One relic from that era is Strangely Normal, a vintage menswear label founded in 1977 that is known for its 1950s-inspired clothing.<\/p>\n
Michael Cox founded vintage menswear label Strangely Normal in 1977. Photo \/ RNZ, Yiting Lin<\/p>\n
The label\u2019s founder, 72-year-old Michael Cox, began selling clothes at the Cook St Market before opening his first store on Hobson St in 1979.<\/p>\n
Cox moved to the current O\u2019Connell St location in 2006, where he still greets customers and remembers the district\u2019s golden years.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I was a teenager, I used to come and buy clothes,\u201d he said. \u201cI would go to Vulcan Lane.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was a store called His Lordship\u2019s. They used to do very mod-looking shirts and trousers. I used to go there and shop \u2013 that\u2019s like 50 years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
But with many of the area\u2019s iconic boutiques and labels \u2013 Zambesi, World, Kate Sylvester and Karen Walker \u2013 having long since moved on, Cox said High St was no longer what it once was.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere used to be so many different labels here,\u201d he said. \u201cKaren Walker was next door, where the coffee shop is now.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think High St is as interesting as it used to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vulcan Lane, which runs from High Street to Queen Street, comes alive at night with bars and eateries. Photo \/ RNZ, Yiting Lin<\/p>\n
Cox said his business had been hit hard this year, having been battered by the economic downturn, the lingering effects of the pandemic, the disruption from the City Rail Link construction and ongoing parking issues in Auckland\u2019s city centre.<\/p>\n
He had thought more than once about moving on but, each time, he chose to stay.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had two ladies come in today,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne customer lives in Nelson and she was in Auckland, she just came in to buy her partner a shirt \u2026 that\u2019s his Christmas present,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019d be a lot of people disappointed if they turned up and we weren\u2019t here,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know if I\u2019m going to be here in two years. But, at the moment, we\u2019ll stay.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another long-standing menswear retailer holding ground in the High St precinct is Crane Brothers.<\/p>\n
Founded in 1999, the brand is known for its meticulous approach to men\u2019s tailoring.<\/p>\n
The fashion outlet recently renewed its High St lease for another 25 years.<\/p>\n
The store sits on High St, inside the century-old Hotel DeBrett building, a heritage landmark that has quietly witnessed the district\u2019s many evolutions.<\/p>\n
Owner Murray Crane said while High St had evolved, with many established boutiques relocating to Britomart, Commercial Bay and Newmarket, it remained the right place for him to build a business with staying power.<\/p>\n
\u201cHigh St is always evolving, it\u2019s always changing,\u201d he said. \u201cIt goes through stages of being fully tenanted and then a little bit empty, and then new people come in and open, start new businesses.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s still a good kind of vibrant area, it\u2019s still very creative. It always has its own energy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Crane said Auckland\u2019s fashion landscape had also shifted over the years from a centralised hub in the city centre to a more dispersed scene across the wider city.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we started here, there was no Commercial Bay, no Britomart,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was a lot more centralised.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut the fashion industry has changed a lot in NZ as well,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen an influx of international brands and big brand retailers. So it\u2019s definitely a bit more spread than what it used to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
The cobbled laneways to the east of Queen Street have become a magnet for a new wave of Asian eateries that have sprung up along Lorne Street. Photo \/ RNZ, Yiting Lin<\/p>\n
Crane said the retail sector had been hit hard by the pandemic and continued to face challenges in the city centre, from parking shortages to shifting foot traffic.<\/p>\n
However, he remained confident in his vision to build a label that will be recognised for generations to come.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re trying to build something that has … longevity,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ll be here for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n
As Auckland\u2019s downtown population changed, Crane said he had noticed a welcome shift in his customer base \u2013 particularly the growth of Asian clientele.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re quite niche with our clients, because we generally deal with men aged between a certain age,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut we\u2019ve seen the Chinese community and the wider Asian community shop with us more and more.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s become a strong part of our business. We really like that diversity.\u201d<\/p>\n
The diversity and vitality of today\u2019s High St have also attracted a new generation drawn to its distinctive character.<\/p>\n
In recent years, a wave of Asian eateries has infused the historic precinct with new energy and flavour.<\/p>\n
Bubble tea \u2013 the sweet, tea-based drink that originated in East Asia and is typically made with milk, black tea and chewy tapioca pearls \u2013 has surged in popularity across Auckland.<\/p>\n
Several brands, including Hulu Cat, Meet Fresh, Gong Cha, and Machi Machi, have opened outlets in the city centre.<\/p>\n
CoCo Fresh Tea & Juice, a global bubble tea franchise founded in Taiwan, opened its third Auckland store on High St in 2023.<\/p>\n
