Retail

Advisory, tax and accounting services for retailers

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Helping New Zealand retailers survive change and thrive

New Zealand's retail sector is being reshaped by changing customer expectations, new technology, alternative sales channels, rising costs and tighter margins. These changes bring real pressure, but they also create opportunities for retailers who understand their numbers, their customers and their direction.

BDO's retail advisers help you improve profitability, manage cash flow, use retail data more effectively and make confident business decisions as customer demand grows. We combine strategic advisory, tax and accounting support with practical retail sector experience, so you can strengthen performance and build a more resilient business.

Practical support for every stage of your retail journey

Understand what is really driving your margins

Strong sales do not always mean strong profit. Higher costs, wage pressure, discounting, stock decisions and changing customer behaviour can all affect the bottom line.

We help you assess product mix, margins, overheads, pricing, store performance and business processes. This includes performance improvement, process review and mapping, data analytics and practical business advisory support to identify where profit is being gained, lost or left on the table.

  • Review product and category profitability.
  • Identify opportunities to improve margins and operating efficiency.
  • Assess overheads, wage costs and cost structures.
  • Review pricing, discounting and product mix decisions.
  • Use business performance insights to support practical action.

Build more confidence around working capital

Cash flow is one of the most common pressure points for retailers. Seasonal demand, stock purchases, supplier terms, debt obligations and slower trading periods can all affect how much cash is available when you need it.

BDO can support cash flow management advice and forecasting, debt repayment advice and debt structuring. We help you understand your cash position, plan ahead and make better decisions about funding, inventory and growth.

  • Prepare cash flow forecasts and financial scenarios.
  • Review debt repayment and structuring options.
  • Understand how inventory decisions affect working capital.
  • Plan for seasonal peaks and quieter trading periods.
  • Identify practical ways to improve cash flow management.

Use your data to understand customers, stock and performance

Retail businesses generate valuable data every day through point of sale systems, customer interactions, stock movement, staffing patterns and marketing activity. The challenge is turning that information into insight you can use.

Data is an integral part of BDO's retail advisory offering. We help you use data analytics to understand product margins, customer traffic, peak trading times, sales staff performance, marketing effectiveness, trends and opportunities for future growth.

  • Analyse product mix and product margins.
  • Use point of sale data to identify sales trends and staff performance insights.
  • Understand customer behaviour and store traffic patterns.
  • Assess marketing campaign performance.
  • Use industry and benchmark data to support better decision-making.

Create better experiences across every channel

Growing retail sales is about more than attracting more customers. It is about understanding how customers shop, what they value and what will keep them coming back.

We help you review customer experience, store layout, product placement, retail channel performance and e-commerce opportunities. This includes looking at how in-store, online and multichannel activity can support your wider business goals.

  • Review how customers interact with your store or channels.
  • Identify opportunities to improve product placement and conversion.
  • Assess online versus bricks and mortar opportunities.
  • Consider e-commerce and omnichannel retail strategy.
  • Improve customer experience while protecting margin.

Reduce risk while staying ready for change

Retailers face financial, operational, cyber, compliance and people-related risks. As the sector changes, risk management needs to be practical and connected to everyday decision-making.

BDO can support risk management, forensic services, business restructuring, process review and mapping, and wider advisory support. We help you identify the risks that matter most and take practical steps to protect your business.

  • Review business risks, controls and processes.
  • Assess cyber security and technology-related risks.
  • Support business restructuring where required.
  • Provide forensic services and risk advice where appropriate.
  • Build resilience for changing market conditions.

Make confident decisions about the future of your retail business

Retail owners often need support when planning for growth, acquisition, sale, succession or ownership transition. These decisions can be complex and have long-term financial, operational and personal implications.

BDO can support merger and acquisition services, corporate finance, valuations and succession planning. We help you understand your options and make informed decisions about the next stage of your business.

  • Assess growth and acquisition opportunities.
  • Support merger and acquisition decisions.
  • Provide corporate finance advice.
  • Assist with business valuations.
  • Plan for succession and ownership transition.

Choose systems that support your goals and cash flow

Retail technology can improve efficiency, reporting, customer experience and profitability. But choosing the wrong system, or implementing it poorly, can create cost, complexity and disruption.

BDO's technology advisory support can help you understand which retail technologies will best support your wider strategy and how to make better use of your current systems. This may include point of sale systems, inventory management, reporting tools, accounting platforms, e-commerce systems and data analytics software.

  • Assess which retail technologies support your business strategy.
  • Review current systems, reporting and integrations.
  • Support inventory management and point of sale improvements.
  • Help you make better use of accounting and analytics platforms such as MYOB, Xero, SAP, Triquester and Microsoft Navision where relevant.
  • Use technology to improve visibility, efficiency and decision-making.

Keep your financial foundations strong

Alongside strategic retail advisory, BDO provides tax and accounting support for retailers. This helps you keep the foundations of your business strong while making better decisions about performance, growth and risk.

Our tax and accounting support includes compliance, indirect taxes, pre year-end tax planning, tax returns, tax provision and deferred tax preparation and review, tax policy advice, and traditional and technical accounting services.

How BDO helps retailers

Our retail specialists bring together advisory, tax, accounting, technology and data analytics expertise. Depending on your needs, we can support you with:

Who we work with

BDO works with a range of New Zealand SME retailers across franchise and non-franchise models. This includes FMCG and supermarket operators, slow moving consumer goods retailers, fuel retailers, pharmacies, timber merchants, fast food businesses and service providers.

These retailers may differ in size, structure and turnover, but they often share the same goal: staying ahead of industry change and making their retail business the best it can be.

Client case studies

woman being interviewed at retail garden centre

BDO Business Performance Index - Retail Sector Report

While the retail sector has been hard hit by New Zealand's economic challenges, our latest Index shows some positivity may be returning to the sector. Find out more in the Retail Sector findings of our BDO Business Performance Index.

View insights
retail business meeting in cafe

Behind the numbers in retail

With inflation, high interest rates and increasing staff costs, there are many challenges retailers are grappling with as they seek to remain profitable. But while retail businesses can’t control the economy, what they can control is their own numbers. 


Learn how to manage your numbers and cash flow to make sure that you can remain profitable, despite the economic uncertainty currently in play in Aotearoa.

Read the article here

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