Glenn Yeatman with members of the Solomons Gold team.<\/p>\n
Yeatman said customers recognised the value of buying local products made with high-quality ingredients. <\/p>\n
\u201cOur prices are very well-priced despite the fact it is a premium product.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re encouraged by customers who see the value and the health benefits in buying not just local, but real chocolate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yeatman said the company\u2019s loyal customer base had grown through social media in the past nine months, helping build its profile locally.<\/p>\n
Demand remained steady, keeping prices stable while rising operating costs put pressure on the business.<\/p>\n
Power, insurance and other overheads had climbed sharply. Cocoa bean prices surged nearly 300% between 2023 and 2024 before easing slightly, but remained historically high.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t just buy it when it\u2019s at its lowest and not buy it when it\u2019s at its highest.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yeatman said the business had continued to absorb the hit to spare customers.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve kept our price constant. We\u2019ve taken the hit for the good of the company and for the good of building up the brand.\u201d<\/p>\n
The business instead focused on efficiency to offset the increased costs.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs you grow, you redefine the steps and find better ways of doing things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mon’s Flavors founder Monisha Sharma. <\/p>\n
Rotorua premium spice company Mon\u2019s Flavors is facing similar challenges as rising costs continue to hit small producers.<\/p>\n
Founder Monisha Sharma\u2019s handmade certified organic spice blends, which retail for between $17.50 and $22 a jar, are sold online, at farmers\u2019 markets and at food shows. <\/p>\n
She said customers had become more cautious with discretionary spending, yet business had remained strong. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere has been a dip down in the website orders, and I don\u2019t blame them.\u201d <\/p>\n
Sharma said customers viewed the blends as an investment, with one jar covering multiple meals and replacing several spices.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople see $17.50, but they\u2019re not buying all those separate spices that sit in the pantry and get used once.\u201d<\/p>\n
The biggest challenge, she said, had been the rising cost of certified organic ingredients from overseas. <\/p>\n
\u201cEvery time I get an invoice, the prices have increased. <\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes I do think, \u2018Why did I choose organic?\u2019 But that\u2019s not me. I can\u2019t build my company around organic products and then suddenly switch.\u201d <\/p>\n
Sharma said rising freight costs had added to the pressure, as her small business could not afford to hold large amounts of stock. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re ordering three or four kilograms at a time, not 50kg. Obviously, the price is going to be higher.\u201d <\/p>\n
Monisha Sharma is the founder of Rotorua business Mons Flavors, which won the Label and Litho drink champion title for its golden honey at the Outstanding Food Producer Awards 2026. <\/p>\n
Although she had increased prices, Sharma said there was only so much she could pass on to customers already feeling the pinch. <\/p>\n
\u201cPeople think because a product costs $20 we\u2019re making a huge margin, but that\u2019s not true.\u201d <\/p>\n
Tauranga organic retailer Simply Organic\u2019s store manager, Laura Bougourd, said adapting to changing shopping habits has been key to weathering the tougher economic climate.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have a lot of conversations with our customers who want to consume a better quality product, not only to benefit themselves but to make a healthier choice for their families.\u201d<\/p>\n
She said purchasing habits had always evolved alongside changing economic conditions. There had been a rise in dry goods purchases in bulk during Covid and more online shopping after fuel prices spiked. <\/p>\n
Bougourd believed New Zealanders were tightening their budgets while still trying to eat well.<\/p>\n
The business now offered regular online discount codes, in-store promotions, discounted bulk dry goods and affordable vegetable boxes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe understand the conflict between wanting to reduce expenses whilst trying to eat well.\u201d <\/p>\n
Bougourd said busy lifestyles and growing awareness of health and nutrition were also driving more people to shop for natural products.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe key to surviving in this economic climate is to listen to what your customers are asking for, watch the market closely and quickly adapt.\u201d <\/p>\n
Ricco Gourmet Foods has also adjusted to more cautious consumer spending, with customers becoming more selective about what they add to the basket. <\/p>\n
Owner Priti Vekaria said customers still valued authentic local and international products but were paying closer attention to how they spent money.<\/p>\n
\u201cCustomers still appreciate quality, authentic products and are interested in trying new flavours and international foods. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat said, we\u2019ve noticed shoppers are becoming more mindful of their spending due to the higher cost of living.\u201d <\/p>\n
She said customers reserved gourmet purchases for special occasions, but people still enjoyed cooking at home and were willing to spend on quality ingredients that elevated everyday meals. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe remain optimistic about the future and are continuing to invest in bringing unique local and international gourmet products to the Bay of Plenty.\u201d<\/p>\n
Zoe Blake is a multimedia journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Glenn Yeatman with members of the Solomons Gold team. Yeatman said customers recognised the value of buying local…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":536642,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[1561,138,10166,24747,564,32934,111,139,69,1118,1562,8780,56425,223],"class_list":["post-536641","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-bay","tag-business","tag-businesses","tag-costofliving","tag-food","tag-navigate","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-of","tag-plenty","tag-premium","tag-squeeze","tag-the"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/536641","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=536641"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/536641\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/536642"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=536641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=536641"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=536641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}