Distributing a product

Market shares

Supermarkets market share of sales is 45%, with Progressive enterprise and Foodstuffs forming a duopoly with several hundreds of outlets. Sales made by supermarkets have shown a stable growth over the last few years but the number of convenience stores is increasing, with a constantly growing volume of sales. New Zealand customers have a preference for shopping malls, but independent and specialized store have been able to adapt and are successfully targeting high revenue customers. Three chains of Department stores are sharing the market: Smith and Caughey’s in Auckland, Kirkcaldie and Stains in Wellington and Ballantynes in Christchurch.

Organizations in the retail sector

New Zealand Retailers Association
Fashion Industry New Zealand
NZApparel

We can identify professional tradeshows on your sector.

Market access procedures

International Conventions

Member of World Trade Organisation
Member of OECD
Party to the Kyoto protocol
Party to the Washington convention on International trade in endangered species of wild fauna and flora
Party to the Basel convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their disposal
Party to the Montreal protocol on Substances that deplete the Ozone Layer
Wassenaar arrangement on export controls for conventional arms and dual-use goods and technologies
Party of the International coffee agreement 2001

Main International economic cooperation

New Zealand has signed a free trade agreement (CEPA) with Hong Kong.

Non tariff barriers

Import licenses are no longer required to import goods into New Zealand. The country does not impose any import restrictions or barriers to imports for purely trade-related reasons. Although, there are strict health, content, safety and origin-labeling rules, and stringent restrictions relating to live animal and plant health requirements.

Some goods are prohibited from importation. For more information you can log on the customs website. 

Customs duties and taxes on imports

New Zealand applies Customs duties of 5% on average. The customs duties ad valorem duties, calculated on the FOB value or on specific duties. These are not excessively high and they give an average level of 15%. Higher duties, however, are levied on textile, clothing, shoes, motor cars and pneumatics imports. No duty is imposed on imported products having no local equivalent in New Zealand. Some imports are cheap and are subject to a special duty for the protection of the local production. New Zealand applies preferential tariffs to imports coming from Australia (zero tariff), Canada, UK, and certain other developing countries.
For more details you can log on the customs website.

Customs classification

New Zealand has fully adopted the harmonized system of customs classification.

Import procedures

Customs Entry Form or Informal Clearance Document (ICD) filled in documents relative to goods transport (transport contracts: Air waybillor Bill of lading) ; all invoices or documents relative to import and which must include in particular a complete description of the goods,the currency of reference, the contact details of the seller and the buyer, the name of the vessel or the flight number of the plane used, etc.
Import procedures are described on the Customs website and on the New Zealand Customs Service.
Commencing July 2008 generic import clearance procedures are detailed on the Website of the Food Safety Authority.

Importing samples

Goods that are used as and which qualify as samples are eligible for duty-free entry.

For further information

NZ Customs

We can indicate you which are the customs duties applied to your product.

We can indicate you which are the customs duties applied to your product.

Find out the local taxes that apply to your product.

Organizing goods transport

Main useful means of transport

99.5% of goods transportation in volume uses sea freight. These represent 83% of exports and 75% of imports.

Ports

The port of Auckland
The port of Tauranga
The port of Napier
The port Nelson

Airports

Auckland Airport
Hamilton Airport
Wellington Airport
Christchurch Airport
Queenstown Airport
Dunedin Airport

Sea transport organizations

Maritime New Zealand

Air transport organizations

Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand

Road transport organizations

Land Transport New Zealand

Rail transport organizations

Land Transport New Zealand

Get a ballpark figure for transportation costs for your product in this country through a shipping estimate

Identifying a supplier

Type of production

Traditionally, New Zealand's economy was built upon on a narrow range of primary products, such as wool, meat and dairy products. The economy has traditionally been based on a foundation of exports from its very efficient agricultural system. Leading agricultural exports include meat, dairy products, forest products, fruit and vegetables, fish, and wool. Agriculture in general and the dairy sector in particular have enjoyed many new trade opportunities in the past 20 years. The country has substantial hydroelectric power and sizable reserves of natural gas. Leading manufacturing sectors are food processing, metal fabrication, and wood and paper products. Some manufacturing industries, many of which had only been established in a climate of import substitution with high tariffs and subsidies, such as car assembly, have completely disappeared, and manufacturing's importance in the economy is in a general decline.

Business directories

New Zealand Yellow Pages
New Zealand White Pages
UBD
NZSB

Manufacturers associations of the main industries

Sea Food Industry Council
Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand
Meat and Wool New Zeland
Automotive parts Industry associations

Trade Agencies and their representations abroad

Auckland Chamber of commerce

Enterprises federation

The Employers' and Manufacturers' Association

Standards

National standards organizations

Standards New Zealand

Integration in the international standards network

The standards in New Zealand are copied from those prevailing in Great Britain. The Standard Association of New Zealand, the competent organization in the field of standards is member of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), and is active in the Pacific Area Standards Congress (PASC) and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).

Classification of standards

NZS or AU/NZS

Online consultation of standards

The publication of standards is entrusted to Standards New Zealand.

Certification organizations

International Accreditation New Zealand

Find out the standards and labelling requirements that apply to your products

Intellectual Property

National organizations

For more information go to the web sites of the two regulation bodies: the Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand and the Copyright Council of New Zealand. You can also consult the Intellectual Property Policy on the Ministry of Economic Development website.

Regional organizations

New Zealand is a member of the Intellectual Property Rights Experts Group (IPEG) of the APEC community.

International membership

Member of the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization)
Signatory to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Intellectual Property
Membership to the TRIPS agreement - Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS)