Trade Depot: The once-tiny Trade Me operation that’s now a Kiwi retail giant – how low prices have driven high growth

30 May, 2026

A 100% Kiwi-owned retailer is bucking economic trends with phenomenal growth from the humblest of starts. A massive new superstore is set to further transform the business.

On the western edge of Christchurch lies a field of dreams. On a 57,000-square-metre site near Hornby, grass has been cleared, and foundations have been laid for a monster new Kiwi retail depot – the biggest of its kind in the land.

In just over a year, a 43,000sq m retail depot and warehouse will be open to the public. The building will be the equivalent of more than five full-sized rugby pitches, or eight large supermarkets.

It will be about 25% bigger than the 34,000sq m flagship Ikea store at Auckland's Sylvia Park and about three times bigger than Costco at Auckland's Westgate.

From humble beginnings, a retail giant has risen. In 2008, Trade Depot was a modest retail operation, essentially a marketplace brand on Trade Me.

"It's certainly a lot bigger than what we first thought it could be ... you always have dreams of quite a big company, but it's really grown into it," says founder and executive director John Christie, with more than a touch of understatement.

Christie, a former Mitre 10 Takanini managing director, says he still pinches himself. "Definitely."

"The world keeps changing, doesn't it? We've just adapted to it. The dream was always there, but it's grown into this."

Over almost two decades, Trade Depot's growth has bucked economic trends. Even in the past year, its annual revenue growth has been around 30%, now totalling more than $150 million. It averaged 40,000 orders a month last year; it sold almost 70,000 refrigerators alone across the 12 months.

And despite three big retail depots in Auckland, Hamilton and one that will be replaced in Christchurch with the new superstore next year, it's largely been achieved away from the blaze of headlines.

"We're very fresh when it comes to all this," laughs Scott Riley, Trade Depot's chief executive, as he takes the NZ Herald on a guided tour of the depot in Onehunga on a recent Monday morning.

"We've been out of the limelight because we've just been building quietly and getting our formula right."

Trade Depot has comfortably found a gap in the market, with a sales model that cuts out a suite of ticket-clippers and middlemen. "Low Prices. Always", declares signage on its massive buildings.

"Something that was always big for me was that things were always so much dearer in New Zealand than, say, America and England," says Christie. "The opportunity came from trying to replicate the low prices in New Zealand."

A scan of Trade Depot's homepage reveals just how low those prices are. Dishwashers for $299; complete bathroom packages (shower, vanity and toilet) for $1195; fridge freezers from $315.

Riley explains the usual costs that can enter the equation in a retail business: manufacturer, brand owner, importer/wholesaler, and retailer.

Trade Depot aims to excise most of these. "We try to bring the consumer as close to the factory as possible.

"The whole thing in not having showrooms throughout the country has helped us. Digitalisation and online drives a lot of efficiencies.

"And by having massive buildings – having distribution and a showroom in one place – [that means that] every time you grow, of course, your fixed costs get lower."

Riley says the overlap with competitors is small, but there are a lot of them. "When I look at competitors, I don't necessarily look at people who sell the same product; I look at people who have phenomenal technology, phenomenal service, amazing logistics. I'm inspired more by how they operate than just what they sell."

He and Christie closely study those retail and customer service trends around the world, taking inspiration from the likes of Amazon, Ikea and Costco.

They've also purposely stayed close to the business – it's common to see them serving customers. "The customer's the most important thing. We want to bleed for that, and not just say it," Riley says.

Christie adds: "If a guy's hidden in an office tower and doesn't know his customers, he's not going to be as useful."

The company is also determined to ensure its stock is of high quality. It offers Chinese-owned Midea home appliances – Midea is the world's largest manufacturer of smart home appliances – and it has a range of its own proprietary brands.

At the same time, it's trying to keep choices simple for customers.

"When I used to go to a home improvement store, you'd go to a shelf, and there'd be 30 or 40 hammers," Riley says. "We have the best hammer we can buy, and we have maybe a red one and a blue one."

The company has about 180 staff spread across Auckland, Hamilton and Christchurch. This will edge over 200 once the Christchurch superstore opens in July 2027.

The Hamilton superstore opened four years ago and has provided valuable guidance for the Christchurch build. Like the Canterbury project, the Hamilton building is near a main road and airport. Customers travel from many parts of the North Island to Hamilton; the Christchurch superstore is expected to be a similar beacon for South Islanders.

'Skin in the game is pretty important'

Trade Depot is 100% New Zealand-owned. Christie and his wife, Melissa, own the majority of the business, but other shareholders include about 20 executives and staff.

"It's a team. I think it's a fantastic thing," Christie says. "Skin in the game is pretty important."

The company started with a focus on kitchens, bathrooms and home appliances, but has expanded into power tools, smart TVs, indoor and outdoor furniture and, perhaps most intriguingly and more recently, solar panels.

"We've only been doing solar for about 12 months, but we've hit the ground running with it," Riley says.

Rising energy prices have led to a spike in interest in solar panels, particularly now that costs have been lowered with a range of economical technologies.

"The growth is just absolutely phenomenal," Riley says.

"We get into something, and we don't want to do it by half. We have massive aspirations there: 80% of our solar business has been residential, but we expect commercial solar to play a much larger part going forward."

Riley also highlights the solar move as an example of where Trade Depot tries to make life easier for consumers.

"Traditionally, you have to do a consultation, you have to go into a store. You can't even go and look for a price. It's like, 'No, you have to call up,' and then when you call up, they say, 'Oh no, we have to come and do a sit-down with you,' and you have to sit through a 30-minute presentation, and then you still don't come up with a price.

"We just try to simplify it, and use digital tools to be able to give you just a really cool guide of probably what you're in for – and we'll do it really early."

As Trade Depot's momentum continues to build – Christie estimates revenue will double in the next four years – it's always on the lookout for the next big retail opportunities and trends.

"I can see curtains, carpets and blinds certainly being a really easy transition and then more outdoor furniture," Riley says.

On the day of the Herald meeting, Christie is preparing to fly to China that evening for a round of trade shows and meetings.

As for consumers, we've become a lot smarter, shopping around on the internet for the best deal. Some 90% of all Trade Depot purchases now originate with online inquiries, Riley estimates.

Kiwis are still, also, big DIYers. "Yes," he says, "but we also know when to maybe pass the hammer to someone else."

As the company prepares for its new Christchurch superstore, it's also keeping an eye out for a suitable location in Auckland to expand. It's simply outgrown its current site.

"A lot of the time, you'll struggle to find a park here any day of the week, but then on Saturday it's so full on," Riley says.

"There are queues out to the road all the way down the driveway, and we have three traffic controllers just trying to squeeze customers into every car park we can.

"Look, it's kind of a good problem to have, but at the same time, we are over-trading in this humble store."

Despite the company's success in recent years, he acknowledges that consumer confidence is yet to turn a corner. Trade Depot is paddling hard to maintain its growth.

"There's definitely some light at the end of the tunnel. We're probably a bit of an outlier. I know that some manufacturers we deal with have clients in both New Zealand and Australia who probably tell a completely opposite story."

Christie adds of the general economy: "It's certainly going to pick up at some stage. The last three years have been obviously very tough for consumers and homeowners, but what's proven over time is the sun always does come up on the economy."

Read the article on NZ Herald →.