Boxing Day bargains: Where to go for the best deals

Walking up Queen St today, almost every retail store had banners in their windows promoting their discounts. Photo / iStock

New Zealanders are expected to hit the shops in hordes as retailers slash their prices in the annual tradition of the Boxing Day sales.

Some stores with online shopping facilities even started their sales a day early to get a jump on the masses.

Walking up Queen St yesterday, almost every retail store had banners in their windows promoting their discounts - the posters put up Christmas Eve night in preparation for the swarms of shoppers on Boxing Day.

Noel Leeming had its doors plastered with various red and yellow flyers including 50 per cent off batteries, 25 per cent off refrigeration and 20 per cent off ink. Macpac was advertising 20-50 per cent off while Kathmandu promised "massive reductions".

Dick Smith electronics, which earlier this month was expected to have a pre-Christmas fire sale, has covered its doors with massive promotions of a "knockout sale".

Clothing stores are also offering big savings with Max slashing up to 70 per cent off its garments, Country Road promising up to 50 per cent off, and Glassons and Supre offering 30 per cent off everything for just one day.

And those keen to get a jump on their summer shopping were even able to start from this morning with some retailers starting their sales first thing on Christmas Day.

Smiths City, JB Hi-Fi, Farmers and The Warehouse, among others, all began their Boxing Day sales via their online shopping sites yesterday.

One shopper got a steal from Smiths City.

"I paid $1700 including delivery for a queen sized bed, smart TV and vacuum cleaner. The bed at normal price is $2299 so it was a great buy," she said.

Earlier this week, a survey found a quarter of New Zealanders would brave the masses for the Boxing Day sales but that only 4 per cent would hold all of their Christmas present shopping off until the 26th.

MasterCard's annual Christmas shopping research found the bulk of Boxing Day shoppers would use local shops and service providers (44 per cent), followed by "big box" retailers (37 per cent) and New Zealand-based online retailers (9 per cent).

On Boxing Day last year Kiwis spent $225 million across the country, the highest ever spending day recorded through the Paymark network.

The Mastercard survey also found 41 per cent of respondents said it was easier to shop online to get Boxing Day deals rather than go in-store and 54 per cent said they still liked to check goods out in-store prior to purchasing either in-store or online. A total of 18 per cent said they would research online for Boxing Day deals and then go in-store.

Kiwi shoppers have already set records this festive season. By 1pm on Christmas Eve, New Zealanders had spent more than $147 million, according to Paymark which processes 75 per cent of the country's electronic transactions.

Just after 1.20pm, shopping activity hit a new record of 157.46 transactions a second, up from 2014's top turnover of 156.13 transactions.