When the 7.1 magnitude earthquake rocked Christchurch in the early hours of September 4, the property director of Ballantynes department store, Philip Richards, sprung into action.
By 6am, he and a team of 10 staff were in the city centre store, cleaning up the mess and assessing damage, which included $10,000 worth of product. By 11am, it was ready for trade. However, awaiting safety clearance from civil defence engineers and for the city centre to reopen meant it remained closed for a week.
Richards also serves as a director of the New Zealand Retailers Association and said that Ballantynes fared well in comparison to a number of smaller businesses. He said insurance meant wages for its 350 staff, the costs of damage to the building, product and loss of sales should be resolved.
However, at the time of press he said a number of fashion stores were still closed and may have to be relocated for an unknown period whilst buildings are repaired. He suspects that many smaller operators do not have suitable insurance, though some government assistance is available for companies with less than 20 staff.
A lingering concern amongst retailers is the ongoing damage the earthquake may cause to consumer confidence in spending on fashion, Richards said.
“It will be a month before it is clear if fashion business is stable following the quake,” he said. “The homewares product business may gain from replacement purchases covered by insurance, but it is unclear how the apparel sector will go.”
Moochi womenswear managing director Chris Taylor said the brand’s Christchurch location was forced to close for more than two weeks. This was due to cosmetic damage, such as broken mirrors and glass and restrictions to city access. He estimated that at least one building in every city block required major structural work or demolition.
“I would estimate that 95 per cent of businesses will be back up and running as soon as the city fully opens again,” he said.
Taylor said Moochi focuses on local customers rather than tourist trade, yet he is still worried about the future financial implications of the quake.
“I’m sure it’s going to have some effect but that’s kind of a big unknown at the moment. That is the question we’re all asking ourselves, even once we open: how long is it going to take to get back to normal?”
Plume store manager Jennifer Ganez is also worried that the earthquake may affect consumer confidence in fashion for a longer period. The high-end designer label boutique was forced to close for 10 days, with some minor damage to its mirrors and clothing racks.
“This week people are back shopping and we have had a couple of busy and a couple of quiet days,” she said. “It is definitely going to take some time for the city to recover.”
Untouched World founder Peri Drysdale said the lifestyle brand’s central Christchurch store was shut for two weeks with staff on paid leave. Aftershocks meant re-opening was repeatedly delayed. The store only suffered from superficial damage, with some racks and mannequins requiring replacement.
“It was not ideal closing for two weeks but it is not mission critical,” she said. “Sales were tracking well before this, we were ahead of budget and we are still tracking ahead of last year overall as a group.”
Drysdale said Untouched World's suburban store experienced stronger trade during the period, as customers were seeking alternative locations to shop.
“People are rebuilding their confidence in the city centre now,” she said. “I think the main impact will be short term for most businesses.”
For Drysdale, however, an going concern is the effect the quake may have on production and despatch of wholesale orders across New Zealand and Australia.
“One of our cutters lost his building but is now in another,” she said. “It has been very shattering for everyone.”
Major retailer Retail Apparel Group operates a Tarocash and a YD store in Westfield Riccarton, outside central Christchurch. Chief executive officer Gary Novis said due to its location, the impact on sales was minimised.
“Luckily we only lost three days’ trade and had minor damage to the store,” he said. “All of our team members are thankfully fine and trade is almost back to normal levels.”
Other large retailers affected include outdoor brand Kathmandu, which had to close its three Christchurch stores for a period of time. Discount chain The Warehouse Group closed its eight Christchurch stores, which were progressively re-opened following engineering inspections.