Shoppers are going from the streets to their sets as online shopping is booming in Hawke's Bay. Photo / File
Shoppers are going from the streets to their sets as online shopping is booming in Hawke's Bay. Photo / File
Hawke's Bay is spending over $100 million a year on online shopping and most of it is going to Kiwi companies.
A New Zealand Post report on eCommerce in New Zealand shows people in Hawke's Bay spent more than $120 million online last year, a 14 per cent jump on2017.
Residents in the region's average spending was around $100 per shop.
The Full Download 2019 report was undertaken by NZ Post for the second year in a row and showed courier delivery has now surpassed mail as the largest contributor to NZ Post revenue.
The report shows Hawke's Bay people spent $123 million online, in 1.3 million different transactions (up 13 per cent), with an average of $97 spent each time.
Nationally, almost half of New Zealand chose to shop online last year with 1.8 million people spending a total of $4.2 billion.
Nearly one in ten Kiwi online shoppers spend over $9000 online annually.
Business Hawke's Bay CEO Carolyn Neville said that the key area driving growth in online shopping in Hawke's Bay is the Food, Groceries and Liquor categories.
Models Donna, Paula, Rose and Toni show off Two Lippy Ladies range at a fashion show outside their Napier CBD store on Market St in a fashion parade late last year. Photo / File
Not only through supermarkets selling online, but also wine and beer subscription services and meal-based subscription services.
"It is easier to go online than to buy in store, to search and buy, and to compare prices, with access to more choice and for greater convenience," Neville said.
"The food subscription services also make healthy alternatives easier to access. My Food Bag and Bargain Box have a large market share, however On Yer Plate amongst other options is Hawke's Bay's own very popular food box.
"Omnichannel service provision ie in-store, on-line and click and collect are also now becoming standard service provisions."
Two Lippy Ladies in Napier, a women's vintage and rockabilly fashion store, have led the Omnichannel charge actually starting as an online store before opening shop on Market St.
Owner Natalie O'Donnell said that their online store accounts for well over half of their total sales in winter, with the Market St store taking over half in summer.
They were also early adopters of both Laybuy and Afterpay online and in store, and noticed an immediate jump in sales due to this which now account for 22 per cent of their sales.
Napier City Business Inc manager Zoe Barnes said that the change in recent years to online shopping has helped Napier retail businesses compared with other regions around the country.
"While online shopping has definitely changed the face of retailing in recent years, Napier retailers are not feeling these effects quite as much as other parts of the country with Marketview reporting an increase in locals (Napier) spending online of 6.6 per cent for the last quarter which is significantly behind the national average of 10.9 per cent."
