New supermarket brands are snubbing NZ, but the Government is still trying

Tuesday, 14 July 2026

Acting Prime Minister David Seymour speaks from the Beehive theatrette.

Acting Prime Minister David Seymour welcomed updated overseas investment guidance designed to streamline the consent process for international supermarkets entering New Zealand.

The ability for grocery companies to apply for 'standing consents' to purchase land is not new; it was introduced in 2018, and Woolworths has already used it twice.

Labour leader Chris Hipkins claims the Government is failing to lower grocery prices because it refuses to address structural issues, specifically the duopoly's control over wholesale supply chains.

Figures from Seymour's office show a 'quiet revolution' in investment policy, with average consent processing times plunging from 71 days in 2023 to 23 days currently.

Acting Prime Minister David Seymour says the Government has “led a horse to water, but not made them drink just yet,” when it comes to enticing international supermarket chains to New Zealand.

Speaking with reporters on Monday afternoon, Seymour welcomed the release of overseas investment guidance for grocery companies wanting to enter the New Zealand market.

The document - which is an update to a version released last year, now a law change streamlining the consent process has come into force - doesn’t change any rules.

But Seymour said it will make it “crystal clear to anybody who’s even thinking about coming to New Zealand that New Zealand is now a place that is absolutely open for business, and particularly open for the supermarket business”.

He pointed to the option of standing consents for grocery companies wanting to buy multiple sections of land as a potential key incentive.

The Government has made no secret of its desire for more international grocery brands - like Costco - to come to NZ.

“If you have to find sites, then apply for overseas investment consent, and then find another site and get consent for that one. It’s a pretty tortuous process,” he said.

“What we’re doing here with standing consent, what we’re doing by publishing guidance that puts it up in bright lights … we are making it all the more tempting for people to come.”

However, the ability to apply for standing consents is not new - it was introduced under a Labour-led government in 2018 and included in the 2025 version of the guidance for supermarkets.

Woolworths has already acquired two standing consents to purchase residential land for supermarket developments - in 2019 and 2024.

Asked why the companies have not come knocking on New Zealand’s door yet despite the rules already existing and previous attempts by the Government to roll out the red carpet, Seymour said ministers “remain resolute that if we remove all of the barriers to more competition, then we will find that there are people out there … who see New Zealand as being an attractive place to do business.”

“Why would you not be hopeful that things will get better for New Zealanders? ” he asked. “Just because something hasn’t succeeded to date doesn’t mean it’s not a good strategy.”

The Finance Minister said the Government would use its power to amend regulations with the goal of speeding up the process of opening supermarkets.

But Labour leader Chris Hipkins said the Government was failing to bring down grocery prices, or attract supermarket competition, because it wasn’t focused on structural issues with the grocery market.

“They failed to deliver on the one core commitment that they made to New Zealanders, which was lower grocery prices. Instead, over the last three years, grocery prices have continued to go up,” Hipkins said, speaking to reporters following Seymour’s press conference.

He wouldn’t say what Labour’s policy was to bring down grocery prices, as he said that would be announced “in the next couple of months”.

However, he indicated it would be focused on the supermarket duopoly’s control of supply chains.

“It’s clear that a major barrier to any new retail entrant in the New Zealand grocery market is that they can’t access the wholesale supply chains,” he said.

‘A quiet revolution’

Seymour also outlined last year’s overseas investment figures, calling the “extraordinary acceleration of overseas investment consents and their processing times” a “quiet revolution that has happened in New Zealand policy”.

According to figures from his office, the average processing time for an overseas investment consent has reduced from 71 days in 2023 to 23 days now.

This has coincided with record highs for the number of consents issued. The financial year just finished in June saw 230 different consents issued for overseas investments - the highest number so far.

The second highest, 201 consents, was in the year right before that.