Number of the week: 6.8%. That's the Auckland strip-retail vacancy rate at June 2026, according to Colliers. A year earlier it was 10.5%. More empty shops are getting tenants, even with spending this flat.
The national numbers tell you the market is flat. The regional numbers tell you flat isn't the same everywhere.
The national picture: volumes went backwards
Stats NZ's Retail Trade Survey for the June 2026 quarter showed total retail sales volumes down 0.5%, or $138 million, on the March quarter. Volumes are adjusted for price, so this is fewer things sold, not just cheaper ones.
Fuel did most of the damage. Stats NZ's Michelle Feyen said higher fuel prices "drove a sharp increase in fuel retailing sales values" and that fuel retailing had "the largest fall in sales volumes of the industries measured." In other words, people paid more for petrol and bought less of it.
Strip fuel and cars out and the picture improves. Infometrics put core retail volumes up 0.7% for the quarter, and noted South Island core retail up 6.5% on a year earlier.
The regional picture: a postcode lottery
Paymark's July 2026 figures show core retail spending across its network at $3.787 billion, up 1.7% on July 2025. Region by region it looked quite different:
Whanganui: $55m (+4.7% on July 2025)
Waikato: $323m (+3.7% on July 2025)
Palmerston North: $122m (+3.7% on July 2025)
Hawke's Bay: $136m (+3.3% on July 2025)
Canterbury: $462m (+2.3% on July 2025)
Auckland/Northland: $1,404m (+1.9% on July 2025)
Otago: $239m (-0.3% on July 2025)
Wellington: $321m (-0.8% on July 2025)
Wairarapa: $43m (-1.0% on July 2025)
Marlborough: $43m (-6.1% on July 2025)
Paymark's Bruce Proffit said merchants "continue to face challenging conditions for retailing in the depths of winter in 2026." Westpac expects regional differences to continue, tied to how exposed each area is to the export sector.
If you've got stores in more than one region, don't judge them against each other on raw growth. A Waikato store growing 3% might just be keeping up with its region. A Wellington store growing 1% might be doing better than its neighbours.
The rent bill
Colliers' first-half 2026 figures:
Auckland prime CBD net rents rose 2.2% over the year to $3,475 per sqm. Regional centres held at $1,150 per sqm.
Wellington prime CBD gross rents rose 1.2% in the half to $1,266 per sqm. Regional centres held at $1,080 per sqm.
Wellington overall vacancy was 9.1%, down from 9.7% a year earlier but still above its historical average.
Falling vacancy is good for the street. It also means landlords have a bit more confidence at review time.
A worked example: what the rent actually costs you
Say you lease 120 sqm in an Auckland regional centre at the Colliers rate of $1,150 per sqm net:
120 × $1,150 = $138,000 a year in net rent
$138,000 ÷ 52 = about $2,654 a week
If your gross margin is 50%, you need about $5,308 of sales every week just to cover the rent ($2,654 ÷ 0.50)
That's before wages, stock or power. Divide $5,308 by your average sale and you have the number of sales each week that only pays the landlord. At a $55 average sale, that's about 97 sales.
Most owners know their rent. Fewer know how many sales it costs them.
Try this
Work out your own "rent sales" number. Weekly rent ÷ gross margin % ÷ average sale. Tell your team. It makes every sale feel a bit more important.
Benchmark each store against its region, not against your best store.
If you have a rent review in the next 12 months, go in with your sales per sqm and your trading trend, not just a feeling.
The free Benchsmart Health Check is 50 questions and the best 6 minutes of your life. It shows where you're strong and the 3 to 5 places worth looking at first. If you'd like to talk it through, the next step is a free 20-minute call. workwithus@benchsmart.nz
Sources
Stats NZ, Retail trade survey: June 2026 quarter (released 24 August 2026), via Scoop
Infometrics, Core retail volumes grow slower as consumers adjust to elevated fuel prices (August 2026)
Paymark, Consumer spending was up in early July but flat by month's end (6 August 2026)
Inside Retail NZ, Auckland, Wellington retail real estate vacancy falls (13 October 2026, reporting Colliers research)
Westpac IQ, First impressions: NZ retail card spending, September 2026