Easter Sunday trading leaves Napier retailers smiling

Like Easter Monday, Easter Sunday in Napier saw plenty of shoppers about in the CBD. Photo/ Paul Taylor

Napier retailers who opened their doors on Easter Sunday appear to have reaped the benefits although they believe there needs to be more publicity about it as many people still believed it was a day of closure.

It was just that until two years ago when, under changes to the Shop Trading Hours Act, the Napier City Council adopted a policy to allow shops in the city to open on Easter Sunday.

It was however overturned in August last year after it was deemed that consultation on the issue had been inadequate — but was later reinstated with councillors voting 8 to 3 to allow Easter Sunday trading in Napier.

Retailers across the board were given the option to open on the day, or stay closed.

According to Retail New Zealand, Napier is one of 41 council districts where an Easter Sunday trading policy has been adopted.

Hastings has stuck with the status quo — being one of 20 councils sticking with a "no open" policy, unless the business is classified as exempt.

Service stations, food and household item vendors, souvenir (tourism-oriented) shops and garden centres are among those exempt.

This was the third Easter Sunday of trading for Hallensteins in Napier and assistant manager Jay McOnie said it was an exceptional day.

He said based on the trading figures from last year this Easter Sunday saw a 100 per cent increase.

"It was a very good result."

McOnie said he was surprised many shops in the CBD did not open but said it was an individual choice.

"It's their call."

Postie assistant manager Lexi Baxter echoed that.

"I can understand the other side of it because it is always good to have a family day."

It was the second year Postie had opened the doors for Easter Sunday and Baxter said trading was up on last year.

"We did really well — there were a lot of people around."

She believed if more shops, like larger chains, had decided to open the economic outcomes would have been even better.

"But each to their own."

It was up to the individual business owners whether they wanted to open or not.

There was no issue with having to pay extra as it was not deemed to be a public holiday like Easter Friday, Christmas Day or Anzac Day, which also meant no surcharges had to be put on items.

Another member of the retail industry said his business did "reasonably well" but the Easter and Anzac Day closeness appeared to have resulted in a shortfall in regular customers.

"A lot of locals would have taken the few days off between Easter and Anzac Day and gone away."

He said the Sunday trading policy was a positive for Napier, but said some people were still confused about the trading policy issue as similar shops in Hastings had not been able to open.

"We need to make it clearer."

For chain stores like Noel Leeming, Briscoes and The Warehouse it meant the Napier stores could open on Easter Sunday but the Hastings ones could not.