Carolyn Young: Retail NZ CEO on the increasing confidence from retail businesses

Signs of economic recovery look to be turning the dial on retailers' mood.  

Retail NZ's quarterly survey finds 65% of retailers feel confident or very confident their business will survive the next 12 months. 

It finds 57% think they will meet or exceed their targets for the final quarter, even after 70% failed to meet their last sales targets.  

Chief executive Carolyn Young says retailers are expecting more consumer confidence from recent OCR cuts and falling inflation.  

She says while sales numbers are down, there's optimism for the future. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
More insight speaking of retail into our retail sector, blow
me down. If there isn't light at the end of
the tunnel, vibe. Almost two thirds of retailers now confident
or very confident their businesses will survive for the next
twelve months. That's a seven percent increase from June. Number
of retailer expecting to meet or beat the Q four targets.
That's nearly doubled. Retail New Zealand do CEO Carolyn Young

(00:20):
is with us. Carolin, good morning, we an Mike, how
are you this morning? Very well? Indeed, thank you champagne?
Or too early?

Speaker 2 (00:29):
Maybe too early? I think let's just keep it on
ice and pop the cork when we actually see the
sales numbers list. I think that would be the wise
thing to do. But it is great to have some
optimism obviously reflecting the economic numbers that have been coming
out recently, and we just really now need to see
the consumer confidence turn around so that that optimism will

(00:52):
turn into sales.

Speaker 1 (00:53):
Is this literally come from one cash rate in the
possibility of another one? Is it that simple?

Speaker 2 (01:00):
Look obviously we've had a couple of cash rates, and
you know the knowledge that inflation now is within the
right band, and that we do see the way forward.
Up until recently, you know, it had been a pretty
dark tunne on as you say, we can now see
life at the end of the tunnel, and we can
see that in six or nine months time we should
have turned the corner and be right out of the

(01:23):
end of this procession.

Speaker 1 (01:24):
Because people, here's my take on humanity. No matter what
difficulties we have, and we do have difficulties and we
will for a while. Yet people are desperate to be happy,
aren't they. When you've been miserable for several years, you
want to be happy. That's what drives sales essentially, isn't.

Speaker 2 (01:37):
It absolutely absolutely that positivity and that wanting to catch
up with friends, go and have a coffee, have a
look around the shops, that sort of thing. Just that
energy enthusiasm. And if you feel uncertain about your future,
about your job, you know how you're going to pay
your bills, you're not going to do those things. But
if you're a consumers are more confident around those things

(02:00):
because the economy is stronger, there a certainty around your
job is better. Then they're going to be out and
enjoying going into the shops and buying those items that
they hadn't been.

Speaker 1 (02:11):
Did you see TV one news last night on this
very story.

Speaker 2 (02:17):
Well, yes, and no I saw some of those.

Speaker 1 (02:19):
Okay, there was a lady in that story who said
they used to come in and buy one on every color.
Do you reckon that's ever true?

Speaker 2 (02:26):
Oh? Absolutely yeah, not everybody.

Speaker 1 (02:28):
You'd walk into a shop, you g I had one
of those and every color? Thank you? Is that what
really happened, Carolyn?

Speaker 2 (02:32):
There are some women that will do that, Yes, smoke absolutely.

Speaker 1 (02:36):
One and every color.

Speaker 2 (02:39):
Different mindset for women shopping than men shopping. I think
that's what you have to remember.

Speaker 1 (02:44):
Well, I'm glad you said that, not me, Carolyn, or
I'd be in trouble. Carolyn.

Speaker 2 (02:49):
It's a different mindset.

Speaker 1 (02:50):
Well, she said it, and you can't argue what.

Speaker 2 (02:53):
I've just been looking at your Marino polo neck.

Speaker 1 (02:56):
Actually sure? How many different colors of len Glenn Gleann Sorry?

Speaker 2 (03:02):
Banking up the chrick. For more from the Mic Asking Breakfast,
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Speaker 1 (03:07):
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