymark, which says spending through its network during the first seven days of December was up almost nine per cent on the same week the year before.

Shoppers descended on malls all over the country yesterday as the Christmas rush began.

As the United States prepares for its annual Cyber Monday online shopping bonanza.

It varies, but for gift and homeware retailers and toy companies, it represents a substantial proportion of annual turnover.

Click Monday - the local version of the Northern Hemisphere's "Cyber Monday" - will begin at 7pm tonight and run for 24 hours.

Warehouse Group, the country's biggest listed retailer, expects lower first-half earnings as margins at its flagship Red Sheds come under pressure and it spends more on adjusting to a new competitive environment.

Kathmandu, the outdoor clothing retailer, says sales rose 0.9 per cent in the first 16 weeks of the year.

NZ retail sales grew less than economists were picking in the September quarter, as growth in car sales was offset by weak consumer core sector spending.

Dubious at first, Warehouse chief executive Mark Powell says 'click and collect' for online purchases have been a hit, accounting for 12pc of online sales.

A major British retailer has shut down its website after finding hardcore pornographic ebooks being sold through the company's online store.

In his past life as a supply chain manager, entrepreneur Steve Haythorne would send 30,000 loaves of bread from Auckland to Whangarei each night.

The debate about extending retailing on public holidays keeps popping up, almost as often as there's a Briscoes sale.