The 39 per cent year-on-year drop for Napier is simply shocking and is a situation that cannot be allowed to get worse.
There is an argument that the Rugby World Cup was on last year so there was more spending by tourists and locals, but that should not be an excuse.
The local business association and retailers need to come up with a strategy to stop a further dramatic drop.
Nationally, seasonally adjusted retail sales dipped 0.8 per cent since the June quarter, but Business NZ chief executive Phil O'Reilly was fairly bullish, describing the decline as relatively minor.
The weak performance of the manufacturing sector combined with the preference for many "mums and dads" to pay off debt at the moment could have caused a much larger downturn, he said.
I suppose most households in the country have been through a period of consolidation and people are simply spending less.
In a low-wage economy like Hawke's Bay this would be even more marked.
Anecdotally, I have heard that supermarkets are seeing the same number of people coming through their doors, but each person is spending less.
People are worried about the future and their job security, so they are trying to reduce their debt as much as possible.
On the one hand debt reduction is a good thing, but on the other hand our retail sector badly needs robust trade.
Let's hope that good summer weather attracts the tourists and a Christmas splurge gets the tills ringing for our retailers.
