Businesses are collapsing at a pace the country hasn’t seen in over a decade — and the list of casualties keeps growing. Once-thriving companies that managed to survive the Covid-19 lockdowns are now crumbling under the pressure of soaring inflation and a sluggish economy that refuses to bounce back.
According to the latest figures, 2,278 companies have gone into liquidation in the 12 months leading up to October 31, 2025 — a staggering number that signals the steepest wave of closures in 15 years. The trend marks a painful turning point for many New Zealand businesses that had weathered the pandemic only to be undone by relentless cost increases and stagnant growth.
At the center of this unsettling rise in failures is a familiar story: high operational costs, low consumer spending, and diminished confidence in the post-pandemic recovery. Take, for example, Kitchen Things on Morrow Street in Newmarket — once a well-known retail name, now placed under receivership as of August 2025. Its closure is more than a one-off case; it’s a symbol of how even established brands are struggling to keep the lights on.
But here’s where it gets controversial: Are these liquidations simply the result of market correction after years of artificial survival through government support? Or do they point to deeper, systemic weaknesses in the nation’s economic policy? Many analysts warn that what we’re seeing now isn’t just a blip — it could be a structural shift in how small and medium-sized enterprises operate in New Zealand’s changing economy.
And this is the part most people miss: while headlines focus on the biggest names going under, thousands of lesser-known small businesses are quietly folding, taking jobs, dreams, and years of hard work with them.
Are we witnessing an inevitable cleansing of the business landscape, or a sign that policymakers failed to anticipate post-pandemic economic realities? The debate is far from over — what’s your take on it?
