From survival to optimism In Hamilton’s CBD

Tuesday, 14 July 2026

Penny Mahoney opened Lab Brow Bar in Hamilton CBD in 2020, nine weeks before lockdown.

Penny Mahoney is the founder of Lab Brow Bar.

OPINION: For a long time, it felt like every conversation about the Hamilton CBD started with what was wrong with it. Empty shops. Roadworks. Parking. The economy. COVID.

As someone who opened a business in the CBD just nine weeks before New Zealand went into lockdown, I understand why. When we opened the original Lab Brow Bar on Barton Street in early 2020, we were full of excitement and nervous energy. We believed in the city. We believed in the location. We believed there was room for a specialist beauty business in the heart of Hamilton.

Then, almost overnight, everything changed.

‘For the first time in a long time, I find myself looking around the Hamilton CBD with genuine excitement,’ Penny Mahoney says.

Like many CBD businesses, we spent the years that followed simply trying to keep going. We navigated lockdowns, restrictions, uncertainty, rising costs, staffing challenges, inflation, and recession. Some days felt like survival. Some weeks felt impossible.

There were moments where optimism felt hard to hold onto. When foot traffic was quiet, when people were cautious with spending, when the streets felt disrupted, it was easy to understand why the conversation around the CBD had become so negative.

Yet here we are. Six years later, we are still here, and for the first time in a long time, I find myself looking around the Hamilton CBD with genuine excitement.

Hamilton feels different.

Big changes like the opening of the BNZ Theatre have made a difference.

Hamilton’s Lab Brow Bar is in Barton St.

Not because every problem has been solved. Not because business is suddenly easy. It isn’t. But because there is life returning to the city centre in a way that feels real.

You can feel it walking down Victoria Street. You can see it in restaurants that are full on a Friday night. You can see it in people lingering a little longer, meeting friends, going out after work, and choosing to spend time in the city again.

You can also see it in the independent businesses opening their doors and taking a chance on the CBD. That takes courage, especially in this climate. Every new shopfront, salon, cafe, bar, or creative space adds another reason for people to come in and another reason for them to stay.

The bigger changes happening around us matter too.

The opening of the stunning new BNZ Theatre feels significant. Not just because of the performances, but because of what it represents for the city. It brings people into the CBD. It gives them a reason to come in early, have dinner, walk the streets, grab a drink afterwards, and experience the city centre as a destination again.

The city feels ‘more alive, more social, and more connected,’ Penny Mahoney says.

That kind of energy flows into everything around it.

At the same time, it feels like Hamilton is finally reconnecting with something that has always been one of its greatest strengths: the river.

For years, we had this incredible natural asset running through the middle of the city, but it didn’t always feel like part of everyday CBD life. Now, with more activity, more spaces opening up, and more people spending time along the river, it feels like we are starting to embrace it properly.

That shift matters. It makes the city feel more alive, more social, and more connected.

The businesses that stayed through the hard years deserve to feel proud of what they have helped build. The people who continued investing in the city deserve credit. The customers who chose to support local businesses when times were tough helped keep many of us alive.

For a long time, there was a perception that people came into town for work and then left. Now we are seeing more reasons for people to stay. To wander. To discover businesses they may never have noticed before.

That is how a city centre grows. Not through one single moment, but through lots of small ones. A show. A dinner. A haircut. A brow appointment. A coffee. A walk by the river. A new store opening. A family coming into town on a Saturday.

Of course, there are still challenges ahead. Operating costs remain high. Consumer spending is cautious. Many businesses are still working incredibly hard just to maintain momentum. But I think it is important to acknowledge progress when we see it.

The Hamilton CBD today is not the same CBD we opened into in 2020. It feels stronger. More hopeful. More connected. And after everything this city and its businesses have been through, I think that is something worth celebrating.