Surprise OCR Cut Arrives In Time To Boost Auckland Home Show Exhibitor Hopes

By any metric, the The Auckland Home Show – happening 5th – 8th September at the Auckland Showgrounds is a huge event, with more than 450 exhibitors and around 40,000 visitors attending every year.

For over 40 years it has been a litmus test of the health of the home products sector and with yesterday’s cut of the OCR, exhibitors are hoping that the Show will show the first green shoots of the economic recovery.

“There’s no doubt it’s been a tough year,” says Amanda Magnus, General Manager of show organiser, Exhibitions and Events New Zealand.

“But we were already seeing some positive signs, and now we hope the OCR cut will give those who’ve been holding back the confidence to start their new project sooner rather than later,” she said.

Despite the current economic climate, the show is nearly sold out and she says that many of the exhibitors are putting huge faith in the show to deliver the customers and the business.

“Many exhibitors are saying they’ve cut back on all other marketing, but are still coming to the show. “Because it’s proven to be the best way to get to new customers, whatever the business climate,” she says.

One of the exhibitors and guest speaker in the Auckland Home Show seminars, Pocketspace Interiors founder Laura Heynike says now is the best time to start a project and her premium builders are starting to fill their forward order books again.

She says that clients have been waiting for the ‘bottom of the cycle’ and a drop interest rate cuts will be the incentive they need. She expects the Auckland Home Show to gain a boost from the OCR fall.

“Builders are starting to get their books full again, which is great to see. However, it takes a while for that to trickle down to the sub-trades like painters and flooring layers because they come in at the end of the builds,” she says.

“So, typically you could get a plumber or painter tomorrow if you wanted and it's really easy to access trades if you want renovations done. That means it's a great opportunity to plan renovations and new builds, knowing that the interest rates will likely decrease over time and that should give people confidence to plan ahead,” she says.

Heynike reports that there’s also good supplies of building products at good prices and even Council consents are moving at record pace now.

“Imported building supplies have definitely come down. We were getting monthly price increases, but I haven't seen a price increase from our building suppliers in about five months. And retail stores have had an extremely slow year, so they’re discounting their products because they've got new stock coming in. So quite often you'll find what you need mostly discounted – perfect to buy and hold until your project starts,” she says.

Regular exhibitor Aquatica tapware founder Malcom Box says that the Auckland Home Show is non-negotiable as a marketing option for his business and he’s ‘hopeful’ that the latest OCR cut and interest rates will stimulate demand.

“People have absolutely been waiting – I’m not sure if this OCR cut is enough, but they’ve been waiting for a sign that things are going to improve. There’s definitely pent up demand,” he says.

Box doesn’t expect that inflation in the sector is going to jump for some time yet as there’s so much stock still on the shelves.

“Pricing will be cheaper than ever at the show. We haven’t increased pricing for more than a year and some of our current ranges we’ve dropped pricing to nearly half price,” he says.

But, while sales have been down, Box isn’t particularly pessimistic, and while he’s trimmed his costs, his attendance at the Auckland Home Show was never in doubt.

“It’s cyclical. We’re not particularly doom and gloom. We’re just treading water and using the Auckland Home Show to stay in touch with our customers - we know that they’ll be coming back to us as confidence improves,” he says.

About Exhibitions and Events New Zealand (EENZ):

Exhibitions and Events New Zealand Ltd (EENZ) is Auckland based, renowned for its innovative, exciting events and offering true return on investment. The company's portfolio includes the iconic Auckland Home Show and the Canterbury Home Shows.

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