Why Mocka hopes to thrive where parent company Adairs did not survive
Tuesday, 26 May 2026
Adairs is exiting the market, but the parent company of Mocka says the New Zealand-founded furniture brand still has a physical place in New Zealand retail ‒ and is forging on with its bricks and mortar roll-out plan.
Earlier this month Australian homeware brand Adairs announced it would shut all seven of its retail stores in this market, with Australia’s AFR reporting the Kiwi stores were “bleeding cash”.
Its website for New Zealand has since been turned off and its stores bare with remaining discounted stock ahead of its closure in June.
But Brisbane-based Catherine Williamson, chief executive of Christchurch-based Mocka, said Adairs remained “fully committed to New Zealand”.
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Mocka, which was acquired by ASX-listed Adairs Group in 2020 for A$75.5 million, is growing by about 30% each year. In the six months to December, it delivered record sales of A$36.5m.
Adairs acquired Mocka with the expectation it would supercharge its online sales, but the remit looks to be much wider than that now.
Founded in Christchurch 19 years ago by the Blake family and operating originally as an online retailer, Mocka is gearing up to open its first physical store as part of wider plans to establish a bricks and mortar retail footprint.
Williamson told The Post Mocka would open its first standalone bricks and mortar store in Christchurch’s Tower Junction in late July. Originally, it planned to open the first standalone store by November 2025.
Until recently Mocka utilised physical space within Adairs stores, operating as “shop-in-shops” to display its furniture and test appetite in the market.
Williamson said plans for physical stores in Australia were also under way.
“We were testing retail via a shop and shop model or a concession model within Adairs stores, which has been great,” said Williamson.
“We have been in the site in Tower Junction, we've met customers already in this site, and from Mocka’s perspective, what's exciting is it's a large store, almost 900 square metres, so it will be our first standalone store in New Zealand, and our biggest store that we've ever had.”
Mocka will open a Queensland store in late June, its Christchurch store in late July and another Australian store in Victoria in late October.
“Tower Junction store is a large format so we'll be able to showcase a full Mocka range within this physical environment. [We’ll look at] what that teaches us, such as if that's how our store size should be in different locations.”
Williamson said Mocka was open to expanding its store footprint across New Zealand.
“Physical retail has definitely proven to be something that New Zealand customers are very interested in.”
Asked how Mocka would be able to make physical retail work in New Zealand when more established brand Adairs had not been able to, Williamson said: “Mocka is a different brand, a different customer base, and Mocka was founded in New Zealand, we've been trading in New Zealand for almost 19 years. For us, Australia is relatively new, so we're quite a well-known and established brand in New Zealand.
“Mocka designs separate ranges for Kiwi homes.”
She also pointed to Mocka having a more viable operating model, as the brand had a local distribution centre and customer service team.
Adairs has more than 100 stores in Australia and had been operating in the New Zealand market for less than 10 years.
“Absolutely, we're part of a broader group, and Adairs in its own right is a very established brand, but how [Mocka] operates in New Zealand comes with significant differences.”
Mocka positions itself at the affordable end of the furniture market, whereas Adairs homewares are considered more high-end purchases.
“But also I think the fact we design for Kiwi homes and that we have local operations, our operating model is based in New Zealand market, where not all brands have that,” Williamson said.
New Zealand’s retail market was no doubt tough, which made Mocka’s offering ideal at this time, when consumers were wary of what they were spending and increasingly seeking value goods, she said.
The brand had a strong base of customers having their first baby, and with young children, and for those moving into their first homes, she said.
Despite the economic downturn and consumers having less discretionary income to spend, Mocka’s local sales grew 8% in last six months.
The brand is gearing up to expand its product range, to launch outdoor toys and gifting goods ahead of Christmas.
“When we see consumers and their wallet coming under pressure, we actually see that Mocka is positioned in a good space for that. As a category, when we've seen consumers' wallets coming under pressure, and perhaps they have to make choices about holidays or other big purchases, we find they often go inwards to the home, choosing to do small styling or renovations.”