Presenters look a million bucks - for $111k

A TVNZ spokesperson says all presenters need to look good on air since it is a visual medium.

TVNZ says new clothes needed to keep hosts looking their best, and it’s less than bill for 2013

We may think Wendy's jacket is too bright or that Simon is wearing the same old suit, but TVNZ takes dressing its presenters seriously - spending $111,199 on its wardrobe in the past year.

While the six-figure budget may raise eyebrows, the state-owned broadcaster was quick to point out that dressing presenters such as Simon Dallow and Wendy Petrie cost 4 per cent less than the previous year.

The cost of dressing its presenters for the year-ended June 30, 2014 was revealed to the Weekend Herald under the Official Information Act and does not include reporters who are given a separate allowance. The broadcaster declined to provide a breakdown of how much was spent on the individual wardrobes because the presenters do not have individual budgets and the clothing purchased remained the property of TVNZ.

TVNZ spokeswoman Megan Richards said all its presenters needed to look good on air since it is a visual medium and the available funds were used as a presenter required a new suit or a new show was launched.

"Generally speaking clothes are not shared - our presenters are different shapes and sizes like anyone else and the objective is to have each one looking their best."

The broadcaster used a mix of New Zealand and overseas clothing brands and the items were chosen by in-house stylist Clifton Piper.

For shows where wardrobe credits were given, which was often the case with clothes worn by Breakfast's Ali Pugh, Seven Sharp's Toni Street, Sunday's Miriama Kamo and Fair Go's Pippa Wetzell, the items were provided at no cost or at a discount, Ms Richards said.

Chain store brands such as Country Road, Witchery, Portmans and Marcs regularly feature in closing credits.

According to an inside source, this left the majority of the $111,199 fashion spend to be spent on the One News and Tonight teams, which do not have their wardrobes sponsored.

The source said clothes are sometimes recycled through presenter ranks, with fulltime presenters such as Wendy Petrie considered top tier. Part-time newsreaders, such as Nadine Chalmers-Ross and Melissa Stokes, could often be spotted sporting Petrie's cast-offs.

Hair and makeup costs are separate to the wardrobe spend but are understood to be significant, with four or more make up artists rostered on each day.