For some reason, I have been hedging a bit about writing this post. I couldn’t figure out why and then I reread the last and I realised that I had committed to discussing GST. Sigh. Why did I do that? I am not very administratively inclined. My husband is the minister of finance in our home and so these sorts of things come naturally to him – you know, willingly talking about aforementioned subjects. Perhaps this is a good place to introduce him as my co-blogger and let him explain the intricacies of all things financial, business and maybe even political?

I’ll take a small stab at it for now and cover a couple of basics very swiftly before moving on to quickly mention sales, The Warehouse and then, perhaps, we can talk about pav (pavlova) – back to food – a subject I am most happy to scribble more than a few notes on!

In a nutshell, GST stands for Goods and Services Tax which is a value-added tax (i.e. VAT in SA). It is currently 15%. When purchasing goods and/or services in New Zealand you will pay 15% GST.

Which brings me to another tax you should probably be aware of – fuel tax and the Auckland regional fuel tax – a regional fuel tax introduced by the relatively new to office labour government. Now I am no political commentator so I’ll stick to the bare facts and leave it at that: Auckland fuel tax (will obviously only affect you if you are headed to that region) will see you pay an extra 10 cents/litre (plus GST) on petrol or diesel sold within the region – this was introduced on 01 July 2018 to help fund Auckland transport projects. However slow the progress may be, they are trying to address the problem and the only reason I make mention of this is that it has been a fairly hot topic. Especially if you live south of Auckland. First world problems, eh?

From having to spend to wanting to spend – all you shopping inclined people will be happy to know that NZ is big on sales. There is always a deal to be had somewhere. Whether it be something for your car, home, wardrobe or belly, if you shop around, keep an eye on the junk mail in your post box or even on the tele in the evenings you will probably be able to find what you are looking for at a reasonably reduced price. Husband is adamant one should never pay full price for anything in NZ. Of course, this is particularly rewarding for those happy to exercise a little patience, just in case what you need or want does not happen to be on sale at this exact moment. If it’s not on sale, just wait. If you can… I needed some brown winter boots, but I needed them yesterday. So, I bought a comfy pair, full price – from the local shoe store – only to have that ‘oh dear’ feeling when I saw them advertised around a month later at, well, a lot cheaper. Sigh. Planning and patience will save you more than a few bucks. That being said – I did score, on the Briscoes (home store/home appliances – Mr Price Home, Woollies, Home Etc) deal on bedding last month – over $1000 worth of bedding for half the price – sweet as!

The Warehouse is another local store we frequent – kind of like Game / Macro. They too run plenty of specials and one can easily grab a few household essentials for a relatively good price. Yes, you can buy some food stuff there too. Talking of food, I think I may run over my self-induced word limit if I start on that topic at this point so the pav will have to wait…

Bits and bobs:

Scout out some prices – these stores have online shopping too so you can do your homework.

Briscoes – Homeware and home accessories stores

The Warehouse – like Game / Macro – can get just about anything there, often have sales – big post-Christmas sales

Mitre 10 (and Mitre 10 Mega) – similar to Builders Warehouse – good hardware store, also sell some homeware, plant nursery etc

Farmers – a lot like SA Woolworths, I’d say. Dearer (more expensive) but Thursday’s are their specials day – great half-price children’s clothing deals etc

Farmlands – a co-op – rural supplies (stock good gumboots too!)

Postie Plus – cheaper clothing store

Number One Shoes – yep – it’s a shoe shop. Like their buy-one-get-one-half-price type specials – handy when getting kids shoes for the season

 

Tip – sending postal packages from SA to NZ can be very expensive (on the SA side- just ask my Mom!) and sometimes they get opened and checked before delivery this side (we have experienced this, but beside the packaging being opened, all contents were accounted for) – anyway, we have found that online shopping and delivery is a great way for grandparents to spoil their grandbabies on birthdays and at Christmas, when they are so far away and can’t do it in person.