Opinion: Small local businesses need your support

Costco is certainly impressive in scale and bargain-hunting potential. Photo / File

OPINION

It seems ironic that last week the news was firmly fixed on the loss of Britain's longest-reigning monarch, while this week it's the Auckland opening of a global department store.

Some would probably argue both events have little daily influence on heartland New Zealand - but each has undeniably captured the nation's attention.

I have been to Costco in Melbourne and it is certainly impressive in scale and bargain-hunting potential. It's true, they do sell almost anything you can think of - including groceries - and they sell it all in bulk.

I emerged from the store with lots of apparent must-haves, but then some people say a purchase is only a bargain if you need it, and I'm sure in most cases I didn't.

I'm not a total Costco grinch, I do love a bargain and I understand the allure of newness, but I wonder if long-term it will pan out similar to trips to other, similar stores, where it's easy to end up with a 1.5-litre container of satay simmer sauce, only to realise it's a flavour you only want to use once a month. The monstrous container then takes up valuable fridge real estate until it's deemed an acceptable amount of time has passed to throw it out.

I first heard New Zealand was getting a Costco store a while back and while I banked the information for a future trip to Auckland, it didn't rate highly on my list of must-dos.

Not when there are so many interesting local businesses to hunt out, sample and support.

The New Zealand dollar is tanking against the US - in my view, all the more reason to support local, buy local and help prop up the exporting arm of Kiwi businesses.

Since becoming a business owner five years ago I now make a point of supporting local. Not all goods are New Zealand-made but the businesses that sell them are owned by local people and I believe that's a big part of what keeps our economy going.

My experience of shopping local has been favourable, and I know exactly who to talk to if something does go wrong or I need some advice post-purchase.

Repeat business certainly matters in an economy the size of New Zealand's.

Yes, I probably could have brought similar for $10 cheaper at a larger chain store but whose pocket is my purchase lining then?

Owning your own business is a bold, brave move - especially during a pandemic - and these people should be supported and rewarded for their efforts.

These local businesses are often smaller and have been navigating staff absences during Covid, increasing minimum wages and two extra public holidays.

New Zealand has some incredible small businesses offering unique and innovative products and services - things that, in my experience, you won't find at bulk-buying warehouses.

Over the weekend, I bought New Zealand-made pre-mixed mojito cocktails and sampled local cheeses and beautiful walnut brittle. These products are locally made and taste incredible.

My best purchase though was a simple chocolate dip flake ice cream from Mr Whippy at the end of a long weekend's work. The franchisee had bought the business about a year ago and already expanded his fleet.

Mr Whippy started in New Zealand in 1964 and is a Kiwi summer institution. Better yet, you don't have to go inside a mall or giant department store to buy it.

A local business owner and friend has a simple yet highly effective quote at the end of his email signature. "Hard work puts you in a place where good luck finds you."

There are a lot of Kiwi business owners working hard to create products and provide services with a real point of difference.

If cut-price and bulk purchases are the main selling points, is this bringing anything new to the market?

In a world where popular Netflix shows such as The Home Edit and Tidying Up with Marie Kondo are successfully convincing people of the benefits of minimising clutter, do we really need to be packing multiple trollies with more stuff?

When lots of Kiwi families are struggling with the cost of living, the lure of getting more for less will always be strong - strong enough to see people camping outside the door it seems.

But is it more that they really need, or do we simply need the cost of basics to be pushed down nationwide?

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister David Clark even visited Costco in August, with Clark saying its arrival here would help bring some much-needed competition to the supermarket industry in New Zealand.

My view? I'm not sure one store in Auckland has a lot of potential to do that, but we'll see.

Yes, I'll probably go, and yes, I'll probably shop but I will also consider if there's more value in buying an item in bulk when I could get the volume I truly need from a local supplier in the Bay.

Michele Hunter is a local business owner, mum of two school-age children and a former Bay of Plenty Times chief reporter. She is Tauranga-born and raised, with opinions on most things. You'll often find her by the water - sea or lake - enjoying all this great region has to offer.