Candy Li, the store\u2019s director, said she chose High St because Auckland\u2019s city centre was where her journey began as an international student 14 years ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m a first-generation immigrant,\u201d she said. \u201cWhen I first arrived on Queen St, I remember standing there and thinking, \u2018When you\u2019re here, you really do have that ambition to work hard and make something of yourself\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
Li said the bubble tea market in Auckland had grown rapidly since 2017 and had now become a mainstream drink for many New Zealanders \u2013 another reason she decided to start her own business.<\/p>\n
She said the changing demographics of Auckland\u2019s city centre had also contributed to the rise of Asian eateries in the area.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe target customers for bubble tea are teenagers, high school students and college students,\u201d Li said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis precinct is close to two universities – the University of Auckland and Auckland University of Technology – that bring a lot of young customers to my business.\u201d<\/p>\n
Li said that several boutique clothing stores near her bubble tea shop had closed since she opened two years ago, a trend she attributed to the economic downturn hitting the high-fashion market particularly hard.<\/p>\n
Frank Fan, owner of the Chinese hot pot restaurant Pandaroll Running Pot, agreed.<\/p>\n
He said the restaurant, which opened in October on Lorne St, was inspired by Japan\u2019s sushi train concept. It serves fresh vegetables and meats for hot pot on a sleek conveyor belt, offering diners a creative and affordable experience in Auckland\u2019s city centre.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe rotating hot pot fits the current economic environment quite well,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s not fine dining \u2013 it costs only about $30 per person. We opened in the city centre to target students, and it\u2019s a very suitable business model for the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fan said that while hot pot is a common dish in Asia, it had gradually gained acceptance among New Zealanders.<\/p>\n
About 60% of his customers were Asian, with the remainder being European, he said.<\/p>\n
Speaking about opening a Chinese restaurant in the city centre near High St \u2013 once the heart of Auckland\u2019s fashion scene \u2013 he said he was pleased to represent \u201cfashion\u201d in another creative form \u2013 through Chinese food and culture.<\/p>\n
\u201cFashion isn\u2019t just about clothes and jewellery \u2013 it\u2019s also about things like food and freshness,\u201d he said. \u201cI think New Zealanders would love to see new things opening up here.\u201d<\/p>\n
Taier Sichuan Cuisine, a Chinese restaurant franchise specialising in sauerkraut fish, opened its first NZ location in September on Auckland\u2019s Lorne St.<\/p>\n
Ronnie Kang, the restaurant\u2019s co-founder, said the city centre felt far quieter now compared with 15 years ago, when she was an international student.<\/p>\n
She said that was one of the reasons she wanted to bring a well-known Chinese restaurant brand to Auckland.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Chinese community is familiar with us,\u201d she said. \u201cWe want to bring Chinese customers a taste of home and a sense of belonging.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also want more locals to get to know this new Chinese restaurant brand,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Kang said that although the restaurant had only been open for a short time, foot traffic had exceeded her expectations, particularly during the first month.<\/p>\n
\u201cOn our busiest day, we served between 600 and 700 customers,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want Auckland\u2019s city centre to thrive again,\u201d she said. \u201cWe hope our restaurant can help bring even more life to the city.\u201d<\/p>\n
Crane said Lorne St could one day evolve into Auckland\u2019s Chinatown, a development that would benefit the city\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not such a big fan of all the eateries,\u201d he said. \u201cBut what we\u2019re starting to see now is more of a nighttime economy too.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHigh St\u2019s not just about what\u2019s happening during the day,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s also very vibrant in the evenings. Whether it\u2019s Korean barbecue, bubble tea or Japanese [dining], there\u2019s a lot of food offering here.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got a coffee culture during the day and a food culture at night,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhich is good, we just need to get the balance right between retail and food.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cox agreed.<\/p>\n
He said that while Asian diners might not be the key customers for his vintage clothing shop, the growing number of eateries opening in the High St precinct had brought new nightlife, colour and energy to the city centre \u2013 something he welcomed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe city has to move into its next phase,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u2013 RNZ<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"One relic from that era is Strangely Normal, a vintage menswear label founded in 1977 that is known…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":196015,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[6213,51,33451,60002,81902,156,1438,71,2959,111,139,69,56448,5424,61],"class_list":["post-196014","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-asian","tag-auckland","tag-boutiques","tag-duoya","tag-eateries","tag-entertainment","tag-fashion","tag-from","tag-high","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-precinct","tag-street","tag-to"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196014","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=196014"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/196014\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/196015"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=196014"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=196014"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=196014"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}