Hottest sellers Rugby World Cup gear and BBQs

Rebel Sport's Cup related sales have soared. Photo / Paul Estcourt

Retailers selling products directly related to the Rugby World Cup have been selling up a storm since the tournament began.

But for others the event - which the Reserve Bank estimated would result in a $700 million cash injection from the wallets of foreign fans - has had no impact whatsoever.

Auckland's Smith & Caughey's, whose Queen St department store is located on the fan trail to Eden Park, has seen no overall uplift in sales.

"Like most retailers we have found very little benefit," said executive director Terry Cornelius. "Some days were up and some days were down so overall there's been very little benefit at all."

Products sold at Smith & Caughey's were often purchased by tourists, but the fragile economic situation in many fans' home countries might have prompted them to spend conservatively while in New Zealand, he said.

It's been a very different experience for listed retailer Briscoe Group, whose Rebel Sport outlets sell World Cup licensed merchandise - such as official team jerseys.

"I didn't expect to see anywhere near the benefit that we've experienced," said managing director Rod Duke.

He said Rebel Sport had sold around eight times more Rugby World Cup-related merchandise than originally expected.

The Canterbury official merchandise store on Queen St told the Business Herald last month that products had been selling like hot cakes since the event began.

And BBQs are flying out the door at Mitre 10, which attributes the spike in sales to the World Cup, rather than the arrival of spring.

Dave Elliott, the co-operative's marketing general manager, said BBQ sales were 66 per cent up in September year-on-year.

Mitre 10 staff had reported that customers were planning to use the equipment when hosting World Cup parties, he said.

But some fast food chains have failed to reap the benefits they expected from the event.

Restaurant Brands chief executive Russell Creedy said the company had spent a lot of money promoting its brands - Starbucks, KFC and Pizza Hut - during the World Cup, but there had been "no real net gain".

"That's been fairly consistent across all the regions," he said. "Hopefully with all the games coming to Auckland now it might change a bit, but I'd say the benefit has not been noticeable."

Burger Fuel marketing manager Alexis Lam said the fast food chain had forecast a 10 to 20 per cent lift in sales during the event.

"Certainly we're not seeing that," he said.

"But we're hopeful for the finals and semifinals, because obviously people are coming back to Auckland where a lot of our stores are."

Hell Pizza director Stu McMullin said all of the company's stores saw a 15 to 20 per cent jump in sales on the opening night of the tournament.

However, he said trading levels then dropped while the pool game matches were being played.

"We were expecting a 15 to 20 per cent uplift in general and it certainly hasn't come," McMullin said.

A Burger King spokeswoman said the World Cup had had a positive impact on the fast food chain's sales.

Quarter finals weekend spending

* Foreign card transactions in Auckland and Wellington, which hosted two quarter-final matches each last weekend, reached $4.7 million between Friday and Sunday.

* The extra spending included a surge on Sunday, when the All Blacks beat Argentina, with hospitality spending rising 43.7 per cent.

* Accommodation spending was up 5.6 per cent, suggesting most fans pre-paid for rooms.

* Car rental spending rose 7.9 per cent.

* Spending in clothing stores rose by almost 30 per cent.

Source: Paymark

Employers expect benefit

37 per cent of 2500 New Zealand employers surveyed by recruitment consultancy Michael Page International expected the Rugby World Cup to directly benefit their businesses.

- Additional reporting: Anne Gibson