By Craig Zammit
SYDNEY: Harvey Norman is set open four new stores across New Zealand in a continued push into the region, which will see three stores opened before the start of 2007.
Harvey Norman general manager – electrical, David Ackery, confirmed to current.com.au that the Harvey Norman store in Masterton, New Zealand, will “be open by the end of the year.”
The rush of store openings in New Zealand reflects the competitive nature of the region and the urge for many retailers to open new stores in the land of the long white cloud.
“New Zealand is just as competitive [as Australia], there’s no question about that. You’ve got The Good Guys moving in and Dick Smith over there, and you’ve got JB Hi-Fi talking about moving in too.”
Ackery confirmed that Harvey Norman’s current expansion across New Zealand will continue, with the region hosting new stores in Whakatani, Lower Hutt and Paraparaumu, as well as the Masterton site.
“I’ve seen all of these [new] sites. [The Masterton site] is currently the Warehouse Group and has dual street access; it should be a good store for us,” Ackery said.
“We’ve taken the old Radford site in Paraparaumu, it will be an electrical and computer store and we expect that to be open within ten weeks.
“Lower Hutt will probably open early next year now, which will be a flagship store.
“Whakatani should open within four to six weeks,” he said.
The new stores will bring the total number of Harvey Norman stores in New Zealand to 24.